Long term plans to create more homes in Swansea are well underway, in a bid to tackle ongoing homelessness concerns.
A review has been completed by Swansea Council, looking at the current and future plans for the creation of more affordable homes for families and single people in the city.
The Council has committed to creating more council homes in the city, including building new homes, converting existing and unused council-owned properties into new homes, as well as buying back former council homes sold under the ‘Right to Buy’ scheme.
So far, 288 homes have been created and added into the council’s existing housing stock. The total includes 88 brand new ultra-modern homes – all featuring innovative energy saving technology that assists residents in keeping energy bills low.
179 former council homes have been added back into the total number under the right to buy scheme. A further 21 homes have been created by repurposing former council buildings into homes – these include former district housing offices in Bonymaen and Penlan.
Completion of an on-going property and further acquisitions mean that the overall delivery of new homes by the end of March 2025 is anticipated to be approximately 306 units.
Andrea Lewis, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Service Transformation, said: “We are making good progress with our More Homes programme. A wide range of homes have been created through a number of processes, including new development, repurposing of council-owned property, as well as buying back former council homes and adding them into our current housing stock.
“All of these projects assist us in increasing the number of homes we can provide for the people of Swansea.
“Waiting lists for homes are increasing across the UK, not just in Wales, and in Swansea we are doing all we can to try and reduce these pressures on our housing service.”
More recently, the council secured planning permission for a large housing scheme in Bonymaen, where up to 156 new homes could be developed.
The housing scheme is set to be developed in four phases along Brokesby Road, providing a mix of homes ranging from 1-bedroom flats, 2-bedroom bungalows, as well and 3 & 4-bedroom houses.
The Council will be seeking to replicate the sustainable, energy saving qualities already established at other locations across Swansea where new council homes have been created, including sites in Birchgrove, West Cross, Blaenymaes and Clase.
And its not just the council that is developing new affordable housing. The council is continuing to work with Registered Social Landlords (RSLs) such as Pobl, Coastal Housing and Caredig to further increase affordable housing in the city.
Cllr Lewis added: “Overall, the combined delivery of additional affordable housing by the RSLs and the Council between 2017/18 and 2023/24 has been 1720 homes.
“We will continue to work in partnership with these housing providers to further increase housing in Swansea.”
