Devon County Council leader Brian Greenslade has urged the minister for the South West, Ben Bradshaw, to do more to champion better funding for affordable homes in Devon.

The call comes as councils across the region brace themselves for the government's Comprehensive Spending Review announcement this month which will determine how much councils have to spend on public services over the next three years.

Cllr Greenslade warned that the government's under-funding of core public services such as road maintenance and schools in Devon is hampering attempts by councils to tackle the lack of affordable homes.

Devon currently receives £57 per person less in government grants than the average for English counties - a massive £42m a year loss to public services across the county.

That means money that could potentially be used for housing has to bridge the funding shortfall for other vital services such as social care for older people, according to the county council.

Every one of Devon's primary and secondary pupils receives £337 less a year than the national average, the council said.

It means Devon is 144th out of 150 local authorities in terms of government funding for schools, the council added.

Although not a housing authority, Devon County Council says it has invested £13.8m in affordable and supported housing in the past three years.

This is the biggest investment by any county council in the country, it claims.

The county council says it is using money from council tax on second homes to help fund a wide range of housing projects, including 100 new affordable homes in Brixton, East Allington, Kingsbridge and Salcombe in the South Hams.

Cllr Greenslade said: "There is no government directive on how council tax from second homes should be used, but Devon County Council is actually investing nearly £14m into housing for local people because this is such a vital issue in Devon.

"No other county council is doing more on housing than Devon, but it is a fact that our efforts are hampered by the lack of joined up thinking within Whitehall.

"We need our minister for the South West, Ben Bradshaw, to recognise the realities of inadequate government funding across Devon and understand its consequences for the people and communities of our county."

999Kingsbridge.com is trying to contact Mr Bradshaw for a response.