The Hastings borough has one of the lowest house-building targets in England. Poor access to housing is the number one driver of increasing poverty and inequality within the town, meaning that if limited house building persists, poverty in the town will likely worsen. Further, it will also mean that the council will continue to spend a large proportion of its resources on housing support, limiting investment in other service areas.

 

The purpose of this article is to ask whether the Local Plan, which sets housing targets up to 2041, can go further and deliver the homes needed to meet housing demands. It argues that the Local Plan has overlooked valuable sites and empty units that could deliver enough housing to far better meet the town's housing needs.