A MAJOR plan to tackle the lack of affordable homes with a return to council-owned properties has been unveiled.

Allerdale council is behind plans to set up a council-owned housing company to provide affordable properties to rent and sell to those in need, as well as make money through full-price rentals and sales.

Most of the council's former stock was transferred to Derwent and Solway Housing Association in 1999.

Labour councillor Carni McCarron-Holmes, executive member with responsibility for housing, said: "The setting up of a housing company is a great idea. We were encouraged by central Government some years back to transfer all our properties to housing associations. However, this initiative gives us the opportunity either through the development of land or by bringing long-term empty homes back into use, to get more involved in addressing the housing needs of our residents throughout Allerdale."

The council's executive committee is due to discuss the proposals at a meeting on Monday.

Graeme Wilson, the council's programme director, said this was the first step of the process and were the executive to approve it, officers would present a business plan within six months. This would set out how the scheme would work and how the properties would be managed.

Coun McCarron-Holmes added: "It is an exciting project which is backed by a real desire to make a difference for our residents. I therefore hope my colleagues on the executive approve the development of a business plan in support of the setting up of a housing company at the meeting on Monday."

A report by Mr Wilson into the proposal said the lack of affordable homes in certain areas had hit many families hard.

He said: "The housing situation in parts of Allerdale is similar to many other places in the country: there are simply an insufficient number of homes for the increasing number of people who need them. In particular, the lack of affordable homes in certain areas of the borough has hit many families hard; families made homeless as a direct result of high housing costs, and families unable to afford to rent or buy a secure home of a decent standard, have no alternative but to remain in unsuitable accommodation."

Allerdale council says although it has facilitated the delivery of 404 affordable homes in the last five years, these are not sufficient.

Mr Wilson said: "Most recently the council has seen an increase in the number of homeless and existing resources are being stretched with bed and breakfast accommodation having to be used on a more frequent basis."

The authority also recorded an increase in the number of long-term empty homes, which it says attract vandalism and antisocial behaviour. And Allerdale council believes its proposed housing company could help tackle the problem by purchasing and re-letting some of those properties.

At Monday's meeting, which will take place at 10am at Allerdale house, councillors will hear that private developers have delivered housing in areas such as Workington (Stainburn and Harrington), Seaton, Cockermouth, Wigton, Dearham and Great Broughton, while areas such as Maryport, Aspatria, Silloth, Abbeytown, Broughton Moor, Kirkbride and Prospect have been left behind. The report says this is due to private developers raising concerns about viability and increased risk in those areas.

Mr Wilson said: "While the market will largely take care of itself in certain areas there is a need to take a different approach in areas that private house builders are currently not active."

But Conservative councillor Mark Jenkinson is concerned that Allerdale council have been part of the problem when it comes to the delivery of affordable homes.

He said: "We have a policy that mandates affordable housing in new builds, but then when applications go through the planning process they go missing. Developers are getting away with it. They have been allowed to change the size of new homes from four- to three-bedrooms or from social rentals to affordable sales for example."

He said developers routinely changed their commitments on viability grounds.

And independent councillor Nicky Cockburn claims there are already more houses than those needed in the area.

She said: "You just need to look at developments like The Laureates in Cockermouth that are apparently struggling to sell to see that we have already been building more houses than we need in Allerdale."

The scheme has the backing of independent councillor Bill Finlay.

However, coun Finlay said he would want to be convinced that this was not just a proposal to build new housing estates in the name of economic development.

He said: "If they are really going to do up old houses I would endorse that. It is an amendment I put to council a couple of weeks ago. I need guarantees, but if the council is doing what I asked I would support it."

The scheme would work alongside housing associations and private sector developers to bridge the gap between what is offered by them.