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Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) visit to new council homes

Published: 08/03/2018

The Royal Town Planning Institute Cymru’s Spring Conference takes place this week in Llandudno with its focus on the role that planning can play in the delivery of housing. The Conference will include a presentation from Flintshire County Council on “The Return of Council Housing”. While in North Wales, RTPI President, John Acres, and the RTPI Cymru Chair, Tom Watson, took the opportunity to visit the Walks in Flint, the first site to be re-developed as part of Flintshire County Councils Strategic Housing and Regeneration Programme (SHARP) where a combination 92 new council and affordable homes have been built by programme partner Wates Residential North – the first to be built in Wales in a generation. Flintshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Housing, Councillor Bernie Attridge, said: “I am delighted that John and Tom were able to visit the Walks in Flint. We are immensely proud of the work that we have started and which continues in many other areas of the County, which will bring the total number of new properties almost 400 so far. As the demand for social and affordable housing continues to grow, we must maintain the momentum in our ambitious plans to address that demand. “These new sites are at the heart of our local communities and will provide further high quality housing, help sustain those communities and create employment opportunities.” John Acres MRTPI, RTPI President said: “The local planners have been at the heart of delivering on the Council’s affordable housing ambitions. Through their proactive and effective use of a range of planning tools – including site identification and, community and stakeholder engagement – they have ensured the new homes have been delivered on time and with the community’s support.” RTPI Cymru represents the RTPI in Wales, with 1,100 members and works to deliver services relevant to the Welsh planning system and to work with Government and stakeholders to ensure a positive planning approach in Wales. Richard Shroll, Managing Director, Wates Residential North, said: “I hope John and Tom’s visit to The Walks provided them with a positive example of what can be achieved when a council and contractor work closely together on an ambitious housebuilding programme. Our partnership, which will also see us as act as developer on the forthcoming Maes Gwern project, is already leaving a lasting legacy for the local community, both through improving housing stock and by delivering a huge boost for the regional economy, including the creation of a raft of training and employment opportunities. Ahead of the conference, it is our ambition that the collaboration between the County Council and Wates can be a positive example to other organisations across Wales and the the UK.” Royal Town Planning Institute visit new council homes in Flint. Pictured: Discussing the new project are FCCs Andy Farrow Head of planning (centre) along with FTPIs John Acres, Roisin Willmott, Tom Watson, Mick Cunningham from Wates and FCC Quantity Surveyor Howard Parsonage