We are Homes England
Paul Kitson General Manager, South East 2
Accelerating Housing Supply, Addressing Affordability Hertfordshire Housing Conference 14th May 2018
Background We were first referenced in Government s Housing White Paper in February 2017 Chancellor Phillip Hammond included us as part of the November 2017 budget We launched in January 2018 at Alconbury, Cambridgeshire 4
We have a big role to play Our investment in supply and interventions in the market will help deliver 300,000 homes a year by the middle of the next decade. 5
This government is determined to build the homes our country needs and help more people get on the housing ladder. Homes England will be at the heart of leading this effort. Sajid Javid MP Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government 6
To meet our goals, things will have to change. 7
What s different? Speed We will act differently from our predecessor to accelerate the supply of new homes and address affordability issues. Resources We will use our land, finance and expertise to expand the delivery of affordable new homes and connect ambitious partners to remove barriers to house building. Quality We will take the lead in delivering better quality homes and great places that set the bar high for others. 8
What s different? Bespoke approach We will offer a bespoke mix of direct capital grant and financial transactions to move supply. Commercial We will develop a new commercial approach to acquiring and developing land in areas of high demand. Powers If needed, we can also use our planning and compulsory purchase powers to help willing partners build more homes more quickly. 9
We have three initial priorities Continue delivery of our existing programmes Accelerate housing delivery over the next few years Build a new organisation capable of responding to the longterm housing challenges facing this country 10
We want to disrupt the market We need to increase the number of people building homes, particularly SMEs and companies using Modern Methods of Construction. 11
Supporting new approaches Supporting MMC We re really positive about MMC and will use our land and finance to help scale it up. New technologies We will support a spectrum of MMC technologies through our activities to grow confidence in the sector. Flexibility We will increase flexibility on construction routes to achieve additional supply. 12
Delivering affordable homes We are working on delivering a significant increase in affordable housing supply. 13
Building an evidence base Deals Exploring a deals based approach to delivery with Housing Associations who are ready to work with us to establish a new framework for increased delivery looking at deals within current rules vs. deals with significant flexibility. Flexibility Delivering more flexibly through existing programme architecture (Continuous Market Engagement). Impact Reviewing and implementing short, medium and long term impact of new ways of working. 14
The Context for a new Framework Homes England needs more assurance on delivery and spend, and also to provide greater flexibility above our current programme to enable an increase in the scale and pace of housing delivered by Housing Associations. 15
300,000 homes by 2025 requires a step change in Housing Association delivery. 65,000 homes currently being delivered by HAs. 100,000 HA homes needed each year to meet demand with London and the South East being priority areas due to affordability challenges. 16
Affordability SE England 17
Proposed Solution We think Housing Associations could deliver more affordable housing if we move towards a series of strategic Housing Association deals. These deals could provide funding certainty across a wider portfolio of sites (with associated financial flexibilities and enhanced joint working) in return for guaranteed delivery against ambitious targets. They could also demonstrate the benefit of longer-term deals, by securing certainty across the current SOAHP 2018-21 programme, as well as outputs beyond the current SR period. The deals could be taken forward either on a national basis with large HA providers/groups of HAs or could be on a targeted geographical basis. Exploring flexibility within the current delivery model to enable all providers to deliver more in the context of policy changes and additional budget (e.g. Social Rent). 18
Types of deals scale and ambition Part of the consideration is the type of deal we could and want to agree both within the initial project and longer term: Type A Bespoke, multi-faceted deals In return for a significant increase in AH delivery and investment from HAs or consortia, Homes England designs a more ambitious package of funding, which could include: land assembly, planning support, partnership between HAs and Homes England and the relevant LA/MCA/CA. Type B - Based within the existing rules (with some flexibility) We could look to agree deals within existing programme parameters but with some agreed flexibility (for example, enabling tenures to be aligned to prevailing housing market conditions). This is likely to suit smaller HAs. 19
Next steps April May June Round table discussions to explore what a deal looks like. Candidates for early deal discussions identified with outline written proposal ( Wave 1). Refine wave 1 proposals, testing, Validation, dialogue as required.. Firm proposals in place. 20
Thanks Any questions? Get in touch if you d like to talk in more detail. Paul.kitson@homesengland.gov.uk Presentation template based on Olivia by SlidesCarnival (via Creative Commons Attribution license) 21