July 14, 2011
Eastbourne Borough Council is to start work on a number of new housing strategies to maintain its success in tackling homelessness in the town.
The creation of 30 extra council flats and houses in Eastbourne is among a number of key achievements delivered by the council’s Housing Strategy to date, but huge changes in national policy require new plans.
At a council cabinet meeting on Wednesday (13), members approved the development of a new housing strategy to run up to 2016 in light of extensive government funding cuts and far reaching welfare benefit reforms, many part of the new Localism Bill.
Despite the recession, the council’s existing housing and homelessness strategy has delivered several key achievements, such as:
30 new council homes, the first in 20 years
The completion of a new purpose-built women’s refuge
The transformation of an outdated sheltered housing scheme to create 18 homes for local older people
The continued success of the Housing Options Service which prevented 375 vulnerable households from becoming homeless
A 32% reduction in the number of homeless households in temporary accommodation
A successful bid to attract £3.9m in government funding to improve council sheltered housing
127 empty homes brought back into use
Reducing the time taken to process housing benefit claims to 18 days
Coun Margaret Bannister, portfolio holder for Community, said: “The council’s current housing and homelessness strategies have been highly successful in delivering significant achievements to keep people out of temporary accommodation and ultimately off the streets.
“However, due to raft of proposed changes to national policy and some severe funding cuts, we are once again facing several challenges that demand a new strategic approach.
“The preparation of new strategies will enable is to develop solutions to tackle the effect of welfare reforms and other funding cuts.
“The involvement of the whole community in the development of these new strategies will ensure are action plans are robust, inclusive and effective in meeting the needs of local people.”
