Public Rental Homes – fresh perspectives | Monday 20 February from 10.30, The Council Room, One Great George Street, Westminster

Hybrid Launch of HFI/Localis guide to a fresh way councils and developers can work together to provide homes to suit needs and pockets of those on waiting lists

BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT

Few of the ‘new affordable’ homes being created today can be afforded by those 1.2 million households on council waiting lists. Most of those waiting to be accommodated can afford little more than half the local open market rent. Back in the early 1990’s around 50,000 homes a year were built and let at what is now defined as ‘social rents.’ Broadly the same number of ‘affordable’ homes are being built today: but no more than 6,000 are in the lowest ‘social rent’ category.

Localis and the Housing Finance Institute have developed a fresh approach that will allow local authorities to provide homes which match the needs – and are within their means – of those on waiting lists. Using site-by-site appraisals that flip the present private sector appraisal approach, which asks, ‘what percentage of affordable homes can we afford to provide? Ask instead: ‘what percentage of private homes must be provided in order to produce the size and type of Public Rental Homes those on our waiting lists can afford?

AGENDA AND OVERVIEW OF THE DAY

This event was held at The Council Room at One Great George Street, Westminster from 10.30 to 12 noon on Monday 20 February.10.30 –

 

Panellists included

• Sir Steve Bullock – chairman
• Peter Bill and Jackie Sadek – report authors
• Eamon McGoldrick, managing director of the National Federation of ALMOs
• David Simmonds CBE MP, chair APPG for housing
• Natalie Elphicke OBE MP, founder, The Housing and Finance Institute