More than a third of houses in the area are second homes

North Cornwall District Council has teamed up with a private developer, in an attempt to help local people get onto the property ladder in the area where 35% of properties are second homes.

The council has teamed up with the Westcountry Housing Association and the Guinness trust, as well as the private developer Midas Construction to build the houses at Broadclose Farm on the northern edge of Bude next year.

Work on the scheme, the biggest project of its size in Cornwall, is due to start next year.

Outstripping earnings

Two thirds of the properties will be affordable homes for rent or controlled sale.

With house prices far outstripping average earnings, the council says it felt the time had come to take a pro-active approach.

Graham Facks-Martin, Chairman of Community Services, said: "Our homelessness levels are at the highest they have ever been, so there is a great need for this.

"At any one time there are 50 families in temporary accommodation and there are hundreds more on the waiting list.

"We would like to build 100 affordable homes a year and we probably need more, but we are unlikely to get the funding from the Housing Corporation and the government for housing associations to build that many.

"But this is a start. The land is council owned and thus we are able to develop two thirds of it for affordable housing which is a much higher proportion than we would normally get in a public/private partnership."