Funding to develop underused sites for housing

More than £50m has been awarded to develop brownfield sites for housing in East Yorkshire and Lincolnshire.

The funding was announced as part of plans to deliver a wave of "new towns" in England, with an additional £234m for 8,000 new homes split between Mayoral Combined Authorities (MCA), including Greater Lincolnshire and Hull and East Yorkshire.

Greater Lincolnshire has been given £34m and said it would support regeneration and speed up the development of underused sites.

Hull and East Yorkshire Combined Authority (HEYCA) is set to receive £21m.

Greater Lincolnshire's deputy mayor, Ingrid Sheard, said: "Once we have the full details from government, we will work with our partners to make sure the funding delivers the biggest benefits for our communities.

"This funding gives us a real chance to bring previously developed land back into use and unlock new opportunities for homes, jobs and growth.

"Brownfield sites can be challenging to develop, but this support means we can move faster and make real progress.

A spokesperson for HEYCA added: "We are awaiting further detail from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. Once this has been received, we will be in a position to confirm next steps."

The Brownfield Housing Fund is a grant fund directly allocated to MCAs to mitigate the viability issues that brownfield projects face.

The government has also named a list of potential sites that could be developed as part of its "new towns" housing scheme.

They include sites in the centre of Leeds and Manchester, Brabazon outside Bristol, and new developments in Greenwich and Enfield in London.

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