Press Release - funding boost to tackle homelessness and empty homes blight

acknowledgements:

http://www.teignbridge.gov.uk/index.aspx?articleid=17306

Homeless people in Teignbridge are being given the chance to live in their own home after Teignbridge District Council gained a £100,000 Government funding boost.

Teignbridge has been given the Empty Homes Programme funding by the Homes and Communities Agency to bring empty homes back into use as affordable properties.

Teignbridge was one of 10 authorities in the South West to benefit from the funding announced by Communities Minister Don Foster today (Thursday June 20).

The council's housing team will be working with private sector landlords to bring empty homes and commercial premises into use as affordable housing by the end of March 2015. The scheme will enable Teignbridge to provide grants to developers in return for a leasing arrangement which will enable them to let property to homeless people at affordable rents.

So far properties in Teignmouth, Dawlish, Newton Abbot and Kingsteignton are earmarked for refurbishment.

Empty premises can be a wasted resource at a time when there is a shortage of affordable housing and high numbers of people in housing need. Every empty property which can be brought back into use could house someone who needs a home.

Councillor Philip Vogel, Teignbridge District Council's Executive Spokesperson for Housing and Planning, said:

"We are delighted with this Government funding. It will enable us to keep working in partnership with the private sector to bring empty property back into use as affordable housing to meet the needs of our community.

"This funding will enable us to provide grants to developers in return for a leasing arrangement which will enable them to let property to homeless people at affordable rents.

"We've already done a lot of work to tackle empty homes across the district and it's had a really positive effect on our communities.

"Teignbridge consults with all owners of empty properties to find out what it can do to encourage their reuse and owners' responses help assist in prioritising cases. Sometimes properties remain unoccupied because of a lack of funds for refurbishment works or due to difficulty letting and in these cases we are often able to offer low interest rate loans and small grants to assist in making properties ready for reoccupation.

 "We can also assist with tenant finding and offer a private sector lease scheme. On occasions houses are simply neglected which can lead to issues such as anti-social behaviour, fall into disrepair, gardens become overgrown or cause a nuisance to neighbouring residents.

"On other occasions, owners of empty properties may be inexperienced landlords. We do our best to help each case and this money from the HCA is going to help us carry out even more work on providing affordable homes and reducing the blight caused by empty homes."

The funding is being allocated under two programmes:

· £61m from the second round of the Empty Homes funding programme, provided to successful bidders eligible from all areas across England (except London, which will be announced separately) with empty homes.  Around two thirds of this (£41m) is allocated by the Homes and Communities Agency to registered social landlords; and the remaining money to community and voluntary groups. Together the 187 successful organisations will bring around 3,200 extra homes back into use.

· £30m second year award of Clusters of Empty Homes programme funding for twenty partnerships in areas of acute problems such as Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle and Middlesbrough which will bring around 3,500 homes back into use.

Announcing the funding, Mr Foster said:

"The government is doing everything possible to tackle the problem of empty homes and urban blight.  Today I'm announcing we're going to do even more, with towns across England benefiting from £91m to refurbish over 6,000 empty properties to get them back into use.  This will bring people; shops and jobs back to once abandoned areas, and provide extra affordable homes we so badly need.

"We have already made very good progress, cutting the number of long term empty homes by 40,000 but with thousands of people in this country desperate to buy a home and areas still suffering problems of urban blight we must go further still."

 Andy Rose, Homes and Communities Agency chief executive, said:

"We had a very encouraging response to the funding across a wide range of types of property. This demonstrates a strong appetite and scope for bringing empty homes and properties back into use, which will help to reinvigorate our communities and towns. We look forward to working with housing providers to bring these homes forward."

The other areas in the South West to receive funding are:

Bath and North East Somerset - £119,000 (10 homes)

Bristol - £73,395 (4 homes)

Gloucester - £590,000 (16 homes)

Isles of Scilly - £286,750 (2 homes)

Mendip - £800,000 (21 homes)

Plymouth - £660,000 (30 homes)

South Gloucestershire - £773,395 (4 homes)

West Somerset - £1.063m (36 homes)

Wiltshire - £73,395 (4 homes)

Plan Teignbridge in hands of Inspectorate

Acknowledgements:

http://www.teignbridge.gov.uk/index.aspx?articleid=17304

An emmotional statement:

Teignbridge District Council has submitted its 20-year homes, jobs and environment blueprint to an independent Government Inspector.

After years of work with local people, communities, partner organisations and authorities and potential developers, Teignbridge has today (Thursday June 20 2013) submitted its Local Plan - commonly known as Plan Teignbridge - to the inspector for public scrutiny.

