Housing Market Partnership
Strategic Housing Market Areas are geographical areas within which housing demand and supply is relatively self contained. They generally extend across several local authority areas to reflect the key functional linkages between places where people live and work. The West of England Strategic Housing Market Area as defined by the South West Regional Spatial Strategy (RSS) comprises the following 6 councils:
- Bath & North East Somerset Council
- Bristol City Council
- North Somerset Council
- South Gloucestershire Council
- Mendip District Council
- West Wiltshire District Council
The West of England Housing Market Partnership (HMP) ,formed in 2007, brings together housing and planning representatives from the local authorities and other key stakeholders, that contribute to and influence the delivery of housing in the West of England Housing Market Area. A list of Housing Market Partnership representatives is available here.
The HMP will use local knowledge and expertise to guide the development of the West of England Strategic Housing Market Assessment (SHMA) and Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessment (SHLAA); both of which inform other planning and economic documents.
"Local Development Documents and Regional Spatial Strategies policies should be informed by a robust, shared evidence base, in particular, of housing need and demand, through a Strategic Housing Market Assessment (SHMA) and land availability, through a Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessment" (Planning Policy Statement 3, CLG, 2006)
Copies of the minutes of the Housing Market Partnership Board meetings and more information on the SHMA and SHLAA can be found below: