Policy
Burnham’ s Council Housing Pledge: What the Sector Needs to Watch
By Catherine Kennedy, Head of Housing and Regeneration( Property), at Forbes Solicitors
Andy Burnham used his first speech as prime minister to commit to building“ more council homes” and
Catherine Kennedy made ending rough
sleeping his first ministerial instruction. It’ s setting the tone for what could be the most significant shift in the UK’ s social housing policy seen in a generation.
This isn’ t a new ambition for the new PM. Before taking office, Burnham said that he wanted to deliver“ the biggest council house building programme since the post-war period”. There is much debate on whether prioritising council housebuilding is the right approach to tackle the housing crisis, and what it means for the UK’ s budget.
With details of any programme yet to emerge, housing teams have plenty to consider and prepare for in the coming weeks and months.
The legislative change needed to boost council housebuilding
One of the clearest levers available to the government is to look towards reforming how local authority housing finance works. Currently, funds allocated to local authorities for housing must be ring-fenced to prevent deficits, limiting councils’ ability to maintain or improve existing stock. Allowing councils to share general fund savings – such as spare budget generated as residents move out of costly temporary accommodation and into longer term secure social tenancies – could free up borrowing capacity needed to unlock new council housebuilding.
Some of the groundwork is already in place. The Social Housing Bill announced in May 2026 limits and restricts the Right to Buy scheme, helping to ensure that affordable properties remain in the ownership of housing associations and councils for longer. Burnham has also suggested plans to compel the Treasury and other public bodies to release vacant, unused land at a discount specifically for the construction of council homes.
Two commonly-cited barriers to housebuilding sit alongside this: a shortage of skilled labourers in the workforce, which could be addressed with further investment, incentives, and apprenticeship-style programmes, and rising material costs, which will need to be factored into the budget for any programme.
44 Issue 28