Housing strategy 2025-2030

Priorities

1/ Prioritise the delivery of homes that people can afford and that are suitable for needs of the community.

A shortage of suitable homes to meet a range of needs and incomes can result in higher levels of homelessness, higher levels living in unsustainable housing conditions and increased poverty. It is also in turn linked to a reduction in life chances and opportunities, such as children being unable to move out of home. 

Increase the delivery of new homes

The Council has a range of responsibilities in support the delivery of new housing projects. These responsibilities include the preparation of a Local Plan, which involves the assessment of future needs for homes, the type, size and tenure of housing needed on future residential developments and ensuring sufficient land is allocated for housing.

The Council understands that much of the existing and future proposed housing is unaffordable for many people within our district. We therefore understand that it is important to increase opportunities for affordable home ownership, particularly for first time buyers, close to amenities and public transport. At the same time, the Council must address the growing demand and pressure of those on lower incomes and those who are more vulnerable who rely on social housing. This will require the delivery of more affordable housing for rent, particularly social rent, to work to address the supply and demand gap.

The Council has made some positive strides in enabling affordable housing delivery, delivering 618 properties over a 3 year period. However, the Council is aware that there is a lot more work to do to ensure that more housing across tenure is available, particularly at social rent. Over the same 3 year period, only 23 of the 618 new properties have been brought forward at social rent, which has the highest demand on the Housing Register.

Whilst there has been some positive affordable housing delivery, the true affordability of affordable housing in Cherwell is of concern. There is a significant disparity between social and affordable rent levels, as affordable rents are available at up to 80% of market rent. As the Oxfordshire rental market and housing market generally is buoyant, the market rent level is out of reach of lower income households. Larger affordable housing rented units should be considered for priority towards social rent given the considerable gap between market, social and affordable rents on larger properties.

The majority of new affordable homes will be delivered on new private developments and we will continue to work proactively with developers to secure the provision of affordable housing through our Local Plan and associated housing delivery engagement and help developers find solutions to viability concerns.

We will also work closely with registered providers and developers to align affordable housing proposals to local needs, agree the distribution of tenures and formulate local lettings plans for sites. This will also include a review of our own assets, particularly our stock of supported accommodation, to ensure that we are aligning with the housing needs and priorities of the district.

Whilst we will prioritise social housing for rent to meet the needs of those on low incomes who have more limited housing opportunities, we will enable those who aspire to own their own home by enabling new low cost home ownership opportunities. Whilst providing incentives and support for first time buyers or home buyers generally is a matter for national policy, the Council will continue to enable the delivery of shared ownership schemes, with a focus on smaller family units.

Addressing the need for adapted dwellings

Cherwell has a higher rate of households containing a person with a health problem than the rest of Oxfordshire, with 27.6% of people within this category. Whilst the housing needs of these groups will be very different, depending on the nature and the severity of their disability, they are also more likely to be homeowners.

In response to this, it is important to ensure that future development provides a continued supply of accessible and adapted properties for all tenures that responds to the identified need. The new draft Local Plan advises a minimum of M4 (2) of Building Regulations is encouraged and on larger sites, at least 10% of the dwellings should be built to M4(3). Increasing the overall numbers of properties built to Part M4 (3) of Building Regulations will be encouraged.

New types of housing developments

Cherwell has been at the forefront of delivering growth areas. Over the last two decades, Bicester has been transformed from being a quiet market town into a flourishing new Garden Town. A key area for growth, it has provided a range of desirable and innovative housing developments within well planned communities. None more innovative that the site at Graven Hill, which is the largest self-build site in the Country and one of the largest in Europe.

The Council is working in partnership with a Community Land Trust to provide homes Rural Exception Sites at Hook Norton. These homes provide an affordable housing and private market housing mix to develop 12 Passivhaus homes.

