Key milestone for plans to transform eyesore site and deliver dozens of new homes

Leeds City Council has for some time been working to secure ownership of all land and property at Kingsdale Court, a complex of 88 flats in the Boggart Hill neighbourhood of Seacroft which have had long-standing issues linked to crime, anti-social behaviour and ineffective management.

As of September last year, 87 of the privately-owned flats – many of which were in a very poor condition and already vacant – had been successfully acquired by the council, along with the freehold for the site and associated management rights.

And today it can be confirmed that the acquisition of the 88^th and final flat has been concluded, bringing the site as a whole into council ownership without any need for the use of compulsory purchase powers.

The deal means that the council can now look to press ahead with the demolition of the eight medium-rise blocks that make up Kingsdale Court.

It will also bring forward development proposals to deliver good quality, energy efficient and affordable new-build council housing on the cleared site.

Detailed design work on the scheme has yet to be completed but at this stage it is hoped that more than 50 homes will be built.

The comprehensive regeneration of the site would support the council and its partners in their efforts to tackle deprivation and improve living standards across the wider Boggart Hill area.

Built around the turn of the 1970s, Kingsdale Court had been in a state of serious decline for many years when the council began its acquisition process in 2020. This involved lengthy negotiations with around 35 individual property owners as well as the freeholder.

Fragmented and failing arrangements for the management and upkeep of the buildings had previously contributed to a dramatic deterioration in housing conditions at a time when problems such as fly tipping, criminal damage and drug use were also causing concern for residents in both Kingsdale Court and the surrounding neighbourhood.

The council has secured vacant possession for the entire site, with former sitting tenants having been offered rehousing assistance tailored to their specific needs.

Hoardings are now due to go up around the site following the completion of the final purchase, keeping it safe and secure while the demolition and home-building plans are progressed.

It is anticipated that the redevelopment work will be carried out as part of Leeds’s Council Housing Growth Programme (CHGP).

Councillor Jess Lennox, Leeds City Council’s executive member for housing, said:

“As a council, we are determined to do everything we can to tackle inequality and boost living standards in communities across Leeds.

“The benefits of our proactive and forward-thinking approach to this work are perfectly illustrated by the comprehensive regeneration plans for Kingsdale Court, where poor-quality private sector housing – coupled with crime and anti-social behaviour – has been a problem for many years.

“My thanks go to everyone at the council who has been involved in the complex process of bringing together the many and varied ownership interests at the flats.

“The conclusion of the final purchase means we can, subject to planning approval, now look to open a bright new chapter for this part of east Leeds.

“The proposed homes will help to ease local affordable housing pressures, while the transformation of the site as a whole will, we believe, have a really positive impact on the wider Boggart Hill and Seacroft areas.”

Around 350 new homes have been built via the council’s CHGP since 2018, with more than 420 homes also being acquired as part of the programme.

Locations where new housing has recently been delivered by the CHGP include Barncroft Close in Seacroft and Scott Hall Drive in Chapel Allerton as well as a site in Middleton formerly occupied by Throstle Recreation Ground and Middleton Skills Centre.

Places where CHGP schemes are currently under construction include Brooklands Avenue in Seacroft, the Ambertons area of Gipton and the former Middlecross Day Centre site in Armley.

ENDS