“Finding a house in Bristol is getting impossible”
Plans include as many as 1,600 new homes north of Goodneston Road in Fishponds and Hillfields(Image: Castel)
A group of Fishponds residents are campaigning for developers to include more ‘affordable’ rentals in their plans to build thousands of new homes in the area. The development would be one of Bristol’s biggest urban regeneration sites, and Fishponds Neighbours for Social Housing is now calling on the developers to designate half of the new homes for social rent.
At the moment, three different developers are planning to build more than 2,200 new homes on three industrial sites just south of the Bristol-Bath cycle path between Fishponds and Hillfields. But so far, only 60 of them have been earmarked to be affordable social rent homes.
The residents behind the campaign, who have set up a petition, predict this will mean the area will be gentrified and become out of the reach of most people needing homes locally. The three sites together have been named ‘Atlas Place’, and sit either side of Lodge Causeway.
A planning application is yet to be submitted for the biggest site, named the Timber Mills, which will detail exactly how many of the 1,600 proposed homes there will be classed as ‘affordable’. Local resident Thomas Youngman said the city council planners needed to step up and force developers to ensure at least half the new homes are for social rent.
“Finding a house in Bristol is getting impossible – rents have skyrocketed to 45% of incomes and house prices are little better,” he said. “People are being forced to leave their own city, or to live in vans.
“I was shocked to see all three developers fail to meet the council’s affordable housing targets in their plans. It made me realise that it isn’t just people and businesses in the city centre at risk of displacement – places further out like Fishponds are at risk too.
“I also started this campaign to stop people turning to racist far right conspiracy theories. Life in the UK is getting harder and harder. We need to unite as communities to stand up for better housing and healthcare. It isn’t migrants that have made things worse – it is greedy, tax-dodging companies backed by neoliberal politicians.
“Building more housing can help, but not if developers don’t respect Fishponds’ mix of social and private housing. Social rented housing is a bulwark against the housing emergency,” he added.
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Bristol City Council’s stated policy is that any development should include at least 30 per cent ‘affordable homes’ – that could be homes for keyworkers like nurses and police officers, but is most likely to be for shared ownership or ‘affordable rent’ through a housing association, or ‘social rent’ either though the city council itself or a housing association, and let to people on Bristol’s HomeChoice housing waiting list.
But developers have increasingly cited viability concerns for reducing the number of affordable homes in major developments, stating that they won’t make any or enough profit if they are made to meet the council’s policy minimum.
The GPI site
The first of the three Atlas Place developments has already been granted planning permission. Local firm Graphic Packaging International (GPI) moved to a new home in Yate, and then obtained planning permission for 252 new homes.
But councillors were told it would only be able to afford to include 22 per cent affordable housing, not 30 per cent – which equates to around 55 homes. And of those, a quarter would be shared ownership, leaving just 41 as social rent homes.
The site of Graphics Packaging International in Fishponds(Image: GPI)
A report to councillors at the time explained why. “The affordable housing provision on site has been submitted with the council’s affordable housing team prior to the submission of the application. It has been agreed through a review of the Financial Viability Assessment that the application can provide 22% affordable housing on site, equating to approximately 55 affordable homes,” it added.
The Fishponds Neighbourhood for Social Housing campaign is now urging GPI to sell the development site to a housing association instead of a private developer, which could well increase the number of social rent homes there.
Central Fishponds
The second development site in Fishponds is called Central Fishponds, and a company has been set up by international-based investors that is simply called Central Fishponds Ltd. That firm has submitted a planning application to Bristol City Council for outline permission to turn this site into 380 new homes, but have previously told council planning officers that they will only be able to include five per cent as affordable – just 19 homes.
A recent report by the council’s officers as part of the planning application said that is not going to be good enough. “The Housing Strategy and Enabling (HSE) team appreciate the challenges to viability that are present on this brownfield site, and we understand that the Financial Viability Assessment provided by the applicant will be reviewed by our planning colleagues,” a report said.
Verona House (left) and Filwood House (right), in front of one of the two landmark chimneys that would be retained(Image: Copyright Unknown)
“However, the tenure proposed does not support the delivery of Social Rent homes which is a priority for the council, and we would want to know the outcome of the review before agreeing to any proposals for the affordable housing contributions.
“In cases where the minimum proportion of affordable housing cannot be delivered, and there is a shortfall, we would expect the applicant to work with the council to explore options for maximising the level of affordable housing to bring it up to the minimum proportions. We also encourage applicants to work with the council to explore how additional affordable homes could be delivered,” the report added.
Timber Mills
By far the largest part of the Atlas Place development, the developers are still at the pre-application stage, with a website and consultation with local people. On its website, the developers say they hope to build as many as 1,600 new homes.
The firm said: “A significant proportion of homes at Timber Mills will be affordable, providing a mix of social rent, shared ownership, and other affordable tenures to ensure housing is accessible to a range of incomes.
View of the new public open space and apartments
“The exact number will be agreed with Bristol City Council through the planning process, in line with local housing policies and needs. As part of Atlas Place, this development will help address Bristol’s housing shortage by delivering affordable homes in a well-connected, sustainable neighbourhood.
“The project aims to support local families and key workers who need high-quality, affordable housing options in Fishponds and Hillfields. The development seeks to provide a range of tenures including open market sale, purpose-built homes to rent, purpose-built retirement living and affordable housing. Timber Mills is seeking to be a diverse and mixed community catering for all,” they added.