The council likes to blame the lack of social housing on its residents: “A plan to build as many as 33 homes at New Hinksey Playground on Bertie Place, known locally as Bertie Park, has recently met with resistance from local families”. It frequently cites the 3000 families on the waiting list for housing, yet the council is only planning to build 1,900 houses over the next 10 years. (First of 1,100 new council houses to tackle Oxford housing crisis built, Oxford Mail, 20th March 2021)
Images like this in the Oxford Mail article are misleading because they give the impression that there is enough space to build 30 houses like this on Bertie Park.
The council wants to save money by building homes on council-owned land. This means that as more homes are built, there are fewer amenities for more people. It is more willing to invest in commercial property than housing. Last year they borrowed £67 million for investment in commercial properties. When the National Audit Office branded such investment risky, only one councillor suggested that this money could be better invested in projects like housing. (Oxford City Council warned about investing in commercial properties, Oxford Mail, Feb 2020). Social housing is funded by levies paid by large new housing developments, but the majority of housing built in Oxford is still not affordable for its residents. More and more homes end up in the private rented sector; more people end up on the housing list. There have been 3,000 people on the housing list for at least 20 years. There are 430 acres of land earmarked for employment in the city. The council is more willing to build on recreational land than reclassify employment land for housing. Before the pandemic, Oxford had full employment. Creating more jobs risks creating more housing demand, putting even more pressure on an over-heated housing market.
In its editorial on 11th March, the Oxford Mail said that at some point, we must draw a line and say if we want this to be a great place for people to live, then we also have to protect the things that make it great: the things people love like Bertie Rec. (We stand with all the children fighting to save Bertie, Oxford Mail, 11th March 2021). Instead of the council making its decisions behind closed doors, we urgently need an open discussion of the issues.
Save Bertie Park Oxford 