Housing leaders warn Rayner 1.5m homes can’t be delivered without ‘fair financial model’ for social housing sector

Social housing bodies have written an open letter to Angela Rayner warning the government’s 1.5m homes target can’t be met without changes to the financial model for the sector.

The letter requests an “urgent roundtable meeting” with the new housing secretary to discuss “practical next steps to rebuild the capacity and confidence of the social housing sector.”

It has been signed by Gavin Smart, chief executive of the Chartered Institute of Housing, Kate Henderson, chief executive of the National Housing Federation, council housing bodies and 20 local authority leaders.

It said: “At the next spending review, we need a long-term plan for new and existing social homes, underpinned by a fair and sustainable financial model developed alongside councils and housing associations.

“Without this, we will not be able to deliver our shared ambition to build 1.5 million new homes this parliament.

“New build projects are already being delayed and cancelled across the country due to significant financial pressures and uncertainty.”

The letter says “capped income, crippling cuts, unfunded new requirements and soaring costs” have “decimated” housing association and councils’ housing budgets. It points to the organisations’ various asks, including a long-term rent settlement and more funding for social housing development.

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Housing Today’s A Fair Deal for Housing campaign has also been calling for measures to enable development to increase to 300,000 homes a year and beyond.

In January the campaign published its initial findings, calling for a review to look at grant rates for affordable housing, a longer-term rent settlement for social housing providers, a time-limited stimulus package to counteract the high cost of private funding and at mechanisms to lever in more institutional finance for ‘for-profit’ registered providers.