Agenda item

[Report of the Director of Housing, Regeneration and Planning. To be introduced by the Cabinet Member for Climate Change and Sustainability.]

This report seeks Cabinet agreement to introduce two local eligibility criteria - a location connection test and a financial resources test - to qualify for inclusion on Haringey’s self-build register, as well as the introduction of a registration and renewal fee.

The Cabinet Member for Climate Change and Sustainability introduced the report which sought approval to changes to Haringey’s self-build register, including introduction of a local eligibility criteria - a location connection test and a financial resources test - to qualify for inclusion on Haringey’s self-build register, as well as the introduction of a registration and renewal fee.

The Cabinet Member highlighted that here were currently 344 entries on the Self Build register of people and organisations wanting to self -build in the borough. The new criteria would help assessments and give consideration to achieving the housing objectives in the Borough Plan. These changes also further helped ensure that there was an appropriate balance between providing opportunities for self -build and reducing the scale of the register to a sustainable level so that it did not compromise the Council’s ability to make the most efficient use of land and to deliver other forms of housing. The changes would also support the Council’s objectives around Equalities and people, ensuring the opportunity for self -build prioritises local residents, enabling them to maintain their connections in the borough.

RESOLVED

1. To note that following the clarifications set out in Section 7, the proposals were endorsed by Regulatory Committee for approval by Cabinet without any changes for consideration;

2. To agree the introduction of the local connection test, as set out at paragraph 6.11 of this report, to qualify for inclusion on Part 1 of the Haringey Self-build Register;

3. To agree the introduction of the financial resources test, as set out at paragraph 6.13 of this report, to qualify for inclusion on Part 1 and Part 2 of the Haringey Self-build Register;

4. To agree to charge a £144 (inclusive of VAT) fee for registration of valid applications to the Haringey Self-build Register; and an annual re-registration fee of £144 (inclusive of VAT) to remain on Part 1 of the register thereafter; and

5. To agree to maintain the existing entries on the register until 30 October 2019 after which date they will be re-assessed against the new eligibility criteria and subject to payment of the £144 annual fee for Part 1 registrations.

Reasons for decision

This report proposes the introduction of two local eligibility criteria that will apply to applications for registration on Haringey’s self-build register as follows:

• a Financial Resources Test: to be entered onto the register applicants would have to demonstrate that they have access to the finance needed to acquire land valued at £330,000 (land valuation evidence commissioned by officers indicates that this is the minimum likely cost of a 0.01ha serviced plot in Haringey suitable for development of a single home - see Appendix A for more information about the land valuation evidence); and
• a Local Connection Test: to be entered onto Part 1 of the register (which triggers the duty to grant planning permission), applicants would also have to demonstrate that they have been living in the borough continuously for at least 3 years or are a serving member of the regular forces or have been such a member within the 5 years preceding their application to be placed on the register, or have been working in the borough for at least 3 years (this is consistent with the connection test incorporated in the Council’s adopted Housing Allocations Policy 2015, as amended in March 2018). The criteria regarding serving members of the regular forces is also specified in the Self-build and Custom Housebuilding Regulations.

If the above two local eligibility conditions are approved, Part 1 of the self-build register will comprise applicants who pass both the local connection test and the financial resources test. Applicants placed on Part 2 of the register will be those who satisfy the financial resources test but do not satisfy the local connection test.

At present, Haringey’s single-part self-build register contains 344 entries in total comprising 339 individuals and 5 associations. In line with the regulations, where there is a single-part register the Council must grant sufficient planning permissions to meet the demand indicated by the number of entries on the register within 3 years of their year of registration.

The self-build register is one form of evidence of the housing need in Haringey for a very specific type of housing, which the Council has a duty to take into account. In considering how to respond to the level of demand indicated by the existing self-build register, the Council will need to consider the likely impact of self-build and custom-build housing on the overall land supply for housing in the borough and our ability to meet other housing needs. Particular concerns about the self-build register and its relationship with other housing needs are as follows:

