A recently launched statewide initiative to promote a major affordable housing project in Northampton is already encountering significant hurdles. As a consequence, the pipeline of homes under development has sharply dried up. The program had initially aimed to produce 418 affordable units on three campuses—Avenue, Roof Gardens, and Belgrave House. Now it will only lead to the building of 82 units.
This is despite the fact that the project has already incurred costs of £13.7 million. The continuing holding costs for the site are around £15,000 per month. Originally, this site, Belgrave House, a hulking 1970s office block, was assigned to deliver 122 key worker homes. Avenue Campus would accommodate up to 170 new homes. At the same time, Roof Gardens just wants to provide 126 affordable units. So far, only 24 homes have been finished at Roof Gardens. That’s a very low ceiling on actual construction, considering it’s only an additional 58 units in total.
It seems safe to assume from the modified plan that only a small percentage of the expected total development will actually materialize. Decision to downsize the project The decision to greatly downsize the project has inspired harsh backlash from local officials and community leaders. Independent councillor Ian McCord has been calling for a public inquiry. He is particularly interested in looking into the activities of Northampton Partnership Homes (NPH), the body carrying out the project.
Reacting to the developing crisis, Charlie Hastie, the Reform UK cabinet member for housing, made a withering statement. He described the handling of the project as “reckless incompetence.” He stressed the important challenges on the radar such as the skills gap, commercial awareness, technical mistakes and transparency. This indicates that NPH’s dreams have exceeded its present means.
His counterpart, the Liberal Democrat group leader Jonathan Harris, agreed, calling the situation “One unwholly expensive disaster.”
Bassett Lowke Hall had already been set to be sold off as part of the Avenue Campus scheme. This sale is further complicating the Administration’s broad housing strategy. The new development of homes on Castle Street had an estimated completion date of spring 2024. NPH is heading into some really rough waters if it stays the course. That has raised new questions about whether the ambitious timeline can still be maintained.
That still leaves the future of affordable housing in Northampton in doubt. Stakeholders and community members are excitedly looking ahead to news of NPH’s strategic direction and its capacity to deliver on its commitments.
