MORE than 500 affordable homes were built in North Yorkshire in the past year.

North Yorkshire Strategic Housing Partnership, which includes Ryedale, said in its annual report that 536 homes were provided in the county.

Councillor Richard Foster, chairman of the Local Government North Yorkshire and York Housing Board, which leads the partnership, said: “It aims to give local people access to good quality housing.”

The partnership also reported a 15 per cent increase in help to prevent homelessness and a drop in the need to provide temporary accommodation.

“Last year, despite continued housing market uncertainty, we delivered 536 additional affordable homes across North Yorkshire. This adds to our track record of delivering against our strategy priorities through close partnership working,” he said.

“The landscape for the development of new affordable housing is changing, with grant rates reducing and greater uncertainty in the future.

“We have begun to deal with the impacts of welfare reform on our communities, housing providers and housing stock, to continue to work to minimise this whenever possible.”