PROPOSALS for new council homes in York are going ahead despite uncertainty over whether Government cash will be available.

A blueprint for the development of 21 houses in the Clifton area of the city has been handed in to planners at City of York Council in the wake of the revelation that the project could be among those to be scrapped because of public spending cuts.

York council secured a £1.25 million grant for the Lilbourne Drive scheme from the Labour Government before the General Election earlier this year.

The authority intended to match-fund the grant in order to build York’s first new council homes in more than 20 years.

Concern for the future of the development comes ahead of the Government’s public spending review in the autumn, as it currently sits on a list of projects which face being ditched.

However, a planning application for the nine two-bedroom and 12 three-bedroom homes has now been handed in to the council, with a decision set to be made in October.

A statement submitted as part of the proposal, said: “The site layout is based on a pedestrian-friendly cul-de-sac, with pedestrians having priority in all areas and vehicles excluded from protected zones around the houses.

“The dwellings all provide good opportunities for natural surveillance and to foster a sense of local ownership of the street. The key objectives are to reduce carbon emissions, minimise negative impacts on the environment, use natural resources in a responsible manner and provide safe, healthy and attractive homes.”

York Central MP Hugh Bayley has already written to Housing Minister Grant Shapps urging him not to withdraw the Government grant for the scheme, which was due to come from its Local Authority Challenge Fund.

The council has said it is in discussions with the Homes and Communities Agency and is confident of securing the necessary funding for the Lilbourne Drive project from its affordable housing development programme.