A BRIDPORT woman says she wants to increase the availability of homes after being appointed to the board of a local housing association..

Debbie Bond has joined the board of Magna Housing after being a tenant since it was formed in 1993.

She said: "I feel very strongly that decent homes should be available to anyone who wants one.

"I worry sometimes that more and more homes in the South West will be taken as second homes and I want to make sure that we do all we can to make more homes available in this area.”

Debbie is one of only two women on the board, but she wants that to change.

She said: “I think it is really important that the board has a good range of diversity that reflects the world we live in and I’d encourage anyone who is interested to give it a go.”

Magna, which operates mainly in Dorset and Somerset, says it aims to work with local communities to help people meet their housing needs.

In September it announced plans to build 600 homes in the area, including in Weymouth and Portland, in the next five years.

Debbie said: “I’m joining the board at a very exciting time. I know what it is like to be a tenant so I can make sure others on the board see things from that perspective in their discussions.”

Adam Peat, chairman of Magna Housing’s board, said: “We are really pleased to welcome Debbie to the board, her experience and knowledge will give us a different viewpoint and we have already seen her making an impact in our discussions.”

Debbie said she had complete confidence in the work Magna was doing.

She said: “Survey results back Magna up. It has 92 per cent satisfaction in the surveys it does of tenant opinion each month."