Approval Of Build-To-Rent Homes On A High

In the first three months of 2021, 6,937 new build-to-rent homes were granted full planning permission in the UK during the first three months of 2021. The British Property Federation (BPF) said this is the highest number of permission granted for any quarter in the build-to-rent sector's history. The third quarter of 2016 recorded 6,321 permissions and now sits in second place. There are now 188,456 build-to-rent homes either complete, under construction or in planning across the UK. The research shows that this number is 21 per cent more than the number recorded 12 months ago. Read more on the Planning Portal.

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New Regulator To Monitor Safety Of Construction Materials

Housing secretary Robert Jenrick has announced the establishment of a national regulator to guarantee that materials used to construct homes would be made safer. The construction products regulator will have the power to remove products from the market if they present a “significant safety risk” – and to prosecute companies that don’t follow the rules on product safety. The regulator will be empowered to conduct its own product-testing when investigating concerns. The government explained that establishing the regulator follows testimony at the Grenfell Inquiry which had highlighted “dishonest practices” carried out by some construction material manufacturers, such as altering the results of safety tests. Read more on the Planning Portal.

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Summer Quarter Saw Housing Bounce Back

Between July and September 2020, 45,000 homes were completed on site, according to building control figures published by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG). This is a 185 per cent increase on the number completed between April and June, when England was on its first lockdown to stem the spread of Covid-19. Where work started on site during this quarter, 35,710 homes were started, 111 per cent more than the previous quarter. Again, this reflects the national restrictions in place during the Covid-19 pandemic. Read more on the Planning Portal.

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Housing For Older People Should Be A Priority

There is an ‘acute’ lack of housing-with-care options for older people living in the UK, according to a recent report. This is housing that allows people to live independently in self-contained homes that are purpose-built and have the capacity to provide care. Housing and Care for Older People: Defining the Sector, by the British Property Federation (BPF) in partnership with Cushman & Wakefield, states that there are only 74,000 housing-with-care units in the UK, which accounts for just 0.9 per cent of older households. This is “significantly” lower than in the US, Australia and New Zealand. Read more on the Planning Portal.

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People Should Live 'Never More Than 10 Minutes' From Basic Facilities

When designing neighbourhoods, the aspiration should be for everyone to live within a five-minute walk of ‘significant’ green space or a park and ‘never be more than 10 minutes’ from basic facilities.This is one of several recommendations set out in a report – Home Comforts – published by the Place Alliance. It comprises the results of a survey of 2,510 households across the UK to find out how the design of homes and neighbourhoods affected their experience of the lockdown implemented to stem the spread of Covid-19. It finds that houses are more comfortable than flats.  Read more on the Planning Portal.

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Builders Workloads Increase Due To Home Improvements

New data shows that 47 per cent of builders saw an increase in their workloads during the summer months. According to the Federation of Master Builders’ State of Trade Survey, 42 per cent of respondents* predict that their workloads will be higher in the autumn. The report says that total workload stayed in “negative territory” for builders in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. “Expectations for future workloads are not optimistic, with respondents noting low levels of enquiries. Expected workload for the period September to October is relatively strong,” states the report. Read more on the Planning Portal.

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Jenrick Commits Cash For 45,000 Homes

Housing secretary Robert Jenrick has committed £1.3 billion to deliver up to 45,000 homes, create 85,000 jobs, upgrade skills and improve infrastructure as part of government plans to deliver a green economic recovery from Covid-19. More than 300 projects in England will receive a share of the £900 million Getting Building Fund. Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced this fund, which will see the money used to get “shovel-ready” housing and infrastructure projects started. Read more on the Planning Portal website.

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2019 Saw Increase In Build To Rent Homes

The number of Build to Rent homes delivered across UK regions, excluding London, increased by 51 per cent in 2019. This is according to research published by the British Property Federation (BPF) and carried out by Savills. It found that at the end of Q4 2019, the number of completed Build to Rent homes was 20,120, compared with the 13,312 homes that had been completed in the year to the end of Q4 2018. Read more on the Planning Portal.

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Number Of Build-To-Rent Homes Jumps By 20%

The tally of build-to-rent homes across the UK has grown by 20 per cent year-on-year to 148,000 homes. The figures from the British Property Federation (BPF) include build-to-rent homes completed, under construction or in planning between the third quarters of 2018 and 2019. The number of completed homes rose by 31 per cent in the same period to 34,840. There are now 148,046 build-to-rent homes at varying stages of development across the country, up by 24,509 last year. Read more on the Planning Portal.

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Jenrick Outlines Green Commitment

Housing secretary Robert Jenrick has made a commitment to a new green standard to tackle the climate crisis and keep household energy bills low. The Future Homes Standard would see fossil fuel heating systems, such as gas boilers, banned from new-build homes by 2025. They will be replaced with cleaner technology, including air source heat pumps and “cutting-edge” solar panels, explained the government. Jenrick said: “Building new homes isn’t just about bricks and mortar; I want to ensure everyone – including developers – does their bit to protect the environment and give the next generation beautiful, environmentally friendly homes that local communities can support.” Read more on the Planning Portal.

