Sub-Regional Housing Strategy

The key points of the Sub-Regional Housing Strategy can be summarised as follows:

The Peterborough sub-region of the East of England is focused on the city of Peterborough but extends outside the city into the surrounding rural areas beyond the city boundaries and is the main driver for economic growth in the north of the region. The sub-region extends into parts of Cambridgeshire, the East Midlands, Rutland, Lincolnshire and Northamptonshire. Peterborough has a diverse and complex housing market that is strongly affected by its relation to the rest of the sub-region, the city benefits from excellent transport links with the main east coast rail line and being on the junction of the A1, the A47 and the A15. Peterborough occupies a unique position within the Eastern Region. The city faces south towards the economically prosperous areas of Cambridge, Huntingdon and London but also neighbours The Fens, an area that exhibits many symptoms of rural deprivation. This geographical juxtaposition strongly affected the development the city and continues to affect the Peterborough housing market.

Peterborough is a major employment centre within the Eastern Region, which also impacts upon all its neighbouring authorities. The city has a strong economic base and is home to a number of national and international companies including Thomas Cook, AMP, Royal Sun Alliance, Hotpoint and Perkins. Peterborough's economic boundary extends far beyond the local authority district reflecting its importance as a major employment centre. This wider economic area is often referred to as Greater Peterborough. The city will soon benefit from major new investment. Leading environmental organisations including the City Council, The Environment Agency and English Nature are working towards establishing an Environment Business Cluster in Peterborough. A new 'Super Hospital' is also planned within the city as well as a new prison. All of these developments will contribute to the continuing economic development of the city and all will increase housing pressures across the Peterborough sub-region. The East of England Regional Development Agency has identified Peterborough as an area that demonstrates high opportunities but also high need in economic and regeneration terms. This combination of need and opportunity is a unique blend within the Eastern Region and re enforces the decision to identify the city as a sub-region in its own right. In the context of the economic growth of the Peterborough sub-region and the East of England as a whole it is critical that sufficient housing across all tenures is developed in the city. This will help ensure that Peterborough can continue to thrive as the key economic area in the north of the region and that the city can continue to contribute to the economic growth of the East of England as a whole. Peterborough is currently playing a crucial role in extending the economic and housing growth planned for the Thames corridor and Cambridge sub-region further north. This important regional factor will continue to assist both with the difficult affordability issues faced in and around Cambridge and will also help to balance economic growth within the Eastern Region as a whole.

The number of people living in Peterborough and travelling to work outside the city has grown rapidly over recent years. Peterborough is a key regional rail interchange located on the East Coast Main Line and the important east west route from East Anglia to the Midlands. A survey conducted at Peterborough station in 1999 indicated that towards 5,000 people move through the station each day, many of whom will be commuting for work. The 1991 Census showed that 6820 residents of the city commute to work each day from the city. It is generally agreed that this figure will see a substantial increase when the figures from the 2001 Census become available.

 

As the largest private housing development in Europe, the development of the new Southern Township at Hampton is helping to ensure that Peterborough can provide housing for people coming in to the region for work and who are looking for a high quality, desirable place to live. Hampton also has excellent communication links to the rest of the region and the country as a whole. The City Council is continuing to work with an innovative consortium of partner housing associations, the master developers and the Housing Corporation to ensure that high quality social housing is provided as part of this highly prestigious private development. It is critical that this investment in new social housing at Hampton continues in future years to ensure that a balanced and sustainable community is developed that meets both local and regional housing needs. Demand for social housing across the rest of the city has remained high during the period of this new investment.

 

Whilst Peterborough is a city benefiting from economic growth in a fast growing region the city centre area contains a high proportion of older housing that neither meets modern standards nor the aspirations of many local people. The City Council is determined to address the issue of city centre regeneration. The City Council is currently working as part of a strategic partnership with the East of England Development Agency and English Partnerships to redevelop major areas of the existing city centre including the South Bank and North Westgate. It is intended that these prestigious large-scale commercial developments will also allow an opportunity to redevelop areas of existing housing in the city centre area. The City Council is clear that the major development opportunities that currently exist must take account of the need for the regeneration of existing housing in the city centre area.

 

Whilst Peterborough has benefited from its earlier New Town status, the rapid expansion of the city's townships and the short time frame within which much of the city's social housing was developed has left a legacy which in terms of housing improvement and repair now needs to be tackled. The Council's Housing Business Plan clearly demonstrates that severe pressures exist in future years as a result of the need to plan for large-scale component replacement for the 'Commission for New Towns' housing.

 

Peterborough is a multi-racial and multi-cultural city. In the 1991 census approximately 7% of Peterborough's population classified themselves as belonging to a non-white ethnic minority group. It is expected that this figure will rise towards 15% as the figures for the 2001 census become available. Over the last two years there has been an influx into the city of people coming from other countries. This has happened for a number of reasons. Firstly the city has been designated a cluster area for the dispersal of asylum seekers by the Home Office. This has resulted in well over 1,000 extra persons from abroad arriving in the city in the last twelve months. There has also been a major growth in unaccompanied minors moving to the city, some placed by other local authorities. Those authorities have responsibility for supporting these minors in the city. It is difficult to establish the exact number of people in these categories but estimates range from between 2,000 to 5,000. This is a significant rise in population for a city the size of Peterborough. It used to be the case that Peterborough contained a substantial number of people from a small number of minority communities, this picture has changed radically over recent years. The City Council for example now manages accommodation through the NASS dispersal programme for people from over 40 countries who speak over 23 different languages.

 

The number of people accepted as homeless in Peterborough rose from 170 in the year 2000/01 to 181 in 2001/02. If current trends continue the figure for 2002/03 will be over 300. This rise in homelessness, which is in part due to the 2002 Homelessness Act, has placed a substantial unplanned pressure on temporary accommodation in the city. With all the council's hostels at full occupancy the number of households placed in bed and breakfast accommodation has risen from an average of ten per week in 2001/02 to an average of seventeen per week so far in 2002/03.