AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE HOUSING NEEDS OF THE PARISH OF

Produced by The Rural Housing Enabler in conjunction with Ashby Woulds Parish Council Feb 2013

1 Contents

 Summary 3  Introduction 3

1. Purpose of the Survey 4

2. House Prices and existing affordable stock 6

3. Survey Results 8

Age range in respondents’ homes Tenure of respondents Property Types of respondents How long in Parish Next move into.. Timing of next move Respondents aware of households forced away Desirability Housing and facilities Comments

4. Housing Needs Analysis 18

5. Conclusion 20

Appendix 1 Additional affordability data 20 Appendix 2 data 24 Appendix 3 Moira and Norris Hill data 30 Appendix 4 Spring Cottage data 36

Contacts 42

2 Summary

 A housing need survey was carried out in the Parish of Ashby Woulds in December 2012.  Results obtained showed there was a need for up to 13 affordable homes for local people enabling them to be suitably housed within their community  This could be developed on one or two Rural Exception Sites, if available, and subject to Parish Council and Homes & Communities Agency support. Alternatively, these homes could be provided on a larger development as part of a quota agreement with the developer. See paragraphs 1.2 & 1.3.  The body of the text uses combined data from the whole Parish but individual settlement data is given separately in Appendices 2, 3 and 4.

Introduction

The Rural Housing Enabler works with Parish Councils and Local Authorities in order to investigate the needs for homes in villages. The first step in this process is to undertake housing need survey which will give an overview of the current housing situation in a village, and provide detail of the need for open market and local affordable homes.

The and Leicestershire Strategic Housing Market Assessment states that, “Housing need is high in most rural areas (of the county) some 250 additional affordable homes per year are currently needed in rural areas.” The report continues that between 35 and 45 of these should be built within villages in North West Leicestershire to meet current demand. Further information may be found at www.oakleaves.org.uk, the website of the Leicestershire Rural Partnership.

3 During December 2012, the Rural Housing Enabler and Ashby Woulds Parish Council worked together to deliver a Housing Needs Survey form to every household in the village.

Ashby Woulds currently has a population of about 3400 (2001 Census). This is split between Albert Village (630), Moira (1500) and Norris Hill (1170) and Spring Cottage (100). Since this census 105 homes have been built in the village, all were provided for sale on the open market. There are about 1450 households within the parish.

Enough survey forms (1500) were produced for distribution to each household throughout the parish with spares for others requesting a form.

1. Purpose of the Survey

1.1 The survey was conducted in order to obtain clear evidence of the housing need in the parish of Ashby Woulds. This evidence can then be used, along with evidence from other sources, to inform the Parish Council and North West Leicestershire District Council on what type and tenure of housing is required to meet local needs.

1.2 One option of meeting a village’s housing need is through the construction of a purpose built affordable housing development using the exception criteria set out in Planning Policy Supplement 3 (PPS3). This is known as a Rural Exception Site. These small sites, usually between 6 and 12 homes, are located on, but outside, the village boundary and have two special features: 1. Priority is given to households with a strong local connection as defined in an S106 “Local Lettings” Agreement. 2. Homes remain affordable in perpetuity.* 4 *On rural exception sites there is no “Right-to-buy” and shared ownership homes can either be restricted to ownership of a maximum of 80% of the equity or they can be purchased outright but must be sold to the Registered Provider (Housing Association).

The North West Leicestershire Local Plan provides a more extensive list of the criteria expected of an Exception Site.

To develop affordable rural homes by any method there must be accurate details of affordable housing need within the parish. The support of the Parish Council for any subsequent affordable housing scheme is essential to the process.

1.3 Secondly, the information can be used positively in the planning process in that it provides a foundation on which to negotiate planning gain and other opportunities with developers. In short, it gives planners evidence which can be used to obtain an element of local needs housing in negotiations with house builders should such properties arise in the village.

1.4 The information obtained from such a survey is also valuable at the local level, particularly in relation to the Parish Council’s activities. Such information can be acted upon locally and taken on board in the decision making process when housing issues arrive.

5 2 House Prices and Affordable Housing Stock

2.1 The Government’s objective to deliver a better balance between housing demand and supply is not being met in rural . There would seem to be an increasing imbalance in supply and demand for rural housing, in particular within smaller rural settlements. As a consequence, affordability is a very real issue in many parts of rural England. In the most extreme case, average house prices are around ten times the local average income.

