A new housing package will deliver up to 5,000 new affordable social homes
with £500 million in new funding for the Affordable Homes Programme.
This brings total investment in housing supply to over £5 billion and
supports the delivery of 33,000 new homes through £128 million for housing
projects across the country.
Meanwhile, the stock of social housing will be increased through a new
5-year social housing rent settlement that will give the sector more long-term
certainty on funding and allow them to invest in tens of thousands of new
homes.
The existing stock will also be protected by reducing Right to Buy discounts
so that thousands more council homes remain in the sector.
Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel
Reeves said: “We need to fix the housing crisis in this
country. It’s created a generation locked out of the property market, torn
apart communities and put the brakes on economic growth.
“We are rebuilding Britain by ramping up housebuilding and
delivering the 1.5 million new homes we so badly need.”
Deputy Prime Minister, Angela
Rayner said: “We have inherited a housing system which
is broken, with not enough homes being built and even fewer that families can
afford.
“This is a further significant step in our plan to get
Britain building again, backing the sector, so they can help us deliver a
social and affordable housing boom, supporting millions of people up and down
the country into a safe, affordable and decent home they can be proud of.”
The £500 million to deliver thousands of new social and affordable homes is
a top-up to the existing Affordable Homes Programme and comes ahead of the
Government’s Housing Strategy due in the Spring.
The Government will set out details of new investment to succeed the 2021-26
Affordable Homes Programme at the Spending Review. This will lay the
foundations for the manifesto commitment to deliver the biggest increase in
social and affordable housebuilding in a generation, and to support councils
and housing associations to build their capacity and make a greater
contribution to affordable housing supply.
It will deliver a mix of homes for sub-market rent and home-ownership, with
a particular focus on delivering homes for Social Rent.
The Government will also consult on a new 5-year social housing rent
settlement, which caps the rents social housing providers can charge their
tenants, to provide the sector with the certainty it needs to invest in new
social housing. The intention would be for this to increase with Consumer Price
Index inflation figures and an additional 1%. The consultation will also seek
views on other potential options to give greater certainty, such as providing a
10-year settlement.
These measures to increase affordable housing come alongside changes to the
Right to Buy scheme, which will protect existing social housing stock to meet
housing need and deliver a fairer and more sustainable scheme.
England’s existing social housing supply is depleted every year by the
scheme while also disincentivising councils to build new social housing.
Discounts will be reduced alongside greater protections for newly-built
social housing and councils will be able to keep 100% of the receipts generated
by a Right to Buy sale. This will enable councils to scale-up delivery of much
needed social housing whilst still enabling longstanding tenants to buy their
own homes.
The £128 million will support the delivery of new housing projects –
including up to 28,000 new builds currently blocked by river pollution –
cleaning up our rivers in the process - 3,000 energy efficient homes across the
country and 2,000 new homes in North Liverpool.
Meanwhile the £56 million investment at Liverpool Central Docks will also
deliver office, retail, leisure and hotel facilities alongside the new homes.
As well as demonstrating our brownfield-first approach, it will transform
Liverpool’s former docklands into a thriving waterfront neighbourhood.
Kate Henderson, Chief Executive of
the National Housing Federation, says: “We strongly
welcome the £500m top-up to the affordable homes programme. This vital
injection of funding, which we’ve been urgently calling for, will support
housing associations to continue to deliver much needed affordable homes in the
immediate term and prevent a collapse in delivery.
“We share the government’s ambition to build 1.5million homes over this
parliament and stand ready to deliver the social homes needed, which is why we
welcome a consultation on a new rent settlement. This will provide both
transparency for residents and long term certainty and financial stability for
social housing providers. We also support the government’s decision to review
right to buy discounts.
“To achieve the affordable homes needed across the country,
alongside this short term top-up, we look forward to a new long term housing
strategy announced at the next spending review, including a significant boost
in funding for social housing.”
Charlie Nunn, Chief Executive of
Lloyds Banking Group, said: “As the biggest supporter of
social housing in the UK, we welcome the announcement of the funding boost for
the Affordable Homes Programme and the plans to consult on a long-term social
housing rent settlement.
“A safe and lasting home is the foundation for so many
essential needs and strong socio-economic outcomes. We need greater
provision of housing which is both sustainable and genuinely affordable to
enable our communities to thrive.”
Councillor Louise Gittins, LGA
Chair, said: “We are pleased the Government has acted on
our call to increase Affordable Homes Programme funding. We have made the case
for councils to be empowered to build more affordable, good quality homes
quickly and at scale and this will boost councils’ ability to build
desperately-needed affordable housing for local communities.
“It has become increasingly impossible for councils to replace homes as
quickly as they’re being sold through the Right to Buy (RTB) scheme. The LGA
has long-called for reform to RTB and these positive measures will support the
replacement of sold homes and to stem the continued loss of existing stock.
“A 5-year rent settlement is a step in the right direction in providing
certainty for councils on rental income, but to really strengthen and provide
stability to Housing Revenue Accounts, a minimum 10-year rent settlement is
needed, alongside restoration of lost revenue due to the rent cap and a review
of the self-financing settlement of 2012. This would better support long-term
business planning to ensure councils can deliver high quality homes and
associated support for their tenants.
“Councils stand ready to work with the Government to
increase affordable housing and help people on council housing waiting lists
and record numbers stuck in temporary accommodation.”
