The Queen has approved the nomination of the Rt Revd Stephen Cottrell as the next Archbishop of York, Downing Street has announced.
Bishop Stephen, currently Bishop of Chelmsford, will succeed Dr John Sentamu who retires in June of next year.
A renowned preacher, author and communicator, he will be the 98th occupant of the see of York – in a line of succession dating back to St Paulinus in 627AD
More details Bishop Stephen are available via this link
The Councils decision, about a year ago, to stop the estate worker maintenance system, has resulted in a noticeable decline in standards.
The old system – where an identified individual took responsibility for the appearance of communal areas in Council estates – worked reasonably well.
In an attempt to save money, the system was replaced using a couple of teams of mobile workers. They have struggled to maintain standards. The amount of litter on the streets has noticeably increased in many estates.
The Council didn’t need to make economies on the provision of this essential service.
The surplus on the Council housing account last year was £4 million and it has a current positive balance of over £24 million on the account.
There are currently 1444 people registered on the housing waiting list in York.
3 of these have been given an emergency classification with a further 204 in the top urgency category (Gold).
The York Council is leaving the North Yorkshire pooled “home choice” system next November (2020). It will then implement its own housing allocations policies.
There are currently 7512 Council homes in York. Around 600 a year of these become available for reletting. Since 2014, 522 additional homes have been added to the pool although this has been offset by 324 “right to buy” sales.
The Council hopes to build an additional 600 new homes across York over the next few years.
One major issue facing York is the demand for elderly persons accommodation. York has an estimated shortage of independent living and extra care properties which is forecast to be over 1100 independent living properties and almost 500 extra care properties by 2039.
68% of York’s’ housing is owner occupied. Average house prices have risen by 25% over the last 4 years to £235,000. That is nearly 9 times the average wage. In the same period rents on private 2 bed properties have risen by 11.5% to £725 a month.
For those living on benefits, there is a major gulf between income and monthly private sector rents.
Unfortunately, the Council has no influence on the terms of “Right to Buy” sales, so must try to bridge the gap with new build.
