Asked by: Andrew Lewin (Labour - Welwyn Hatfield)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to help councils use unspent Section 106 contributions.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
While there are a variety of entirely legitimate reasons why local planning authorities may be holding unspent developer contributions, including to facilitate the effective delivery of phased development projects, we recognise the need to ensure that the contributions that developers make to mitigate the impact of development and make it acceptable in planning terms are used effectively and in a timely manner.
Local planning authorities are expected to use all of the funding received by way of planning obligations. Individual agreements should normally include clauses stating when and how the funds will be used by and allow for their return, after an agreed period of time, where they are not.
The Planning Advisory Service (PAS), funded by the Department, provides support to local planning authorities in the governance of developer contributions.
Any local planning authority that receives a contribution from development through section 106 planning obligations must prepare and publish an Infrastructure Funding Statement at least annually. Reporting on developer contributions helps local communities and developers see how contributions have been spent and understand what future funds will be spent on, ensuring a transparent and accountable system.
The government is committed to strengthening the system of developer contributions to ensure new developments provide necessary affordable homes and infrastructure. Further details will be set out in due course.
Asked by: Andrew Lewin (Labour - Welwyn Hatfield)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what proportion of new homes built in the last five years are fully wheelchair accessible in (a) England, (b) the East of England and (c) Welwyn Hatfield; and how many of those homes are (i) one, (ii) two and (iii) three bedroom dwellings.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The data requested is not held centrally although the English Housing Survey does collect data on accessibility and adaptations within the home.
Asked by: Andrew Lewin (Labour - Welwyn Hatfield)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many people requiring a fully wheelchair accessible home are on the social housing waiting list in (a) England, (b) the East of England and (c) Welwyn Hatfield.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The data requested is not held centrally although the English Housing Survey does collect data on accessibility and adaptations within the home.
Asked by: Andrew Lewin (Labour - Welwyn Hatfield)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many homes for social rent were built by (a) housing associations and (b) local authorities in (i) Welwyn Hatfield, (ii) Hertfordshire and (iii) England in the last five years.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The number of new social rent homes delivered, split by provider, geography and whether they are new build or acquisitions can be found via the affordable housing supply statistics, available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-affordable-housing-supply.
The number of new social rent homes delivered in England by provider, including acquisitions, can also be found in Live Table 1013, available from the same page.