AN action group to help build much-needed affordable housing for all those squeezed out of the property market by rocketing prices is appealing for more community support.

Haslemere Community Land Trust (CLT) launched an online housing needs survey to find out how many people need cheaper homes built at the Charter Fair, on May 7.

Members are now busy circulating 2,000 flyers to publicise it throughout the town.

The deadline for responses is Thursday, June 7, and the number of responses received are vital, because they will inform the group’s house building strategy going forward.

The trust, which has been several years in the making, first went public at last year’s Christmas market , when it set out its stall to explain how it will work to ease the current acute shortage of low-cost homes.

There are around 150 people on Waverley’s social housing needs register for Haslemere, but many more need help, including key workers, who can’t afford the steep market prices.

The group will work to identify suitable sites to build more housing for rent or shared ownership, with the backing of the national CLT network and government funds.

It is already looking at a number of sites, but it needs as many people as possible to become members to give Haslemere CLT more leverage and boost its funding.

Too many people are now being priced out of living in the town, which has an average house price of £660,000, and where rents for one-bed flats start at around £700 a month.

Many of those wanting to buy or rent to stay close to their families or their jobs can no longer afford to live in the area.

The difficulties faced by a growing number of people is exacerbated by the fact that the average salary of someone working in Waverley is £28,600.

Haslemere CLT chairman Paul Bagshaw said: “More people are finding they can’t stay in the area.

“We are trying to ease the problem by giving them more choice.

“Families that have been in Haslemere for decades are now breaking up.

“We want to preserve something of the character of Haslemere. It’s in danger of becoming a middle class ghetto.

“To help us help the community, we need more people to join us so we can work together for the benefit of the community.

“Some people in the town might regard a CLT as a socialist enterprise but it is non-political.

“CLTS were launched to help community cohesion and as well as providing affordable housing, we can help with other beneficial initiatives.

“A CLT has to be controlled by the community and via people becoming members.

“We are keen to recruit members with different skills from the town, so we can use their talents for the benefit of the community. Self-build housing is one of the ways would-be home owners can reduce their costs.

“Quite a few landowners have approached us who would like our help to provide affordable homes and are prepared to sell at below the market rate to us to make that happen,” Mr Bagshaw added.

“Using the feedback to our housing survey, we will have vital information about who is in need of those houses. We also build homes that are affordable in perpetuity for anyone owning or renting them.”

The idea of a CLT for the town was first proposed in 2013 at a meeting of Haslemere Vision – the group set up in conjunction with the town council to prepare a Local Neighbourhood Plan to be used by Waverley Borough Council to help guide major planning decisions.

The CLT proposal was included in a Haslemere Vision consultation exercise in 2015, and it received more than 70 per cent backing from those responding.

An application was made to the national CLT network for funding to hold a public meeting in June 2016.

Following presentations, the meeting concluded it was a proposal worth pursuing and several volunteers set up a steering group.

Their brief was two fold – firstly, building permanently affordable housing for rent and covenanted purchase for members of the local community, and those in key jobs – and, secondly, encouraging affordable employment and business units to promote local jobs.

Haslemere CLT received start-up grant funding in early 2017.

It was formed as a community benefit society in May and was launched in December last year.

Find out about planning applications that affect you by visiting the Public Notice Portal.

•To respond to the survey go to: www.haslemere clt.org.uk