Community Affordable Housing Scheme Gains Planning Consent
Oxfordshire Community Land Trust gained planning consent on Thursday evening (29/05) for its development off Eynsham Rd, Botley, of six apartments for affordable rent by local people priced out of the mainstream housing market.
New Planning Application Submitted
Following our planning application in October, we were advised by the Vale of White Horse to make some significant changes and to withdraw the original application and submit a new one.
After several months of discussion and meetings with planners, we have now submitted a new application. It is also for six units of 2 x 2 bedroomed flats and 4 x 1 bedroomed flats. The footprint of the building is reduced so that it is further from neighbouring homes and reduces the overlooking of adjacent gardens.
Planning application submitted
Just in time to celebrate the tenth anniversary of our first meeting at which we decided to form Oxfordshire Community Land Trust, we have finally submitted our planning application for six apartments on land to the rear of Eynsham Rd in Botley, west of Oxford!
It seems to have taken an age and a great deal of hard work, especially on Fran's part, holding us all together and prodding us each to do our bit when needed, but we are now at the mercy of the planners and councillors who will make the decision.
Design and Planning Public Consultation Event
The good news is that we have started the design process.
Housing Needs Analysis
Cumnor Parish Council will be conducting a new housing survey over the coming months. This will be done by Oxfordshire Rural Communities Council. Within the survey OCLT have some questions to find out who might be interested in moving into the six affordable rental properties we have on our site. Please make sure you complete the survey and send it back and please also get in touch with us if you are interested in securing one of the homes which we hope will be available sometime in 2014.
A Community Land Trust (a CLT) is an organisation set up to own and manage land by and for a local community. Through this organisation, the land is owned by the community in perpetuity and used for the explicit benefit of that community. It might be used for any purpose which benefits the community to which it is linked: housing, workspace, leisure or horticulture. There are various legal structures which can underpin a CLT (read more) but one key aspect of the idea is that the land cannot be sold off for private gain. Through this mechanism (called an asset lock), the CLT aims to ensure permanent and affordable access to the land for whichever purpose the community needs.
One of the biggest needs, even in this time of recession, is to provide land for affordable housing. Increasing numbers of working people find it difficult or impossible to find a secure and affordable place to live. There is also a great shortage of social housing and many working families have no access to them. (read more section to include stats about numbers waiting in Oxon, ratios of average price to av earnings). CLTs offer a way to provide permanently affordable land (it is permanently owned by the community so doesn’t keep going up in value) for housing and other local needs.
A CLT organisation is set up by a local group of people who get together to DO something to ensure there are more affordable assets for that community. These could be for housing, workspace, food production or leisure. There are various legal mechanisms which can underpin this. OCLT is an Industrial and Provident Society for the Benefit of the Community.
We were registered as an Industrial and Provident society in December 2004 and have been meeting regularly ever since (read more about who we are). In June 2008 we began the process of acquiring a small piece of land in Cumnor Parish (read more under Projects). We aim to build half a dozen affordable homes on this land once Thames Water has replaced the current sewage system. We hope to be able to begin on site by 2012.