The district encompassed by Melton Borough Council is taking on a slice of the city’s unmet housing need
The offices of Melton Borough Council in Melton Mowbray. (Image: LDRS)
It was business as usual at Melton Borough Council, as the cabinet agreed to take on some of Leicester City Council’s unmet housing need in the absence of the borough council’s former leader, who was arrested on suspicion of sexual assault last month.
The council’s cabinet met on Wednesday, April 15, for the first time since the Local Democracy Reporting Service revealed that leader Pip Allnatt was under investigation.
Chairing the meeting was ‘acting leader’ Councillor Margaret Glancy (independent), the former deputy leader.
While no mention was made of the absence in leadership, councillors turned their attention to a requirement to help accommodate Leicester’s unmet housing need.
The city was originally forecast to have a shortfall of 18,700 homes. However, after government scrapped an ‘urban uplift’ in calculating local housing need, that figure was significantly reduced.
Councillor Pip Allnatt, former leader of Melton Borough Council(Image: Local Democracy Reporting Service)
Leicester is still expected to have space for more than 10,000 fewer homes than required up to 2046.
As a result, district councils across the county are agreeing to take on a share of this shortfall.
Melton Borough Council is already expected to deliver 369 new homes per year and will add a further 19 annually as part of the agreement.
In more populated boroughs, the contribution is significantly larger. For example, Charnwood Borough Council will supply an additional 141 homes each year on top of its existing target of 992.
The Statement of Common Ground with the city council, which councillors were asked to approve, also outlines a need for 9,000 square metres of warehouse space across the wider area.
None of this requirement has been allocated to Melton.
Cllr Margaret Glancy is acting leader at Melton Borough Council. Image via Melton Borough Council. (Image: Melton Borough Council)
Cllr Glancy said: “It’s important to be clear, this does not mean Melton is missing out.
“In practice, This is a positive outcome for the borough. Strategic warehousing is a land hungry form of development. It typically generates relatively low levels of employment for the amount of land it consumes, and it can have a significant impact on landscape character.
“The evidence shows that there are uses more appropriate directed to other parts of Leicester and Leicestershire where they can be accommodated at scale and in suitable locations.
“For Melton, this allows us to continue to focus on more sustainable forms of growth that better reflect the borough’s character, support the local economy and deliver greater benefits for our communities.”
Members unanimously approved the agreement, making Melton the latest council to become a signatory.
A meeting of the full council is scheduled for Tuesday, April 21, when a new leader is expected to be elected.