Anger over decision to pull out of housing plans

The decision to pull out of two large housing projects has been referred to a panel

A panel is set to examine a council's decision to pull out of two major housing projects.

Bristol City Council has withdrawn from plans to build 171 new homes at Baltic Wharf and Hengrove Park.

The decision was taken by senior officers, in consultation with the chair and vice chair of the housing committee, but opposition councillors are unhappy that they were not consulted and the matter has now been referred to an escalation panel.

The Green Party's Barry Parsons, chair of the homes and housing delivery committee, said he is “perfectly comfortable” with the decision, which he said would free up borrowing costs for investment in current housing stock.

'Safe and decent'

The council's housing company, Goram Homes, had been working with developers to build 66 homes at Baltic Wharf caravan site, and 105 at Hengrove Park.

Parsons said the decision, which was not put to the housing committee for a vote, means the homes would no longer be purchased by the council and would instead be delivered by a housing association.

“They will still be affordable, and available for social rent. But they won’t be in the council’s own portfolio,” he told BBC Radio Bristol.

“Earlier this year, the council received a judgement from something called the regulator of social housing that said there are serious failings in the homes that we currently own.

“There’s a huge amount that we need to invest in the homes that we own to make them safe and decent for the people who live in them.”

Opposition anger

The decision has angered opposition Labour councillors including Kerry Bailes, who said she was unhappy that the decision had not been made through the committee.

“It’s not been scrutinised," Bailes said.

"We’ve campaigned for a long time to get more council housing built in Bristol because council housing isn’t the same as social housing.

“We've heard at a meeting that it’s just been changed, and cancelled - a 30-year business plan."

A council spokesperson said a date for a panel to review the decision would be "confirmed in due course".

"The membership of the escalation panel will be determined by the party group whips and based on the political proportionality of the council."