First of its kind – Ground-breaking scheme for new homes in Great Staughton

October 9, 2020

Chorus Homes, part of Places for People, Great Staughton Community Land Trust and Huntingdonshire District Council are working together to build much needed affordable homes.

Chorus Homes and the Community Land Trust (CLT) have exchanged contracts on land in the village that will deliver 12 new affordable homes in 2021/22. This development partnership scheme is the first of its kind in Huntingdonshire.

According to the government’s latest figures, properties in Great Staughton had an average price of £354,545 over the last year. This means buyers would need to earn almost £80,000 to get a mortgage (based on a 4.5x income multiplier).

Great Staughton set up the first CLT in Huntingdonshire just over two years ago to provide affordable homes for local people and key workers, who play a vital role in the community, and who would normally be unable to afford to live there. The project will deliver nine homes for social rent and three homes for shared ownership, including two bungalows for rent. A planning application is now expected to be submitted in mid-September.

CLT Board Member Bob Jewell said: “The village plan had shown the need for more affordable housing and, through working in partnership with the local community and Chorus Homes, this project will deliver the right mix of new housing for the local people of Great Staughton.

“This is an exciting scheme. It provides much needed affordable housing in the village for local people. It means people are much less likely to be priced out of the village by high rents or house prices. There is a particular shortage of affordable rented accommodation. It shows that small villages with an active Community Land Trust can achieve real change when working with partners such as Chorus Homes.”

Nigel Finney, Chorus Homes Managing Director, said: “We want to create places that work for everyone and CLTs are a great way to bring local communities together to deliver more affordable housing in rural areas like Great Staughton.

“Housing affordability in popular villages like Great Staughton is a real challenge and so we welcome the opportunity to help the CLT deliver a range of high-quality affordable homes for local people.”

Cllr. Ryan Fuller, Executive Leader and portfolio holder for housing at Huntingdonshire District Council, also commented: “An affordable housing scheme such as this not only provides new homes but supports the vitality of the local economy and amenities. We are very pleased to see Great Staughton work with our officers, and Chorus Homes to identify and develop a proposal that will meet the affordable housing needs of their community.

“The lack of truly affordable housing is a real issue for our residents and Huntingdonshire District Council has developed policies to enable and encourage innovative community-led approaches such as this, and I very much hope to see many more similar schemes come forward across the district.”