Property purchases and house building boost social housing stock

Property purchases and house building boost social housing stock

Pembrokeshire County Council is continuing its drive to increase available social housing stock and meet housing need locally by buying suitable properties across the County.

During the financial year 2023-2024, the Council bought 47 properties, located all over Pembrokeshire. These included a combination of one to four bedroom homes and a new build block of flats in Broad Haven.

The majority of the acquisitions are purchased with grant support put in place by Welsh Government, to help Councils ease housing shortages.

The Council has completed on 16 property purchases so far this financial year with a number of others in the pipeline.

These acquisitions complement PCC’s housing development programme, which has seen sites in Johnston and Tiers Cross complete in 24/25.

The combination of acquisitions and new builds has added 107 social housing properties to the Council’s housing stock since 2023.

In that period the Council has also taken on 17 privately owned properties through a private rented sector leasing scheme which Local Authorities run on behalf of Welsh Government and is called Leasing Scheme Wales.

Cllr Michelle Bateman, Cabinet Member for Housing, said: “Our successful acquisitions programme has allowed us to quickly add properties to our stock to provide homes for those on our housing register.

“This programme sits alongside our development programme and forms part of our housing strategy to address the lack of affordable housing in Pembrokeshire.”

The Council is also continuing to work in partnership with registered social landlords, private rented sector landlords and private developers to develop more much needed affordable housing.

If you have any questions relating to affordable housing, you can contact 01437 764551 or affordablehousing@pembrokeshire.gov.uk.