Additionally, through the Council’s Build! Team, 270 affordable housing properties were developed between 2013 and 2022. These properties saw underutilised Council assets or other assets from the public estate transformed into housing. Many of these properties were developed using new or innovative methods, including self build/finish at The Orchard, Banbury and Newton Close, Bicester. Both of these sites were offered at Low Cost Home Ownership. In addition, Hope Close Banbury was developed to Passive House Standards, delivering homes built for energy efficiency, comfort and affordability.

Cherwell is committed to continuing to enable innovative ways of developing high quality housing. An emerging method off quickly and cheaply increasing housing development is through off-site modular construction methods. Whilst this method may not be suitable in all situations, the method does offer opportunities to innovatively promote delivery and support carbon reduction and other sustainability objectives. It could also help the Council to alleviate some of its housing pressures, particularly those faced by certain groups.

Best use of existing homes and buildings

Whist there is understandably a focus on new housing delivery when it comes to supply, the usage of existing stock and buildings is also important to meet the varied housing demands of the district.

Having homes that sit empty when there is such a high demand for housing is a wasted resource. Long term empty homes can also have a detrimental impact on the wider community and feel of a neighbourhood. It is therefore important that the Council works to identify these properties and when identified, dis-incentivises them from being left empty for long periods.

The Council is committed to ensuring the effective use of available social housing stock within the district. It maintains a housing register that enables people to apply for social housing in the local area providing that they meet the eligibility criteria. The Council relies on nominations to Registered Providers to enable applicants on the housing register to access Social Housing, as it does not retain a large stock holding itself.

The Council is required to publish a Housing Allocations Scheme. This sets out how social housing in the district will be allocated, informed by the Housing Act 1996. The Council reviews this Allocations Scheme periodically, most recently in 2024. Within these reviews, the Council considers whether the groups in the greatest need are being prioritised for the available social housing properties within the district in the most appropriate way.

Over recent years, the Council has become aware of a trend of social housing properties also sitting as empty, or void, for long periods. There are a variety of reasons to which could occur, but we are aware that a main cause for this is the cost increases attached to capital investment due to inflation and the amount of capital investment required to bring the home up to modern standards, as many social housing units are now up to and approaching 100 years old. The Council is working with Registered Providers to bring some of these properties back into use through opportunities provided by the Local Authority Housing Fund, and it will continue to endeavour to ensure that all social housing stock within the district is occupied.

We recognise that those offered a secure housing tenancy by a social housing provider should have their security respected. It is also for the individual housing provider, in consultation with the Cherwell District Council Tenancy Policy, to manage their own tenancies within their own frameworks. However, the Council understands that larger social housing properties are often underoccupied, because family dynamics within them change over time. The Council is therefore committed to working with Registered Providers to create mobility within the social housing stock within the district to enable larger properties to be more fully utilised.

Similarly, the Council will act with similar flexibility and in partnership with Registered Providers on its provision of temporary accommodation. The Council will work to secure new partnerships with Registered Providers to increase supply of self-contained temporary accommodation in efforts to meet rising demand and also to reduce long term hotel use.

What the Council will do in the future to tackle these issues

• Work with planning colleagues, developers, Registered Providers and other partners to ensure affordable housing delivery and ensure that the delivery of affordable housing within the district reflects the demands, property types, tenures and sizes that are required, including developments being delivered as part of Oxfords Unmet Housing Need.
• Ensuring appropriate challenge to planning viability and challenging developers where they propose to deliver schemes that are not delivering affordable housing in accordance with policy. Increasing the number of properties provided within district at Social Rent, as a proportion of the affordable housing contribution.
• Widen our engagement with Registered Providers, to align our strategic needs and explore new opportunities in partnership. This includes new housing, temporary accommodation and ensuring the most appropriate usage of existing housing.
• Development of a collaborative approach to “right sizing” properties, managing potential under occupancy and providing assistance to move with stock of Registered Providers.
• Review Council assets with a view to delivery of more housing that meets the needs of the district.
• Work with our partner Council’s in Oxfordshire to explore wider partnership initiatives, funding and new business opportunities to ensure the development of housing schemes that can meet our collective needs
• Work collectively and use our collective powers to bring more empty properties back into use, considering a new policy approach
• Strive for the new homes provided in district to be as adaptable and accessible as possible, designing in basic accessibility requirements.
• Ensure that the most vulnerable disabled households with the most acute needs are given the best option through the Housing Register and the needs of the customer are collectively understood and addressed
• To continue to promote a wide tenure mix of properties within the district, including continued opportunities for self build, self finish and custom build housing.
• Review our allocations scheme annually to ensure that the housing needs of the district with regard to affordable housing are understood and responded to.

