The service development options available to you will depend upon the type of service to be provided.
The easiest services to develop will be those that require no new development of housing but which are either:
New build housing schemes of specialist design are the most difficult services to develop.
New build housing developments for drug users can be very difficult to deliver in residential areas, due to the local opposition that usually arises. The local community has to be consulted for all new build developments. This is usually achieved via posters at the development site, letters to affected parties and notices in local newspapers.
Although planning cannot be refused solely on the grounds of whom will be accommodated within the housing, local residents can often find other grounds to oppose planning permission – for instance by claiming that the inclusion of a hostel is inappropriate in a residential area. Grounds for challenging planning permission are reduced where ‘domestic’ self-contained dwellings will be provided. A guide to planning requirements for drug treatment services , including residential rehabs (much of which also applies to supported housing for drug users), can be found at http://www.drugs.gov.uk.
Housing associations can be reluctant to develop such properties because of the additional costs that can be incurred due to planning delays, and the risk of abortive development costs.
Publicly funded new build developments are normally expected to have a life of 60 years or more. It is therefore very important to ensure that there is likely to be a need for the type of accommodation proposed in the longer term. This can be difficult to ensure when developing services for drug users given the current shortage of reliable needs data and the fluctuations that may occur in local problematic drug use and policies to respond to this over the years.
In order to avoid the risk of under-use, the design of the building should be as flexible as possible and take account of the scope for alternative use should the needs of drug users or local priorities change in the future. One way to tackle this is to ask the architects to produce a design that not only meet the needs of the intended client group, but which can be easily converted for alternative use in the future.
The ‘safest’ development option will be ‘general needs’ self contained housing, or a building that can easily be converted to that usage in future years with minimal additional investment.
The use of existing properties (either as existing satisfactory properties or where some rehabilitation or improvement works are required) can be less problematic. Planning permission may not need to be applied for in these circumstances, as long as there is no change of use involved for the property. This would be the case if the property is an existing hostel or supported housing scheme, or when general needs self-contained flats will be used but let to current or former drug users.
The conversion of existing accommodation from domestic use to a hostel or house in multiple occupation (HMO) will constitute a change of use that requires planning permission. In these cases the same sorts of barriers to development will apply as for new build schemes. The development of self-contained ‘domestic’ accommodation options, or remodelling of existing supported/hostel accommodation are often the most pragmatic options for new drug projects. Nevertheless, even when planning permission is not required, local opposition can still sometimes prolong the planning and development process and associated costs.
Similar considerations about risk of future under-use will apply as for new build developments where significant investment in existing buildings is proposed. However where existing satisfactory properties will be used or minimal works are proposed, the risks of wasted investment are minimised.
Where the service to be developed is support only, with no need to develop additional housing, there is no need to seek planning consent. These types of services are highly flexible and can be introduced on a pilot basis where required and de-commissioned or remodelled easily.
To find out more about the funding options needed to achieve these development options, click on the link in the box on the right hand side.