West Yorkshire secures £20 million brownfield boost to accelerate housebuilding

In a major win for housebuilding in the region, West Yorkshire Mayor Tracy Brabin has announced an additional £20 million to expand the Brownfield Housing Fund.

The extra government funding has been confirmed ahead of a meeting of the full West Yorkshire Combined Authority this Thursday 16 October.

It reflects the strong performance of the region's Brownfield Housing Fund to date, and has been welcomed by the Mayor as a major vote of confidence in West Yorkshire's ambitious pipeline of regeneration schemes. This will help to accelerate the delivery of homes across the region.

The now £110 million fund, which sees the Combined Authority work with the private sector, local authorities and housing associations to unlock new developments, is already fully allocated and on track to exceed its original target for homes started on-site.

As a result of the uplift, construction of hundreds of additional homes will start by March 2029, taking the programme's overall figure to over 6,000 homes.

Tracy Brabin, Mayor of West Yorkshire, said:

“Everyone deserves a safe and secure roof over their head, and this extra funding is a strong vote of confidence in our housebuilding success.

“By regenerating brownfield land first, we're building the right homes in the right places – affordable, cheaper-to-heat and better-connected – all while protecting our vital green spaces.

“Devolution is working for West Yorkshire, empowering us to deliver record numbers of affordable homes, to give people the security that can only start with a decent home.”

The positive announcement follows the selection of Leeds South Bank by the government as one of the most promising locations for a “new town” – a move expected to help unlock at least 10,000 new homes as part of the South Bank masterplan.

The region's wider pipeline of projects includes flagship regeneration schemes such as Bradford City Village and the Bradford Southern Gateway, which will bring new homes, jobs, public spaces and transport connectivity to the heart of the city.

In further support for people in need of affordable housing, the Combined Authority has also been awarded £100,000 from the government's new Rough Sleeping Prevention and Recovery initiative – part of a wider £84 million package to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping this Winter.

The region is also set to benefit from long-term housebuilding certainty through a share of the new 10-year, £39 billion Social and Affordable Homes Programme, which will help partners to plan and deliver new homes at scale and at speed.

Thanks to devolution, West Yorkshire has already delivered more affordable homes than at any time since the global financial crash, and it is hoped that this new uplift will further build on that momentum.

Notes to editors

The full Combined Authority paper about the uplift can be found here.

• Brownfield Housing Fund uplift: MHCLG has confirmed an additional £21,043,998 for West Yorkshire for 2025/26. The uplift increases the minimum number of homes to start on site by 840 (up to 6,240 in total) and extends the programme for starts on site to 31 March 2029. Total programme funding rises to just over £110 million.
  
  
• Programme performance: West Yorkshire's Brownfield Housing Fund is fully allocated and on track to exceed its original output target, reflecting strong demand and delivery across the region.
  
  
• Leeds South Bank “New Towns” shortlist: Government has identified Leeds South Bank as one of the most promising locations for a new town in its response to the New Towns Taskforce, announced during Labour Party Conference. There are plans for around 13,000 homes within the South Bank vision.
  
  
• Homelessness funding: The Combined Authority has received £100,000 under the Rough Sleeping Prevention and Recovery Grant. This forms part of an £84 million national package to support councils and partners this winter.
  
  
• Long-term affordable housing: The Government's 10-year, £39 billion Social and Affordable Homes Programme will provide long-term funding certainty for housing delivery across England from 2026/27.
  
  
• Affordable homes delivery: West Yorkshire has delivered more affordable homes over the last two years than at any point since the global financial crisis.