2/ Improving the existing condition of properties within Cherwell. Ensuring high property standards and properties that are fit for the future, working towards net zero.

Everyone has the right to live in a decent home and whilst we want to ensure that we are delivering more new homes in future years, we also want to acknowledge that the majority of residents live in existing homes within the district. In addition, older properties are more likely to be in poorer condition, be less well insulated and be more expensive to heat and maintain.

Ensuring social homes are of high standard and well managed and maintained

The Council has a small stock holding of its own that it retains following a Large Scale Voluntary Transfer of Council owned housing that was concluded in 2004, to what is now Sanctuary Housing. Around 99% of social housing within the district is provided by Registered Providers independently from the Council. There are currently around 10,500 social housing properties provided within the district and the majority are owned and managed by Sanctuary Housing as the stock transfer landlord.

The government over recent years has consulted on and implemented a new regulatory framework called the Social Housing (Regulation) Act. This gives the new regulator greater powers and frameworks to scrutinise and enforce housing standards on underperforming landlords. This is aimed at securing better outcomes for residents following well publicised failures by social housing providers, particularly in addressing poor housing conditions.

It is therefore the role of the Regulator to monitor performance of Registered Providers across the Country, and within Cherwell. However, the Council considers the raising of standards of accommodation within the district as important and wants to ensure that properties meet the Decent Homes Standard, and tenants have a good relationship with their landlord. The Council brought forward a Tenants’ Charter to underline its commitments to this. We want to ensure through our engagement with Registered Providers that tenants concerns are being responded to and that standards of accommodation are being raised, using our enforcement powers and influence as the Local Authority to bring about these outcomes.

Private Sector Housing

Local Authorities must review housing conditions in their area and identify where action is necessary in accordance with legislation. These action areas include;

• Taking a cross rented tenure enforcement role to housing standards in the rented sector
• Regulating Houses of Multiple Occupation (HMO) with regard to their standards and management
• Investigating empty homes
• Licensing caravan and park home sites
• Regulating the standards of private rented housing, addressing hazards identified through the Housing, Health and Safety Rating System. (HHSRS)

The regulatory requirements for private landlords are also less stringent and codified than social housing providers. There have been plans to bring forward reforms in legislation for the private sector and regulatory standards, but these are not as advanced at the time of launching this strategy as they are for social providers. The reforms proposed included a ban on Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions, to reduce the number of non-decent private rented sector dwellings and apply the Decent Homes Standard to the private rented sector for the first time and to establish a new ombudsman to oversee the sector. The new ombudsman would seek to resolve disputes between tenants and landlords and also introduce a new registration system for private landlords, giving greater accountability and transparency.

It is therefore unclear what the potential introduction of the Decent Homes Standard for the private rented sector will include and what the affect will be on the oversight and resources required by local authorities in addition to the current responsibilities we have for identifying Category hazards.

The Council has a strong track record of taking a pro-active approach to housing standards and is committed to raising the standards of rented properties within the district.

The Council operates grant schemes to assist both landlords to improve the standard of their properties, benefitting tenants in turn but also help owner occupiers that are on low incomes undertake essential home repairs. Over the last 5 years, 57 properties in the private rented sector have benefitted from our landlord grants and 45 households benefitted from our owner occupier grants.

As well as working to improve properties through grants, we take our statutory role regarding housing standards seriously and use our regulatory tools and powers when necessary. Over the last 5 years, we have issues 40 financial penalties for housing offences totalling £133,657 and have convicted two landlords of illegally evicting their tenants. We have investigated 3380 service requests at private rented homes, serving 859 notices, taking action on 225 Category 1 hazards and 591 Category 2 hazards.