The important document - which sets the tone for the long-term economic success of the district - is expected to be the subject of a public examination in October, if not earlier. The Inspector, appointed by the Government, will look at all the evidence and comments before declaring if the Plan is 'sound' and fit for adoption.

Plan Teignbridge 2013-2033 sets out a vision to deliver jobs and homes where they are most needed, gives communities a say in how their neighbourhoods are developed and give places even better leisure and recreation opportunities.

The plan will help fulfil communities' aspirations for the infrastructure they need including schools, play areas and good road links. It aims to do all this while respecting and protecting the unique local environment.

Over the course of its life Plan Teignbridge's proposals aim to provide:

· At least 12,400 homes across the district covering affordable homes, self build and open market

· 68 hectares of land for employment use

· 11,000m2 of shopping space in Newton Abbot

· More cycle routes and other green transport options

· Improved environment and wildlife habitat protections for bats (including the very rare greater horseshoe bats), dormice and slow worms

· Safeguarding green spaces - known as Undeveloped Coast - between coastal communities

· Increasing and protecting strategic breaks around Abbotskerswell, space between Kingsteignton and Newton Abbot, and Exminster and Exeter

Without an up-to-date plan in place, Teignbridge is vulnerable to unplanned development and may not be able to bring in further much-needed funding.

To get to this stage, Plan Teignbridge went through the biggest public consultation ever carried out across the district. The Council ran 12 drop-in events, took part in over 50 mobile library visits, attended over 30 local meetings and talked to more than 3,000 local residents.

A further six-week consultation period allowed people to make comments on the plan's 'soundness' directly to the Inspector.

The original submission date, planned for February, was deferred so it could be submitted alongside the Draft Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) document, which sets out the charging schedule for the new levy. CIL is important because it means local authorities can charge on new developments to help fund infrastructure for local communities including roads, parks, employment sites, education and sports and health centres.

The deferral allowed time to resolve outstanding issues on its Habitat Regulations Assessment - a legal requirement for submission - to satisfy further comments from Natural England and for additional discussions Torbay Council under the legal 'duty to cooperate' requirements.

All that work has been successfully completed.

A Planning Inspector will now be appointed and will consider the Local Plan, and the same person will act as Examiner for the Community Infrastructure Levy. 

Cllr Philip Vogel said:

"We've been working with lots of organisations - nationally and locally - alongside community groups and residents to make sure Teignbridge has a plan for the future. Today marks an important point in the plan's progression.

"We want to make sure people are able to live and work in Teignbridge for many years to come and we want to provide a clear guide for where development can and can't go.

"This is another step in the right direction towards that goal. We've tried to get the balance right and it's not always been easy, but we think we've balanced the conflicting views about the area's future and its needs, against all the evidence and facts."

Once appointed, the Inspector/Examiner will organise the hearings into the submitted documents, and all of those who have made formal representations will be notified of the relevant details. There will be at least six weeks' notice of the opening day of the hearings.

As part of the plan process, Teignbridge has appointed Lisa Edwards to be its Programme Officer. Lisa will act as the independent liaison between the Planning Inspector, the Local Planning Authority and other interested people. 

Her email address is programmeofficer@teignbridge.gov.uk and she can be contacted about issues related to the examination.

As with every stage of forming the plan, all documents can be viewed online atwww.teignbridge.gov.uk/planteignbridge

This is what it looked like:

BUCKFASTLEIGH Neighbourhood Report May 2013

 

Over the past month there have been 50 incidents reported to us from Buckfastleigh.

 

20 crimes reported from the town which include:-

 

2 Criminal damage to property and 1 to a vehicle.

1  case of Harassment and 1 assault.

1 Burglary was reported to us.

3 incidents of shoplifting were reported of which 2 were linked to the same 3 individuals from Torquay.  All 3 persons were arrested and have been interviewed for the offence.

 

In April two acts of criminal damage were reported at South Devon Railway to train carriages. A local 17 year old youth was identified and given a youth caution for the offence.

 

There have been 2 reports of suspicious vehicles in the area which has raised concerns within the community. 1 a Red VW Golf contained a male who was homeless and sleeping in his car. He was spoken to by Police and leaft the area and has not been seen since. The other was a White Transit van. This registered keeper was from out of the area visiting friends but checks were made with Gloucester Police. There were no offences and this vehicle has left the area.

 

Several reports have been received in relation to nuisance motorbikes. A second rider has been issued a Section 59 Warning for riding elsewhere other than road. If the manner of riding continues we will look to seize the vehicle. Another report of an unroadworthy moped being ridden around the town was received and this was discovered abandoned in a local car park. It has been removed by the council as deemed a danger to the public.

 

From West Buckfastleigh we have had no crimes in the area. 1 incident has been reported which was in relation of a dispute with a neighbour.

