Hull East Yorks latest to sign Homes England pact
Under-pressure Homes England is continuing its strategy of forming close ties with combined authorities to fend off the rumoured threat of closure by Andy Burnham and Angela Rayner as mayors line up to take over housing delivery.
The Strategic Place Partnership is aimed at bringing local priorities, national expertise and a shared pipeline of sites together to speed up housing and regeneration across the region.
Housing policy commentators have warned that Homes England was left exposed after moves by Burnham and housing secretary Rayner to hand more control to combined authorities. It follows that by aligning themselves with combined authorities through formal agreements, Homes England will protect itself and be part of the solution to the housing crisis under devolution.
Mayor Luke Campbell and Pat Ritchie, chair of Homes England, signed the agreement at Hull Guildhall. The Strategic Place Partnership brings Hull and East Yorkshire Combined Authority, Homes England, Hull City Council and East Riding of Yorkshire Council together around a shared approach to housing and regeneration across the region.
The pair said in a statement: “Rather than looking at major sites in isolation, the partnership will help build a coordinated pipeline of priority developments, bring Homes England’s national expertise in earlier and allow partners to work together on the issues that can prevent good schemes from getting off the ground.”
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The agreement covers land, infrastructure, viability and investment, as well as making sure new housing is planned alongside transport, jobs and the wider needs of communities.
Homes England is involved in East Bank Urban Village in Hull, a proposed riverside neighbourhood of up to 850 homes, Easton Road in Bridlington, and Alamein Barracks in Driffield, among other developments.
Mayor Luke Campbell, Mayor of Hull and East Yorkshire, said: “There is huge, untapped potential across Hull and East Yorkshire. We have brownfield and underused land that can become new homes, new neighbourhoods and places where people genuinely want to live.
“I want us to be ambitious about what comes next. That means more city centre living, modern mixed-use neighbourhoods, bringing homes, businesses and green spaces together, and breathing new life into parts of our region that have been overlooked.
“We should be every bit as ambitious for Hull and East Yorkshire as anywhere else in the country. This partnership gives us another way to turn that ambition into something people can see and be proud of.”
Pat Ritchie, chair of Homes England, said: “Hull and East Yorkshire has a proud history, strong communities and a clear ambition for the future.
“Through this Strategic Place Partnership, we will work with the Mayor and local partners to align investment, unlock growth and regeneration, and create opportunities that make a real difference to people across the region.”