We work closely and communicate with landlords through Landlords Forums and through other mediums to advise landlords of their responsibilities and how legislative changes may affect them. We also work closely with other partners, such as the Fire Service, to ensure that residents properties and converted properties are safe. The Council takes appropriate action against landlords where standards fall below what is expected.

Cherwell also leads the Oxfordshire Housing Standards Forum, which ensures good practice and close working relationships between the other Districts and the City Council are maintained.

As part of our partnership work, we are part of Better Housing Better Health (BHBH). BHBH is a service that supports residents keep warm and improve the energy efficiency of their homes. It provides impartial advice to help improve the energy efficiency of homes with an associated goal of saving residents’ money.

Following the death of Awaab Ishak in Rochdale, the Council has received a growing number of cross rented tenure concerns about damp and mould within rented property. The Council is committed to continuing to provide help and advice to tenants and escalating these matters with landlords to ensure they are remedied, and actions are coordinated where possible.

Tackling climate change and reducing carbon footprint 

The Council is committed and takes its role in tackling climate change seriously. Like many Councils, a climate emergency has been declared and as part of this, have committed to ensuring our operations and activities are carbon net zero by 2030 and ensuring that we do our part in supporting the district to become carbon net zero.

To promote sustainable construction, Cherwell has promoted renewable energy, decentralised energy systems, sustainable construction and a general focus on mitigation and adapting to climate change within all new developments. Cherwell has seen successes in developments in and around Bicester, such as Graven Hill and North West Bicester. Requirements have included zero carbon developments, reducing water usage and some properties being commissioned to Passivhaus standards.

The Oxfordshire Energy Statement advises that the pathway to a low carbon future within greenhouse gas emissions projections assumes that by 2030, 4000 existing homes must be renovated every year to reduce energy requirements to 60kWh/m2 per year. A retrofitting programme will therefore be required to bring all homes in the County up to a minimum of EPC band C by 2035.

Projects to help in the delivery of this are already underway. BHBH supports residents living in fuel poverty, which is around 1 in 10 residents across the County, to address the immediate issues that they are facing within their homes. Cherwell was also part of a successful joint bid with the other Districts within Oxfordshire and partnered with Oxfordshire County Council to deliver the second phase of the Home Upgrade Grant (HUG2). The HUG2 grant is available to all owner occupiers and private renters living in the worst performing, off gas grid homes.

Enforcement of the Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) requires all eligible private rented residential and non-domestic properties to meet a minimum standard of an EPC band E. Over the last 5 years, the Council has proactively investigated 234 potential MEES breaches, issuing 99 notices and 16 financial penalties to landlords with substandard properties.

Rapidly rising costs of energy over recent years has led to an increasing number of residents in the district facing fuel poverty. Using our existing partnerships, we want to ensure that we help to deliver a coordinated approach to identify households that are living in fuel poverty. We also want to improve our intelligence of the energy efficiency status of households within the district and to understand where the more energy inefficient homes may be.

In addition to homes in the private sector, we want to ensure that homes that are socially rented are decarbonising. We will expand our existing Registered Provider engagement to include progress on stock condition and retrofitting programmes to ensure progress on the decarbonisation of the social housing estate managed by Registered Providers.

Additionally, as a Registered Provider itself with a de minimis stock holding, the Council wants to ensure that it is contributing towards decarbonisation of its estate. The Council will undertake a strategic review of its assets to ensure that stock that is retained and used by the Council for housing is achieving it highest potential of energy efficiency. The Council has led the way locally in using innovative construction techniques and delivering greater energy efficiency from properties developed. Some of the properties we own and manage already have air source heat pumps installed, for instance.

