Housing Association Housebuilding Completions Drop By Fifth

 The number of homes built by housing associations fell by almost a fifth in the 2020/21 financial year due in part to the pandemic. Data collated by the NHF showed that approximately 44,000 homes of all tenures were started in 2020/21, with 38,200 completed. In terms of homes built, housing associations completed 4,240 social rent homes, a decline of 13% on 2020. Affordable rental home completions fell by 19% to 16,038 and affordable homes for sale fell by 19% to 11,959. Total affordable home completions stood at 32,237 a drop of 18%. Market rent completions stood at 1,095 during the year, a drop of 12%, and market sale homes dropped 19% to 4,910. Read more on Inside Housing.

https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/news/housing-association-housebuilding-completions-drop-by-fifth-72715

Expert Panel To Advise Government On Social Housing White Paper

A new 15-strong panel of experts has been assembled to help the government deliver its Social Housing White Paper. The so-called ‘expert challenge panel’ is drawn from bodies across the sector, including the National Housing Federation, Shelter and Grenfell United. Individuals from each organisation have not been named. The group is due to meet four times over the next year to provide “scrutiny and advice” on the white paper. Read more on the Social Housing website.

https://www.socialhousing.co.uk/news/expert-panel-to-advise-government-on-social-housing-white-paper-72052?utm_source=Housing60&utm_medium=email&utm_content=article_link&utm_campaign=H60 

Four In Five Social Housing Tenants On Universal Credit Struggle To Pay For Essentials

Four out of five social housing residents (79%) claiming Universal Credit have struggled to pay for at least one essential item such as heating, council tax or clothes, a survey has found. Nearly half (43%) have struggled to afford food, according to the National Housing Federation (NHF) study, which it claims is the largest of its kind to date. As well as reporting difficulties meeting basic living costs, 84% of respondents said they had borrowed money from friends and family, applied for loans or visited food banks while claiming the benefit. Read more on Inside Housing.

https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/four-in-five-social-housing-tenants-on-universal-credit-struggle-to-pay-for-essentials-71967?utm_source=Housing60&utm_medium=email&utm_content=article_link&utm_campaign=H60 

HA Rent Arrears Could Rise By £330m After Universal Credit Switchover

 Rent arrears among housing association tenants in England could rise by £330m after the switchover from legacy benefits to Universal Credit is complete, the National Housing Federation (NHF) has warned. A survey of housing associations found that the number of tenants claiming Universal Credit for help with their rent costs increased by 83% between June 2019 and September 2020 amid the coronavirus pandemic. The increase means households claiming Universal Credit accounted for 28% of all occupied general needs homes owned by housing associations as of September last year. Of these, 60% had fallen behind on rent compared with 36% paying by other means including housing benefit. Read more on Inside Housing.

https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/housing-association-rent-arrears-could-rise-by-330m-after-universal-credit-switchover-nhf-warns-70420?utm_source=Housing60&utm_medium=email&utm_content=article_link&utm_campaign=H60

Social Housing Waiting Lists 500,000 Short Of True Total

The number of households in England in need of social housing is 1.6 million – 500,000 more than the 1.16 million households recorded on official waiting lists, according to analysis by the National Housing Federation which found that nearly eight million people in England are experiencing some form of housing need and for 3.8 million of these people, social rented housing would be the most appropriate tenure. The NHF said that some households have been on the waiting list for nearly two decades and warned that the number of people in need of social housing is set to rise rapidly as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Read more on Inside Housing.

https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/news/social-housing-waiting-lists-fall-500000-short-of-true-total-analysis-shows-67902#:~:text=Social%20housing%20waiting%20lists%20fall%20500%2C000%20short%20of%20true%20total%2C%20analysis%20shows,-News15%2F09&text=The%20number%20of%20households%20in,National%20Housing%20Federation%20(NHF) 

Ten-Year Grant Programme Could ‘Unlock A Substantial Increase’ In Housing Delivery

Doubling the duration of the Affordable Homes Programme to 10 years could lead to a “substantial” increase in housing delivery and would enable housing associations to increase their land-led development activity, new research has found. A report commissioned by the Consortium of Associations in the South East (CASE), the National Housing Federation (NHF) and Shelter found that a move to longer term funding would change housing associations’ land-purchasing behaviour and the types of sites they choose to take on. Under a 10-year grant programme, housing associations could buy more sites without planning permission and tackle larger and more complex sites, the report argued. Read more on Inside Housing.

https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/ten-year-grant-programme-could-unlock-a-substantial-increase-in-housing-delivery-67887?utm_source=Housing60&utm_medium=email&utm_content=article_link&utm_campaign=H60

