2,000 people waiting for social housing
Thousands of people are stuck on waiting lists for social housing in Sunderland as bosses struggle to balance supply and demand.
On January 18, Sunderland City Council’s Health and Wellbeing Board heard an update on social housing in the city.
The report, presented to health bosses and councillors, revealed more than 2,000 people are waiting for social housing that meets their needs.
Of this number, 44% want a house and 29% are looking for a bungalow.
Senior housing manager for peoples’ services on the council, Liz McEvoy, speaking at Sunderland Civic Centre, said the council is facing an “imbalance” around supply and demand.
This includes the number of new homes being built set against the loss of stock through ‘right to buy’.
“We have 2,000 people on our housing register who are awaiting social housing, a lot of them are waiting for bungalows. We do have issues with housing supply and demand but we’re doing a lot to have a look at increasing the supply.”
Currently, social housing makes up 28% of the council’s overall stock at 34,440 homes – a figure higher than the national average of 17%.
Recent findings from a Strategic Housing Market Assessment (2017) said there was an imbalance of 542 affordable homes per year in Sunderland – with about 40% of households unable to pay an average affordable rent.
While there is no formal affordable housing development programme in Sunderland, actions are being taken to tackle the imbalance This includes working with social landlords and using ‘section 106’ funds from developers – sums agreed during the planning process – to bring empty homes into use.
The ‘local authority accelerated construction pro- gramme’ also aims to speed up housebuilding in Sunderland with around 100 extra affordable homes set for completion by March 2021.
The council’s housing stock was transferred to Gentoo in 2001, with the firm currently owning 28,932 properties which are let at affordable rents or in shared ownership.
Several other social landlords also operate in Sunderland including Bernicia, Home, Karbon, Thirteen and County Durham Homes.
Looking forward, new housing tests will take place to give a up to date picture of supply and demand in the city. Following discussion, health and housing bosses pledged to work together to tackle housing needs and issues in the social sector.
A council report adds: “Although there is still an affordable housing imbalance, there is a growth in the development of social housing, largely due to funding from Homes England and the availability of council owned land. ”