What the Council will do in the future to tackle these issues

• Engage developers in reducing the carbon emissions of new homes and ensuring new homes have a high level of thermal efficiency
• To develop a coordinated approach across the County to better identify households living in fuel poverty and in poor housing conditions
• To more greatly understand the energy performance and efficiency of stock in the private rented sector and the general stock condition of housing in district, including a review of Council owned residential assets
• To more greatly understand and coordinate the response to decarbonisation of social housing, ensuring that decarbonisation initiatives and measures are part of our cross rented tenure landlord engagement
• Provide advice and assistance to the most vulnerable and improve fuel poverty advice, support and signposting to improve the energy efficiency of homes and to provide support for most affected by high fuel costs.
• Continually identify, where available, and bid or support wider bids for funds to promote energy efficiency and tackle fuel poverty for private owners and landlords
• To continue to support and promote services such as Better Housing Better Health and HUG2 to ensure continued support for those requiring support keeping warm and well at home
• Continue to ensure that landlords are compliant with the Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES)
• Using our agreed Tenants’ Charter, ensure that the services that are provided to tenants across rented tenure improve, the tenant voice is heard and poor landlord practices are held to account
• To support the implementation of the Social Housing (Regulation) Act and the new potential renter’s legislation, understanding and utilising the Council’s role as a strategic influence and enforcement body
• To continue to evolve our private landlord engagement to ensure that the Council is playing a strategic enabling role and an enforcement role.
• To review the grants offered by the Council to ensure that they are meeting the evolving needs and demands of the private rented sector and to maximise their effectiveness in raising the overall standards of properties within the district as well as promoting greater energy efficiency.

3/ Promoting health and wellbeing through housing, tackling homelessness, improving support. Helping to create sustainable communities.

Housing is a key part of a person’s wellbeing and health. Poor and/or unsuitable housing, homelessness and/ or rough sleeping and lack of appropriate support or community infrastructure can have a significant impact on people.

Homelessness and rough sleeping

Preventing and tackling homelessness and rough sleeping requires a partnership response. Cherwell District Council has its own Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Strategy which was published in 2024, in which a full review of homelessness was undertaken in 2023 which informed the strategy and action plan.

The review of homelessness in Cherwell took place as part of delivering this strategy which drew the following conclusions.

1. That the overall trend of homelessness in Cherwell is downward from where it was in 2018-19 in terms of the full picture. However, the amount of homelessness preventions has fallen at a rate that is faster than the other duties.
2. The most prevalent group in of homelessness person is single males, which follows a national trend. Females or couples with children are more common in the Prevention Duty.
3. The service of Section 21 “no fault eviction” notices have become increasingly more prevalent. There has been a significant increase, which could be linked to economic factors and upcoming changes in legislation.
4. Domestic Abuse prevalence is increasing.
5. Friends and family and the breakdown of these relationships and living arrangements is a major contributing factor to homelessness within the district.
6. An offer of social housing is the main way in which our homelessness duties are discharged. The ability of the Council to be able to discharge to the Private Sector has fallen over the last two years.
7. The number of lettings of Social Housing that have been made through the Choice Based Lettings system have fallen and have not recovered to pre COVID levels. This creates additional waiting list pressures making it more difficult to discharge duties to social housing.
8. The supply of one-bedroom units is slowing in favour of a greater number of 2- and 3-bedroom units. This is therefore meeting certain areas of Cherwell demand regarding homelessness, particularly families with children, the number of single people who are homeless have more limited options through the general housing pathway.
9. There has been a reduction in the lets and availability of the largest properties. Larger properties are also the most difficult to source through the private sector because of affordability issues within Cherwell. If families approach requiring these larger properties, such as 4-bedroom houses, it can be particularly difficult to discharge duties.
10. There is an increasing use of supported accommodation as a way of discharging homeless duties, this suggests the client group is more vulnerable and therefore may be more susceptible to repeat homelessness and rough sleeping.
11. Rough sleeping figures within Cherwell have increased, showing a growing national trend. These are predominantly single men. Since COVID lockdowns ended, there has been a particularly significant increase.
12. Affordability of accommodation is an issue within Cherwell.

