Figures show need for social housing in Arun is increasing

They have been placed in the highest category for requiring assistance by district council housing officers.

The 88 cases in band A are followed by a further 228 in band B and 1,481 in band C.

Their combined total of 1,797 is dwarfed by the 3,261 placed in the lowest category, D, who would like to move if they had the chance.

Conservative council leader Cllr Gillian Brown (Aldwick East) said the detailed figures showed the true need for social housing.

“We have not got 5,000 people in need. We have to got the whole situation into perspective,” she said. We need to concentrate on the people who need help rather than the 5,000 people on the list.

“The rules changed a few years ago.

“Anyone can go on the waiting list in any area.

“In the past, you had to show a local link for three of the previous five years to join Arun’s list.”

Cllr Roger Elkins (Ferring), the council’s deputy leader, said Arun had built several hundred of its target of creating 1,000 affordable homes in five years.

Money would be used from the sell of homes – under the government’s new right to buy policy – to build new social housing or homes for shared ownership where possible.

They made their comments as Arun’s councillors unanimously agreed to approve the housing revenue account for the council for the next ten years.

The decision will enable the council to borrow about £71m so it can buy its way out of the national housing debt and keep all of its housing rent.

The money gained as a result will help to enable Arun to build its first council houses in more than 20 years, as reported.

This will begin to help to replenish the stock depleted by the loss of properties through the original right to buy scheme from the 1980s