Press Release

5 February 2018

Design your own house in Fareham

Ever dreamt of designing and building your own home? Fareham Borough Council has started working with The Right to Build Task Force with a view to including a range of Custom and Self-Build housing plots at Welborne Garden Village and elsewhere in the Borough on any developments of 100 homes and above. 

Council Leader Seán Woodward, local Councillors and officers met the Right to Build Task Force recently with Richard Bacon MP, Ambassador of the Task Force and Mario Wolf, Task Force Director.

Since its launch last year, the Right to Build Task Force has been working with local authorities, landowners and others to bring forward custom, self-build and community-led housing opportunities, with an emphasis on scale and housing affordability. It offers subsidised support for local authorities and community groups, to enable them to meet the demand for custom and self- build space. One of the Task Force's key objectives is to provide more affordable homes for those in housing need and the work with Councils to help deliver these.

Richard Bacon MP, Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Self-Build, Custom and Community Housebuilding and Placemaking and Ambassador for the Task Force said: "It was a pleasure to meet with Fareham Borough Council to discuss self-building opportunities at Welborne Garden Village. Developments such as Welborne offer huge scope for bringing forward a range of well-designed housing options and are therefore a logical choice to help meet local demand for people who want to build their own homes."  

Cllr Seán Woodward, Leader of Fareham Borough Council, said: "We are working with the Task Force to deliver more affordable housing and offer home ownership options which will suit a variety of modern needs. This includes offering space at Welborne Garden Village where people can design and build their own homes. It also means bringing forward a policy stating that all housing sites of over 100 outside Welborne must contain at least 5% plots for self-build homes."

Mario Wolf, Director of the RTB Task Force, said: "I am pleased that Fareham Borough Council has approached the Task Force for advice. Garden villages such as Welborne are well placed to include an ambitious and diverse Custom and Self-build housing offer to local communities. We look forward to working with the team at Fareham."

Residents who are interested in building their own homes in the Fareham area can sign up to the Council's register at /planning/local_plan/selfbuild.aspx

Only those that have lived or worked in the Borough for at least two years are eligible.

ENDS

Notes to editors:

Picture: (from left to right): Mario Wolf, Right to Build Task Force Director, Cllr Seán Woodward, Leader of Fareham Borough Council and Richard Bacon MP, Ambassador of the Task Force.

Self-Build – Where an individual directly organises the design and construction of their new home.

Custom Build – Where the individual works directly with a specialist developer to help deliver their new home.

Right To Build Task Force:

The Right to Build Task Force was launched in February 2017 with the aim of helping at least 80 Local Authorities, community groups and other organisations across the UK to deliver significantly more affordable Custom and Self Build housing projects. A NaCSBA initiative, the Task Force has received funding from the Nationwide Foundation, which aims to increase the availability of decent affordable homes for people in housing need.

ENDS

For further information contact:

The Communications Team, Tel: 01329 824310

e-mail: publicity@fareham.gov.uk

Keep in touch on the go

'Like' us on Facebook 

'Follow us' on Twitter