Local Business Search

The Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) confirmed this week that it has received a strong response under the £420m Get Britain Building Programme, and announced the first funding allocations under a special commissioning stage running alongside the main bidding process.

A total of 170 expressions of interest submissions have been received under the main bidding process, with many containing bids for multiple schemes. The expressions of interest will now undergo an initial assessment by the HCA ­ looking at value for money, deliverability and fit with local priorities, with a shortlist of schemes to be established by mid-March.

In addition, 18 sites have been identified to go forward to the next stage of the assessment process to unlock delivery on commissioned schemes which are of high importance to particular communities and can create wider local benefits. Subject to due diligence and contracting, up to £46m could be allocated to the 18 commissioned schemes to deliver up to 1,300 new homes, including on public sector sites.

Speaking as the housing minister was set to unveil a package of measures related to the Housing Strategy, Pat Ritchie, chief executive of the HCA said: “Our partners have once again demonstrated their appetite to get Britain building by developing much needed new homes, in turn generating additional benefits through economic growth and activity.

“We have had a strong response to our programme and will now work to establish a shortlist of schemes which fit strongly with locally identified priorities and represent good value for money for the taxpayer.

“I am particularly pleased that teams at the HCA have moved quickly to identify 18 schemes of particular local importance that we can get moving immediately.² Get Britain Building is intended to address difficulties in accessing development finance faced by some house builders and to help bring forward sites with planning permission, but where viability is marginal, by sharing risk. It will operate by making loans available to projects on commercial rates, or taking equity stakes to share risk.

The new programme, part of the government's housing strategy and managed by the HCA, was launched on 22 December, with a closing date for expressions of interest of 30 January. Shortlisted schemes will be announced in March. The programme is intended to unlock up to 16,000 new homes by December 2014.

The 18 schemes are the following:

• Locking Parklands Phase 2a/b, Weston super Mare (St Modwen) 140 homes Bath Western Riverside, Bath (Crest Nicholson) - 81 homes
• Belmont Hospital, Tiverton, Devon (Devonshire Homes - pictured) 30 homes Osprey Quay, Portland, Dorset (Sutton Harbour Group) - 39 homes
• Devonport Vision, Plymouth (Redrow) - 74 homes
• Wapping Wharf, Bristol (Wapping Wharf (Umberlslade) Ltd) - 175 homes
• Newark Southern Extension, Newark (Catesby Property Group) 100 homes Edgbaston, Birmingham (MCD developments) - 57 homes
• Kilby Mews, Coventry (Complex Development Projects Ltd) - 31 homes
• Millway Middle School, Duston, Northampton (Westleigh) - 52 homes
• The Maltings, Lichfield (Marcity) - 41 homes
• Cheeseman's Green, Ashford (Crest Nicholson) 100 homes Bootham Green, York (Advent Developments Ltd) - 37 homes
• Navigation point, Castleford (Merlion Capital Housing Ltd) - 66 homes
• H2010 (Yarn Street), Leeds (Miller Homes) - 82 homes
• Calder View, Dewsbury, Kirklees (Miller Homes) - 28 homes
• Grahame Park, Colindale, London (Genesis (GenInvest Ltd) - 127 homes
• Covent Garden Village, Stockport (Seddon Group) - 41 homes