Mailbox

Pretty out of touch

David Pretty’s suggestion that developers and local authorities should do less consultation and just get on and build is totally misjudged (Regenerate, January). He seems to think bureaucracy of consultation is the real reason for delays in housebuilding and the cause of the housing crisis.

I would suggest it is the opposite. Housebuilders that still fail to consult local people are doing themselves no service. When people see a project next door to them that developers have failed to ask them about, naturally their first reaction is to complain and shout “stop”. Also, it is nonsense to believe that political involvement should be curtailed. We live in a democracy and it’s not surprising councillors listen to their electorate before the housebuilders.

How much better to spend a little more time talking with local residents before submitting your scheme – about principles, but also about details. Developers that consult people properly will get respect from councillors and this should ease the passage of their application.

Richard Patient, director, Indigo Public Affairs

Wrong to buy

I was interested to read David Pretty’s article last month. The collapse of social housing production has more than a little to do with the introduction of the right to buy. Many unscrupulous buyers made a quick profit on the back of their subsidised purchase. The selling local authority gained insufficient capital and few had the forethought to replace the sold property with another new build.

The other factor is that many of the newly formed registered social landlords, ALMOs and so on appear not to have their eyes on the bigger picture – yes, the government wants more affordable housing but it also has both an efficiency agenda and a sustainability agenda. Many organisations are coming up with the option of demolishing well-built properties and rebuilding with fewer homes on the same sites, rather than substantially refurbishing the old. Given a choice of well built refurbished homes or new build with less floor area, most potential tenants would choose the former

Mark Cant, principal project manager/HBC neighbourhood services, Hartlepool council

Correction

I refer to David Blackman’s article last month (Regenerate, January). There is a reference to Pete Challis, a local councillor. Mr Challis was not a councillor for the Thames Walk area and, in any event, he ceased to be a councillor in May 2006.

Russell Power, head of law and governance, Greenwich council