The latest rolling five-year plan, which is submitted annually to the Scottish government, was approved by Scottish Borders Council’s executive committee yesterday (16 October).
In addition to outlining the potential delivery of affordable housing, including how and where these could be delivered, the Strategic Housing Investment Plan (SHIP) also sets out investment priorities and identifies the resources required and potential funding and procurement solutions.
In the next two years, it is estimated that approximately 751 new affordable homes could be delivered, and up to 1,047 overall by the end of 2024, including several extra-care housing developments. The could said that this assumes any land and infrastructure challenges are resolved and that the construction sector has the capacity to deliver the projects. It is also based on assumed funding from the Scottish Government, partners’ private-sector borrowing and the use of the council’s affordable housing budget.
It is anticipated that the large majority of the homes would be delivered by local registered social landlords.
Councillor Mark Rowley, executive member for business and economic development, said: “More than 1,000 affordable homes would go a long way to meeting housing needs in our communities over the next five years and would also help support the local construction sector, providing a further boost to the economy. It is an ambitious plan and there are certainly some challenges, from land supply to funding, but we continue to work very closely with a range of partners, including registered social landlords and the Scottish Government, to maximise opportunities to deliver more affordable homes.”
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