by Rebecca Hannant
Concerns have been raised by residents after plans were confirmed to introduce social housing on part of a major housing development in Withernsea.
Before Christmas, East Riding Council said that 40 properties on the Sands Reach development off Hollym Road would be provided as “affordable” homes. Of those, 29 will be allocated for social rent and 11 under shared ownership.
The scheme has been launched in partnership with developer Gleeson Homes, which is building 200 homes on the site.
The Sands Reach project is funded through the council’s Housing Revenue Account and will provide a mix of two, three and four-bedroom homes. The development is designed to improve local housing provision and support the community. It says all properties will achieve high EPC ratings, ensuring energy efficiency and helping to reduce energy bills, supporting the council’s ambition to lower household costs and promote sustainability.
The first homes are expected to be ready from 2026 and will be allocated in line with the council’s housing allocations policy.
Announcing the plans, Councillor Michael Lee, East Riding Council cabinet member for housing and infrastructure, said: “This is a great scheme to improve housing provision in Withernsea, and support residents in need. We look forward to welcoming the first occupants to their new homes, in due course.”
Andrew Davies, Gleeson Homes divisional managing director, added: “This partnership is about more than building houses – it’s about creating a place where people can put down roots and enjoy the benefits of coastal living.
“Working with East Riding Council ensures that these homes will make a real difference to local families.”
However, the announcement has been met with concern from residents already living on the site, as well as prospective buyers looking to purchase homes there.
While some have argued that criticism of the plans risks unfairly demonising council house tenants, others have stressed that the issue is not social housing itself but the fact that buyers and residents say they were not informed about the designation.
Gleeson Homes said it was unable to update purchasers until now because the agreement was only recently finalised, and urged anyone with questions or concerns to get in touch.
Gary Forrester, of Sunk Island, said: “I actually think it’s disgusting. They didn’t inform prospective buyers of what they were going to be doing.
“We looked at the site at Sands Reach for my mother as we were looking for her to move closer to us. We spoke to the site manager who arranged for us to go to Louth to look at a site there that had the exact same layout as we were waiting for the showhouse to be built. Yet at no point was any of this discussed. We were fortunate that we did not go through with it.
“I was brought up in a council house, so I haven’t got anything against council tenants.
“I am also for having new developments and bringing more people into the town and creating more jobs. However, if you are paying more than £200,000 for a house on a private plot, you would want to know if 40 of those houses are being used for social housing.
“If I ever buy a new house that question will be asked now, but people just presumed that those houses were being sold off to people who wanted to live in them.”
Withernsea resident Mags Westoby, who lives near the site, said she was concerned about the vetting process for council allocations: “Where we don’t have a problem them being council homes as both of us have been council house residents in the past, but we were not made aware of this when purchasing our bungalow.
“Where we are we are close to the entrance of the site on Hollym Road, and there could be two houses and a load of bungalows built directly behind us at the back of our garden.
“I am also wondering who is going to maintain them, and who is going to be monitoring who is living in them, and if there will be a vetting procedure? I would also like to know where the council ones will be located. Will they be on a certain part or dotted around the estate? A certain part that’s only going to be council ones or will there be so many random ones on the estate? Will the doctors, dentist and schools have spaces for these residents?
“Everywhere we have moved to has had antisocial noise issues, hence why we moved to a detached bungalow. We knew the houses were going to be built at the bottom of the garden and hoped they were purchased by nice people – not built yet and plans have changed for the build.
“We just hope that we are not back to square one on that issue as we are very quiet people for a family of five.
“I’ve had to have the environmental health noise team down before. I don’t want all that again as my husband and son both work shifts. The building doesn’t bother them as they don’t hear it, but late at night when it’s quiet and there is no noise are we going to have noise issues again? Most people down here are the older generation or older kids like my 21-year-old that still lives at home, so they’re quiet.”
Hull resident Jane Samer, who inquired about a home at the site and has holiday homes in the area, said: “I think this is not just specific to this site as I know it’s also being done on other new-build developments. I think it’s a conflict of interest. Councils approve planning and then buy some houses there.
“I’ve seen other new-builds are struggling to sell so they sell cheaply to local authorities. I feel the people who have already bought on these sites are being misled and will no doubt drop house values. It’s not just the 40 the council have bought, it’s also the block purchase by private landlord companies also buying so many that is concerning. Gleeson will have no say in who goes in these properties.
“I work in social housing for a different local authority, and the council can try to put lettings policies in place for new-builds, but they struggle to deny people the right to be housed in these places.”
However, Lynn Massey-Davis, of Patrington, said she was “disappointed by the way people on social housing waiting lists are being characterised”.
She said: “I grew up in a council house – my parents worked, paid their rent, looked after their home and gave back to the community. Being a council tenant did not define their worth or their values.
“I was the first in my family to go to university and spent my working life in public service. Today, my own children’s circumstances show how easily people can need social housing – through low wages, high house prices or disability – not through any fault of their own.
“We wouldn’t judge all business people by the actions of a few, so we shouldn’t judge social housing tenants that way either.”
A Gleeson spokesman said: “Gleeson Homes is delighted to have very recently signed a partnership agreement with East Riding Council to deliver over the next three years 40 homes on its Sands Reach development in Withernsea.
“This partnership will make much-needed homes available to local people under the auspices of the council.
“Gleeson is proud to deliver developments that serve the whole community, as is often a condition of planning.
“As the agreement with the council has only been finalised recently, Gleeson has been unable to update purchasers until this point. Gleeson encourages residents to reach out directly with any questions or concerns.”