City council considers major land purchase to build hundreds of new affordable homes

Cardiff Council is set to take a major step to increase the city’s affordable housing supply with plans to acquire a large development site at Central Quay.

The local authority is seeking to purchase land off the Penarth Road, which has the potential to deliver up to 720 new apartments. The proposed development would include a mix of homes, with options for council housing as well as more affordable private rented accommodation.

The acquisition, which covers five plots within the wider Central Quay masterplan, is intended to help the council in delivering new homes at a time when demand for affordable housing in Cardiff remains high.

A report recommending the purchase will be considered by Cabinet at its next meeting on Thursday, 22 January.

If the acquisition is approved, the council will carry out further feasibility work to determine the mix, type and number of homes that can be delivered. Decisions will then be made on how development partners are appointed to bring the scheme forward.

Cabinet Member for Housing and Communities, Cllr Lynda Thorne, said the move demonstrated the council’s continued commitment to tackling the housing emergency. She said limited availability and high costs in Cardiff’s private rented sector were among the key pressures driving the crisis, and that the Central Quay site could provide an opportunity to deliver homes at more affordable rents.

The proposed development would build on the council’s existing housebuilding programme, which has delivered more than 1,700 new council homes across the city. In the current financial year alone, over 200 new homes have been completed, with a further 300 expected to be delivered by the end of the year.

Alongside council-led developments, housing association partners are also contributing to the expansion of affordable housing in Cardiff.

Around 320 new homes are expected to be delivered by housing associations this year, with a total of 1,313 planned over the next five years. Combined with council delivery, the overall five-year projection for new affordable homes across all partners stands at 3,337.

Commercial buildings

Innovative approaches are also being used to boost supply, including the purchase and conversion of former commercial buildings. One such project, the redevelopment of Scott Harbour in Cardiff Bay, is already providing 78 new council apartments.

Cllr Thorne said securing new development opportunities like Central Quay was essential to maintaining progress, adding that housing services continued to face severe pressures.