 

1 Theft from Vehicle was reported from the Bench Tor Car Park in the Holne area. It would appear that the registered keeper of the vehicle was from Oxfordshire visiting the area and had left valuable items had been left on display in the car.

 

Police surgeries will be held at Buckfastleigh Town Hall, the next one being Wednesday 12^th June at 7.30pm

 

We can be contacted via the central switchboard no. 101 or via e-mail –Teignbridge@devonandcornwall.pnn.police.uk

 

PCSO 30577 Tamzin CAMPBELL-MOSELEY

PC Andy Dudley

A380 South Devon Link Road (SDLR)

Further up date I have received

A380 South Devon Link Road (SDLR)
North Section news update
Piling rigs information
The South Devon Link Road project has now reached the stage where we are able to mobilise piling
rigs at the junctions of St Luke’s Road and Aller Park along the A380. Two rigs are due on site the
week commencing 27th May. These rigs are being used to drill depths down to 10m to allow the
installation of concrete piles which will act as retaining walls.
The work is scheduled to take between four and six weeks to complete. During this time the
machinery will be in operation between 08.00 and 18.00. To minimise as much of the noise and
vibration as possible we are using the quieter type of equipment which drills rather than using a
hammering action.
Unfortunately this will not remove all of the noise, so we have leafleted the areas concerned
apologising to residents in advance for any remaining disturbance or inconvenience the drilling may
cause them, and asking for their patience while this work takes place.
Penn Inn bus stop
A recent incident took place involving the South West Water water main at Penn Inn which forced the
closure of the bus stop at Penn Inn roundabout, Torquay bound.
May Gurney and South West Water are continuing to work in the area to repair the main.
The bus stop is due to reopen w/c 10th June. In the meantime Galliford Try has erected signage
advising passengers of this temporary closure.
Contact us
If you would like further information about the rigs, the bus stop or any other aspect of the SDLR
project please contact the Galliford Try public liaison team Tracey Waygood and Patrick Beasley on
01626 357729 or 01626 233019 or email A380.SDLR@gallifordtry.co.uk

Dartmoor Sustainable Development Fund – grants available for 2013/14

This will be of interest to those who are thinking about projects on the Moor with relevance to Energy Efficiency, Sustainable Travel and Young People.

Dartmoor Sustainable Development Fund – grants available for 2013/14

Dartmoor National Park Authority (DNPA) is pleased to announce further funding through the Dartmoor Sustainable Development Fund (DSDF) for 2013/14.

The aim of the DSDF is to aid the achievement of National Park purposes by encouraging individuals, community groups and businesses to develop practical, local projects that develop and test new ways of achieving a more sustainable way of living, which enhance and conserve local culture, wildlife, landscape, land use or community. The key priorities for this year are Energy Efficiency, Sustainable Travel and Young People. However, applications are still welcome from projects which meet the wider environmental, social or economic DSDF criteria.

Projects need to be located within Dartmoor National Park. In exceptional circumstances applications will be considered from outside the area if they are able to demonstrate a clear benefit to Dartmoor National Park.

The DSDF will not fund capital energy efficiency or renewable energy works that could receive funding through other sources such as the Green Deal, Feed-in-Tariff or Renewable Heat Incentive.

In 2013/14 there is a  total of £100,000 available. For projects asking for less than £2000 of support, then decisions are made by a delegated process, normally within a month, with approval from the DNPA Director of Conservation and Communities. Applications for greater than £2000 will be asked to present their project to the DSDF panel which will be meeting on Friday July 12^th 2013, Friday November 22^nd 2013 and Friday March 14^th 2014.

To be considered at the first panel meeting on July 12^th applicants are asked to have discussed their project with me and completed their application form by Tuesday 25^th June.

For further details including grant criteria, next steps and application information visithttp://www.dartmoor.gov.uk/DSDF

Please do give me a call or email me if you have any questions or would like to discuss your project.

Best wishes,

Ruth

Ruth Leonard-Williams

Sustainable Development Officer (Mon-Wed)

Dartmoor National Park Authority

Parke, Bovey Tracey, Newton Abbot TQ13 9JQ

Tel: 01626 832093

This land is your land, this land is my land, this land is Dartmoor

An exciting future for Chuley Road, Ashburton

Dartmoor National Park Authority, working with Teignbridge District Council has commissioned a masterplan for the Chuley Road site in Ashburton. Award winning design practice BDP has been appointed to produce the masterplan, drawing on their unrivalled experience and expertise in delivering successful masterplans and engaging with local communities.

The link to the full Press Release can be found at:
http://www.dartmoor.gov.uk/aboutus/news/au-_partnershipnews/an-exciting-future-for-chuley-road,-ashburton

The link to the DNPA FaceBook page is
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Ashburton-Masterplan/129076540623522