Northumberland's booming tourism industry is making it increasingly difficult for people to live in the area they grew up in.
That's the claim from Northumberland Labour after research from the Campaign for Rural England showed a steep rise in the number of short-term listings advertised in Northumberland over five years. The countryside charity say the surge in the number of homes marketed for Airbnb-style short-term lets is "crippling" the residential markets, with the problem most acute in staycation hotspots.
The issue has seen thousands of families added to social housing waiting lists across the country. The data from CPRE showed the number of short-term listings advertised in Northumberland between September 2016 and September 2021 rose from 78 to 1,829 - an increase of 2,245%.
Read more: The beautiful coastal village in Northumberland being 'strangled' by holiday lets
Between 2016 and 2019, the number of privately rented properties coming forward on the market fell three per cent from 28,156 to 27,405. And while there was a five per cent increase in the number of people on the social housing waiting list between 2016 and 2020 (8,367 up to 8,967) the number of social houses built fell from 22 in 2016 to just five in 2020.
CPRE say that, nationally, there were 148,000 homes available as Airbnb-style lets that could otherwise house local families as of September 2021, compared to 176,000 rural families on waiting lists for social housing. Northumberland Labour leader Scott Dickinson believed urgent action was needed.
He said: "We're an area which thrives and, in many areas, depends on tourism but the pendulum has swung too far. To have tourism you need local people who provide the services tourists are looking for and they need to be able to afford to live locally.
“Now we're seeing second homes and holiday lets rise as the number of available domestic homes fall. It's a race to the top for investors and a race to the bottom for local people.
“It also means the council's income is reduced as people claim small business relief for their holiday lets and these owners do not have to contribute to town or parish councils, so the money available for those services is reduced.
“Places like Amble, Bamburgh and Seahouses have rows of terraced houses where only two or three have full time occupants, while locals are struggling and having to move away. This situation needs urgent attention before it gets completely out of control. We're a welcoming county with stunning scenery but I don't think letting the situation get so out of balance is doing anyone any favours.”
Residents in Beadnell - one of the county's most popular holiday destinations - have recently said the village is being "strangled" by holiday lets.
Northumberland County Council's cabinet member for housing was contacted for a comment. The council itself said a significant sum of money was earmarked to create affordable housing in the coming years.
A spokesman for the council said: "The council has £48.2m allocated in its Housing Investment Programme which will be used to provide affordable housing over the next five years. Across the county over the last five years, around 1,300 affordable homes have been secured in the county through the planning process.
"Of these, around 800 were affordable homes for rent, delivered by the council and partner housing association. Around 180 were for shared ownership, and around 320 were available for purchase at a discount. In addition, there are about 120 affordable homes planned that the council would manage including sites in rural locations.
"We are also working on a number of schemes with housing associations which will deliver around 530 affordable homes for rent, shared ownership and rent to buy.
"The county council is well aware of residents' concerns about the numbers of properties being used as holiday lets in parts of Northumberland and has developed policies to empower communities. Long standing national legislation means planning permission is not required to change an existing house into a holiday-let or a second home. "
The council's new local plan, which will inform planning decisions across the county, is due to be formally adopted next week after a long consultation process. It is due to be approved by cabinet on Tuesday before passing to full council on Wednesday during an extraordinary meeting.
The council spokesman continued: "As a county council we have powers in relation to newly built houses and if there is the evidence to justify it, we will restrict the occupation of them, so they are only used as permanent homes. The new county-wide Local Plan enables this type of restriction to be put in place, in areas where there is clear evidence about the amount of second homes and holiday lets in an area.
"We can then look to see if this is causing problems to the local community. Also new Neighbourhood Plans already restrict the occupation of new dwellings, so they can only be occupied as a ‘principal residence’.
"The County Council is doing rolling research on the issue of holiday and second homes and the new Local Plan proposes to require all new dwellings to be occupied only as a 'principal residence' in any parish where, according to the latest Census, at least 20% of the housing stock is not being used as someone's main home.
"The results of the 2021 Census are expected shortly and we will be making a policy statement as soon as we have been able to analyse the new data."
