Local landlord Coastline Housing has been awarded £19.9million by the Homes and Communities Agency to develop 499 new affordable homes in Cornwall by 2021.

The homes will be developed at sites across the county and will include more than 200 shared ownership homes for part-buy, part-rent, as well as properties for affordable rent.

Allister Young, CEO of Coastline Housing, said: “This is amazing news for Cornwall. The housing crisis is felt keenly in our county and affordability of new homes is a major problem for many. This funding will enable us to build just short of 500 new homes of varying sizes across Cornwall to meet housing need, and will be a major boost to the local job market and economy.”

The funding awarded will also cover a 50-bed extra care scheme that enables older people, or those with a disability, to live independently at home for longer. This sort of scheme has care and support assistants on-site 24 hours a day and is designed to allow residents to live independently in self-contained homes, while having the reassurance of full-time on-site care and support if needed.

Additionally, 160 of the new homes planned will be part of the Government’s ‘rent to buy’ scheme, a new product that will give people the chance to rent at a discount and save a deposit to buy their home.

Mr Young added: “This funding is being carefully invested to take into account the wide range of housing needs in Cornwall – servicing not just those who wish to rent at an affordable rate, but also those people who wish to enter into low cost home ownership.”

The first homes from this round of funding will start on site later this year, and the last will be completed by the end of 2021.

In total, taking into account other funding and its own income streams, Coastline has committed to building 1,000 new affordable homes in Cornwall over the next four years. These will not only house 1,000 families, but will lead to the creation of over 900 jobs and add over £40 million to the Cornish economy.