Ashfield District Council's bid to build bungalows as part of affordable homes drive

The council wants to build the 12 properties on a former allotment site on Wesley Street, Annesley, as part of its commitment to providing more affordable housing in the district, a report to the authority’s cabinet states.

However, as part of the covenant attached to the land when it was first gifted by the Duke of Portland, it was not to be built on.

And the authority must pay the estate a £70,000 fee to have the covenant removed or adapted, the report states.

“The corporate plan sets out the council’s ambition to ensure there is sufficient good quality, affordable housing for the residents of Ashfield,” the report states.

“To achieve this the council cannot rely upon registered providers and private house builders alone; it is important that the council looks at the opportunities to develop new affordable housing on sites it owns.

“Within the curtilage of the council-owned allotment site on Wesley Street, Annesley, is a section of unused land that has been identified as being potentially suitable for affordable housing.

“The proposal is to use the section of land to construct 12 two-bedroom bungalows [which] will be in keeping with the existing street scene.”

Of the 11 council-owned bungalows that became available in the Kirkby area last year, each attracted an average of 37 bids from residents wanting to move in, the report states.

“The land was originally gifted by The Welbeck Estate in the 1930s, and a covenant was placed on the title to restrict any development,” the report states.

“Officers have been in negotiation with the estate and as the proposal is for new council housing, they would be willing to remove or adapt the covenant for an agreed fee of £70,000.”

The plans will be considered at a meeting of Ashfield District Council’s cabinet on Tuesday, June 29.

It is estimated that the development would cost just under £2m to build, with £480K potentially coming from Homes England towards the scheme.