A CHARITY to help create new affordable housing could be launched in Selby.

A report due before Selby District Council’s executive today outlined the bid to start a charitable housing trust, which could also see council properties taken over and refurbished before being rented out to new tenants.

The report said new housing trust would “help deliver economic growth within the district”, help meet the Government-determined affordable housing numbers, and maximise financial income to “increase delivery of affordable homes”.

It also recommends the council should establish the charitable company and appoint two district council members as directors of the board, but the trust would remain independent of the authority.

A budget of £30,000 has already been approved from council funds to support the first phase of the project, but the report states that individual projects would be paid for by Section 106 funding, council borrowing, or possible Homes and Communities Agency grants, with the option of private sector funding in some cases.

The report said: “It would be reasonable to assume an on-going cost of up to £40,000 per annum to cover the resource input required to support project development and to sustain the HDV’s governance arrangements. However, we would be looking for costs to be covered from future rental income streams.”

By setting up the trust as a charitable organisation, it would also be exempt from corporation tax and benefit from relief from stamp duty, while also ensuring the new homes would be available for charitable purposes.

Details on how many new homes the new scheme could provide, and an estimated timescale for the new scheme to become operational could not be confirmed.