Letter: Policies on new homes in the Forest are so weak

SIR – People who are not in housing need are often accused of nimbyism when they object to new housing development, especially when much-needed affordable housing is proposed.

New Forest District Council has a poor record of delivery – every recent large local housing development has massively under-provided affordable housing after initially offering much more.

I worked at Reading Borough Council whose housing policies are strong and rigidly enforced and where developers know that if they don’t provide affordable housing, they don’t get planning permission.

That council formed a development company called Homes for Reading whose purpose was to get people out of temporary accommodation and into decent housing.

I gave evidence to the New Forest District Local Plan Examination in 2019 to argue that the council’s affordable housing policies were weak and to suggest how they could be strengthened – they weren’t.

Cicero Estates say they will deliver 50% affordable housing on site SS6 (A&T, 6th January) – this is a company which promotes on its own website its skill in "value engineering" its way out of providing affordable housing.

They present an economic viability report which enables them to wriggle out of their commitments and, in the case advertised on their website, provide no affordable housing and sell the site for more than double the original land value.

Cicero Estates promote and assemble sites and sell them on. If a planning consent is granted on SS6 we can expect an unnecessary and expensive link road, irreversible damage to our precious rural lanes, major development in our national park and little or no affordable housing.

Second home anyone?

Our town councillors say they are shortly going to consult on their Neighbourhood Plan. Will that include policies that specify no more retirement homes, an absolute minimum of 50% affordable housing, and no new housing to be used as second homes?

If Saint Ives can do it, why can’t Lymington and Pennington?

Bruce Tindall,

Pennington