Dear Members
I hope all is well with you and the teams.
As you will have seen from our regular updates, we’ve been working hard with the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Almshouses and supportive MPs to see almshouses recognised as “affordable housing” under the definition set in the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF).
You may wonder why this is important, but, having dealt with so many issues over the years where local and national government have excluded almshouses or, even charged almshouses a levy towards the affordable housing fund (Section 106) because of the guidance under the current NPPF, it is clear that almshouse charities are not being recognised under the NPPF definition of “affordable housing”. Our members are disadvantaged as a result and are often being affected negatively under planning legislation.
For years, we have been asking for a review and we have, at last, been told that there will be a parliamentary review and consultation. The Almshouse Association has written to The Secretary of State and senior civil servants who have been working with us for years on this matter as well as to others who may have influence yet we have not secured the review in our favour.
I appreciate how busy you all are and I wouldn’t ask if I didn’t think it was so important for our members, but this is possibly a once in a decade or twenty- year opportunity to put right the national guidance and allow almshouses to have the recognition they deserve. Would you consider sending a letter or email to your local MP asking them to support this case?
If you would consider sending a letter or an email, I enclose a rough draft to help save you some time – you are welcome to use this and just add your charity’s details or, having read the letter, draft your own version in support of the proposal. If we are successful it will make a huge difference to the opportunities open to almshouse charities in the future.
• Click here for letter template
• Click here for tips on writing to MPs
MPs must submit their comments by 30th June 2023 so if you do have the time to participate, we would be incredibly grateful and strongly recommend getting your letter off to your MP before the end of this week – 23rd June 2023.
Thank you.
Nick Phillips | CEO The Almshouse Association
21 June 2023