The Action Plan is based around the following key priorities

1. Identify the causes of homelessness, facilitating early interventions to ensure a pathway to housing and reducing rough sleeping
2. Ensure that our service is accessible to all; engaging and assisting households who have difficulty receiving our services
3. Deliver long term housing solutions and help sustain tenancies for the most vulnerable, creating resilience
4. Improve access to quality and affordable accommodation across all sectors, for homeless households

Additionally, Cherwell is part of a countywide partnership to deliver supported accommodation and support services for those at risk of homelessness and rough sleeping and is also part of the Oxfordshire Countywide Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Strategy. This partnership was brought about principally by the additional funding provided by government and the Rough Sleeping Initiative (RSI) to help meet the government’s aim of ending rough sleeping by 2027.

The prevention of homelessness is a key objective of both of these strategies and Cherwell’s Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Strategy action plan sets out how we will do this. Homelessness and rough sleeping are a rising national housing issue, and the actions focus on working with partners to ensure a strong focus on intervening early, targeting prevention and key support services and improving access to suitable accommodation.

Temporary accommodation

Linked to homelessness is the rise in usage of temporary accommodation for those facing homelessness. This has increased significantly in Cherwell within 2024 with an increase from around 35-40 households typically accommodated to a rise to around 70.

This increase is typical when we compare with other surrounding areas and similar local authorities, and we are seeing a rise of single homeless people that are in priority need and therefore requiring temporary accommodation. There is also rising pressure from new cohorts of applicants, such as those fleeing conflict through the various resettlement schemes.

The increase in numbers has meant both increasing times spent in temporary accommodation by applicants but also an increasing number of applicants spending more time in hotel accommodation. The Council is taking steps to address this through by carrying out a review of temporary accommodation with a view to increasing its supply of self-contained temporary accommodation.

Appropriate move on and support options

Once in an accommodation offer as a vulnerable person or household, it is important that support continues to ensure that the tenancy and home is sustained.

Accommodation with support is provided through the Countywide Adult Homeless Pathway. The Council also refers into supported accommodation in the wider region where clients feel able to go, to ensure that they receive the support they need, and they are supported to move on from rough sleeping.

When a client is moving into a home for the first time or they have a significant vulnerability that makes them susceptible to tenancy failure or repeat homelessness, tenancy sustainment is offered or engaged from a variety of providers, including the Council’s in house team.

Housing First is a relatively new approach to housing vulnerable people with multiple and complex needs, who are at risk of homelessness. It involves providing a secure home, together with personalise support, to enable people into housing, deliver positive outcomes and prevent street homelessness. Cherwell is committed through the Countywide Alliance partnership to increasing the number of properties for Housing First within the district.

Timely and appropriate move on from supported accommodation into a general needs tenancy remains a challenge that is linked to housing supply. Additionally, the provision of step down or transitioning support from supported to general needs can prove to be a gap in provision.

Domestic Abuse

Domestic Abuse is an issue with increasing prevalence within our communities. Cherwell records the highest rates of domestic abuse cases across the Oxfordshire area. The Domestic Abuse Act 2021 aimed to increase the support and protection for survivors and included new duties for local authorities.

Cherwell District Council is part of the Oxfordshire Domestic Abuse Strategy and Countywide commissioning approach to services. The Council has also set up a Domestic Abuse specialist role within the Housing service, to review and improve our service offer and create new partnership opportunities.

Health, wellbeing and housing

As the majority of a person’s time is spent within the home, preventing health problems caused by poor housing conditions is important for staying well. The ability to live independently for as long as possible and have access to a home within a quality wider environment and thriving community is important. It is also important to acknowledge that providing the right type of housing is important to easing pressure on the wider health and social care system.

Cherwell’s population by age shows that 17.5% of people living in the district are over 65 (2021), which is slightly less but comparable with the Oxfordshire average. It is anticipated that the proportion will increase by 52% by 2040. This will mean many more people will not only be over 65, but may well be over 75 in turn. This shows a growing need to provide homes that are suitable for an older population.

