Housing providers in Cambridgeshire could get £1.3m if they build 290 homes without grant.
The deal – details of which are still to be hammered out – will be one of the most ambitious of its kind.

Under the scheme, called a local public service agreement, Cambridgeshire County Council will get a £1.3m reward grant from the government if local housing associations hit the housebuilding target within three years.

The reward money may be spent on affordable housing – although this is not yet confirmed.

The county would distribute the money to either the districts, local strategic partnerships (groups of public service bodies including housing) or possibly to groups of housing organisations.

Keren Mallinson, interim head of policy and review at the county council, said: "The detail of how the grant will be spent hasn't yet been agreed. We are looking to get the agreement signed and sorted by October. We have to make sure the indicators to measure the targets are agreed with government."

Nick Abbey, chief executive of Hereward Housing, which is participating in the scheme, said housing providers wanted a target for housing without grant because "it is something we could influence more easily than grant-funded homes".

Over the past three years, only 51 homes have been delivered without grant in Cambridgeshire so the 290-home target is a significant increase in output.

Source

Housing Today