News & Notes

Helping you make the most of Rutland and Market Harborough living

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OMEN in Rural Enterprise (WiRE) Leicestershire and Rutland was formed in 2017 as a creative networking group for businesswomen in the area to engage, connect and support each other. The group meets once a month at a different venue in the region, and the aim is very positive – to encourage productive conversations, enable networking opportunities and facilitate learning. At each meeting there’s a speaker from an inspirational rural business and the chance to find out what challenges that person has faced and overcome in their professional capacity. WiRE has events planned 2018, from a vineyard tour to Christmas PR planning. The group also fundraises for local causes – WiRE Rutland and Leicestershire founders Jane Batty, Megan Allen and Claire

McFadden are seen above presenting a cheque to Change Agents, an Oakham-based charity and not-for-profit organisation that supports early careerists to realise their potential

working for ethical and responsible businesses. For more information, visit www.wireuk.org and, in the Local Networks option, select Leicestershire and Rutland.

Rutland property market boosted with 257 new homes in the last 12 months It is encouraging to see some of the new households in Rutland had This month, our local property advisor David Crooke, owner of UPP Property, reviews the number of new homes created in the county over the last year and assesses the impact for Rutland homeowners, landlords and tenants in the long-term.

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N what appears to be a change in focus by the Tories to ensure they remain in government in 2022, they seem to have fallen in love with house building again, with the Chancellor’s promise to create 300,000 new households each year. Nationally, the number of new homes created has topped 217,344 in the last year, the highest since the financial crash of 2007/8. Looking closer to home, in total there were 257 “net additional dwellings” in the last 12 months in the Rutland County Council area, a decent increase of 96% on the 2010 figure. The figures show that 94% of this additional housing was down to new-build properties. In total, there were 242 new dwellings built over the last year in Rutland, with 22 additional dwellings created from converting commercial or office buildings into residential property. While these all added to the total housing stock in the Rutland area, there were 7 demolitions to take into account.

come from a change of use. The planning laws were revised a few years back, so that in certain circumstances owners of properties didn’t need planning permission to convert office space into residential use. With the scarcity of building land available locally (or the builders being very slow to build on what they have, for fear of flooding the market), it was pleasing to see the number of developers who had reutilised vacant office space into residential homes in the local council area. Converting offices and shops to residential use will be vital in helping to solve the housing crisis. Also on a positive note, the government is introducing a variety of changes to improve housing, including more funding for the supply side and an injection of urgency into the planning system. The focus on the housing market by the government is good news for all homeowners and landlords, as it will encourage greater fluidity in the market in the longer term, sharing the wealth and benefits of homeownership for all. However, in the short term, demand still outstrips supply for homes and that will mean continued upward pressures on rents for tenants. For professional advice on buying, selling, renting and managing your homes and property investments, please call UPP Property Sales & Lettings on 01572 725825. See also www.upp-property.co.uk.

Easter Point-to-Point at Dingley

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HE Easter Point-to-Point at Dingley, just east of Market Harborough, is being held on Saturday 31 March. You can either get up close to the action or watch from the top of Dingley hill, which gives you a wonderful view of the entire course. There will be a bar and several food stands, but you can also get set up with an award-winning picnic. Fingers crossed for the weather. Admission to Dingley is £15 per adult, with children under 16 gaining entry free of charge. You can buy tickets on the gate or before the event on the official Dingley website: www.dingleyraces.com

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RUTLAND & MARKET HARBOROUGH LIVING MARCH 2018

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