Agenda item

Report of the Corporate Director of Finance and Resource. To be presented by the Cabinet Member for Housing and Planning, and Deputy Leader of the Council.

The Cabinet Member for Housing and Planning, and Deputy Leader of the Council introduced the report.

It was explained that Haringey Council’s housebuilding programme directly responded to the urgent need for affordable and environmentally sustainable homes, enabling people to settle and thrive in the borough. The housing emergency was a national issue, but was particularly acute in London. By November 2024, record numbers of people had been experiencing homelessness, with an estimated 183,000 Londoners homeless and living in temporary accommodation arranged by their local boroughs. London boroughs collectively spent £4 million daily on temporary accommodation.

The Cabinet Member noted the historic underspending on housing development, compounded by policies such as Right to Buy, which had left council housing stock severely depleted at a time when it was most needed. Haringey Council responded to this crisis with one of the most ambitious housebuilding programmes in the UK. As of March 2025, the Council had completed 721 new council homes, with construction underway on 1,358 homes. The Council remained on track to potentially exceed its target of 3,000 new, high-quality council homes by 2031, as outlined in the Corporate Delivery Plan and Housing Delivery Strategy. The programme also focused on zero-carbon development in line with Haringey’s net-zero target by 2041, which was especially important given that around half the borough’s emissions came from buildings.

Since the last Cabinet update, 522 homes were completed across 12 sites, including 85 three- and four-bed homes, which addressed the needs of families facing homelessness or overcrowding. In 2024, the Watts Close scheme—Haringey’s first net-zero scheme—won the Building Development of the Year award from Unlock Net Zero, and the team received the UK Housing's 'Council of the Year' award. Three of the Council’s schemes had been occupied for over a year, with resident feedback largely positive; 95% of survey respondents at Rosa Luxemburg reported satisfaction.

It was stressed that finding new build sites in a densely built urban area remained a challenge. As the programme progressed, the Council needed to think creatively to identify suitable locations. Eight further under-used sites—including car parks and vacant lots—were proposed for inclusion in the programme. These sites had the potential to deliver over 255 council homes and five pitches for Gypsy-Roma-Traveller communities, whose housing needs are often overlooked.

This work demonstrated Haringey’s ongoing commitment to serving its most vulnerable residents and building a legacy of affordable housing for generations to come.

In response to comments and questions from Cllr Connor, the following information was shared:

• It was asked what proportion of homes expected to be Passivhaus. Officers offered to provide a written response to Cllr Connor. It was additionally explained that performance on delivery of Passivhaus was high, but noted that some sites were not possible due to the nature of the building.
  
  
• Officers noted that the Avenue Mews scheme was unable to be viable following work to determine its viability as a scheme.

RESOLVED:

That Cabinet:

1          Approved the removal of three sites from the programme—251 Lordship Lane, Avenue Mews (rear of Muswell Hill Library), and Broad Lane—due to specific issues detailed in the report.

2          Noted the post-completion reports for Rosa Luxemburg N17, 22–28 Scales Road N17, Romney Close N17, and Mountview Court N15.

3          Noted the completion of new homes since the last update at: Nilgun Canver Court (formerly Chocolate Factory Phase 1), Stainby Road, Rowan Court (formerly Remington Road), Nightingale Lane, St. Mary’s Close, Farrant Avenue, Walter Tull House (formerly Welbourne Centre), Hale Wharf, Aaron Gayle Court (formerly 2–26 Partridge Way), Hornsey Town Hall, Edith Road, White Hart Lane

4          Approved inclusion of the following eight sites in the housing programme: Land to rear of 165 The Roundway, Brookside Green, Summerland Gardens Car Park, Garman Road Car Park, Westerfield Road Car Park, Stoneleigh Road Car Park (Sites A, B, and C)

5          Retrospectively approved an overspend on one scheme.

6          Noted the continued success of the programme, achievements to date against targets, and forecast performance.

Reasons for Decision

The Corporate Delivery Plan 2022–24 committed to delivering 3,000 new council homes by 2031. This commitment was reaffirmed in the 2024–26 Corporate Delivery Plan, prioritising the construction of high-quality, sustainable social housing. The decisions in this report supported that pledge by enabling site-specific and project-specific progress and ensured the Council continued to build a sustainable pipeline of housing delivery sites.

Alternative Options Considered

As this was an update paper, alternative options were considered only for the recommendations requiring Cabinet approval.

Regarding 3.1.1, the alternative option was to retain the sites within the programme and explore alternative future uses. However, this would likely result in continued expenditure on sites already deemed unviable or unsuitable.

Regarding 3.1.4, the alternative was not to include the eight sites in the housing programme. This would have limited the Council’s capacity to deliver much-needed housing in the borough.

Regarding 3.1.5, further options were outlined in Appendix 3 – Exempt Report