Purpose

To proceed with the acquisition of land as
detailed in Section 5.3 of the Report to Cabinet CH/201 on 27th
September 2023, in order to secure the land and prepare the site
for the purposes of delivering the consented affordable housing
scheme for Crawley Homes ownership.

The budget to support this land acquisition was approved by Full
Council FIN/633 on 18th October 2023 for the HRA Acquisitions
Budget to meet the costs of acquiring the land and clearing the
site for future development.

Contracts are due to be exchanged on terms that are within budget,
where the freehold ownership will transfer to Crawley Homes on
completion of contracts.

Content

On 27th September
2023, Cabinet considered report CH/201 with regards to this
property and agreed to proceed with the land acquisition as
referenced in Section 5.3 of report CH/201, subject to satisfactory
due diligence and procurement compliance and budget
availability.

The Cabinet agreed to delegate the negotiation, approval (including
a procurement process if necessary) and completion of all relevant
legal documentation to secure additional affordable housing for the
acquisitions identified in Sections 5.2 and 5.3 of report CH/201 to
the Head of Crawley Homes/Head of Strategic Housing (as
appropriate), Head of Corporate Finance and Head of Governance,
People & Performance, in consultation with the Leader of the
Council and the Cabinet Member for Housing.

Therefore on 13 December 2023, the Head of Crawley Homes, Head of
Corporate Finance and the Head of Governance, People and
Performance following consultation with the Leader of the Council
and the Cabinet Member for Housing undertook the actions necessary
to undertake the acquisition as approved by Cabinet in report
CH/201.

Alternative options considered

Opportunities for affordable housing
development are always being explored, and this site has Planning
Permission (subject to the S106 Agreement) that will transfer with
the land, presenting a significant opportunity that could otherwise
have gone to the open market.