Rural Housing Comes Under the Spotlight
25/09/2007
Peak District Rural Housing Association, which specialises in providing homes for local people in the national park and the surrounding rural areas, has invited representatives of district and parish councils to the event on 27 September.
“We are committed to working with local communities so that we can help meet housing needs,” explained Alison Clamp, secretary of Peak District RHA.
“Villages need a mixture of people of all backgrounds and ages
if they are to remain vibrant and sustainable but there is a real shortage of affordable homes in the Peak District and this can force people who have grown up here to move out of the area.
“By working in partnership with the Peak District National Park, local authorities, the Housing Corporation, developers and people in the communities we serve, we can help address this shortage.”
The open evening will be staged at the Agricultural Business Centre in Bakewell and aims to give councillors an understanding of Peak District Rural Housing Association’s work.
Parish and district councillors have been invited from Peak Park, Derbyshire Dales, Amber Valley and Staffordshire Moorlands local authorities.
After a welcome by Rob Rowbotham, chairman of Peak District Rural, Alison Clamp, will give a presentation about the association’s work and Rob Cogings, housing strategy officer at Derbyshire Dales Disitrict Council, will give the housing authority’s view on rural developments.
Brian Taylor, policing planning manager at the Peak District National Park Authority, will give the planner’s view and a parish councillor will then outline their role.
The open evening will conclude with questions and an open discussion.
Peak District Rural Housing Association was set up in 1989 by a group of local people concerned that the growing number of holiday homes and rising house prices were forcing local people out of the housing market.
It now benefits from management and administrative services provided by Midlands Rural Housing, which also works with three other rural housing specialists – Leicestershire, Northamptonshire and Warwickshire Rural Housing Associations.
Peak District RHA now manages more than 200 homes in the area and aims to develop around 20 new, affordable homes each year.
“We are committed to providing well-designed, high quality, homes that blend in with existing properties,” explained Alison.
“We specialise in small-scale developments, most of our schemes are made up of four to ten properties, and work very closely with parish councils to ensure that we meet a community’s specific needs.
“While provision of homes is a key area of our work, we also campaign to ensure that rural housing needs are met and share our expertise with other housing providers.”