Decision details

To delegate authority to the Director of Planning and Regeneration to enter into a memorandum of understanding between the Council and Homes England in order to help secure £42m Housing Investment Grant (HIG) funding for the M27 Junction 10 Improvement Scheme and unlock 6,000 homes at Welborne Garden Village.

Housing Investment Grant (HIG) funding of £42m is being provided to Hampshire County Council (HCC) to enable the delivery of the M27 Junction 10 Improvement Scheme to unlock 6,000 homes at Welborne Garden Village.

Hampshire County Council has agreed to delegate authority to its Director of Economy, Transport and Environment to complete the funding agreements associated with this grant, including a Grant Determination agreement (GDA) with Homes England for the HIG funding.

A simultaneous Memorandum, of Understanding between Homes England and this Council is also required to secure the HIG funding.  This sets out the obligations on the Council in relation to the monitoring of various s106 requirements on the Developer of Welborne Garden Village; the monitoring of housing outputs unlocked by the HIG-funded infrastructure works; and the recovery and reinvestment into affordable housing of the HIG funds.

This report sets out those obligations and seeks Executive approval to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding with Homes England to help secure the £42m grant to HCC.

On 23 July 2021, the Planning Committee agreed to delegate to the Head of Development Management the ability to secure a mechanism to recover and recycle HIG Funding in accordance with Homes England’s requirements in a legal agreement pursuant to Section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990.

RESOLVED that the Executive:

(a)  approves the terms of the Memorandum of Understanding with Homes England to help secure the £42m Housing Investment Grant for Welborne Garden Village as attached at the Confidential Appendix A to this report;

(b)  delegates authority to complete the Memorandum of Understanding to the Director of Planning and Regeneration, following consultation with the Council’s s151 Officer and the Executive Leader of the Council; and

(c)  requests that the Head of Development Management incorporates these provisions in the legal agreement for Welborne pursuant to Section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990.