Social Landlords Are Eligible For The New Green Homes Grant Scheme

More detail on the £2bn Green Home Grants scheme has been published, confirming that social landlords are eligible to bid for funding. The scheme provides funding to support home energy efficiency improvements. As a minimum, improvements must include measures that improve insulation and/or deliver low carbon heating, such as the installation of heat pumps or solar thermal. Homeowners, including private and social landlords, can apply for two thirds of the cost of improvements with grants capped at £5,000. Low income households qualify for grants worth up to £10,000 to support energy efficiency upgrades. Some funding has been set aside for local authorities. Read more on the NHF website.

https://www.housing.org.uk/news-and-blogs/news/social-landlords-eligible-for-green-homes-grant-scheme/ 

Poor Housing Causing Health Problems During Lockdown

Nearly a third (31%) of adults in Britain – 15.9m people – have had mental or physical health problems because of the condition of, or lack of space in, their home during lockdown, according to a new YouGov survey. This includes people seeking medical help or taking medication for mental health issues, not getting enough sleep, people experiencing depression or stress, as well as those falling physically ill or catching coronavirus. Five leading housing organisations have now launched a campaign to warn that the country’s housing crisis is making lockdown even more unbearable for millions. Read more on the NHF website.

https://www.housing.org.uk/news-and-blogs/news/poor-housing-causing-health-problems-for-nearly-a-third-of-brits-during-lockdown/

Government Warned Limits On Building Safety Fund Will Reduce Social Housing New Build

Social landlords will be forced to reduce planned development and maintenance spend if they are not allowed to reclaim their full cladding remediation costs from the new £1bn Building Safety Fund, the government has been warned. The Greater London Authority, the NHF and the Labour Party have all called for increased access to the pot for social landlords, following the publication of a prospectus setting out its remit. Under the current rules, social landlords will not be permitted to bid for the full cost of cladding works, only for the funding they would have billed private leaseholders through service charges. Read more on Inside Housing.

https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/government-warned-limits-on-building-safety-fund-will-reduce-social-housing-new-build-66579?utm_source=Housing60&utm_medium=email&utm_content=article_link&utm_campaign=H60

NHF Provides Update On Together With Tenants

The National Housing Federation (NHF) has provided an update on its Together with Tenants programme. To embed Together with Tenants, the NHF said it wants to see housing associations communicate decision making around the CPI+1 Rent Increase, involve residents in Building Safety strategies, and develop solutions and mitigating actions to the climate crisis. The Together with Tenants programme – to which housing association can voluntarily sign up – adds a requirement to the NHF’s code of governance that states housing association boards are accountable to both tenants and residents. Read more on 24housing.

https://www.24housing.co.uk/news/nhf-provides-update-on-together-with-tenants/

Private-Sale Homes Built By Housing Associations Down 46%

The number of homes being built by housing associations for sale on the open market has nearly halved in the past year, according to the National Housing Federation. The NHF, which represents housing associations, said the number of properties in which construction began between July and September last year fell to 888, compared with 1,647 in the same period the previous year. This represents a fall of 46%. However, the NHF’s figures also show that construction starts of affordable homes in the quarter were up 5% to 9,538 and up to 43,666 over the year. This is the highest annual total since the survey began in 2016. Read more on Housing Today.

https://www.housingtoday.co.uk/news/private-sale-homes-built-by-housing-associations-down-46/5103737.article

Swing Voters And Housing Policy

The National Housing Federation (NHF) commissioned YouGov to run a survey of swing voters to understand their views on housing issues ahead of the general election on 12 December. Their briefing describes the main findings of the survey, which include:

·         An estimate that swing voters are likely to be more concerned with housing issues than those who have decided how they will vote.

·         Housing is a top local issue for swing voters, second only to health.

·         Most swing voters are concerned about their or their children's housing situations, and have little trust in the main parties to improve these. 

Download the briefing from the NHF website.

http://s3-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/doc.housing.org.uk/Research_briefing_21112019_final.pdf

Housing Associations React To Conservative’s Right To Buy Promise With Scepticism

Housing associations have reacted with scepticism to the Conservative Party’s manifesto pledge to push ahead with a policy extending the Voluntary Right to Buy (VRTB) to their tenants if it wins next month’s election. The manifesto promised to “evaluate new pilot areas” following the “successful” Midlands scheme. But the National Housing Federation (NHF) said the pilot will be a success “only if it helps tenants onto the housing ladder without any net loss of social housing”, while housing associations involved in the project pointed to issues with the policy. Read more on Inside Housing.

https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/housing-associations-react-to-conservatives-right-to-buy-promise-with-scepticism-64318?utm_source=Housing60&utm_medium=email&utm_content=article_link&utm_campaign=H60

Community Led-Housing Has Potential To Unlock ‘Thousands Of Homes’

