Reporting by ACRE: “Without affordable housing, rural communities are at risk of becoming dormitory communities…”

Action with Rural Communitie in England (ACRE) Reports:

“Phillip Vincent, ACRE’s Communications Manager, blogs for Rural Housing Week 2021 and provides a view on the need for the government to get behind communities and deliver affordable homes in the countryside.

So, what can be done? Well, there are some good examples of community-led affordable housing schemes that provide insight into the type of initiative that could be embraced at scale by government. The small village of Foxton, where Cambridgeshire ACRE helped the local community identify local housing need, find a site and have a say in the design of 15 homes let at affordable rent. Or Woodstock, in Oxfordshire where the Blenheim Estate supported by Community First Oxfordshire provided a mix of affordable housing to meet the needs of the local community and market housing, providing a financial and social return on investment.

As part of Rural Housing Week 2021, we are pleased to be joining members of the Rural Housing Alliance in promoting a new Parish Councillors Guide to Affordable Housing which sets out how schemes like these can be developed.

Devon’s own assessment of building new in the countryside: