A post-pandemic building boom of 100,000 new social homes for
rent each year would not only meet demand for affordable homes
but deliver a £14.5 billion boost to the economy – the equivalent
to over half of the entire annual economic performance of
Birmingham - new research reveals today.
The report, Building Post-Pandemic
Prosperity, commissioned by the Local Government
Association, Association of Retained Council Housing, and
National Federation of ALMOs, warns as COVID-19-related job
support schemes wind down, unemployment rises, and eviction
proceedings begin again, that rough sleeping, homelessness and
sofa surfing is only likely to increase in the coming
months.
It estimates that spiralling council
housing waiting lists could be set to nearly double to 2 million
households next year as a result of the economic impact of
COVID-19 with a large-scale social house-building programme by
councils offering a cheaper, safe and high-quality accommodation
for struggling families priced out of the private housing
market.
As well as going a long way to meeting
the Government’s target of 300,000 homes a year, the report says
this would also help to realise its ambition of levelling-up the
country.
The pandemic has had a disproportionate
health and financial impact on already disadvantaged groups, with
the most deprived areas of England seeing mortality rates for
COVID-19 double that of the least deprived, while ethnic
minorities have seen their household incomes reduce by a larger
percentage than those of white
citizens.
The report says that social home building
will enable the Government’s levelling-up agenda to target those
communities in greatest need, by providing low-cost quality
housing.
It would also help rescue the country’s
ailing construction industry, which is forecast to have lost 1.3
million worker-years of construction by 2024, as a result of
lockdown closing many building sites, and social distancing
impacting on those that have been able to
reopen.
The Government would save money, as every
new council home built would help to reduce the housing
benefit/universal credit bill as a result of taking the most
vulnerable and in need families out of expensive private sector
and temporary accommodation and into social rent
housing.
The LGA, which represents councils, is
urging the Government to use the Spending Review to introduce
measures that allow councils to resume their historic role as
major builders of affordable homes.
This should include reforming Right to
Buy, so councils keep receipts of homes sold under the scheme in
full, as well as being given the powers to set discount levels
locally.
Cllr David Renard, LGA housing
spokesperson, said:
“With the number of people on council
housing waiting lists set to double, it is absolutely vital that
we build more housing for social
rent.
“Building 100,000 social homes for rent a
year would bring significant social and economic benefits, from
tackling our housing crisis and reducing rising levels of
homelessness to wiping millions off welfare bills and improving
people’s health and wellbeing while alleviating the pressure on
health and social care.
“We are urging government in the Spending
Review to give councils the powers to get building at scale again
and deliver a housing programme that can play a central role in
the national recovery from
coronavirus.”
National Federation of ALMO Policy
Director Chloe Fletcher said:
“We can’t stress enough the social and
economic value communities get from well-managed publicly owned
housing.
“All the evidence shows that councils and
those who have ALMO partners are perfectly placed to deliver the
wrap-around help – with finances, debt, health support,
employment and retraining – that so many will desperately need,
alongside sufficient good housing, as we recover from the
pandemic fall-out.
“This is why building more social housing
will deliver such outstanding value for public
money.”
Matthew Warburton, ARCH Policy Adviser,
said:
"In helping the economy recover from the
effects of the coronavirus pandemic, it is essential that the
Government targets public investment where it will do most
good.
“This research provides compelling
evidence that investment in council housing should be given the
highest priority."
Notes to
Editors
LGA
report: Building post-pandemic
prosperity