Community land trusts have over 16,000 new homes in the development pipeline – thanks to the removal of barriers that had before prevented them. That was the figure shared by the National CLT Network’s Samantha Jones at the National Housing Federation’s Smaller Housing Conference. Focusing on the increased success of housing associations partnering with community land trusts, Jones said that the “common-ground” between the both can maximise the potential on development projects across the country. Examples included that of Norton-sub-Hamdon in south Somerset – a partnership between Wessex Community Assets and Yarlington Housing Group. Read more on 24housing.

https://www.24housing.co.uk/news/community-led-housing-has-potential-to-unlock-thousands-of-homes/

New Group Warns Over Accessible Housing ‘Ticking Time Bomb’

A new 10-strong coalition of charities and trade bodies is calling on the government to tackle a “time bomb” over the lack of suitable housing for disabled and older people. The coalition, Housing Made for Everyone (HoME), has written an open letter to the housing secretary calling for a new design standard baseline on all new housing as the UK grapples with the needs of an ageing population. The group, which includes Habinteg and the National Housing Federation, points out that the number of households headed by someone aged 65 or over has increased by more than a million since 2010/11. Read more on Inside Housing.

https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/new-group-warns-over-accessible-housing-ticking-time-bomb-64028?utm_source=Housing60&utm_medium=email&utm_content=article_link&utm_campaign=H60

Right to Shared Ownership

The Government has announced changes to the shared ownership model, and that it intends to take forward Right to Shared Ownership as an official government policy. In a press statement, Secretary of State Robert Jenrick, said:

·         Tenants of all new housing association homes built with grant funding will get a Right to Shared Ownership (RTSO).

·         The Government will work with housing associations on a voluntary basis to determine what offer can be made to tenants in existing homes.

·         For all shared ownership homes the minimum stake required will reduce from 25% to 10% and residents will be able to staircase by 1%.

·         The resales process will be streamlined and fees will be made ‘fairer and more proportional’.

Read more on the NHF website.

https://www.housing.org.uk/latest-updates/update-on-right-to-shared-ownership/

Nine In 10 Homes Unaffordable For Families

The benefit freeze is pushing low income families to the brink, with more than nine in ten homes for private rent (94%) too expensive for those on housing benefit. And new NHF research reveals two thirds of these families (65%) are in work. Now, NHF is calling on the government to:

·         End the freeze and increase LHA payments so that they cover at least the bottom 30% of private rent homes in any local area

·         Commit to investing £12.8bn annually in building new social housing, so that fewer families have to depend on unaffordable and insecure privately rented accommodation

Read more on 24housing.

https://www.24housing.co.uk/news/housing-benefit-freeze-means-9-in-10-homes-unaffordable-for-families/

Over Eight Million People In England ‘Directly Hit’ By Housing Crisis

More than eight million people in England – around one in seven – are living in unaffordable, insecure or unsuitable homes, according to a new report by the National Housing Federation (NHF). In the first of its kind, the State of the Nation report captures exactly how many people are hit by different aspects of the housing crisis, including high house prices and rents, unsuitable or poor-quality homes, and the overall shortage of new homes. As outlined, more than 3.6 million people are living in overcrowded homes, while 2.5 million people can’t afford their rent or mortgage. Download a summary of the report from the NHF website.

http://s3-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/img.housing.org.uk/NHF_Briefing_How_many_people_need_a_social_rented_home_FINAL.pdf

130,000 Families Living In One-Bed Flats

More than one in ten children in England are living in overcrowded homes, with 130,000 families squeezed into one-bedroom flats, the National Housing Federation (NHF) claims. In a new report analysing government data the body said around 1.3 million children from more than 600,000 families are stuck in overcrowded living conditions. A poll carried out by ComRes for the NHF found more than one in four children in overcrowded homes have to share a bed with a parent or sibling – affecting up to 368,000 youngsters. One in four affected adults – as many as 380,000 people – often sleep in kitchens, bathrooms or hallways. Read more on Inside Housing.

https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/130000-families-living-in-one-bed-flats-says-nhf-01-62918?utm_source=Housing60&utm_medium=email&utm_content=article_link&utm_campaign=H60

Consultation on a New Homes Ombudsman

The Government has committed to legislating so that developers of market tenure homes must belong to a New Homes Ombudsman, and is currently consulting on the details of how such an Ombudsman would work. This proposal is a response to the perceived failure of industry-led schemes to protect the interests of homebuyers and would apply to new home purchased directly from developers. It is not currently intended to cover existing homes, new affordable homes or those purchased through agents. It is relevant to housing associations developing market homes for cross-subsidy, however. Read more on the NHF website.

https://www.housing.org.uk/latest-updates/consultation-on-a-new-homes-ombudsman/