ONLY three council homes in York were replaced after being sold through the Government's Right to Buy scheme last year, figures show.

Data from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government reveals that 48 council homes were privatised through Right to Buy by the City of York Council last year – down from 66 in 2019.

Councils are expected to replace these homes on a one-for-one basis, but the City of York Council acquired or began construction on just three replacements in 2020.

The Council previously revealed plans to develop 600 new homes across York in council-owned sites, with a focus on green and healthy neighbourhoods.

Under the plans, the Council could build homes at on sites including the former Duncombe Barracks, Burnholme, Ordnance Lane and Lowfield Green

At least 40 per cent of the homes will be affordable, the Council explains in the document.

Read more about that here...

The Press approached the City of York Council for comment on the Right to Buy scheme but did not receive a response by the time of publication.

It comes as housing charity Shelter said the Right to Buy programme has "torn a hole" in the national social housing supply and warned that recent policy changes are a step in the wrong direction.

Right to Buy was introduced in 1980 to help council and housing association tenants buy their home at a discount.

The maximum level of the discount was raised in 2012 and now stands at £84,600 outside London.

Across England, 94,000 homes have been sold through Right to Buy since then, with just 31,000 - 33 per cent - replacement houses acquired or started.

As of April 1, councils can use 40 per cent of the receipts from properties sold to cover the cost of replacements.

However, they can now instead use the cash to fund schemes to help people buy houses – either through shared ownership or the discounted First Homes scheme for first-time buyers.

The Joseph Rowntree Foundation said the changes are "piecemeal" given the scale of the national housing crisis and further reforms are needed if councils are to replace homes sold through Right to Buy.

Rachelle Earwaker, an economist at the charity, said: "The latest data seems to indicate that the uneven impact of the pandemic is likely driving down the demand for purchasing Right to Buy homes.

"However, the fact that we are not replacing the homes that are being sold was an issue prior to the pandemic and will persist long after it unless we act urgently."

The Government also extended the time councils have to spend Right to Buy receipts from three to five years – which the JRF said was a positive move.

The City of York Council collected £4.2 million through the scheme last year, contributing to £38.7 million raised since 2012.

Shelter said the pandemic has exacerbated the housing crisis, and there could not be a worse time to endanger the supply of affordable social homes.

Chief executive Polly Neate added: “Right to Buy has torn a hole into our social housing supply that has not been plugged. The Government has failed to replace the homes sold through Right to Buy with new social housing.

"As we look towards our post-pandemic recovery, the Government must build the new generation of social homes that people and families desperately need.”

A spokesperson for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government said Right to Buy has helped nearly 2 million council tenants become homeowners, and the Government is investing over £12 billion in affordable housing over five years.

She added: “We’ve made it easier for councils to fund new homes to replace the ones they’ve sold as well as giving them greater flexibility over the types of homes they provide to reflect the needs of their communities."