Agenda item

8.1  The Mayor introduced the report and thanked Council staff and his fellow Cabinet Members for their work on the scheme.

8.2  Cllr Kennedy highlighted that in the first six months of Britannia’s opening customer attendance levels were up to 160%.

8.3  Cllr Williams also thanked Council Staff and her fellow Cabinet Members for their work on the scheme.

RESOLVED:

Cabinet:

  I.  Approved the re-phasing of the Britannia Phase 2 Masterplan to deliver affordable housing on the Phase 2b site, and to reserve the right to deliver private for sale housing on the Phase 2a site as a final phase, subject to any necessary consents which are required to enable this.

  II.  Approved a Council contribution of up to £64.961m to deliver the re-phased Britannia Masterplan.

  III.  Agreed to initiate a single stage Design & Build process for Phase 2b using the Competitive Procedure with Negotiation (CPN) provided for within the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 for the construction of Britannia Phase 2b and note that a recommendation report will be brought back to Cabinet prior to award of contract.

  IV.  Noted that an International Sales & Marketing strategy for the private for sale homes is required to realise the forecast sales values assumed within the business case.

  V.  Noted that the business case for the procurement of a Sales Agent and a Marketing & Branding Agent for the private for sale homes will be presented to Hackney Procurement Board, with the award recommendation presented to Cabinet Procurement and Insourcing Committee (CPIC).

  VI.  Noted the sales risk in relation to the 314 private for sale homes in Phase 2b, and potential for a further 93 homes in Phase 2a.

 VII.  Agreed to the disposal of the leasehold interests (shared ownership) as part of the Britannia project, in accordance with the Regeneration Sales and Marketing Framework agreed by Cabinet on 18 July 2016, subject to complying with section 123 of the Local Government Act 1972.

VIII.  Agreed to the disposal of the leasehold interests of the private units subject to complying with section 123 of the Local Government Act 1972.

  IX.  Authorised the Group Director of Finance & Corporate Resources in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Finance to agree a framework for and the commercial terms relating to the disposal of the private units.

  X.  Agreed to extend the Council's Regeneration Sales & Marketing Strategy to the disposal of the shared ownership homes delivered via the Britannia project including the use of Hackney Sales.

  XI.  Authorised the Director of Legal and Governance to agree, settle and sign all necessary legal documentation to effect the disposals envisaged by this report.

REASONS FOR DECISION

Britannia Masterplan Business Case Context

The business case for the Britannia Masterplan was signed off by Cabinet in April 2017. This was based on a self-delivery model, where the upfront delivery of social infrastructure and affordable housing was cross subsidised by the subsequent delivery of 400 private for sale homes directly delivered by the Council as part of Phase 2.  This ensured that the maximum amount of public investment was routed into the social infrastructure, public realm enhancements and affordable housing, whilst recognising that central government funding was not sufficient to enable the delivery of this infrastructure without additional funding sources.

The decision to deliver the affordable housing on the Phase 2a site was driven by this being the first residential site to be available for vacant possession, and the earliest possible date for the delivery of the affordable housing. The Unilateral Undertaking set out a commitment to deliver this affordable housing in block H1 before more than 12 private for sale units were occupied - equating to the number of private for sale units delivered as part of the adjoining private for sale block (H2) of Phase 2a. This reflected yet again the Council’s commitment to funding social infrastructure and housing ahead of the recovery of private for sale income.

As approved by Cabinet in April 2017, and updated on a number of occasions, whilst the private for sale housing cross subsidises the Masterplan, the Council is still required, and has committed to, funding £41.8m to enable the delivery of the scheme. Further detail on the financial context and forecasts for the Masterplan are set out in the financial implications section of this report.

Britannia Phase 1 Delivery Update

Phase 1 of the Masterplan, which consisted of the new BLC, secondary school, and enhanced public realm, has now been handed over and has already made a significant impact on the opportunities and facilities which are available to the local community. 

The BLC opened to the public on 30 June 2021.  Following its opening, BLC was operating in COVID Secure Operations.  Following the move into Step 4 of the Government’s Roadmap, most of these restrictions were removed.  Despite this context, performance against pre-pandemic 2019 figures is extremely encouraging at this point, with an overall increase in usage of 241,373 visits (a 161% increase).  Membership levels are also showing positive results.  The highest ever membership base at the old BLC was 2,400 in 2018 - we have already reached 5,000+ in January 2022.  Pay and Play Members have also increased significantly from 6,094 in October 2019 to 9,364 in December 2021.

The CoLASP opened in its new building on Hyde Road in June 2021, and features a dedicated sixth form centre, state-of-the-art science laboratories, music and theatre facilities, and a sports pitch on its roof.  The new facility has been delivered through more than £40 million investment, half of which is direct Council funding, with the Council also providing a high-specification temporary facility while the new school was being completed.  The school, which used more than 60 apprenticeships and work placements during its construction, will provide places for over 1,100 pupils, with a community use agreement in place so that the new facilities can be used by the wider community.

Britannia Phase 2a Delivery Update

On 21 July 2021, our Section 77 application to use school land at the corner of Bridport Place and Penn Street to build new homes and a new Early Years Centre for SPPS was refused by the Secretary of State at the Department for Education. The proposals in this application were part of a wider £7.1 million investment in improved facilities for SPPS as well as 81 affordable homes for social rent and shared ownership for local families. These plans were the result of extensive discussions between the Council and the school, to agree on the investment in the school in compensation for the loss of land.

While the Council maintains that these plans would have major benefits for SPPS, we have had to look at how we can deliver on our commitment for new Council homes as part of the Britannia project and continue to cross subsidise the considerable public investment which has already been made by the Council in the Phase 1 Masterplan. This Cabinet paper updates on our proposals to achieve this, and to bring greater clarity on the future of the Phase 2 Masterplan programme.