What was the challenge?

As part of a review of their local plans, the councils required evidence to develop their housing policies. This evidence would need to be fully compliant with relevant national policy and guidance. It would also address the critical themes of housing needs; affordable housing; types and sizes of homes; and specialist housing, for example for older people. Given this would form part of the local plan evidence base, it was essential for this evidence to be robust, proportionate and able to withstand examination.

What was our solution?

The team at Temple authored two key documents, Housing Needs of Specific Groups Cambridgeshire and West Suffolk (2021) and the Housing Evidence Update Report (2024). These reports gathered relevant data and produced forecasts of demographic change to put forward findings and recommendations relating to the:

• local housing needs figures following the government’s standard method
• affordable housing need
• housing mix of homes by tenure, type and size
• older and disabled persons’ housing needs including wheelchair users
• student accommodation to support the growth of the Universities of Cambridge and Anglia Ruskin
• private rented sector and requirements for the council to allocate sites for build-to-rent accommodation
• custom and self-build properties
• how the housing demand generated the presence of many Royal Air Force bases should be addressed

In November 2024, the team provided further support to West Suffolk Council at Examination in Public, assisting the council prepare rebuttal statements in response to those prepared by developers and landowners. Temple then appeared at the hearings to speak on behalf of the council.

How did we add value?

The work Temple undertook put the councils in a strong position to develop housing policies for their respective local plans. These were justified by evidence that was proportionate and robust and able to withstand examination in public.