Renew visits Scarborough: Housing at the Heart of Coastal Regeneration
Joined by our Chair, Lord Best, #Renew visited Scarborough, a regeneration priority for the North Yorkshire Council, designated the country’s first coastal Mayoral Development Zone by the York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority, and part of the Government’s Pride in Place programme.
Nick Atkin, Chief Executive, Yorkshire Housing and Chair, York and North Yorkshire Housing Partnership, talked about the work of the Yorkshire and North Yorkshire Housing Partnership, and the launch of their Affordable Homes Standard in 2025, a pioneering approach setting clear expectations for the quality and design of homes delivered through planning agreements with developers. Developed with housing providers, local authorities, and the Combined Authority, it covers energy efficiency, space, accessibility and long-term performance, helping ensure homes are built to a consistent standard and avoid future retrofit issues. The standard has been extended to cover the quality standard for all social and affordable rented homes across the region.
Nick made the point that coastal and rural housing is the Cinderella of regeneration, behind the beauty masks a whole set of deep-rooted issues as well as opportunities… and when the vision and the funding come together you can really make a difference.
Led by Helen Jackson and Hannah Heinemann, we saw various sites including Scarborough Train Station gateway, the Stephen Joseph Theatre, and former Brunswick Shopping Centre. Through investment in the public realm and funding from the Pride in Place programme, a ‘Station to the Shore’ corridor will be created mixing leisure and hospitality that will encourage more people to live, work, and spend time in the town centre.
We then moved onto Eastborough, highlighting Scarborough Old Town. The group discussed a variety of issues, from the impact of holiday lets to anti-social behaviour and the PRS. At Beyond Housing’s East Mount Flats, Richard Cooper, Head of Asset Management, Beyond Housing talked about the viability challenges around the cost of remedial works needed for buildings that are in high demand.
Travelling to near-by Eastfield, the group visited the Construction Skills Training Village, housed on an old farm site, which has made a huge impact providing education and training across sustainable methods of construction. The site has changed ownership and will be opening again in September, offering the only construction skills provision in the area.
Attendees also saw Sandcastles, a Later Living development which formed part of the wider Eastfield regeneration investment plan, led by Teresa Snaith. The development consists of a mix of 2 and 3 bedroom bungalows, cottage apartments and a few two storey houses, all designed to promote a safe and secure environment and to create a sense of community for likeminded people wishing to live and age well in their retirement years.
Thank you to the York and North Yorkshire Housing Partnership, and the North Yorkshire Council for an interesting day that was incredibly valuable to the Renew Inquiry.
