The Communities Secretary Greg Clark has turned down Ipswich Borough Council’s plan to build 94 council owned dwellings at Ravenswood.
The local residents were very unhappy with the proposals due to the tenure mix. They tried to engage with the council but all attempts to come to a reasonable compromise failed due to Labour’s insistence on holding firm to their plans. Local residents supported council housing in the scheme but said it should contain houses for first time buyers as well.
Conservative councillors endeavoured to also reach a deal which would have satisfied the residents and also allowed social housing to be built in the new development. Now the likelihood is that the social housing element will be even lower than the offered compromise.
If local Labour councillors had listened to local residents then they would not have been in this mess. They have gone against their own planning policies and the national planning guidelines and the result is that homes are delayed for people who need them. Had they listened to local people and Conservative councillors’ suggestions, the houses would have been occupied by now. And tens of thousands of pounds of council tax payers money would have been saved.