We issued the following statement on 11 July in response to a media enquiry about our State of the City report and dashboard:
Cllr Mike Davey, Leader of Cambridge City Council, said: “The State of the City rightly identifies house prices as being more unaffordable in Cambridge than in most other cities. This is because the city’s vibrant and resilient economy has consistently drawn more people to the area, so that demand for housing continues to outstrip supply, despite very rapid house building in the city, including by the council, in recent years.
“The report also highlights some nuance in the overall picture – housing is much more expensive in some parts of the city, such as Petersfield, than others, such as Cherry Hinton. And we know that housing is even more unaffordable for those on lower incomes.
“Having said which, as the report also highlights, average disposable household incomes are higher than in other parts of the country, and higher levels of people in Cambridge report good quality of life, with Cambridge ranked as the best place to work.
“The housing affordability issue is not new to us, or to anyone familiar with the city. This is why the council has been providing for more housing in its local plans over the last twenty years, and why the council is working so hard, with its partners, to build more council homes that we can let at more affordable rents.
“Since January 2018, the council has built over 720 homes in the city, which including 381 homes to be retained for council tenants. There are also 359 homes (306 council homes) currently being built and 374 homes in design development (181 of which are council homes). This has been mainly done through the Cambridge Investment Partnership (CIP).
“The State of the City report usefully highlights not only this aspect of Cambridge, but also a very wide set of economic, social and environmental challenges and opportunities. We hope that everyone who is interested in the city will read the report or use the dashboard to help us understand our city in more depth and to help us work together on solutions to those challenges.”
