Homeowners forced to relocate as part of regeneration schemes still owe £1.4 million in loans, documents reveal.

A total of 56 people were subject to compulsory purchase orders in Accrington and given loans to help ‘bridge the gap’ between the price the council was paying and the cost of buying a new property.

The loan was calculated on the owner buying a ‘like for like’ property in the Pennine Lancashire area and was capped if they wanted to buy a larger property.

A report prepared for a council overview and scrutiny committee meeting confirmed that 48 loans totalling £1.4 million are still owed to the council and legal steps are being taken after the terms of one loan was broken.

Seven loans worth £214,000 have been repaid in full and six others have made partial payments.

Councillor Clare Cleary, Hyndburn council’s cabinet member for housing, said the loans have been part of ‘regenerating and transforming’ East and West Accrington.

She added that they have secured private investment for 217 new homes, a new £7.5 million health centre, refurbishment of more than 130 properties and several hundred facelifts to properties.