30% of homes built in rural areas in 2011-12 were affordable.  In 2016 that percentage dropped to 16%.

Every volunteer member of CPRENY who faces contentious planning applications knows that promises of affordable quotas in order to obtain planning permission are renaged upon once that planning permission is granted.  It is the quiet scandal.  Government says we need more housing...more affordable housing, yet the system permits this scandalous practice.  Developers say 'it is too expensive to develop the site unless market value homes can be built - this is a worry.  If they are incapable of working out the numbers before a project commences, how can we be confident that their company is fit to trade?  It's understanable for one or two projects to smash through targets but this is the norm.  Accountants would be screaming at managers to sack their project teams or finance department if so many erros were constantly repeated.  Yet the practice is rife across the country.

Councils, faced with the prospect of a costly appeal or failure to meet housing targets* are waiving through applications with greatly reduced affordable quotas.  It's wrong, we all know it's wrong and yet it continues......

CPRE nationally are pushing for the Government to force developers to stick to their commitments to build affordable homes including by reducing the weight given to viability tests in planning guidelines - it's not rocket science.  If you as a private council tax payer put planning in for something based on promises to protect the landscape, countryside, neighbours etc. and renage on that promise, you can bet your bottom dollar that authorities will come down on you like a ton of bricks.

......so why are developers getting away with it?

Three months ago CPRE NY asked for examples of good developers who deliver what they promised at the application stage of the planning process.  So far, we have not received any positive examples.  We could of course fill a book with lists of those of consistently and persistently fail to deliver the agreed promised quota of affordable homes.  Craven area might just be the first area to tackle and name and shame.....

* we've got issues with many of those so called housing targets as well but that's a story for another day!