Brierley Homes is a subsidiary organisation of North Yorkshire Council that was setup with the intention of building houses in North Yorkshire.
They currently have a £25million loan arrangement with North Yorkshire Council, that was due to be paid back in March 2025.
- North Yorkshire County Council’s housing development company, Brierley Homes, sits within the Brierley Group, the trading arm of the Council.
- The group was established in 2017 to bring together council-owned companies. The group offers services within North Yorkshire and beyond.
- Other companies within the group are: Align Property Partners, First North Law, NYnet, Yorwaste, Veritau, NY Highways, North Yorkshire Education Services and NY Tech.
- Brierley Homes was established in 2017 and is owned by the County Council, with all profits going back to North Yorkshire County Council.
- North Yorkshire Council handle media enquiries in relation to both Brierley Homes, and the council themselves.
- North Yorkshire Council is listed as the majority shareholder of the business BRIERLEY HOMES LIMITED people – Find and update company information – GOV.UK
Brierley Homes is a subsidiary of North Yorkshire Council and although it is a private company, it has been using the Council, its parent company, for prop-up loans.
- It has previously borrowed £25m which should have been paid back in March 2025
- Instead of paying that load back, it is asking for an extra £1.4m loan plus an £84k subsidy
- The loan extension is being framed as a need to prop-up the business in the short-term, before money from sales is received – the report to council is vague and says that the delays to sales income was “due to a variety of reasons”
- It has also been indicated in the council report that Brierley Homes have implemented stronger governance, but it doesn’t say what that is.
The Green Group at the Council are questioning why the Council is still propping up Brierley Homes when it is not only failing to make a profit, but also failing to meet residents’ needs.
The proposal to increase the loan to Brierley Homes has been proposed by a North Yorkshire Council officer, rather than from Brierley Homes themselves.
The Greens believe that whilst Brierley Homes are framing this as an investment in increased affordable housing, the Council’s report indicates it’s just cash flow for misjudged sales income, slow delivery, and a lack of contingency planning. They believe with no Business Plan to scrutinise, and a poor track record, there is limited evidence that this will be the last request to be bailed out. They also question whether this kind of investment is misplaced when the priority should be Council Housing.
Cllr Kevin Foster:
We have a housing crisis and what we need most is council houses. How can we justify this kind of money when Brierley Homes does not contribute to the Council’s target of 500 council houses? Affordable housing still isn’t affordable to many – I have families coming to me every week saying they can’t find suitable housing they can afford.
Cllr Arnold Warneken:
I’m deeply concerned that officers have been making these huge loans and subsidies to a private company behind closed doors. If they want public funding, there must be public scrutiny. If they were investing in council housing, that would be a different matter, because it’s an investment in Yorkshire people and their wellbeing.
Speaking for Reform UK, Cllr Mike Jordan said:
To get some context Brierley homes appears to have hardly ever made any money for North Yorkshire despite, on several occasions having ownership effectively of the land!!
It needs the £1.4m to keep it ‘liquid’ but I would argue that a council is not a house builder and does not have the expertise.
Anyone else would have simply gone bust.
We also have the Alpamara Waterpark farce in Scarborough which we are supposed to be hearing about soon, which Scarborough Council invested £9m in and I can confirm has been written off (as per Audit meeting earlier in the year).
We also have Scarborough Football pitch £4m and Kex Gill road issue which has some funding from Government but has over run costs and we don’t know the final figure but North Yorkshire will be picking up the tab.
It doesn’t end there!! Scarborough Harbour could come to bite the council along with Whitby Harbour which has bitten because the judge has finally made a decision and it’s not in the councils favour!!
The document written by North Yorkshire Council to secure funding for a subsidiary organisation.
North Yorkshire Council responded to a number of questions, and that is appreciated.
If Brierley is a subsidiary, why is their comms being managed by NYC ?
North Yorkshire Council provide communications services to Brierley Homes Ltd as with other council-owned companies.
2. Why has the request for money come from a NYC officer, rather than Brierley themselves ? (I am referring to the council produced document)
Reports to the executive and other bodies within the council are produced by officers from the council and not from third parties. The request originates from the Brierley Home Board.
3. The document going to council gives little indication around managing risk, as it doesn’t indicate firm plans around future repayments. What is NYC view on that ?
Brierley Homes has a longer term cashflow forecasts, which includes for the repayment of the loan.
4. Does Brierley Homes operate in a preferential market with council, with access to loans and influence to planning approvals that other developers don’t have ?
The £25m loan provided to Brierley Homes is on a commercial rate. The additional £1.4million loan to deliver affordable homes above policy is at base rate in recognition of the policy priority of the council to deliver affordable housing that is much-needed in North Yorkshire.
5. If Brierley homes was setup to build houses, but can’t do that, without making a loss, should it be wound up (working in the best interests of the tax payer)?
Brierley Homes was set up in 2017 by the then North Yorkshire County Council to deliver homes for market sale with the profits to be reinvested into frontline services.
After initially delivering homes only for market sale, Brierley Homes has continued to gain momentum in securing a positive pipeline of more than 500 homes.
The firm has so far completed five projects including 75 properties for sale on the market and 12 affordable homes. The company has a further six sites under construction, with more affordable homes available over the next few years. Brierley Homes has currently developed sites which will provide 127 affordable homes above the number required by planning policy.
The need for more affordable housing is one of the most pressing issues we face in North Yorkshire, and Brierley Homes is playing a key role in helping to provide more homes that are affordable in our communities.