Cherwell remains committed to working with partners to improve the integration of housing, health and social care services, including within the planning and delivery of new housing schemes. Cherwell will continue to maximise and improve the services provided by the grants team through Disabled Facilities Grants and the Home Improvement Agency.

Cherwell works closely with Adult Social Care at Oxfordshire County Council to ensure that the needs of those within the housing pathways and the social care pathways are linked and mutually beneficial partnership outcomes are achieved. Cherwell will support the wider needs of those requiring specialist and supported housing through its housing enabling role where there is an identified need and opportunity.

There is a growing recognition that Extra Care provision should be more greatly enabled rather than a reliance on residential care. There are requirements in the draft Local Plan for provisions of affordable Extra Care housing being provided on sites. Extra Care Housing allows greater independence for individuals and also reduces care costs. Cherwell will work closely with Oxfordshire County Council to enable more Extra Care placements within the district but also to enable greater access pathways into this provision, in light of the growing need now and in the future.

The inclusion and integration of different groups within Cherwell is important to a thriving community. Through the wellbeing and resettlement teams, Cherwell actively explores new opportunities for interagency inclusion work and provides grants to voluntary and community groups whilst help to bring people together and improve their overall quality of life. 

Despite the Council not being a significant housing stockholder within the district, the Council does understand the importance of the role of Registered Providers and the positive impact that good quality housing services has on the health and wellbeing of social housing tenants. The Council therefore works closely with Registered Providers to improve and maximise these partnership opportunities. In 2023, the Council also brought in a Tenants’ Charter for its own tenants, with a view to influencing other landlords to follow its positive themes of quality homes, help and support and engagement and being responsive.

Further measures relating to housing standards within Cherwell are within Theme 2.

Poverty, inequality and the cost of living

At the time of this strategy being launched, the Country faces a cost of living crisis due to a rise in energy, food and other costs which in turn drove inflation throughout 2022 and 2023. Whilst inflation fell in 2024, fuel costs remained high in comparison to traditional and historic levels.

As outlined in the context sections, there are factors that make affordability challenging in Cherwell. As a result, a growing number of households in Cherwell have financial and welfare support needs and the likelihood of more people requiring an affordable housing tenure, for instance, is growing. This is a contributory factor in homelessness and rough sleeping rates and a rising waiting list number.

Cherwell also recognises that it has some acute pockets of deprivation within its main population centres, particularly within areas of Banbury.

Cherwell will continue to assist vulnerable households through its role in service provision but also by strengthening local partnerships within its enabling role. This could be by the services offered directly, such as Discretionary Housing Payments (DHP), funded partnerships with local agencies such as Citizens Advice and Faithworks or by tackling specific area based issues, such as through the Brighter Futures partnership project, which focuses on the three most deprived wards within Banbury.

What the Council will do in the future to tackle these issues

• Implement the Action Plan of the Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Strategy, bringing about better prevention of homelessness, and improved accommodation opportunities for those facing homelessness and/or rough sleeping
• Greater understand the needs of the district regarding support needs of applicants and available accommodation, addressing gaps in provision
• Improving pathways into accommodation with support, to ensure that the most vulnerable can sustain their accommodation
• Reviewing pathways out of supported accommodation, to improve timely move on balanced with some continuing support to ensure sustainment of new accommodation
• Ensure commissioned services evolve and develop to respond to the needs and pressures on housing options services
• Strengthen partnerships to ensure that there is appropriate support and provision available to meet increasing demand from those suffering from multiple complex needs and health issues
• Deliver transformed temporary accommodation options, reducing the prevalence of those living in nightly charged hotel accommodation
• Raise awareness of domestic abuse issues, enabling those to access support available
• Ensure our Home Improvement Agency delivers enhanced services and an adaptations service that can best respond to the needs of households to enable them to remain in their homes, where possible and appropriate
• Reviewing our service offers and opportunities to deliver services using new models to engage more positively with vulnerable and hard to reach groups
• Continue to support and explore new partnerships linked to health, financial hardship and housing that could deliver improved outcomes to residents and help them secure and maintain housing.