A NEW multi-million pound government fund will provide communities with the opportunity to build more affordable housing.

The Community Housing Fund will provide cash to help local people make their community housing projects a reality.

Sarah Hall from the REACH community-led housing hub for North and East Yorkshire, explained: “Now is the time for communities wanting to build more permanently affordable housing in their local areas.

“This fund will help tackle the lack of affordable housing that we in North and East Yorkshire and the rest of the country are experiencing.”

Ms Hall said community led housing is not new to the area - Hudswell Community Charity has already developed three new homes.

The charity used £80,000 of charity reserves, a mortgage from Charity Bank and £40,000 from the previous round of Community Housing Fund, through Richmondshire District Council.

Other planned community led housing schemes include the conversion of an existing building by the Askrigg Foundation and the conversion of Bainbridge Chapel.

In Exelby the community is refurbishing one dwelling in conjunction with buying the local pub and at Brafferton and Helperby plans are underway to develop new homes to meet an identified need.