Slough Borough Council’s Planning Committee has accused Windsor of having a ‘deliberate strategy’ of not building affordable housing, forcing the poor to move into Slough’s overburdened housing market - writes Greg Taylor.

Cllr James Swindlehurst said: “It’s a deliberate strategy of theirs. No affordable housing has been built there since 1999. They’re exporting their poor people.” The planning committee was considering its response to the Windsor and Maidenhead Borough Local Plan – the original version of which did not require the building of any affordable housing at all.

The submission version of it now includes a clause that a ‘minimum of 30 per cent affordable housing units’ should be built sites providing over 10 additional dwellings.

However, the committee argued that the clause was so vague it would not lead to many affordable homes being built, since the plan did not define what ‘social housing’ or ‘affordable housing for rent’ should look like. It also fails to address what will happen to people who cannot afford to rent.

Cllr Swindlehurst added: “We should absolutely call them out on it. Its not fair that we’re the only borough meeting our affordable housing requirements.”

The printed response to the Windsor and Maidenhead Borough Local Plan read: “Failure to provide for people in the most acute housing need in Windsor and Maidenhead could have a significant impact upon Slough. There is evidence that Councils are relocating their homeless families to Slough.”

The report stressed that the lack of affordable housing was pulling homeless families away from Windsor and Maidenhead towards Slough, putting even greater strain on the Slough housing market.

Cllr Ted Plenty said: “It seems like a form of social cleansing. We need to object in the strongest possible terms.”

During the meeting it was discussed that Slough has built 37 affordable homes over the 2016/17 period. More than 100 are due to be completed over the next year.

The Royal Borough had not commented at the time of going to press.

“That may sound low, but that’s still 37 more affordable homes than Windsor and Maidenhead,” said Cllr Ted Plenty.