JUST 10 per cent of new homes built in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole are affordable, new research has found. 

Wimborne-based WH White has called on BCP Council to have a more “innovative and positive” approach to building affordable homes in the conurbation. 

Research from Tetlow King, undertaken on behalf of WH White, suggests between 2019/20 to 2022/23, there has been an average of just 102 net affordable homes delivered per year. 

But BCP Council’s local housing needs assessment says 2,670 new affordable homes need to be built per year.

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Nathan Ross, of WH White, warned not enough affordable homes are being built right now and not enough are being proposed in the draft local plan going forward. 

He said: “Despite the evidenced need for 2,670 affordable homes per year and the inefficient delivery in recent years, the emerging local plan presents a stark contrast with a target of just 1,600 new homes per year (including both open market and affordable homes). 

“As well as not planning enough homes, it is worrying that the spatial strategy has also been called into question by the property industry.  

“While the delivering new homes in urban areas is rightly the focus of the plan, property agents and developers in BCP have raised concerns that the over-reliance on urban sites is not a sound strategy given emerging BCP policy does not require developments in the centre of Poole and Bournemouth to deliver any affordable housing. 

“And, in many cases, these sites will not deliver meaningful contributions to local infrastructure.” 

Mr Ross said a lack of affordable housing is also having a cost on the taxpayer, as BCP Council has spent £8.5m between April 2022 and March 2023 on people in temporary accommodation. 

“The cost is greater still for those in need of a home, with research showing that not having access to suitable accommodation will have real and profound implications, from financial insecurity and health impacts to negative effects on children’s education and social mobility,” Mr Ross added. 

“Households are often forced to compromise on basic needs to manage unaffordable housing costs.  

“It is clear that the challenge of affordable housing delivery in the BCP area is immense, but at present the council is simply not delivering or planning for enough homes through its unambitious draft local plan.  

“It is time for a more positive and innovative approach that gives residents of BCP the opportunity to access affordable and suitable homes.” 

BCP Council is planning to build 2,000 homes by 2031, with half expected to be delivered within five years. 

WH White secured an allocation on Canford Park for 800 family homes – 278 of which (40 per cent) being affordable housing. 

Houses in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole were 4.3 per cent more expensive in 2023 than the year before, at an average price of £340,000. In the meantime, wages saw a 4.1 per cent year-to-year increase.