Cornwall Council has succeeded in bidding to take part in a new initiative that will help smaller local building companies develop new affordable homes for local people.

The initiative sees the Council join forces with government agency Local Partnerships to pilot a model that hopes to unlock small sites for delivery by  small and medium-sized construction firms. 

Construction of the projects would be financed by Cornwall Council with the homes transferred to Council ownership and let to local families as affordable housing. 

Cornwall Council portfolio holder for homes Andrew Mitchell said: “We know that small construction firms in Cornwall build really good quality homes and play an enormous role in supporting our local economy – in many ways they could be considered the backbone of our local development industry.

“Being granted this pilot status is great news as it means that for the first time, we can work with local firms in Cornwall and develop homes for local families, in partnership with a part of the construction sector that we don’t ordinarily have much opportunity to work with.

“We would love to hear from any small or medium-sized construction firms that might be interested in working with us to bring forward small sites they own which have the potential to provide new great-quality homes.

“We’ll assess the viability of each proposal taking into account local housing need and, if the site and proposal is suitable for both of us, we will enter into contract to make staged payments to the builder and deliver it in partnership with them.

“Any homes delivered through this pilot will be used as affordable housing by the Council either for social rent, affordable rent or shared ownership for local families.

“It’s a great opportunity to help our local building companies bounce back from what was a very tough 2020.  With the help of Local Partnerships, we are issuing an open invitation to local building companies to come forward with any schemes that they could bring forward of developments of around 2-10 new homes. 

“We know that our smaller builders are really good at finding those small infill sites that could supply more affordable homes.  This is all about making that happen.”   

Over coming weeks, the Council will be contacting many small and medium-sized construction firms with details of the project but we’re encouraging local builders to proactively make contact with us if they are interested in taking part.