09 April 2004
More than 100 defunct NHS sites across England are to be sold to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister as part of a regeneration deal estimated to be worth £400m.
In what ministers describe as a 'groundbreaking' scheme, the Department of Health has agreed to transfer 1,650 hectares of surplus land to the ODPM, where it will be used to build thousands of new homes and feed into the £22bn Sustainable Communities Plan.
Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott said the programme would unlock major brownfield sites for more affordable housing. 'Each site will be masterplanned to provide high-quality development with the right balance of homes, jobs and open space,' he said.
'We expect to deliver more than 15,000 new homes right across the country, including at least 5,000 low-cost homes.'
Prescott added that many sites would be suitable for mixed-use development. 'Overall, we expect the sites to provide 200,000 square metres of commercial floorspace, which will create jobs and promote growth,' he said.
Money raised from the sale will be reinvested into frontline NHS services. Health Secretary John Reid praised the 'double benefit' of the scheme. 'This will benefit the NHS in two ways: an injection of cash, and a valuable contribution to the provision of key worker accommodation in the areas where it is needed most,' he said.
'Much of the surplus land is in the south of England where there is a real shortage of affordable housing for key workers such as nurses, police and teachers.'
In total, 101 sites, from Consett in County Durham to Falmouth in Cornwall, are to be sold. Together they make up an area equivalent in size to the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham.
English Partnerships, the government's regeneration agency, is to take a central role. EP's chair Margaret Ford said: 'English Partnerships stands ready to help the ODPM in any way we can in bringing forward future plans for the sites. We look forward to working with regional development agencies, local authorities and social housing providers in undertaking the masterplanning exercise of the sites to realise their potential and demonstrate best practice.'
There was a broad welcome from the social housing sector. A National Housing Federation spokesman said: 'The NHF has long argued that surplus publicly owned land should be channelled into affordable housing.'
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