Social housing property empty for eight years

Parish councillor Luke Dunstone said it was an unacceptable situation

A social housing property has stood empty for eight years in a Cornish village.

The house on the Park an Dreas estate in Veryan, on the Roseland peninsula, is a shared ownership property overseen by housing association LiveWest, which has homes across the South West.

Both the local parish council and the area’s Cornwall councillor are angry the property has been left empty for so long at a time when Cornwall is suffering from a housing crisis.

LiveWest said the property was being renovated and the "process of occupying the home" would start within six weeks.

'Outrageous'

Independent county councillor Julian German, said: "It is quite outrageous that a property can be empty for this length of time.

“A family should be living here, children in the school and contributing to the vitality of the community."

There are believed to be more than 30 families on the waiting list for a house in Veryan, parish councillor Luke Dunstone told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS).

“It’s an unacceptable situation," he said.

"We just cannot seem to get LiveWest to get a shift on where this property is concerned."

'Complex issues'

The Park an Dreas estate, which was built in the early 1990s on land owned by the now defunct Carrick District Council, is a mix of 17 shared ownership properties and 16 rental.

LiveWest’s director of neighbourhoods James Reseigh apologised for "any inconvenience this may have caused".

He said: "An unauthorised loft conversion carried out by the previous resident left the home facing complex structural issues and in an uninhabitable condition.

"We have since been working to make this home safe to be occupied.

"Builders are currently on site, and we are expecting the works to be complete within the next six weeks so that we can begin the process of occupying the home."