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£10bn for 70,000 homes
Britain’s government announced on 25 August that the Prime Minister and Secretary of State, Angela Rayner, are allocating nearly £10 billion to build thousands of council, social and affordable homes across England, with the first wave set to support the delivery of more than 70,000 homes.
“Today (25 August) the Prime Minister and Secretary of State, Angela Rayner, are announcing nearly £10 billion of allocations”
The funding is going to 33 Strategic Partners—councils, housing associations and other providers—with around 60% of homes delivered through these partnerships expected to be for Social Rent.
The government said the programme is part of its £39bn Social and Affordable Homes Programme, and that it is only the first stage of a ten-year plan with more than £16 billion remaining to be allocated outside London.
In London, the Greater London Authority intends to offer at least £6 billion through the programme, with councils expected to deliver more than half of the homes funded in London.
The BBC reported that ministers said Monday’s allocation was the first part of a wider plan to build 300,000 social and affordable homes across the nation under the government’s £39bn social housebuilding programme.
Voices: Burnham and Khan
Prime Minister Andy Burnham said, “No child should be raised in a hostel room and no family should wait ten years for a front door of their own,” as he pledged that “Nearly £10 billion will go to councils and housing associations to build genuinely affordable homes, most of them for social rent.”
Housing Secretary Angela Rayner said, “Families can’t be left raising children without a place to call home,” and added, “That’s why the Prime Minister and I are doing everything we can to get councils building once again – it’s fundamental to turning the housing crisis around.”
London Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan said the number of families and children without a permanent home stuck on housing waiting lists is “unacceptable,” and he said, “I want to work with this new government to deliver a step change in how many council homes we can deliver across the capital.”
The BBC described a housing waiting list context, saying Natasha has been living in a hotel in Milton Keynes for the last four months with her son Zayd and that she says she has “no idea how long she will be expected to stay there.”
In the same BBC report, the Conservatives were quoted as saying the plan is an “unfunded spending commitment,” while housing charities welcomed the news but said it was still not enough to meet demand.
Where money goes next
The government said over £2 billion of today’s funding is expected to be spent in Mayoral areas outside of London, and it described a devolution agenda in which Established Mayoral Strategic Authorities set the strategic direction for programmes in their areas.
“4,400 homes are set to be delivered in Greater Manchester with a spend of £529 million”
A breakdown of planned activity by strategic partners in the LBC report listed 4,400 homes in Greater Manchester for £529 million, 3,200 new homes in the West Midlands for £409 million, and 3,100 homes in Liverpool City Region supported by £380 million.
The i Paper reported that the Housing Secretary said there are “golden rules” for building on “grey belt” land, including that there should be 50 per cent of social housing in any given development as well as supportive infrastructure.
The Guardian said ministers laid out plans to spend an initial £10bn from the 10-year Affordable Homes Programme on a mix of subsidised housing types in England, with about 60% of the 70,000 homes outside London expected to be social rented houses.
Sarah Elliott of Shelter said, “Today’s announcement puts councils back on the pitch in the fight to end homelessness,” while the BBC reported that the announcement stops short of clarifying how the funding will be split between council homes and those provided by housing associations.