Guernsey's affordable housing target to increase by 25%

The Development and Planning Authority wants both private and affordable housing numbers to rise to cope with a growing population.

Guernsey's population has increased steadily since the pandemic and currently sits at around 64,500.

The States' key priority this term is providing more affordable housing but it has been slow to deliver, with just 24 extra units added last year.

Now, the Planning Authority wants to speed up that process by altering the blueprint known as the Island Development Plan.

It wants to increase the affordable housing target over the next five years to 900 homes.

It will do this by allocating six new sites for development, using existing States owned spaces for house building and setting aside nearly two thirds of the Saltpans site for affordable homes.

The private housing market has the capacity to deliver 2,000 units although the DPA has a target of 970.

The Authority's proposed changes to the IDP also include putting the old Castel Hospital site within the L'Aumone Local Centre, which would help remove barriers to its development.

Nature is also included in the plan, with 50 areas to be set aside as Areas of Biodiversity Importance.

DPA President Deputy Victoria says this plan removes 'unnecessary red tape'.

"We're looking at processes that just have not quite worked within the IDP.

We've had a higher population than we were predicting, we obviously need to have enough houses for everybody that we need to come over for jobs.

So we've added 15% for private market housing and 25% for affordable.

The only way for it to become a true Island Development Plan is to have the peoples' responses of what they think. Everybody says that there are bits of it wrong, but here is the chance to have your say to make sure it is right for the future."

The DPA is holding a drop-in at Beau Sejour on 29 June. From 9am until 3pm islanders can question deputies.