Central St Leonards is South East England's area of greatest need. It has long suffered from poor housing conditions, unemployment and benefit dependency with almost half its households having an income under £10,000. Our detailed survey even showed that 26% of its properties are unfit for human habitation and another 22% are in serious disrepair.
That's why we've made it a Housing Renewal Area and created a £30 million package of works to bring all the homes up to a decent standard.
Yet this is about more than bricks and mortar. We've already had great successes with our locally based street wardens, our action on abandoned and untaxed cars and our work on derelict buildings. With many other organisations, we should be able to build on these firm foundations to create a safer, healthier environment for the area's residents.
Councillor John Humphries, portfolio holder responsible for Housing and Neighbourhood Renewal, said:
"We'll now be developing a detailed plan for the area and there'll be huge opportunities for the community to be actively involved in this. Plans are already being developed for a local "shop" for residents to get information about the Central St Leonards Renewal Area. This is due to open shortly."
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This page last updated: 22/04/2004