Sandwell desperately needs affordable housing, and in theory most new developments should include at least 10% of affordable housing. Indeed, some of the Sandwell’s Planning Officers would like to require more affordable housing as part of planning approval, but national legislation does not allow them to do so. What is worse, loopholes in housing legislation mean that greedy developers can avoid even this minimum requirement. Planning permission is usually granted on condition of including the affordable housing requirement, but developers often cite “viability” as an excuse to not provide ANY affordable housing in the finished development. The new Sandwell Local Plan will ask for 25% of affordable housing, but developers will still be able to cite viability as an excuse to avoid implementing it. This is based on old average house price data that means viability is calculated on out-of-date figures. In August 2021 the average house price in the West Midlands was £228,593, but it is now £278,098, an increase of 21.6%. This difference would mean the affordable housing allocation as part of approvals could be included, without effecting “viability”, but developers use the old average house price to renege on the promises made during the planning stage.

It is all very well for Housing Ministers, like Michael Gove, to complain that not enough affordable housing is being built, but they have done nothing to close the loopholes that allow developers to get away with not building them.

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New developments in Sandwell are granted planning permission on condition of including affordable housing, but when the projects are underway, the developers are often citing “viability” as an excuse to not include ANY affordable housing. This amounts to obtaining planning permission under false pretences. We say enough is enough, and Sandwell Liberal Democrats are calling for action to close the loopholes that developers use to deny local people a chance to own their own home, and favour cloistered housing estates that do not include a balance of affordable housing and larger houses. These also often do not include any of the required infrastructure to support the new development, such as GP and dental surgeries, public transport links, or local shops and amenities. We have asked Planning Officers to consider introducing a Supplementary Planning Document specifying a higher ratio of social housing to strengthen their hand when negotiating with developers. Neighbours, such as Walsall Council, have done this in the past.

Liberal Democrats believe in setting binding targets for affordable and social housing set by the local authority, and ensuring that all development has appropriate infrastructure, services and amenities in place.

Liberal Democrats: Tackling the Housing Crisis