Almost 6,000 new homes have been built in Milton Keynes over the last three years.
Figures show that Milton Keynes is beating its housebuilding targets set by central government for the fourth year running.
The latest Housing Delivery Test (HDT) shows that Milton Keynes is building 128% of the number of homes in its target.
If an areas doesn't meet the national requirement, it risks losing its planning powers to central government.
The results from the HDT show MK has delivered 5,850 new homes in the three years from 2018/19 to 2020/21 – 28% above target.
1,204 of these are affordable.
Milton Keynes Council is preparing to become a full member of the Central Area Growth Board in the Cambridge-MK-Oxford growth corridor, which will allow the council to proactively shape the future growth of MK.
Council Leader, Pete Marland visited the Fairfields housing site being built by Barratt Homes which will have over 2,000 new homes once fully completed. Barratt is one of the largest housebuilders in the country, having built over 600 homes in MK last year.
Leader of MK Council, Cllr Pete Marland said: “These numbers are really encouraging and tell a great story for Milton Keynes at a point when many other authorities are lagging behind on their targets. However, we want to see more homes being built that are genuinely affordable to people’s income, and we’ll keep using our influence to make that happen.
“Meeting our housebuilding numbers from Plan:MK is really important for protecting Milton Keynes from unplanned speculative development that can happen when targets are not met and helps us maintain the unique character of Milton Keynes, as well as helping local hardworking families.”
The Council has set out its own ambitious and housebuilding plan, with proposals to deliver 1,200 council homes by 2030 that will be some of Milton Keynes’ most accessible, environmentally friendly and heat-efficient properties.
This news comes as Milton Keynes Council has announced that it is set to launch a planning academy.
Milton Keynes Council aims to work with leading bodies such as the Royal Town Planning Institute and use the academy to help improve planning services.
The academy proposals will see more training for planners, provide financial incentives to attract and retain the best planners, as well as providing support for existing staff to develop.
You can read more here.
