Delight at Southwark Council decision to roll out JMB affordable housing plans across Borough

By JMB | General | Comments are Closed | 30 April, 2012 | 0

Parked cars on the Lawson Estate

Leathermarket JMB is delighted that Southwark Council has decided to roll out affordable housing plans across the Borough based on work done by JMB residents.

Our residents highlighted the lack of affordable social rented housing in the area during our ballot last year and a group of local people got together last year to see what could be done about the issue.

Following this start, the JMB started to look at the possibilities for what could be done in and around our estates. We enlisted the support of Bermondsey Street-based Bell Phillips Architects, acclaimed experts in social housing developments to look at some of the possibilities in our area.

We also spoke to some of the leading authorities in housing finance to devise a system where we could use funding from the high-value developments happening nearby to support the building costs of new homes.

The JMB presented the idea to senior councillors and council officers in January 2012 and these have been used as the basis for the Southwark Council’s annoucement about new council house building today The JMB has also put forward these plans to Southwark’s indpendent Housing Commission.

John Paul Maytum,Chair of Leathermarket JMB (pictured above with Southwark Council Leader Cllr Peter John), said:

“We are delighted that Southwark Council have picked up the JMB’s plans and thinking and decided to apply it across the Borough.

“Our residents know that there’s a real shortage of genuinely affordable rented homes in the area and there is little chances of people’s children getting homes nearby, or for people to move into more suitable homes as they get older.

“These schemes will only work if they are done working hand-in-hand with local residents, which is why we’re delighted that Southwark Council are committing to working in partnership with the JMB in this way.

“People are much more likely to agree to a development on or around their estate if they can see there will be a direct benefit for their families or their neigbours. Trying to just impose new homes would face strong local resistance and cound see people putting themselves in front of the bulldozers.

“For these developments to work must be done with residents, not done to them – that is why Southwark’s way of partnership thinking has to be the way forward. Without working with local people – and making sure there is a direct benefit from them – then any new homes plans would be destined to end in failure”

> Read the Southwark Council news story on the announcement