Harrogate District Council has stepped in to buy five homes in Summerbridge for social housing after a national housing charity pulled out of the development.

The homes, worth around £395,000, at Poppyfields will be offered to people in Upper Nidderdale as social rented properties.

The houses were originally allocated as four affordable rented properties and one shared ownership as part of a wider 13 home development.

Housing sites, such as Poppyfields, have a requirement to allocate 40% of homes to affordable housing.

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But the original housing association for the affordable homes, Home Group, pulled out of projects across the country in March in order to focus on other “strategic sites”.

Now, senior councillors on the authority’s cabinet have voted to step in to purchase the houses and offer them to local residents in order to salvage the housing scheme.

The council said the current pandemic has left “considerable uncertainty” in the housing market and an increase in demand for rented homes in Nidderdale.

Mike Chambers, cabinet member for housing, said it was right for the council to step in.

He said:

“It is very appropriate that we buy these houses.

“It allows us to provide much needed accommodation to people in Nidderdale and also has the effect of us being able to assist a small enterprise who might have otherwise had a difficult time in moving these houses.”