£21m boost for West Yorkshire Brownfield Housing Fund
The West Yorkshire Combined Authority will formally approve the funding increase this week, bringing its budget for unlocking disused or underdeveloped land for housing to more than £110m.
The extra £21,043,998, awarded by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, has recognised the region’s strong performance in delivering homes on brownfield sites.
The Combined Authority will also approve a two-year extension to the programme’s delivery timeline, meaning homes funded through the scheme will be able to start on site as late as March 2029.
In total, the BHF is now expected to deliver at least 6,240 new homes across West Yorkshire.
The latest funding round will support the start of an additional 840 homes, contributing to regional economic growth, environmental improvements, and the government’s regeneration ambitions.
Tracy Brabin, Mayor of West Yorkshire, has previously championed brownfield development as a sustainable solution to the housing shortage, helping to protect Greenbelt land while revitalising neglected urban areas.
All projects funded through the BHF are subject to individual business case approvals.
The Combined Authority noted in its report that enough projects have already been approved, at either outline or full business case stage, to spend the new funding allocation and meet the expanded targets, pending final approvals.
An updated Memorandum of Understanding with central government will also be signed to reflect the revised targets and timeline.
Further project-level funding decisions will be made at future committee meetings.
Gotta love Yorkshire Devolution; let’s us get on with the job, house roofs don’t build themselves, tha’os.
Well done Mayor Brabin for fighting our corner and getting more Devo-money up here from those misguided fools in Westminster.
By Tyke
We all love Garforth!
By Tyler