The Head of Regeneration and Economy has submitted a report to seek project approval and delegations to enable the spending of Retained Right to Buy Receipts for the purpose of delivering more affordable housing, through new build or acquisition activity.

Cabinet is recommended to:

1.       Grant project approval to the proposals to purchase and develop accommodation as set out in this report and within the allocated capital budgets (2024/25 to 2028/29), for the purpose of delivering more affordable housing in Oxford; and

2.       Delegate authority to the Executive Director (Communities and People),in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Housing; the Head of Financial Services; and the Head of Law and Governance,to agree sites and enter into agreements and contracts relating to the spend ofRetained Right to Buy Receipts, for the provision of additional affordable housing, into the Housing Revenue Account, within this project approval.

The Head of Regeneration and Economy had submitted a report to seek project approval and delegations to enable the spending of Retained Right to Buy Receipts for the purpose of delivering more affordable housing through new build or acquisition activity.

Councillor Linda Smith, Cabinet Member for Housing, presented the report and explained the restrictions around the way in which Retained Right to Buy Receipts (RRTBRs) could be used.  This included that RRTBRs had to be spent within five years; only a proportion of the full amount could be kept; the monies had to be matched with funding from the authority; and RRTBRs could not be put towards schemes which were receiving other government grant subsidies.

Councillor Smith reported that despite these restrictions, the Council had managed to use all of its RRTBRs and none had had to be returned to the government.  Since 2016, 247 new units of affordable accommodation had been purchased using RRTBRs.  The report set out how the expected receipts for the next 5 years (a budget of £27m) would be allocated: a spend of £3m per year for the next 5 years was proposed for the purchase of units on the open market, leaving a sum of £12m to be put into new build projects.

Cabinet resolved to:

1.       Grant project approval to the proposals to purchase and develop accommodation as set out in the report and within the allocated capital budgets (2024/25 to 2028/29) for the purpose of delivering more affordable housing in Oxford; and

2.       Delegate authority to the Executive Director (Communities and People)in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Housing; the Head of Financial Services; and the Head of Law and Governanceto agree sites and enter into agreements and contracts relating to the spend ofRetained Right to Buy Receiptsfor the provision of additional affordable housing into the Housing Revenue Account, within this project approval.