2.2 As there have been few house sales in the villages over the past few months, the approach taken is to review the asking prices of properties on the market at present. The following is purely illustrative. Figures are taken from rightmove.co.uk. (See also Appendix 1). Starting with the least expensive home starter home in the Parish, this is a 2 Bed terraced house in Albert Village with an asking price of £60,000. There is some doubt as to this asking price being achieved in the present financial climate. It is likely that at least a 10% deposit would be required, so savings of £6,000 would need to be provided. Assuming a mortgage was available and a typical three-and-a-half times income multiplier applied, then a yearly income of £15,429 would be required to purchase this home. A 3-bed terraced home in Moira currently on the market for £100,000. This would require a yearly income of £26,000 (also assuming the buyer had a 10% deposit and a mortgage was available.)

2.3 Hypothetically then, to purchase an entry level property in Ashby Woulds, i.e. 2 Bed house – should one be available – a yearly income of over £15,000 would be required (assumes 3.5 income multiplier). This figure assumes a deposit of

6 around 10%. It is unlikely that a 100% mortgage would be available in the current financial climate.

2.4 To assist in clarifying this, the table below (Fig. 1) shows household income per annum in the parish of Ashby Woulds (Source: CACI paycheck2007):

Figure 1 Numbers of households in which income range

Income range in £ per Number of annum households in range £0 – 10,000 203 £10,000 > 20,000 424 £20,000 > 30,000 381 £30,000 > 40,000 247 £40,000 > 50,000 146 £50,000 > 60,000 83 £60,000 > 70,000 17 £70,000 > 80,000 27 £80,000 > 90,000 16 £90,000 + 23

2.5 Bearing in mind the figures in paragraph 2.3, the table above shows that most of the households in the parish could comfortably afford an entry level home if they were not already satisfactorily housed.

2.6 Existing Affordable Housing in the Parish

Information from North West Leicestershire District Council Strategic Housing Team states that there are 312 Local Authority rented and 68 Housing Association homes in the Parish.

7 3 Survey Results

3.1 The following sections of this report detail the responses from the questionnaires distributed and returned during December 2012 in the parish of Ashby Woulds.

3.2 Respondents’ individual details have been kept confidential and any identifiable attributes have not been included in the results. Any comments that have been made may have also been edited so as not to identify individual circumstances.

3.3 The following results are a snapshot in time and provide the Parish and North West Leicestershire District Council with an insight into the parish in terms of current housing need, the desirability of the village and the current level of facilities serving the local community.

3.4 A total of 278 survey forms were received giving a return rate of about 20%. This is a normal response for this type of survey, when considering that only people who have housing need or who are interested in commenting on local matters respond. The responses below are given for the whole Parish of Ashby Woulds – individual village responses are given in Appendix 2.

3.5 Age Range in Respondent’ homes

3.5.1 (Figure 2) the largest number of replies (48%) came from households that contained people aged 25 to 64 years old. Next came the over 65s with 27% then the under 25 year olds with 19 %. Young adults represented about 6% of respondent’s households.

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Figure 2 Age range people in respondent’s households

3.5.2 The Commission for Rural Communities report ‘State of the Countryside 2010’ found that the proportion of people aged 15 – 29 in rural areas had fallen from 21% to 15% in the past 20 years, as opportunities for traditional employment are limited (and where available lower paid) and where homes have become more expensive. The full report may be found at www. ruralcommunities.gov.uk.

3.6 Tenure of all Respondents

The current household tenure of all respondents is given in the table below (Figure 3). It is easy to see that owner/occupiers were by far the largest tenure group accounting for 82%, of which 42% had a mortgage.

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Figure 3 Tenure of respondents

3.7 Property Types

3.7.1 The following table (Figure 4), shows that the majority of respondents came equally from households in 3 and 4 bed houses (27%). 12% of respondents were from 2 bed homes and 16% did not respond to this question. The remaining property types represented about 6%.

10 Figure 4 Property types

3.7.2 The question was asked in the survey as to how long residents had lived in the Parish. Figure 5 below, gives details of this. 63% of respondents had lived in the Parish for more than 10 years and, of the remainder, about half had been there for between five and 10 years.

Figure 5 Time in the Parish

11 3.7.3 The survey asked when and what kind home respondents expected to move into next. Figure 6 shows their response to this question.

Figure 6 Next move into……….

61% of respondents were not expecting to move, while 32% were intending to move within the open market sector and 5% were expecting to move to retirement accommodation. Out of 11 households intending to move into rented accommodation 4 were expecting to move into the affordable rented sector.

3.7.4 The survey asked when respondents were expecting to move. See figure 7 below. 36% of respondents replied that this did not apply to them. 24% were expecting to move in more than 15 years time. 16% expected to move in 5 – 10 years time. The remaining 24% expected to move in the next 5 years with 11 respondents hoping to move within the next year.

12 Figure 7. When respondents were expecting to move.

..

3.7.5 The last question in this section asked if respondents knew of households who had left the Parish because they could not afford to live here, i.e. they needed an affordable home to enable them to stay. See figure 8.

