A further £43 million for a loan-based housing programme will
help deliver more homes and tackle the housing emergency .
The Charitable Bonds scheme provides loans to Registered Social
Landlords, with the interest on repayments being re-invested in
affordable housing.
Since 2014, the programme has supported the delivery of around
4,500 properties and generated a further £175.6 million toward
the completion of more affordable homes.
The additional funding takes the total investment for 2025-26 to
£78 million. Bonds have issued to Kingdom, Eildon, Cairn,
Govanhill, Lochalsh & Skye, Lochaber and Wheatley housing
associations.
Housing Secretary Màiri McAllan said:
“The Charitable Bonds programme shows our determination to make
best use of different streams of finance to deliver more warm,
safe and affordable homes for hundreds of families.
“This sits alongside our commitment to deliver up to £4.9 billion
of investment over the coming four years, with homes delivered
through a mixture of public and private investment. This will
support the delivery of 36,000 affordable homes and is estimated
to provide a place to live for up to 24,000 children.
“As we develop plans for our new housing agency, More Homes
Scotland, it is my intention that it will deliver innovative
finance models like this one to deliver more housing across the
country.”
Kingdom Group Finance Director Lesley Janes said:
"The Charitable Bonds programme is a proven model that works,
delivering thousands of affordable homes across Scotland, and
this additional investment keeps that momentum going.
“For Kingdom, access to this kind of funding is central to our
ambitious development programme and our commitment to help tackle
the housing emergency. We're proud to be part of a partnership
that puts more warm, safe, affordable homes within reach of the
people and communities that need them most."
Allia C&C Director and Head of Scottish Office Peter Freer
said:
“Allia C&C has been delivering the Bond programme for over 10
years and is enormously proud of what it has achieved in that
time. The programme provides a unique and straightforward funding
solution that has helped channel a further £78m of Scottish
Government investment into much-needed new affordable homes
across Scotland.
“This brings total investment in the programme to £585m -
delivered to 39 RSLs ranging from the largest associations to the
smallest, spanning rural and urban areas and, crucially, reaching
every corner of the country. As the need for good-quality
affordable housing remains as pressing as ever, we very much hope
the programme continues to go from strength to strength.”
Background
In an effort to maximise opportunities for affordable housing
delivery, the Scottish Government intends to make the scheme more
open in the future to enable a wider range of affordable housing
providers to access this funding. The procurement process for
administering the scheme will start later this year.
The loan element of the bonds will support affordable housing
developments across a range of rural and urban locations in
Scotland including: 30 homes in Skye and Raasay; 35 homes in
Galashiels; 40 homes in Fort William and Mallaig; 28 homes in
Irvine and East Whitburn; and other ongoing development
programmes across Fife, Edinburgh, Lothians, Glasgow and Dumfries
& Galloway.
