Page 2, At Sheringham paper, Norfolk UK

"Disappointing" failure to give social tenants a foot up the housing ladder

New figures expose poor take-up of flagship Government housing policy in the region

The Conservative Candidate for North Norfolk, Trevor Ivory, has accused the Government of undermining social opportunity and social mobility. The Government's own official figures expose the minimal take-up across the region of its flagship Social Homebuy scheme to allow social tenants to buy or part-buy their home. Mr Ivory also highlighted how the 'Right to Buy' is now increasingly beyond the reach of council tenants in the region, denying tenants the opportunity of buying their council flat or house even before the credit crunch. The Government's Social Homebuy scheme was supposed to enable council or housing association tenants to own or part-own their rented homes. Launched in April 2006, the Government claimed that it would help 5,000 households every year into home ownership. But in the whole of the last three years, only 300 households have been helped and none in North Norfolk.

The Right to Buy gives council tenants the ability to purchase their home or flat, with a discount to the sale price but the Government has presided over six different cuts to those discounts. These latest figures show that since 1998, the average discount as a percentage of the market value in the region has plummeted from 49% of the house price to just 25%. Commenting on the figures Mr Ivory said, "It is disappointing that Labour has kicked the housing ladder away from social tenants in North Norfolk and made it harder to realise the ambition of home ownership." "Housing mobility has a vital role to play in fixing our broken society. Giving people a financial stake in their home promotes greater neighbourhood pride and helping people to move up the housing ladder frees up an affordable property for those on the increasingly long housing waiting lists."
Trevor Ivory, Parliamentary Candidate for North Norfolk

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Friends of EA Air Ambulance

26 June Terry Willis
3 July Mr & Mrs Monger
10 July Norwich Bowls Club
17 July Duncan Cook

OPEN SPACES SOCIETY HAS NEVER BEEN MORE NEEDED

‘The Open Spaces Society(1) has never been more needed in the 144 years of its existence.’ So declared the society’s general secretary, Kate Ashbrook, presenting the society’s annual report for 2008(2) at its annual general meeting on Tuesday 30 June. ‘Each year we help and advise our members about their local commons, greens, open spaces and public paths—throughout England and Wales. In the first six months of this year we have already helped with nearly 200 cases, making an unprecedented 400 for the year. The average number for the previous ten years was 262. ‘And that’s only the cases dealt with by our small staff in the Henley office. Our diligent band of local representatives have taken on many more.’ ‘Of the 200 cases so far this year, over 80 are about recording land as a new green. Where local people have evidence of 20 years use of an area for informal recreation, without being stopped or asking permission, they may be able to register it as a green with the county or unitary council. Once registered the land is protected from development. ‘Our Society was founded in Victorian times, by far-sighted campaigners who wanted to protect open spaces for all to enjoy. Now, despite the recession, open spaces and paths have never been more under threat. We are here to help save them,’ Kate declares.
1. The Open Spaces Society (formally the Commons, Open Spaces and Footpaths Preservation Society) was founded in 1865 and is Britain’s oldest national conservation body. It campaigns to protect common land, village greens, open spaces and public paths, and people’s right to enjoy them.
2. Annual report available from OSS website. http://www.oss.org.uk/publications/free-publications/
or email hq@oss.org.uk for a pdf

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