• the vast majority of those on the self-build register are individuals and would be expected to seek a single-home plot, so self-build homes are likely to be built at very low density (and require more land) than the apartments more commonly developed in the borough;
• Haringey’s adopted Local Plan (2017) sets a challenging target for the Council to deliver a minimum of 19,802 additional homes over the period 2011 – 2026 (1,320 homes per year);
• the Local Plan has identified sufficient housing sites to meet this target but not to exceed it significantly, so the provision of self-build homes at lower densities could harm our ability to meet the overall targets;
• Haringey’s housing target is proposed to increase further through the new London Plan (currently subject to examination in public), requiring the provision of 1,958 homes per annum;
• Haringey has significant competing demand for different land uses of a limited supply of land, including for new housing;
• an overestimation of the local demand for self-build homes could result in the Council having to grant permission for self-build on sites more suited to higher density housing or other forms of housing;
• provision for self-build and custom-build homes could also harm our ability to meet other specific needs identified by the Local Plan, such as affordable housing and specialist housing for older people;
• there is no realistic prospect of the Council being able to identify sufficient land to meet the level of demand indicated by the existing self-build register, which represents over 25% of our annual housing target;
• 288 (circa 83%) of those on the existing self-build register do not currently live in the borough. Whether the people who make up this number are working in Haringey (and would therefore meet the local connection test) is unknown. However, as currently stands, the register could be considered to give a distorted understanding of the local demand for this type of housing;
• The majority of those on Haringey’s self-build register are also seeking plots from other authorities, including the majority of those who live or work in the borough.

The introduction of the two proposed local eligibility criteria is considered to be necessary so that the Council can:

• ensure Haringey’s self-build register accurately reflects genuine local demand for this type of housing, and thus improve the ability of the Council to satisfy its duty to grant suitable planning permissions without prejudicing its ability to meet other local housing needs;
• ensure that those on the register have a reasonable prospect of acquiring land in the borough; and
• Limit the duty to grant planning permission to those that the Council wishes to prioritise as existing borough residents.

Introducing a fee for entry onto the register will deter speculative / non-genuine entries from people who have no genuine intention of self-building or custom housebuilding in Haringey. The introduction of additional local eligibility criteria for entry onto Haringey’s self-build register will filter out applicants who do not have a connection to the Borough and/or do not have the means to self-build here. These changes will help ensure the evidence base for the Local Plan housing policies are not distorted and that we continue to make the most efficient use of land.

Alternative options considered

The Council could choose to maintain its existing self-build register unaltered. However, the implications would be that the Council would have a duty to grant planning permission in the borough in relation to 344 serviced plots suitable for self-build and custom housebuilding. For the reasons outlined in paragraph 4.4 and 4.5 this option is not considered an appropriate response.

The Council could also choose to introduce just one of the local eligibility criteria – either the local connections test or the financial resources test. However, officers are of the opinion that both tests are relevant, in that it is both appropriate that the Council should seek only to provide self-build opportunities within the Borough to residents or those working in Haringey but that the individuals must also have the resources to realistically acquire the land to be able to realise this opportunity.

As land values vary significantly across Haringey, as demonstrated in the supporting evidence base report at Appendix A (LB Haringey Self Build Report – BNP Paribas Real Estate, May 2019), a higher land value benchmark could be applied. However, officers consider that using a higher figure could potentially exclude some people from being on the register who have a reasonable prospect of acquiring land and a significant local connection, which may cause public complaints and reputational damage to the Council.

The Regulations provide for authorities to seek a Government exemption from the duty to grant sufficient planning permissions to meet self-build demand in certain circumstances, but Haringey does not qualify for exemption under the relevant regulatory provisions, so this is not an option available to the Council.

The Council could also choose not to charge a fee for registrations and renewal on the register. However, officers are of the view that the time and resource spent maintaining the register should not fall to existing budgets, and that those that meet the financial resources test will be able to afford a relatively small administrative fee to apply.

The Government guidance on self-build recommends that the introduction of local eligibility criteria should be subject to public consultation. Officers consider the proposed Local Connection Test is based on Haringey’s connection test in the Council’s Housing Allocation Policy 2015 (as amended in March 2018) and has already been subject to public consultation. The proposed financial resources test is based on evidence from an independent valuation report of the minimum likely cost of a self-build plot in Haringey. On this basis, officers consider that public consultation on the proposed changes would be unlikely to provide more accurate evidence or raise matters not previously considered.

Officers will address issues with the implementation of the changes to the register through monitoring and can recommend amendments where necessary to maintain an appropriate balance between providing opportunities for self-build and reducing the scale of the register to a sustainable level.