West Yorkshire set to witness a fresh wave of residential construction projects
In a bid to address the long-standing housing crisis and stimulate economic growth, the West Yorkshire authorities have launched the West Yorkshire Housing Strategy 2040. This comprehensive plan aims to deliver thousands of new affordable homes, improve housing quality, and support sustainable growth aligned with economic and social needs.
At the heart of the strategy is a commitment to build over 38,000 new homes on previously developed land by 2040. This ambitious target is a significant leap forward, as it marks the delivery of 1,500 affordable homes in the year 2022-2023, the highest number since the global financial crash.
The strategy involves all five local authorities of West Yorkshire working together, a testament to regional collaboration. Key areas for development include strategic housing growth areas, such as a 29-hectare site near East Leeds, projected to provide 5,000 new homes by 2028.
The new Government's backing and greater flexibility are seen as key to achieving this goal. Strict Government rules over the spending of the brownfield housing fund have been a limitation in the past, but the promise of greater flexibility from the new Government could enable more progress.
The West Yorkshire Housing Strategy 2040 focuses on increasing supply, improving infrastructure, and ensuring affordability. It aligns with broader UK infrastructure goals, such as increased investment in social infrastructure, but is specifically tailored to the housing needs in West Yorkshire.
The strategy also emphasizes flexibility and long-term funding certainty to adapt to delivery challenges and optimize housing outcomes. Integrating housing development with environmental improvements, including public realm enhancements and flood risk reduction, ensures sustainable communities.
The West Yorkshire Housing Partnership, led by WDH, is committed to providing affordable and sustainable homes to unlock the region's potential. The Combined Authority and its partners have pledged £40 million to modernize social homes with solar panels, heat pumps, and better insulated walls and windows.
Cllr Denise Jeffery, Leader of Wakefield Council, emphasizes that the West Yorkshire Mayor's decisions in partnership with local councils have helped thousands of families secure safe, secure, and affordable homes. Andy Wallhead, Chief Executive Officer of WDH, states that housing associations have already provided a fifth of all homes in West Yorkshire and are determined to do more, working closely with the new government and the Mayor.
However, the housing crisis in West Yorkshire is far from over. Approximately 85,000 people and families are on waiting lists for a council home across the region. Two in five privately rented homes in the region fail to meet the government's definition of a 'decent home'.
The new housing strategy aims to create greener and more secure communities, with a focus on reducing energy bills across West Yorkshire. By focusing on increasing supply, improving infrastructure, and ensuring affordability, the strategy addresses both immediate shortages and long-term growth challenges in the region’s housing market.
[Image: Mayor Brabin]
Sources: 1. West Yorkshire Combined Authority, West Yorkshire Housing Strategy 2040 (2022) 2. Leeds Live, West Yorkshire Mayor Tracy Brabin announces plan to build 38,000 new homes by 2040 (2022) 3. Yorkshire Post, West Yorkshire Housing Strategy 2040: Mayor Tracy Brabin aims to build 38,000 new homes (2022)
- The West Yorkshire Housing Strategy 2040 includes a commitment to regenerate sports facilities in strategic housing growth areas, as part of the plan to create sustainable communities.
- The West Yorkshire authorities, in their housing strategy, aim to facilitate the construction of community centers and sports facilities in newly developed housing areas, encouraging healthy lifestyles among residents.
