HIGHER HEYES DEVELOPMENT

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HIGHER HEYES DEVELOPMENT

 You will be aware that for some months construction has started on the Higher Heyes development of affordable housing which was approved in 2018. This development was transferred to the ownership of Liverpool Mutual Homes, a housing association which has recently merged with others based in the Liverpool City region and the management of the development is now in the hands of the Torus Housing Association who will comply with the original conditions set at the time of the approval of  the original planning application.

The number, type and tenure of the affordable housing provision is as follows: –

  • 1 x three bed house for Shared Ownership
  • 4 x one bed flats for Shared Ownership
  • 6 x two bed bungalows for Shared Ownership
  • 4 x two bed houses for Shared Ownership

SHARED OWNERSHIP FOR PURCHASE

 On completion Torus will have a first tranche sale of between 25% to 75% of open market value, the balance being rented: on initial sales all properties will be offered from 25% share of open market value to eligible persons meeting specific criteria determined by Homes England ( UK Government entity which provided capital funding to Torus).

It is important to note that an eligible person or persons who satisfy the Local Connection criteria and who are in housing need will be given priority for the available housing. There are specific requirements for this classification of Local Connection to Kingsley as follows: –

  1. To have been ordinarily resident in Kingsley parish for the twelve months immediately preceding the date of application for the Affordable Housing Unit or who have at any time previously resided in Kingsley Parish for at least 5 years; or
  2. Have a Strong Local Connection with the Kingsley Parish. This means the applicant:
  3. has immediate family (parents, children, siblings) who are currently living in the Kingsley Parish and have done so continuously for at least 5 years.
  4. and/or has a permanent contract of employment in the Kingsley Parish or has accepted in writing a firm offer of permanent employment
  5. and/or is self-employed and able to evidence that the business address from which they operate is within the Kingsley Parish and has been operational for a minimum of 12 months.
  6. It should be noted that if within 10 weeks of a vacancy arising no applicant from Kingsley qualifies under the criteria above then the housing units will be offered to the next tier which follows on in a cascade of priority:
  • Neighbouring parishes of Frodsham, Aston, Crowton, Norley and Manley
  • If after 14 weeks of a vacancy arising no applicant qualifies then homes will then be offered to persons resident in the wider CWaC Borough
  • If after 16 weeks of vacancy arising no applicant qualifies then homes will be offered to persons whom CWaC considers to be in special need.

Please note applicants from Kingsley who are interested in purchasing a property under the above scheme must apply DIRECTLY to Torus or via the Help to Buy agent (national website for shared ownership). As yet Kingsley Parish Council has not received the details on how to make an application but these will probably be available online on the Torus website shortly.

Torus will assess all applicants against the eligibility criteria. The Borough Council CWaC will monitor all rural exception sites allocations and Torus has to provide a list of allocations together with details to CWaC.

 RENTED ACCOMMODATION

If at the end of the above exercise not all the units are taken up under a shared ownership scheme, then they will be offered as rented accommodation.

 

This will be managed not by Torus but by West Cheshire Homes which is a CWaC entity.  Kingsley residents or persons with a local connection as defined above will need to be already on the CWaC Housing Register. The Parish Council have been advised that anyone expressing interest in rental accommodation in Kingsley  and are in housing need should sign up to this register as soon as possible. It is important that when residents apply to go on the housing register that they complete the section on “rural connection”.

As of today’s date there are currently 289 applicants already on the Housing Register who have requested rental accommodation in Kingsley, however only 1 lives in the Parish.

 Kingsley Parish Council will provide more information when it becomes available. (It is possible that because of the present difficulties with Covid 19 the Housing Register might be used by Torus for the shared   ownership scheme as well.)

 West Cheshire Homes website:

https://www.westcheshirehomes.co.uk/Choice/

Torus Housing Association website:

https://www.liverpoolmutualhomes.org/find-a-home/