Our complicated housing crisis. Just pondering.
1/13 Significant Govt investment in bringing long term @emptyhomes (over 250k currently) back into good condition to be used by councils as social housing

2/13 Prioritise brownfield sites (excluding urban green/community spaces) c. 1 million homes purely as social housing and truly affordable homes.

3/13 Support CLTs & small scale devs in urban/rural areas who work with communities to build the homes each community needs via organic growth, focusing on 1st time buyers, social housing, almshouses & accessible homes for downsizers to free up larger properties into the market.

4/13 Legislate that all new builds (houses & workspaces) have to be to Passivhaus standards. With underground water storage tanks & rain/greywater recycling. Cheaper at point of build & we are going to have to do it at some point. So, do it now.

5/13 All new builds to include bat, swift, sparrow boxes. All boundaries use native species hedging rather than fencing. Each with a small, shallow pond in the garden, & enough space for a tree & a veg patch

6/13 For every development over 5 houses the developer has to pay into a sustainable transport fund. These funds are ringfenced and used solely to provide sustainable transport options to or close to the development.

7/13 Any large development permitted in a location that less than ¼ mile from an existing bus service has to fund a bus service for 5 years.

8/13 No large development is permitted unless they include Chris Boardman approved cycling infrastructure to the closest school, town, station.

9/13. Any development over a specified size includes a fixed % of homes designed specifically for downsizers, first time buyers & social housing (not affordable housing at 80% of the market value)

10/13 If a development is granted planning permission by a council then that council, water authority must adopt the roads, sewerage infrastructure etc.

11/13 Retirement living dwellings – any designated retirement home/flats, when the purchaser dies offers a guaranteed buy back at 90% of the purchase price & any subsequent surcharges/charges are cancelled until the home is repurchased.