CSHG: Draft meeting notes
25 April 2017
Item	Actions	
Present: 
Sue Beecroft (CRHB)
Caroline H (PCC, FDC, HDC)
Kim Langley (West Suffolk)
Becca Roebuck (Cambs County Research Group/Business Intelligence
Julie Fletcher (SCDC)
Trish Read (later in meeting)
Apologies
Helen Reed		
Housing white paper		
Responses
City and SCDC jointly responding, except on a couple of points. Fairly positive, support planning, rent, and assessment of need clauses.
SCDC asking for more weight given to rural exception sites. Many are refused due landscape impact. JF to circulate
HDC - response submitted to portfolio holder. Also responding on build to rent. Though expressing concern if build to rent reduces the amount of affordable.
FDC is responding.
WS and Suffolk responding. Want to keep some flexibility
OAN - standard approach of HWP is good. But detail needed. Will new guidance help with the specialist / supported need aspect?
Also how much local variation will be needed if a standard approach is adopted across the whole country? If a lot of variation, won't get rid of all the detailed discussions at each planning inquiry.

Space standards - Finding RPs might not take on developer units if not up to space standards. If you have a standard, must be across all tenures.

PB and ECDC want M4(2) (roughly equated to lifetime homes) in all homes. Level 2.
HDC looking at what to put in but unlikely to be 100%.
WS has approached RPs to ask what sizes they would accept.

CSHG agreed would be good to run the same question across Cambridgeshire and Peterborough.

Sue circulate links to govt paper on disability housing
Kim will circulate email summarising the responses she's had from different RPs.
Sue to ask at RP forum & enablers

JF

SB
KL
SB	
Combined area housing strategy		
Headline statement to be circulated in May. Full strategy aiming for end of September.
Julie to circ slides
Going out to tender on housing governance and funding criteria.
Quick wins - David Keeling working on quick wins required as part of Mayor’s first 100 days
RentPlus - in Fenland there is one site.
Home buy - setting rents at 80% of market but in Forest heath, basing this on USAF rents which are much higher as well, so really not affordable for locals. Have negotiated down a bit.

Strategy need to include the way the funding would be allocated, reported, monitored etc.

Will the sub-region transform into the CA? No change as yet, we agreed we are proceeding as a sub-region and still working together across Cambs, Peterborough and West Suffolk as part of the same housing market area.

Sue to send list of CPO membership (to show coverage) to CSHG	
JF

SB	
CRHB action plan		
Adaptations are difficult on new build as the quality is insufficient to adapt, much of the time.
Joists and noggins are not strong enough!

Standard M2(4) would be more adaptable. 
Building Regs should help with levels.
Not sure that inspections are being done, some are getting a private inspection not LA building control (?)

SCDC has national space standards in local plan and 5% to M4(2)		
GTANA and related		
Need to work on addressing need in caravan dwellers and houseboats, those who fall OUTSIDE the GTANA definition.
The GTANA work by ORS identifies
•	are they a Gypsy or Traveller
•	are they in housing need

So non GTANA and not in need are quantified (to an extent) in the ORS report. (There were a number of non-respondents.)  If not a Gypsy or Traveller, they can still apply to Home-Link if in housing need.

So the remaining unknown is houseboats.

Who has the information? Environment Agency? 
There are number of local individual marinas e.g. Iselham, between Prickwillow and Iselham, Upwell, Stratton fish & duck.

Becca clarified that these people will be counted as part of the population in the demographic projections are used to calculate housing need.

What are our current policies on houseboats and moorings? Suspect all districts may have a number of houseboat dwellers, given the rivers running throughout the county.
Would like to take a joint approach to the subject.

Julie to ask ORS - they may be able to help, and advise what they are doing elsewhere on this (if being asked by other customers). They are continuing to meet in a practitioner group, so can raise as a question there.
Sue to ask Marianne if there is a code on Home-link for houseboat dwellers, and any need data.
Becca will identify if there are any Census figures or other useful background
Sue investigate the guidance and when it was published on this issue
Note to put together for CRHB in June or July.
Sue to investigate; Council tax may have info 
September for planning inspection session on this. Outcome after that.

Post meeting note:
SB found some national VOA data on houseboat dwellers on CLG website, circulated separately by email as a start point. Also trying to add marina data to Cambs Insight, link circulated separately.	

JF

SB

BR
SB
SB/HR
SB

	
CCRG update		
SHMA
St Eds and HDC having OAN recalculated.
Results imminent.
Affordable calculation still uses 2014 numbers mostly (Cambridge FDC and SCDC used 2013 numbers).
Becca to circulate table summarising everyone’s OAN and affordable need, once HDC has agreed to their numbers. Will publish on Insight once agreed.	

BR	
Staffing
Kat is on maternity leave.
Isaac Nunn will be covering. He is helping Rob Kemp with the AMR surveys for the time being.		
Rural profiles 
Kim asked about updating the NHR figures in the rural profiles, she has not seen the Lakenheath figures she asked for. 
Becca thought Kat had done this.
Sue and Becca to review emails and let Kim know where we are up to.	

SB/BR	
Insight
Hendrik is leaving the county council. 
Sue to update CSHG on the CI steering group, who is on it, what the approach will be for the future	

SB	
Commissioning
County is setting up a new commissioning directorate. Will be 2 heads, one for adults, one for children.
Hope to use to tackle silos and will help with housing related support and help with consistency of approach.
Will be 6 or 7 commissioners in the adults team we think.
David Frampton (MH commissioner) has retired and replaced by Sarah Bye.		
Older peoples housing strategy		
Market position statement not finished yet.
OPAS has numbers but more detailed numbers being generated.
Sheffield-Hallam report set out the different models of older peoples housing.
Need to review where we are each up to on older peoples’ accommodation overall.
Becca is working on older people’s needs and demography using the SHOP model, and whether adjustment can be made to make better locally, and how it can be related to OAN in each district.
3 main categories of housing - sheltered, extra care and residential / nursing.
Will go back to the OPAs working group.

	
AOB
Sue is working with Nick Enge at HCA to review what is funded in our area by HCA.
	
SB