Senior civil servants at the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister are understood to be exploring the creation of expert teams to help with CPOs in potential regeneration areas.
The government is keen to encourage more widespread use of CPOs and has already moved to encourage them: the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Bill announced in the Queen's Speech included arrangements to make compulsory purchase faster and fairer.
Now, say sources, senior ODPM officials are "exploring the feasibility" of creating hit squads with the hope that the notion will be included in deputy prime minister John Prescott's Communities Plan in January.
This idea was originally mooted by experts at the Urban Summit in October. At a session on private sector involvement in regeneration, the notion of setting up expert CPO teams was judged to be the third most important thing on delegates' wish lists, after quicker planning and gap funding for underfunded projects.
Councils' use of CPOs varies widely as many lack the resources and skills to secure the complex and time-consuming orders. Often they are not considered until the regeneration process is well under way, and the ODPM believes they could be more useful if they were implemented much earlier.
As yet, there are no specific details of how the hit squads will work, but possibilities include a network of teams made up of private sector specialists like solicitors and valuers, based at regional development agencies, or a single national hit squad based at English Partnerships. Funding could come from RDAs, English Partnerships or councils.
Jane Hamilton, director of planning and technical services at English Partnerships, said: "There has to be a way of drawing together best practice so all the organisations with the ability to carry out CPOs can learn from each other."
Chris Brown, development manager of regeneration investment partnership the Igloo Regeneration Fund, said: "It's a very simple idea which would move regeneration on more rapidly." Ken Dytor, chief executive of developer Urban Catalyst, spoke at the Urban Summit about the nature of the CPO process. He told Housing Today that calling on external experts would aid regeneration.
The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister said there was no official plan for CPO hit squads.
A spokeswoman said: "A new compulsory purchase procedure circular is in preparation and it will be sent to all local authorities."
Source
Housing Today
No comments yet