December 2012

England’s 353 councils are set to share a cash payout of £661m over the next year, after delivering 142,000 new homes, including self Build and affordable properties.

This funding under the New Homes Bonus scheme will also reward councils for bringing 13,000 long-term empty properties back into use.

This latest allocation, to be paid in the 2013 to 2014 financial year, means councils will have received £1.3bn through the scheme since its launch in April 2011.Read More »New Homes Bonus scheme adds up to £660m for councils

New guidance has been published by the National Self Build Association (NaSBA) which provides advice on how planners and custom-build developers can make it easier for people to build their own homes. The guide explains how new Government policy included in the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) encouraging self-build can be applied locally.
These include:
encouraging larger scale, self-build communities – like those that are already underway in Continental Europe – using public land to proactively facilitate self build projects – setting a target for a certain proportion of new homes to be self-builds when allocating sites or planning for new homes – treating modest low-cost self builds as ‘affordable’ housing – specifically encouraging self-builds in certain areas – for example on ‘infill’ sites, OR AS SMALL- SCALE EXTENSIONS ON THE EDGE OF TOWNS OR VILLAGES.Read More »Self building guide published-November 2012