25th October 2024
An exciting collaboration between Thame Community Land Trust (TCLT), Thame Town Council, South Oxfordshire District Council, and housing association Soha Housing, will bring much-needed affordable housing to Thame.
Founded by local Thame residents in 2018, and supported by Thame Town Council and the Community Housing Fund, TCLT aims to build genuinely affordable housing for local people who are unable to access homes through the open market or social housing.
The funding that TCLT secured enabled it to identify and obtain a site that could be brought forward at a value to allow all the homes to be affordable. Soha Housing has worked with TCLT to purchase the land and take the project forward.
Preparatory work continues, and the build contract was tendered over the summer, returning within budget. South Oxfordshire District Council will provide a portion of the necessary grant funding, allowing the scheme to meet sustainability and low carbon standards that are significantly higher than local policy requirements.
Additional funds await confirmation from Homes England, contingent on the Government’s spending priorities in the 30 October budget. Construction will commence once Homes England’s funding is secured.
Soha is dedicated to realising Thame Community Land Trust’s original design vision for the project, which includes 31 new homes – 16 for affordable rent and 15 for shared ownership constructed to net zero carbon standards. Each home will be allocated by SODC to people local to the Thame area or those with a strong connection, reflecting the local residency clauses devised by the Trust.
