ALMOST 8,000 new homes could be built in Southampton over the next eight years.

Council chiefs have unveiled their blueprint for the number of new properties needed in the city, saying about 865 are needed every year.

The council says more than 2,600 new homes have been built since 2011, while planning permission has been granted for an extra 4,133.

But the city faces challenges such as a low number of owner occupiers in comparison to the national average (51 per cent to 64 per cent), and the number of private renters set to rise with the average property price 6.2 times the average salary, rising to 10.2 times for detached houses.

The authority also says that the city appears to have become more deprived in the past six years, going from 72nd most deprived local authority in the country to 54th.

Their housing strategy, approved at a meeting last night, contains the target figure for building approximately 865 homes a year until 2025 - or 7,785 in total.

It does not contain details about exactly where new homes will go, as the council already has a local plan setting out exact locations and a new one is set to be published in 2019.

Cllr Payne said 750-800 homes were already being built in the city every year, saying: "We don't have to go that much above what we have already agreed.

"Because Southampton is built up to its borders in every direction, it will be regenerating sites like Centenary Quay, Chapel Riverside and the former Meridian studios where the new homes will come from, so as we can't go out we will have to reinvent and rejuvenate ourselves.

"The capacity can be met so long as there is infrastructure to go with it, and the council is awake to the fact that you can't build homes and not have infrastructure such as roads, schools and health surgeries to go with it."

At the former Meridian television studios on the banks of the Itchen 350 homes and a new park will be created, while further down the river 380 homes and a business complex could be created at Chapel Riverside.

Work is continuing on the £500m Centenary Quay complex in Woolston, with 1,600 new properties set to be created by the time it is complete.

While Cllr Payne said estate regeneration projects like the controversial Townhill Park plans could help meet the target, he said the number of affordable rented homes would be hit by Government policy changes.

He added that most new affordable homes would be to buy through first time buyer or shared ownership schemes.

Conservative opposition leader Jeremy Moulton said Labour had "failed" in their housing plans over the last four years, pointing to a council report which says the number of affordable homes being built a year is actually 204 and not the 365 set out in Labour's plans.

Saying the council's estate regeneration plans were "dead", he added: "Every failure brings a new excuse.

"I don't think for a moment that had there been no change to the rent formula that we would be further ahead because there is no drive and commitment and we have been banging on about this for four years."