NEWS

IN BRIEF

Affordable housing deal National law firm Clarke Willmott LLP has acted on a deal which will see a multimillion pound development of 152 affordable homes on the former site of Leeds City College in Horsforth. The plot was acquired by Vistry Partnerships Yorkshire and social housing provider Stonewater, from Luminate Education Group.

The land has remained unoccupied since Leeds City College closed the site in 2017 and the £22.5m project will include 100% affordable homes, helping to ease local housing demand. The development will be gas-free, with each home fitted with an air source heat pump.

Squire Patton Boggs acted for Vistry Partnerships Yorkshire and Eversheds Sutherland International LLP acted for Luminate Education Group.

New name in affordable housing A new era for 18,000 social housing tenants got underway in November, as three landlords in Housing Plus Group — South Staffordshire Housing Association, Severnside Housing and Stafford and Rural Homes — joined together to become Homes Plus. The creation of a single landlord took place after consultation with customers, earlier this year.

The launch of Homes Plus was celebrated with the unveiling of a new look for repairs and maintenance vehicles, including some limited edition versions featuring artwork specially created by Jon Stiff (pictured), who is Director of Maintenance and Commercial Services at Housing Plus Group and a successful artist.

©dudlajzov/AdobeStock

Global climate leaders

Nottingham has been recognised by CDP as one of 95 cities around the globe that is taking bold leadership on environmental action and transparency, despite the continued pressures of tackling the coronavirus pandemic on local and national economies and societies.

Designed to encourage and support cities worldwide to ramp up their climate action and ambition, CDP’s Cities A List is based on environmental data disclosed by cities to the CDP-ICLEI Unified Reporting System. A clear momentum in city climate disclosure and action is building; over 1,000 cities worldwide are reporting their environmental impact through CDP in 2021.

A List cities are demonstrating their climate leadership through concerted and effective action, taking twice as many mitigation and adaptation measures as non-A List cities, and identifying more than twice as many opportunities arising from the shift to a net zero world.

Nottingham is one of 11 cities in the UK named on this year’s A List, alongside Edinburgh, London, and Manchester. These cities are celebrated for showing that urgent and impactful climate action — from ambitious emissions reduction targets to building resilience against climate change — is achievable at a global level and in cities with different climate realities and priorities. However, this action needs to go further and faster to meet the new targets agreed at COP26.

Nottingham has an ambitious plan to become the UK’s first carbon neutral city by 2028. An Action Plan to deliver this commitment began in 2020 and focuses on four key areas for action: •Carbon reduction measures (including transport, the built environment, energy generation, waste and water, and consumption) •Carbon removal (including local carbon sequestration, carbon capture, and large-scale carbon offsetting) •Resilience and adaptation •Ecology and diversity.

City Council Deputy Leader, Councillor Sally Longford, says: “I’m delighted that Nottingham has been recognised as an A List City by CDP, alongside 10 other cities in the UK. Not only does this acknowledge the city’s efforts to be a leader in tackling the climate emergency, but it also demonstrates our vision to improve the quality of life for those who live and work in the city.

“Following on from COP26, we are keen to drive positive change within the city. Working alongside other A List cities — including Bristol, Manchester, and Newcastle — we can implement innovative technologies and share best practice. By measuring, disclosing, and understanding Nottingham’s environmental impact, with the help of organisations like CDP, we are able to take the urgent action needed to build a sustainable and thriving economy.”

New collaboration to accelerate housing delivery

The North of Tyne Combined Authority and Homes England have signed an ambitious Memorandum of Understanding — to accelerate the construction of homes as part of the region’s bold plan for postCovid growth and renewal.

With a focus on the strategic economic corridors of the Northumberland Line, City Centre and North Bank of the River Tyne, the agreement signals strong collaboration between Homes England and the Combined Authority, unlocking resources and expertise that will accelerate development on some of the region’s most important housing sites.

The agreement complements the strong partnership across the region’s local authorities — Newcastle, North Tyneside and Northumberland and will build on over £60m of current investment from the Combined Authority in net zero transition, economic innovation and future skills.

Mayor Norma Redfearn, Chair of the North of Tyne Housing and Land Board, says: “Communities in our region need good quality, sustainable housing that is fit for the future. This collaborative agreement shows that we are working hard to turn words into action, building on our £24m brownfield programme and ambitious regeneration plans in places like North Shields, Scotswood and Blyth.”

Duncan Sutherland, Board Member of Homes England and Co-Chair of the North of Tyne Housing and Land Board, comments: “North of Tyne have shown real ambition to accelerate the construction of homes and this agreement enables us to combine our resources to do just that. I look forward to us moving forward quickly, getting spades in the ground and providing the new homes communities are crying out for.”

Henry Kippin, Managing Director of the North of Tyne Combined Authority, adds: “Strong collaboration runs through everything we do as a Combined Authority. Working closely with Homes England will enable us to advance our shared goals of sustainable housing that supports inclusive growth, net zero and post-Covid renewal.”

Peter Denton, Chief Executive of Homes England, says: “This new collaboration is one of many ways that Homes England can support places to build more homes.”

©Vitalii Vodolazskyi/AdobeStock

DIARY DATES

Next steps for decarbonising UK heat and heat networks

This Westminster Energy, Environment & Transport Forum policy conference will take place on the 13th January. The event includes speakers from the Clean Heat Directorate at BEIS, Vital Energi, The Association for Decentralised Energy, District Energy Development, Heat Trust, Solihull Council, E.ON, Savills, The UK District Energy Association and a senior speaker confirmed from UK Power Networks.

Sessions will tackle policy priorities for UK-wide heat decarbonisation and scaling up district heating rollout, as well as the latest thinking on retrofit, decarbonising old stock, improving energy efficiency standards, and utilising emerging energy technologies. The online booking form is available here www.rdr.link/laa001

Will EESSH2 achieve net zero in social housing?

Aico is running a free ideas lab event, in partnership with the Chartered Institute of Housing, on the 27th January, which will look at progress towards Scotland’s Energy Efficiency Standard for Social Housing Two (EESSH2), elements of the standard, air quality, alignment with the net zero target, and how the standard fits with changes needed across other tenures. For more information and to book the event email events@cih.orgor call 024 7685 1722.