News
Richard Greenwood
“ Another point which will please councils is that they can now retain and reinvest revenues generated by the Right to Buy scheme, long a controversial topic in the sector. Some are still calling for greater reforms of Right to Buy but given councils received £ 1.61 billion in Right to Buy sales in 2025 / 26, this will be a considerable boost to housing coffers in many areas.
Charlie Ash
“ Councils being brought into the strategic partner model alongside housing associations is a positive step forward too – we’ ve always believed closer collaboration across the sector is key to unlocking more homes. Partnerships between councils, RPs, developers and contractors will be vital to deliver homes at the scale we need and it’ s encouraging the
government recognises this.
“ This funding is excellent news for increasing development volume and we encourage building at pace, but greater volume without disciplined quality and risk management could be disastrous for the sector. Many areas already struggle to maintain poor quality housing stock from previous eras and we must not repeat the mistakes of the past. Quality must remain key – we believe everyone deserves to live in a quality home and standards must not slip in the rush to build.”
Richard Greenwood, Director of operations at EN: Procure said:“ I am frustrated by the lack of announcement within the announcement, however the details of the grants to the individual strategic partners give a clearer picture that the starting gun might have eventually been fired for the new build affordable homes programme that the government promised some time ago.
“ I welcome the commitment of targeted funding at this scale as it demonstrates recognition that regional housing providers, local authorities and combined authorities have a critical role to play in addressing the housing shortage and creating longterm social and economic benefits for local communities. With tens of thousands of homes needed per year per region to meet growing demands, we have to shift the power to those who know their regions best if we’ re going to deliver for residents.
“ The focus now needs to be on delivery – which is the thought echoed across the housing sector for some time. Strategic funding allocations are an important first step, but the real measure of success will be the number of high-quality, affordable homes that are completed and occupied over the next few years.
“ Key to delivery will be the strength of regional partnerships between procurement, housing associations, local authorities, contractors and developers, which we know already exist and have seen first-hand the strength of these partnerships across the North and Midlands. This funding really does have the potential to accelerate affordable housing delivery and create lasting benefits for communities throughout the regions, but as always we have to move from funding to action.”
Ending rough sleeping in the UK will be an arduous task for the Prime Minister and his government, but unlocking the delivery of truly affordable homes is a vital first step. The cost-of-living crisis has pushed market rate homes further out of reach for low-income households, leading to spiraling social housing waiting times and record levels of temporary accommodation use. The PM’ s commitment to council housing will provide the bedrock for an accessible housing system in Britain, but councils themselves are under pressure from a multitude of directions, and significant support will be needed in order to enable housebuilding on the level that is required.
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