Rochdale house building rates still behind levels before recession

House building rates in the borough of Rochdale have not recovered to pre-recession levels, new figures from the BBC has revealed.

In England in 2016-17 – the last full year of data available for overall new homes supply rates – 217,000 new homes were created. This was a five-year high, but still significantly short of the latest government target of 300,000 new homes a year.

The average number of homes built in the local area over the last decade was 349 each year, meaning just 68% of the government’s targets are being met.

In Rochdale, which has the second highest percentage of green belt and protected land in Greater Manchester, local assessments say we need to build an additional 460 houses a year – lower than the government’s assessment of 514 homes.

Both assessments were the lowest experienced in all 10 boroughs of Greater Manchester, whereas Trafford, Stockport and Oldham had the lowest number of additional dwellings compared to government assessment of need.

Rochdale Boroughwide Housing Director of Growth, Clare Tostevin, said: “We know that the borough needs more new good quality, genuinely affordable homes of the right type, of the right tenure and in the right places to meet changing needs and aspirations. We also know that we need to keep raising the quality of existing homes and of their surrounding environments.

“Since our transfer in 2012, we have delivered over 150 new homes all within the borough - from new family homes in Heady Hill in Heywood to our award-winning Extra Care scheme, Hare Hill in Littleborough. In our ambitious new corporate strategy, Together, we have pledged to build even more – with RBH delivering over 100 new homes per year over the next five years.  All the new homes we deliver will be within the towns and villages across Rochdale.

“We know that we can't directly deliver all of the 460 new homes per year that Rochdale needs, but in addition to delivering over 100 new homes of our own each year, we can also support others to help grow the number of homes across the borough.

“For example, our regeneration proposals in central Rochdale will not only deliver new and refurbished RBH homes, but our plans can also be the key to unlocking the delivery of 2,000 new homes in and around Rochdale town centre.

“By ensuring a better quality and mix of homes, we want to play a leading role in boosting the borough’s future economic and social well-being – we will be the lead partner in delivering quality affordable homes in the borough to provide and facilitate more housing, more choice, and improved quality homes.

“We need to provide the right homes in the right places – for example, we know that we need to deliver more and better homes for older people, that we need more large family homes and we can do more to help people into the tenure of their choice.

“We are working closely with Rochdale Borough Council as well as working with partners at a regional and national level to provide the quality and mix of homes our communities need.”

Mark Robinson, assistant director of economy at Rochdale Borough Council, said: “Last year, 799 new homes were constructed in the borough, well above the annual target of 460 homes a year, and we expect to exceed this target again in 2018/19, with the completion of major housing schemes across the borough, including at Hill Top School, St Martin’s View, Tarnside Close, Cedar Avenue and Baytree Lane.

“In previous years, we have not always met annual housing targets partly because we have demolished a lot of poor quality homes which were in low demand, to make way for better standard housing as part of our regeneration strategy for the borough. As these new homes are constructed over the longer term, once these demolitions are taken into account, we have fallen short of our annual housing targets in those particular years. 

“Given that the latest population forecasts for the borough show that Rochdale has the highest rate of growth in Greater Manchester, as part of the Greater Manchester Spatial Framework, we’re working hard to identify more sites, including brownfield and council-owned sites, to help us meet future housing needs.”