Decision details

(i)  to note the prior consultation which has taken place in relation to Woodside Lodge and 536-550 Wimpson Lane;

(ii)  to recommend the Council approve in principle to develop two adjacent sites; Woodside Lodge and 536-550 Wimpson Lane which initiates the regeneration of Millbrook and Maybush;

(iii)  to delegate authority to the Head of Property to vary the lease held between the Council and Scottish & Southern Energy to release a strip of land in front of the sub-station at Woodside Lodge following consultation with the Head of Legal and Democratic Services, Head of Development, Economy and Housing Renewal and the Chief Financial Officer;

(iv)  to approve, in accordance with Financial Procedure Rules, capital expenditure of £500,000 in 2015-16, funded from an existing unapproved scheme within the New Build section of the HRA Capital Programme for the Provision of Social Housing. The £500,000 will cover the costs of the architects, percentage of First Wessex development agent fee; necessary surveys; consultant fees etc. to planning submission stage for the redevelopment of Woodside Lodge and 536 – 550 Wimpson Lane;

(v)  to delegate authority to enter into a Development Agent Agreement in relation to the redevelopment of Woodside Lodge and 536 – 550 Wimpson Lane with First Wessex Housing Group, part of the Wayfarer Consortium, to the Director of Place, following consultation with the Head of Legal and Democratic Services, Head of Development, Economy and Housing Renewal, Head of Housing Services and the Chief Financial Officer;

(vi)  to delegate authority to enter into a build contract for the redevelopment of Woodside Lodge and 536 – 550 Wimpson Lane with a contractor engaged via First Wessex using Wayfarer’s OJEU compliant frameworks to the Director of Place following consultation with the Head of Legal and Democratic Services, Head of Development, Economy and Housing Renewal, Head of Housing Services and the Chief Financial Officer for pre-construction stage works; and

(vii)  to approve a grant of £598,000 to Aster for an affordable housing scheme at the former Bush Inn, Wimpson Lane, funded from retained Right To Buy (RTB) capital receipts, and to approve capital expenditure of £598,000, in accordance with Financial Procedure Rules.

Wimpson Lane Redevelopment

On 9th December 2014, Cabinet approved the closure of Woodside Lodge, a 27 bed residential care home for older people with moderate or severe dementia. The home closed on 31^st July 2015 after its former residents had all been supported to move to suitable alternative placements and this was noted by Cabinet on 15^th September 2015. The site, which comprises a large two storey brick faced building with small outbuildings and a car park, is now available for redevelopment.

The adjacent site, 536-550 Wimpson Lane (‘Wimpson Lane’), is a Council Housing Revenue Account (HRA) owned 1960s purpose built supported housing block comprising 8 flats with communal gardens. The property is suffering from significant subsidence estimated at a repair cost in excess of £500K in addition to the necessary refurbishment and structural repairs to the walkway balconies.

The Integrated Commissioning Unit has identified that demand for specialist and older persons housing will continue to grow due to demographic factors and a modern scheme where care and support can be efficiently provided to a larger number of residents with multiple care and support needs will help provide a cost effective alternative to high cost residential care provision, support independence and help to deliver improved health and social care outcomes.

There is also a continued need for smaller general needs accommodation which combined with specialist and older person’s accommodation would create a greater mix of community feel and allow for general needs housing to be able to flex in support locally as needed. These sites provide a unique opportunity to develop homes to meet these varied housing needs.

Bush Inn

Local Housing Association partners were invited to bid for grant resources as part of the council’s drive to spend time limited Right to Buy (RTB) receipts. Aster came forward with a bid to fund 9 properties on the site of the former Bush Inn. This scheme had stalled due to the original contractor going into administration. The new contractor has uncovered a number of issues that have increased the cost price.

The Section 106 Agreement for this site only requires 2 affordable homes to be provided. With rising costs, it is anticipated no extra affordable homes would be delivered above this number. However, if grant funding is approved, all 9 units at the Bush Inn would be made available at affordable rent, providing a net gain of 7 affordable homes for the £598,000 requested.

Both these projects have the potential to begin regeneration activity in the Millbrook/Maybush area.

Woodside Lodge

On 16 December 2014, Cabinet approved the closure of Woodside Lodge subject to all of its residents being supported to move to suitable alternative placements. The decision was informed by the outcome of a public consultation and the alternative option of keeping Woodside Lodge open was rejected due to:

• The Council’s desire to develop a wider range of options for supporting people with dementia, such as supported living and extra care housing, instead of directly providing residential care itself, and
• There being sufficient alternative provision of residential care of the required type and quality in Southampton to meet forecast demands more cost-effectively

The home closed on 31 July 2015 and the alternative of not developing the site in accordance with the proposals set out in this report has been rejected as it would be inconsistent with the decision to close Woodside Lodge.

Wimpson Lane

Do nothing – this is not considered as a viable option due to the current state of repair of the building. The building is suffering from significant subsidence and it is estimated would require in excess of £500k of works bring it back up to a suitable level of repair.  In addition there is a need to refurbish and undertake structural repair work to the walkway balconies.

The option of doing nothing would not achieve the Council’s objectives of creating sustainable communities on its estates and would not address the current serious issues with the accommodation. The Council has decanted the former residents to alternative accommodation.

To develop Wimpson Lane in isolation from Woodside Lodge would not be cost effective or offer the economy of scales of redeveloping both schemes at the same time.

Bush Inn

There is a Section 106 Agreement which would only provide 2 affordable homes on the site. It is, therefore, beneficial in working to meet housing need to ensure that the scheme is 100% affordable by providing grant funding to ensure that all 9 homes are affordable. This would also enable the RTB receipts to be spent within the required timescales and therefore, avoid the Council having to repay these funds with an additional financial penalty.