Memorandum by Gateway, the Housing Market
Renewal Pathfinder for Kingston upon Hull and the East Riding
of Yorkshire (EMP 43)
1. Gateway, the Housing Market Renewal Pathfinder
for Kingston upon Hull and the East Riding of Yorkshire, is pleased
to have the opportunity to submit this memorandum to the Inquiry
on Empty Homes and Low Demand Pathfinders.
2. Gateway is one of a number of partnerships
between Hull City Council, the East Riding of Yorkshire Council
and other parties.
3. The Pathfinder provides the basis for
tackling in a holistic way the problems of low demand for and
abandonment of housing within the City of Hull by producing a
housing market restructuring scheme. Together with the Northern
Way concept and the award Building Schools for the Future status,
which could realise up to £200 million of additional investment
in secondary schools, the Pathfinder is recognised as a once in
a lifetime opportunity to revitalise the sub region as a whole.
4. All housing Authorities in the North
will welcome the Housing, Planning, Local Government and the Regions
Committee's interest in the challenges they face in tackling low
demand and empty homes. However, given the stage of development
the Gateway Pathfinder has reached, it is too early for us to
be able to comment substantively on the issues being examined
by the Committee.
5. We submitted our prospectus to the Office
of the Deputy Prime Minister at the end of October last year and
are currently in negotiation with ODPM. We are optimistic that
these negotiations will conclude positively within the next six
weeks, and have watched with great interest how the other eight
Pathfinders have set about implementing theirs and are learning
from their experience.
6. At the same time as our proposals were
under development during 2004, Hull City Council was placed under
a strategic direction by the Minister for Local Government in
December 2003. This followed critical Corporate Governance Inspections
in July 2002 and September 2003. Since then, the Council has made
considerable progress in a number of areas including Housing Strategy
and service provision.
7. We are taking the necessary steps to
ensure that any programme of interventions agreed with the ODPM
can be delivered successfully by us and our partners.
BACKGROUND
8. The Pathfinder area covers the whole
of the City of Hull and a number of wards within the East Riding
comprising all the contiguous wards and those adjacent to these.
All of the proposed areas of intervention are within the City
of Hull.
9. The Pathfinder is a crucial ingredient
in the future success of the City. It has conceived an integrated
package of measures with partners and key stakeholders that represent
a vision for its future. Together with Citybuild (Hull's Urban
Regeneration Company covering the City centre and parts of West
Hull) we plan to bring about significant change across the City.
10. Hull has been identified as an area
of acute and intense market failure. For the purposes of Pathfinder
planning, the City has been divided into four areas—the
West, the East, the North and the City Centre. Each area has developed
its own masterplan setting out the interventions for the proposed
lifetime of the Pathfinder.
11. Over recent decades the population of
Hull has declined whilst that of the East Riding has increased.
The principal cause of this population drift has been migration
with a substantial movement from the City to the East Riding.
Over the 10 years to 2001 the population of the East Riding has
risen by 21,000 (an increase of 6.3%) whereas the city of Hull
has fallen by almost 20,000—a 7.6% drop. Within the City
itself the population of inner East Hull has increased slightly.
12. In 1999-2000, some 11,000 people left
Hull whilst 8,000 moved in. Equivalent figures for East Riding
of Yorkshire were 13,000 and 16,000. Just under half of the Hull
migrants moved to East Riding whilst a quarter of East Riding
migrants moved to the City. In fact, for every 10 people leaving
Hull for East Riding, seven were going in the other direction.
13. This population loss represents a significant
challenge to the future of the City. However, other major challenges
it faces include:
14. Low levels of economic activity—Hull's
economy is dominated by low wages, high unemployment and inactivity
rates.
15. Movement and linkages—movement
across Hull is hampered by localised and cross city congestion.
16. Poor condition of the housing stock—the
City has an over-representation of terraced stock housing, system-built
houses and a concentration of social housing. The lack of quality
in the housing stock undermines the ability of the area to retain
existing residents as their housing needs and aspirations change,
and it also reduces the attractiveness of the area to new residents.
17. Low average house prices—prices
are lower than the regional average and significantly lower than
the national average.
18. Structurally deficient non-traditional
housing—Hull has several types of non-traditionally built
housing which suffer from structural defects.
19. Low educational attainment and poor
perceptions of schools—Hull's primary schools are generally
perceived to perform well but overall its secondary school performance
is the worst in the country.
20. Higher than average levels of crime—although
falling, Hull has the worst community safety indicators compared
to the other Pathfinders.
21. Deprivation—Hull ranks in the
top 10 of the most deprived Local Authority area in the country.
22. The lack of choice and quality in the
Hull housing market together with deprivation, crime, education
and environmental factors combine to create a push factor away
from Hull into the East Riding and beyond, leading to out-migration
of predominantly economically active households. The obverse situation
applies in the East Riding resulting in pull factors away from
the City. These factors result in relatively low housing values
in Hull.
GATEWAY'S
PROPOSALS
23. Gateway's interventions, uniquely amongst
the nine Pathfinders, are proposed for one Local Authority area
only, that of Hull City Council.
24. They are spread across the City. The
initial activity is principally centred around five priority neighbourhood
areas where market failure is most acute.
25. Additionally Gateway has proposed measures
to aid the development of the local economy and stabilise neighbourhoods
in danger of further decline. To achieve this, close working relationships
are being established with key stakeholders including all of the
key public sector regeneration agencies, Hull City Council, Registered
Social Landlords, Developers and other agencies and organisations
with an interest in the City's housing and ongoing regeneration.
The recent announcement that Hull is to benefit
from BSF is welcome. It is important that these two significant
investment programmes are aligned both at government and local
level.
COMPULSORY PURCHASE
26. A compulsory purchase programme is underway
in the West Hull area. The initial programme of CPO will be declared
using housing powers in an area of large scale empty, abandoned
and unfit homes.
27. Hull City Council is reviewing all powers
available including those recently made available through the
Planning and CPO Act 2004 but have concerns that this is still
untested and the timescales to deliver are as yet unclear.
LINKS WITH
THE PRIVATE
SECTOR
28. Gateway's current principal link with
the private sector is through the Developer's panel and Registered
Social Landlords which it has recently established following a
comprehensive selection process. Developers selected will assist
Gateway to take forward the regeneration of neighbourhoods and
specific sites.
SKILLS
29. Gateway is aware from its discussions
with specialist recruitment agencies that the skill sets which
it requires to take forward its plans are in short supply. This
includes housing/regeneration specialists but also key implementation
skills such as EHO's right through to construction workers. Gateway
is working with other government agencies to develop training
and capacity building in these areas. Further government assistance
as highlighted in the Northern Way is welcome and should be accelerated.
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