Figure 8 Respondents who knew of households that had to leave the Parish because affordable homes were not available

13 3.8 Desirability

3.8.1 The following two charts detail respondents’ answers to the desirability questions. The answers to these questions allow us to build up a picture of life within Ashby Woulds. From this we can gain an indication of whether any affordable housing that is subsequently provided in the village will be sustainable, i.e. a place where people would want to live both now and in the future.

Figure 9 Desirability of life in the Parish

3.8.2 From this first chart (Figure 9) we know that the vast majority of residents consider that Ashby Woulds is a desirable place to live with a balanced population with a sense of community and a suitable range of housing.

14 Figure 10 Considering lack of adequate housing and facilities

3.8.3 The second chart (Figure 6) shows that respondents thought there was a strong indication that lack of adequate housing was not an issue but respondents were evenly split over the issue of lack of facilities.

3.9 Respondents’ Comments

3.9.1 Below are some of the comments made by respondents about the separate villages. Comments are put in categories to cover their overall meaning. The housing related comments are given first, followed by general comments. Because the survey split the Parish into three distinct areas, comments from each area are shown.

15 Albert Village

Housing related comments  We need 1 and 2 Bed affordable homes to rent (4 comments)  Small homes for first time buyers are needed (3comments)

General comments  We need a shop/Post office/garage (20 comments)  Better public transport would really help (8 comments)  We need a village hall (4 comments)

Moira and Norris Hill

Housing related comments  We need affordable rented and first time buyer properties (12 comments)  Bungalows for older households are required (7 comments)

General comments  Better shopping facilities are needed (38 comments)  Public transport could do with improvement (31 comments)  We need a doctor’s surgery and a pharmacy (10 comments)

Spring Cottage

Housing related comments  There is a lack of both open market and rented properties on the market (1 comment)

General comments  Public transport is poor (5 comments)  We need a shop (1 comment)

16 4 Housing Need Analysis

4.1 Out of the 278 returns, 262 were from households who felt that they were adequately housed and would not be looking to move to alternative accommodation within the next 3 years. These were therefore discounted from the rest of the analysis. . 4.2 Accordingly, as far as the requirement for affordable and open market housing is concerned, there were 13 returns detailing a qualifying housing need, under North West Leicestershire’s Housing Policies. There were 3 returns having an open market housing need.

4.3 Assessment of affordable need was done anonymously so that data was kept secure. Information was also taken into consideration regarding those on the housing waiting list for the parish.

4.4 The following table (Figure 11 for Albert Village and Figure 12 for Moira & Norris Hill) lists the need of respondents. There was no housing need identified from Spring Cottage. The only category was households in definite need of housing within the next three years. Details of individual residents are kept but have not been divulged in this report so that their anonymity can be preserved.

Figure 11. Albert village – 4 affordable homes

Need/Time No/Type of Home Tenure Household period 2x 1 Bed Flats Rent Young adults Next 3 years 2 x 2 Bed Houses Rent Families

17 Figure 12. Moira & Norris Hill – 9 affordable homes

Need/Time No/Type of home Tenure Household period Next 3years 2 x 1 Bed Flats Rent Young adults 3 x 2 Bed Rent Older Bungalows households 1 x 2 Bed Shared Older household Bungalow ownership 1 x 2 Bed House Rent Family 1 x 3 Bed House Shared Family ownership 1 x 3 Bed House Rent Family

4.5 North West Leicestershire District Council currently operates a Choice Based Lettings system whereby households registered can express an interest in any property suitable for their needs. The following information is taken from that database and is given for information only.

4.6 There are 175 households living in the District of North West Leicestershire with an active housing application that wish to live in either Albert Village or Moira & Norris. It is not possible to determine which of these have a local connection to the Parish but, realistically, a proportion of them will have.

Overall this need is broken down as:

42 x 1/2Bed Flats 7 x 2 Bed Bungalows 39 x 1 bed houses 59 x 2 Bed Houses 8 x Small 3 Bed Houses 20 x Large 3 Bed and 4 Bed Houses

18 5 Conclusion

5.1 The Rural Housing Enabler, in partnership with Ashby Woulds Parish Council and North West Leicestershire District Council, has conducted a detailed study of the affordable housing need of the village. This study has not only investigated the actual housing need of Ashby Woulds residents but has also ascertained residents’ views with regard to living in the village, as well as identifying local support for a development to meet local needs.

5.2 Concentrating on those who need homes within the next 3 years the need emerging from the village survey is as follows:

Albert Village – 4 homes

2x1 Bed Homes - affordable rent 2x2 Bed Homes “ “

Moira and Norris Hill – 9 homes

2 x 1 Bed Homes - affordable rent 4 x 2 Bed Bungalows – (3 for affordable rent, 1 for shared ownership) 1 x 2Bed Home – affordable rent 2 x 3 Bed Homes – (1 for affordable rent, 1 for shared ownership)

5.3 Having regard to the results of the village needs survey; the suggestion is that a development of up to 13 new homes in Ashby Woulds would be suitable at present. These could be on one rural exception site in each of the two areas, just one site or provided as part of a larger development.

