Councillors have authorised the purchase of the first new council housing to be built in a North Yorkshire market town for decades.
North Yorkshire Council is set to spend £840,000 buying 12 new homes in Skipton.
The housing will be built as part of a new development of 53 properties in the town’s Airedale Avenue.
Developer Skipton Properties has committed to building 16 affordable homes as part of the scheme.
As well as the 12 bought for rent by the council, four other homes will be acquired by Bracewell Homes, the authority’s separate shared ownership
housing company.
Council officials say there are high levels of housing need within the former Craven district, with almost 700 applicants on the housing register.
Of these, Skipton has the highest concentration of people on the list.
The purchase was agreed by senior councillors at a meeting on Friday.
The new housing has been welcomed by Councillor Simon Myers, executive member for culture, arts and housing, who represents the Mid-Craven division.
“I would think it’s the first new council homes in Skipton for 40 years.
“It’s only a drop in the ocean compared to the hundreds on the register, but it does mean that 12 families get on the waiting list and into a new, good home.
“I’m delighted we’re going to get these homes and I look forward to more in due course.”
The properties will be allocated to families on the council’s housing waiting list.
Priority will be given to those who initially have a local connection to Skipton before being offered to those elsewhere in North Yorkshire, as set out in a section 106 agreement.
The council approved its housing revenue account 30-year business plan last year.
The document includes the delivery of 500 new council homes over the next five years to 2029.
Emily Shepherd, senior housing delivery officer at North Yorkshire Council, said in a report to members that the acquisition of ‘off the shelf’ properties from developers formed an important part of the council’s plans for delivering new affordable housing.
She added:
“The acquisition of these properties forms contributes to meeting the 500 new homes required over the next five years.
“The total capital cost of purchasing the properties is £840,000, which amounts to £69,166 per property.
“This represents good value for money, in comparison with the average cost of developing a new build property, which is on average around £200,000 to £210,000 for a two-bedroom house.”
The majority of the funding to buy the properties will come from the authority’s housing revenue account, with around £39,000 coming from right-to-buy receipts.
The housing development has full planning approval and work is due to start on site in early 2026.
The new housing is expected to be completed in phases between March 2026 and December 2026.
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