Affordable Housing Tenure and Type

s. Policy HO.4 Affordable Housing Tenure and Type A. Tenure Mix The Councils will seek the following affordable housing tenure split: • Minimum 60% Social Rent • Maximum 40% Shared Ownership Alternative tenures will only be considered in exceptional circumstances and where robust justification is provided, including demonstrating that the proposed tenures are affordable relative to local house prices and earnings. All schemes must give consideration to the principle of forming mixed and balanced communities. B. Type Mix To maximise flexibility in the housing stock, 1 and 2 bed affordable homes should be provided through an appropriate mix of bungalows, flats, apartments, maisonettes and houses, whilst 3 and 4 bed affordable homes should be provided as houses. 5% of Rented Affordable Housing should be provided as ground level, single level homes. C. Design Requirements Through high design standards, new affordable housing units must be fully integrated within developments being physically and visually indistinguishable from the market units and dispersed across the site in clusters appropriate to the size, scale and layout of the development. Policy Justification 5.2.9 Affordable Housing is an umbrella term that covers several different tenures of housing, both for rent and home ownership, which are designed to address the different housing needs of individual households who are unable to access suitable housing on the open market. 5.2.10 The Strategic Housing Market Assessment (SHMA 2026)evaluated the need for different tenures of Affordable Housing and found a requirement for 60% Social Rent, 20% Affordable Rent and 20% Affordable Home Ownership. The Local Planning Authorities are however concerned that Affordable Rent homes are less affordable than Social Rent homes and some households can find themselves trapped on housing benefit or Universal Credit to cover the rent. To address this issue the delivery of Social