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Homes plea to save villages from slow death
RURAL schools, shops and public houses are in danger of closing unless the Government pumps more money into affordable house building in villages, Ministers have been warned.
Members of the North Yorkshire Rural Housing Enablers (RHE) network – which brings together the eight districts in North Yorkshire and the City of York – say it is the only way to keep villages alive. They are lobbying county MPs for support.
The chairman of the RHE Network, Coun Jane Mortimer from Scarborough, said: "Villages face a slow death without local people – both young and old – being able to access affordable housing.
"Local amenities such as shops and pubs are forced to shut and it puts local village schools in danger of closure."
Hambleton District Council's rural housing enabler, Amanda Madden, said the construction of houses could play a key role in the economy of a village. "It can keep local services and facilities operating – many of them employ local people and act as the hub of the village," she said.
"Many young people and lower income earners cannot afford to live in rural parts of North Yorkshire – it is becoming the preserve of the wealthy.
"We are working with local communities and carrying out parish surveys to assess the local housing need as we bid to increase the supply of affordable homes and secure a sustainable future for all communities."
Nationally more than 315,000 households are currently registered on housing waiting lists in rural areas.
Ms Madden added: "Until additional Government funding is pumped into this issue the desperately needed rural affordable housing will remain unbuilt in the areas that they are needed resulting in dormitory communities with no heart or soul."
The North Yorkshire Rural Housing Enablers network is made up of housing officers from City of York, Craven, Hambleton, Harrogate, Richmondshire, Ryedale, Scarborough and Selby councils.
The National Housing Federation, the British Beer and Pub Association and the Rural Shops Alliance have warned that 650 village pubs and 400 shops will close over the next 12 months. They blamed the "chronic shortage" of affordable homes.
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Sunday 12 February 2012
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