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This includes much needed accessible housing for residents and their families living with disabilities.
Joseph Rowntree Housing Trust (JRHT) and local home builder Gateway Developments have jointly submitted plans to build 114 new and affordable homes off Sim Balk Lane in York.
Key features
- Affordability: 100% of the homes will be affordable meaning residents can either rent them wholly from JRHT on Social Rent or buy part of the homes through the Shared Ownership scheme.
- Diverse Housing: The plans feature a mix of 1,2-,3- and 4-bedroom homes to cater for various household needs.
- Accessibility focus: 14 of the homes will be purposefully designed as fully accessible bungalows which will help meet the growing demand for more inclusive housing in the city.
- Location: The homes will be located off Sim Balk Lane in York. The location is near to the Askham Bar Park & Ride and also close to bus and cycle routes into the city centre.
These plans would help contribute to York’s long-term and significant shortfall in affordable housing delivery. The City of York Council identified a need for 592 affordable dwellings per year and they have only delivered around 130 per year over the last five years.
The City of York Council’s housing register shows 1286 households were waiting for a home in 2023. Some of these people require an accessibly designed home and existing stock can be limited in availability, require costly adaptations, or do not meet modern design requirements.
A community consultation took place ahead of planning submission including a community drop-in event at York College. Over 70% of respondents at the drop-in event agreed that new affordable housing is required locally, with further comments received on design and location.
David Boyes-Watson, Deputy Director Development & Asset management at Joseph Rowntree Housing Trust said: “This site on Sim Balk Lane can help deliver vitally needed affordable and accessible homes for local residents. With a significant shortfall of affordable housing and many struggling to access specially equipped and purpose-built accessible accommodation locally, our proposal will help to meet this growing need.”
A representative from Gateway Developments said: “This proposal represents a significant commitment to deliver on the established city-wide need for affordable homes in an ideal location nearby to sustainable travel options and community facilities.
“The proposal has been carefully designed with new areas of public open space and landscaping. We hope the City of York Council will welcome the many benefits of this proposal”.
A planning application for new homes at Sim Balk Lane has been submitted to the City of York Council and a decision is expected later this year.