Push to bring Chorley's 120 empty homes back into use to reduce antisocial behaviour and provide extra housing

The call comes as figures show that there are at least 120 properties in the district classed as long-term vacant, 25 of which have stood abandoned - and often decaying - for more than a decade.

At 13, Euxton has the highest number of dwellings that fall into the overall empty homes category - meaning that they have been unoccupied for at least two years - followed by Clayton-le-Woods with seven and Mawdesley, where there are half a dozen.

A committee established to investigate the issue has suggested ten ways in which the authority could try to tackle the problem. Top of the list was either to employ a dedicated empty homes officer or at least to amend the job description of an existing council worker to give them that responsibility.

A recent meeting of the task group’s members heard that vacant units were less of a problem in Chorley than many other council areas in Lancashire - neighbouring South Ribble had 761 at the end of last year - but that there were some persistently-empty properties which were causing a blight.

A report produced by the committee noted that unoccupied homes are more likely to attract antisocial behaviour, as well as fly-tipping and even arson.

Chorley Council previously employed an enforcement officer whose role was split between dealing with empty properties and issues at licenced premises in the district. However, that post was dissolved two years ago and replaced with one whose sole focus was licensing breaches.

Task group member Kim Snape said that the previous regime had delivered results - and could do so again, at relatively little cost to the council.

“Basically, [it was] just chivvying away at it…[and saying to owners], ‘Do you realise this is what you're leaving people to put up with?’

“And over the course of time…there was a massive difference made, because somebody was just gently prodding people along to do the right thing.

“Without spending a lot of money, just dedicating officer time to send letters…I think a lot of difference can be made, even on a part-time basis,” Cllr Snape said.

However, she also warned that a council target for there not to be any more than 150 empty homes in the borough meant that it had been tempting to deal with easier-to-solve properties, rather than the stubborn examples which had lain vacant for several years.

Cabinet member for planning and development Alistair Morwood agreed that simply ensuring that the specified threshold was not crossed was perhaps not the most effective way of tackling the issue.

“It only comes to [the attention of] planning enforcement when problems start, but if somebody was pushing and trying to find out what was going on beforehand, maybe it wouldn’t get to that stage,” Cllr Morwood said.

However, he stressed that one of the task group’s other recommendations - seeking case-by-case legal advice on whether compulsory purchase powers should be used in order to allow the council to buy problem properties - was “not as straightforward” as it might seem.

His cabinet colleague for homes and housing, Terry Howarth, questioned whether there were enough empty homes “to justify” the council trying to acquire them and get them on the market - and he also asked whether the task group’s intention was to provide additional housing or simply improve the local environment.

Committee member June Molyneaux said that both were worthwhile aims - and added that the difficulty often lay with just trying to establish who owned an empty property.

Task group chair Sarah Ainsworth said: “I can see a benefit to maybe the council acquiring some of these empty properties to put them back into use.

“There have been one or two bungalows that have been long-term empty - and there's [a] housing need for bungalows in Chorley, so I think it would be a benefit.”

The task group acknowledged that there were a range of reasons why a property might become empty, including the death of the owner or them moving into care.

The full list of recommendations will be presented to the council's cabinet for consideration at a later date.