19 Type and tenure would be suggested as follows:

AFFORDABLE RENT SHARED OWNERSHIP

4 x 1 Bed Homes 3 x 2 Bed Homes 1 x 3 Bed Homes 1 x 3 Bed Home 3 x 2 Bed Bungalows 1 x 2 Bed Bungalow

5.4 This development of up to a maximum of 13 homes will meet the current housing need for those who, being in housing need and wishing to stay within the parish of Ashby Woulds are unable to secure a suitable affordable home.

5.5 Please note that these figures may be subject to change in the light of further community consultation.

5.6 Ashby Woulds Parish Council supported this report at their meeting XXXXXXX .

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Appendix 1. Ashby Woulds House prices and affordability

All data shown below is obtained from Hometrack, an independent housing intelligence provider. The data held is available at Ward levels or at the Census output area levels, but not at the Parish level. Rather than potentially distort averages by providing information at the District Council Ward Level (which would include ) the following sets of tables have been provided at the Census Lower Super Output Area (LSOA). Two LSOA’s cover the Ashby Woulds Parish area – one covers Norris Hill, Albert Village, Spring Cottage & Boothorpe & the other covers Moira. The data below relates to property prices and affordability in these two areas.

Averages for Norris Hill, Albert Village, Spring Cottage & Boothorpe

All properties Average House Price % Price changes on previous year Current year £150,122 3.2% Over last year £145,514 10.6% Over last 2 years £135,738 12% Over last 3 years £134,026 13.2% Over last 4 years £132,633 -

21 Property Average House Monthly Average Monthly Type House price Mortgage Lower Mortgage Price change payments* quartile Payments* current in house year value price over Current last 2 year years All £150,122 3.2% £768 £114,000 £583 Flat n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a Terrace £114,000 39.7% £583 £114,000 £583 Semi £124,100 -3.1% £635 £102,000 £522 detached Detached £209,390 9.6% £1,071 £175,000 £895

*Assumptions upon which mortgage payments based on 20% deposit, 5.8% interest rate and 25 year mortgage period

House price to income ratio mean property price = 4.78 times House price to income ratio for a lower quartile property = 10.02 times.

Averages for Moira

All properties Average House Price % Price changes on previous year Current year £211,147 11.4% Over last year £189,545 29.4% Over last 2 years £163,122 -6.5% Over last 3 years £225,767 9.4% Over last 4 years £190,059 n/a

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Property Average House Mortgage Average Mortgage Type House price required* Lower Required* Price change quartile current in value house year over price last 2 Current years year All £211,147 29.4% £1080 £192,000 £982 Flat n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a Terrace £98,000 -8.8% £501 £98,000 £501 Semi £145,000 7.7% £742 £145,000 £742 detached Detached £232,036 7.4% £1187 £195,000 £998

*Assumptions upon which mortgage payments based on 20% deposit, 5.8% interest rate and 25 year mortgage period

House price to income ratio mean property price = 4.58 times House price to income ratio for a lower quartile property = 9.4 times.

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Appendix 2. Data from individual Villages

Graphical representation of the results of the investigation into the Housing Needs relating specifically to

Albert Village

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Ages within respondents’ household

Tenure of respondents’ home

25 Type of respondents’ home

Time in parish

26 Next move to ….

Timing of next move……

27 Knew of people who had left for need of an affordable home

Desirability of Village and range of housing

28 Housing and facilities

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Graphical representation of the results of the investigation into the Housing Needs relating specifically to

Moira & Norris Hill

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Ages within respondents’ households

Tenure of respondents’ home

31 Type of respondents’ home

Time in Village

32 Next move into…

Timing of next move

33 Knew of people who had to move for need of an affordable home

Desirability of Village and range of housing

34 Housing and Facilities

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Graphical representation of the results of the investigation into the Housing Needs relating specifically to

Spring Cottage

36

Ages within respondents’ households

Tenure of respondents’ home

37 Type of respondents’ home

Time in village

38 Next move into…..

Timing of next move

39 Knew of people who had to move for need of an affordable home

Desirability of Village and range of housing

40 Housing and facilities

41 Contacts

The Leicestershire & Rutland Rural Housing Enabler Richard Windley Unit 19 Business Centre Stenson Road Leics LE67 4JP Tel: 01530 276546 [email protected]

Clerk to Ashby Woulds Parish Council Andrea Robinson Tel: 01283 552784 [email protected]

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