Housing Need in Stockland Green Dr Margaret O’Brien A Housing Needs Assessment & Market Analysis of the Stockland Green electoral ward Published September 2020 Researched and written by Dr Margaret O’Brien for Neil Morland & Co Housing Consultants Commissioned by The Pioneer Group on behalf Stockland Green Opportunity Housing & Training, Birmingham City Council, New Roots Ltd, & Spring Housing Association. © The Pioneer Group 2020 All views and any errors contained in this report are the responsibility of the author or the commissioners. The views expressed should not be assumed to be those of the author or the commissioners. The information contained in this report is accurate at the date of publication. The information in this report should not be considered legal advice. The author nor the commissioners is not qualified nor authorised to provide legal advice. No responsibility for any loss or damage incurred, by any person or organisation acting or refraining from action as result of any statement in the report, can be taken by the author or the commissioners. Front cover image copyright Google Maps Acknowledgements: Thanks to Ifor Jones for his invaluable support and assistance. The author and commissioners are grateful to everyone who generously contributed time and/or materials. Neil Morland & Co Neil Morland & Co are housing consultants. Formed in 2011, we work throughout England, Scotland and Wales with national and local governments, housing associations, voluntary organisations and others, augmenting their role to ensure everyone has adequate housing. We provide expert advice that transforms how housing services and partnerships are able to meet the housing needs of communities. Table of Contents TABLE OF CONTENTS.............................................................................................................................................. 4 Chapter One – Introducing Stockland Green .......................................................................................................... 5 1. Introduction ............................................................................................................................................... 5 2. Stakeholders .............................................................................................................................................. 6 3. Erdington and Stockland Green .................................................................................................................. 9 4. Research context...................................................................................................................................... 10 5. Research methodology ............................................................................................................................. 16 Chapter Two – Birmingham and the Core Cities ................................................................................................... 18 1. Birmingham and its comparators ............................................................................................................. 18 2. City Demography ..................................................................................................................................... 20 3. Economy and Labour Market ................................................................................................................... 22 4. Public Health............................................................................................................................................ 25 5. Child Poverty ............................................................................................................................................ 26 6. Crime ....................................................................................................................................................... 28 7. Housing ................................................................................................................................................... 30 Chapter Three – Life, work and survival in Erdington and Stockland Green ......................................................... 33 1. Outline..................................................................................................................................................... 33 2. Erdington – Constituency Analysis ............................................................................................................ 34 3. Stockland Green.................................................................................................................................... 42 Chapter Four – The Housing Market .................................................................................................................... 49 1. Summary of context ................................................................................................................................. 49 2. Birmingham Housing Market Trends ........................................................................................................ 50 3 Erdington and Stockland Green ................................................................................................................ 56 4. Summary ................................................................................................................................................. 63 Chapter Five – Uniqueness and Connectivity – conclusions ................................................................................. 65 1. Introduction ............................................................................................................................................. 65 2. Summary of economy, populations, health and deprivation ...................................................................... 66 3. Summary of Housing market indicators .................................................................................................... 67 4. Uniqueness .............................................................................................................................................. 67 5. Connectivity ............................................................................................................................................. 70 Chapter Six - Recommendations .......................................................................................................................... 72 Chapter One – Introducing Stockland Green "In the Frances Road area of Stockland Green, I will never forget meeting 70 residents in the street who were terrified in the community in which they had grown up: the rapid growth of houses in multiple occupation in their community; rising crime; antisocial behaviour; and rising drug crime. "One woman said, 'Jack, my great-great- great-grandparents bought the house in which I live. Now, I am afraid to go out at night.' Her young daughter added, 'If I want to go during the day down to Slade Road to get a bus, I won’t go by myself. I ask my mum and dad to take me'."(Jack Dromey MP)1 1. Introduction The anguish of Stockland Green residents, as expressed to sitting MP Dromey, provides a visceral, emotional core to this housing needs assessment of Stockland Green, one of seven wards in the Erdington constituency in the north west of the City of Birmingham. Stockland Green is an environment of pleasant tree-lined residential streets, a diverse area with no large estates of social housing, containing a beautiful park and a lively retail area. It borders Spaghetti Junction, the UK’s largest traffic intersection, is largely residential, and contains no major retail or commercial centres. Despite these visible assets, however, the residents quoted above represent a large and growing cross section of the Stockland Green community who feel that their quality of life in their area is increasingly affected by matters beyond their control. This report explores the foundation of these strongly held perceptions through a robust and objective assessment of the local neighbourhood and housing market. Its findings are intended to generate a wide-ranging debate amongst stakeholders and residents as to the future development of Stockland Green The report has been commissioned by a consortium led by the Pioneer Group, a major landlord of general needs properties in the nearby the Castle Vale Estate. The Pioneer Group is also a developer, and five years ago merged with the Stockland Green Opportunities – Housing and Training (SGHOT) to extend the geographical reach of its developing and community regeneration into Stockland Green alongside other areas adjoining Castle Vale. As landlord, developer and community organisation, the Pioneer Group sought an objective assessment of the socio-economic and housing market factors that might explain the concerns of local residents, and provide an evidence base to inform their strategic and operational response. Birmingham City Council (BCC) also supported this project in their role as strategic housing authority function with the intention of using its findings to inform future decisions on the deployment of operational resources and their private sector housing strategy. These two strategic funders were joined by two non-stock owning registered providers specialising in exempt accommodation, bringing to the project an understanding of the concomitant needs of the more transient but highly vulnerable population in the exempt HMO sector. Whilst acknowledging the fears of local residents, all