Land in Grounds Avenue, March, to be redeveloped to house homeless families

Plans have taken a step forward to build new homes for people facing homelessness in Fenland.

At the moment, Fenland District Council says there are not many options for families who lose their homes.

The authority said at any one time it is paying for around 30 households to stay in hotels, due to the lack of anywhere else for them to go.

The cabinet agreed on Monday to move forward with plans to see land it owns in Grounds Avenue, in March, to be redeveloped to create 12 new homes.

The district council has said it will commission Cornerstone Place to develop the land, and that it will agree to lease the land for 125 years to a registered housing provider.

The authority said they hope the project will ultimately help save the council around £188,000 a year.

Cllr Sam Hoy, portfolio holder for housing, said: “This proposal is another example of the council taking proactive action to reduce the number of homeless households who live in hotels and in doing so reduce revenue costs on the council’s statutory responsibilities to address homelessness.

“This council currently accommodates at any one time approximately 30 households in hotel accommodation that requires assistance under homelessness legislation.

“Such accommodation is not housing benefit compliant, and this places significant additional pressure on our finances, but also is not a good option for the households we are helping.

“We have made it a financial priority of this council to reduce the pressure by progressing alternative provision that is housing benefit subsidy compliant.

“This is another project that would do this.

“Working with Cornerstone Place, we can deliver significant revenue savings to support the council’s duties and responsibilities in relation to housing with no additional capital outlay.”

Cllr Hoy said they are currently aiming to see the new homes built by October 2026.

She added that there is a risk cost to the council of around £92,000, which she said was the planning costs that would be refunded if approval for the project is granted.

Cllr Hoy said: “It is a good deal for the council and it significantly reduces reliance on expensive temporary accommodation that is not subsidy compliant.”

Cllr Steve Tierney asked if it could be clarified who would be able to live in the proposed housing, in case it was suggested it would be for asylum seekers.

Cllr Hoy said the housing is not proposed for asylum seekers, but said it would be for “local housing need”.

She said currently people who face homelessness in the area do not have many options, but that one of them is to be placed in a hotel, which she said is “not ideal”, adding that this project would create new homes for those people.