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Small Decline In Planning Applications Granted

District-level planning authorities granted 91,700 decisions between April and June 2019 – a 3 per cent decline compared with the same quarter a year earlier. This equates to 88 per cent of the decisions, the same percentage as the corresponding quarter a year earlier, states a statistical release from the MHCLG. It found that 83 per cent of major and minor decisions were granted, which is the same as the quarter ending June 2018. In total, district-level authorities reported 103,900 decisions on planning applications in April to June 2019, which is 3 per cent less than the 106,900 decisions in the same quarter of the previous year. Read more on the Planning Portal.

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£2m For Councils To Address ‘Illegal’ Green Belt Development

Housing minister Esther McVey has committed £2 million to aid councils to ‘crack down on illegal developments’ in the green belt. Councils will be able to use the money to hire enforcement officers, use new technology and help to meet the legal costs of bringing rogue local developers to task for illegal developments.  McVey said 37 councils would be receiving a total of up to £50,000 each to help with the clampdown. Read more on the Planning Portal.

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5% Decline In Planning Decisions Made Since Last Year

District-level planning authorities granted 357,700 decisions in the year ending March 2019 – down 5 per cent on the year ending March 2018, according to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG). Of those 357,700 applications, 46,800 were for residential developments. This was a decline of 3 per cent compared with a year earlier. Of these, 6,300 were major developments and 40,500 were minor developments. These figures show a 2 per cent and 5 per cent decrease respectively on the year ending March 2018. Read more on the Planning Portal website.

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Planning System Drives Up House Prices In Expensive Areas, Says Report

High house prices in expensive cities have been caused by the planning system’s rationing of new homes in areas of high demand, according to a report out on 11 June. It suggests the planning system should be reformed to introduce the flexible zoning system used in Japan and some parts of America. In its report, Think Tank Centre for Cities explores the relationship between urban economies and housing wealth in England and Wales. The organisation finds that the “restrictive planning system” has made urban homeowners in the greater South East more than £80,000 richer over the past six years than those in other parts of England and Wales. Read more on the Planning Portal.

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Developer Contributions To Be Made Simpler, Says Malthouse,

Housing minister Kit Malthouse has announced changes to developer contributions to make the system simpler and accelerate the pace of homebuilding. Builders pay through developer contributions (section 106 and Community Infrastructure Levy [CIL]) for the roads, schools, GP surgeries and parkland needed to help areas to cope with new residents. But Malthouse said these measures are “confusing and unnecessarily over-complicated”. The new rules mean that communities would know exactly how much developers are paying for infrastructure in their area, he explained. Councils will be required to report the deals done with developers and set how the money will be spent, so residents can see every step taken to make sure that their area is ready for new housing. Read more on the Planning Portal.

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Permitted Development For Home Extensions Comes Into Force

The extension of permitted development rights to allow homeowners to extend their properties without a full planning application – as well as high street conversions to offices and homes – has come into permanent effect. The regulations do not include the right to allow upward extensions. Under the rules, homeowners can put a single-storey rear extension on their property of up to six metres for terraced or semi-detached homes – or eight metres for detached homes. Over 110,000 extensions have been completed since 2014 under the previously temporary rules. Read more on the Planning Portal.

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Brokenshire To Look Again At Office-To-Residential Conversions

The government will review the conversion of offices into homes without planning permission after a leading Conservative MP lambasted the policy for allowing ‘social cleansing’. Reforms to permitted development rights in 2013 have allowed developers to convert offices into residences without planning permission. Conservative MP for Harlow Robert Halfon told Parliament this week the policy had not worked. “It has allowed landlord to build ghettos. It’s allowed London councillors to socially cleanse their most vulnerable families to places like Harlow,” he said. Halfon urged the government to reform the permitted development rules, adding that Harlow had not received any extra resources “to deal with the extra burden” for providing more doctors, schools, social services and police. Read more on the Planning Portal website.

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Build-To-Rent Units On The Increase

The number of build-to-rent homes that are either complete, under construction or in planning in the UK has increased by 30 per cent over the past year, according to the British Property Federation (BPF). The BPF commissioned Savills to conduct and publish the research on a quarterly basis, and this set of data is the first this year. It suggests that there are 117,893 build-to-rent homes in the UK, up from 90,761 compared with the first quarter of 2017. This figure comprises homes across all stages of the development cycle. When broken down, the number of completed build-to-rent homes stands at 20,863, up 45 per cent from the 14,371 built in the same period last year. Read more on the Planning Portal.

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Help To Buy Has Driven Record Rise In Planning Permissions

A report produced by the Home Builders Federation (HBF) in association with construction market analyst Glenigan has suggested that the Help to Buy scheme is having a significant impact on the housing market. According to Stepping Up, a report produced to assess its impact so far, Help to Buy now accounts for one in every 12 first-time buyer transactions and is such a success that it is “driving industry confidence to invest in new sites at a time when activity in the market generally remains stubbornly slow”. The study suggests that the number of planning permissions granted in the first half of 2017 was the highest for new homes on record.  Read more on the Planning Portal.

Sharma Allots £22m For Communities To Help Deliver Housing

Housing and planning minister Alok Sharma has announced that £22.8 million of government funding will go to communities to help them deliver neighbourhood plans. He said the cash would give locals more of a say over growth in their area. The allocation splits down into £5.5 million a year until 2022 and aims to provide communities with specialist support to help deliver a neighbourhood plan. More than 400 successful neighbourhood plan referendums have taken place across England. Read more on the Planning Portal.