A top-up of £350m will be made to the Affordable Homes Programme and Local Authority Housing Fund
The announcement of the government social housing boost came alongside vows to tackle rogue landlords.
£300m will go to the Affordable Homes Programme (AFP), while £50m will go to the Local Authority Housing Fund (LAHF).
The Affordable Homes Programme will boost social rent housing supply
Through this new contribution, an extra 2,800 homes can be built, with half going for social rent. The contribution to the Local Authority Housing Fund will support another 250 council homes for those who need better-quality temporary accommodation.
A further £30m of funding is expected to be reallocated from previous rounds, making the total number of homes delivered under the LAHF by the third round 2,700.
The announcement also described plans to address exploitative behaviours of “rogue landlords” and those that are supporting or supported by criminal activities.
An example given is those landlords that claim uncapped housing benefits while not maintaining their homes on offer to an acceptable standard, particularly for the vulnerable.
The programme comes as one of several
In July last year, an expansion was announced for the Affordable Homes Guarantee Scheme, with £3bn being added to fund over 20,000 new homes. The guarantee allows for low-cost loans to housing providers.
These initiatives are intended to help reach the 1.5m homes target and tackle both population growth and the housing shortage.
Deputy prime minister and housing secretary, Angela Rayner, said: “For so many families, and their children, the security and safety of a home of their own remains firmly out of reach – and instead they have to live in temporary accommodation, including in B&Bs.
“This is unacceptable and is the result of the housing crisis we are facing head on. That’s why we’re driving forward on our plans to ensure a better future for everyone who needs a safe home, building on our plans to drive up living standards and build 1.5 million homes through our Plan for Change.”
Kate Henderson, chief executive of the National Housing Federation, said: “Today’s funding announcement demonstrates that the government recognises that boosting funding for new affordable homes, particularly those for social rent, is essential to meeting its ambitious housing targets and commitment to building a generation of new social homes.
“Housing associations share the government’s housing ambitions and we welcome this top-up to the Affordable Homes Programme. The funding announced today – in addition to the funding announced in the autumn – will help maintain momentum in the delivery of much needed social and affordable housing ahead of the new Affordable Homes Programme being announced at the Spending Review.
“Housing associations are facing a number of financial challenges due to decades of funding cuts. Alongside this vital funding injection, we hope to see a package of supportive measures at the upcoming Spending Review to enable the sector to build the homes our country needs.”
Gavin Smart, chief executive, chartered institute of housing, said: “The housing crisis is one of the biggest challenges facing the country, and we know that increasing the supply of truly affordable homes is key to tackling homelessness, easing pressure on local authorities, and driving economic growth. This additional investment into affordable housing is therefore very welcome and will help support the delivery of much-needed affordable homes ahead of a new Affordable Homes Programme (AHP) at the forthcoming Spending Review.
“The confirmation that 50% of the additional investment in the AHP will be used to support building new homes at social rent is particularly welcome as these are the most affordable and needed. Expanding the Local Housing Fund will help local authorities respond to the huge rise in the need for temporary accommodation which has put huge pressure on council funds and made life very difficult for some of the most vulnerable. Going forward, we hope the government will use the next fiscal update to confirm sustained, long-term investment to meet the scale of demand and ensure everyone has access to a safe, secure, and affordable home.
“We also welcome confirmation of action to implement the Supported Housing (Regulatory Oversight) Act. It is right that the government moves to clamp down on a small minority of exploitative supported housing landlords who are providing unacceptable poor homes to vulnerable people. We look forward to seeing more details here and to working with government, housing providers, and local authorities to ensure these commitments translate into real change on the ground.”
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