Newcastle Labour has welcomed a major new Government investment in social and affordable housing, which will see hundreds of millions of pounds directed towards building new homes across the North East.
The Government has today launched the first wave of its £39 billion Social and Affordable Homes Programme, with £9.58 billion being allocated to 33 strategic partners across England. The funding will support more than 70,000 new social and affordable homes, with nearly two-thirds expected to be for social rent.
The North East is expected to benefit from around £445 million of investment, supporting approximately 3,400 new homes across the region.
Newcastle Labour says the announcement represents a major opportunity to deliver more genuinely affordable homes in the city and has called on Newcastle City Council’s Liberal Democrat administration to work closely with the Government, North East Mayor Kim McGuinness, Homes England and housing providers to ensure Newcastle secures the maximum possible benefit.
For the first time, councils outside London will also be able to become Strategic Partners, giving them direct access to long-term funding and putting local authorities back at the heart of building new council homes.
The programme aims to ensure at least 60% of the homes delivered over its ten-year lifetime are for social rent, helping provide secure and genuinely affordable homes for families who might otherwise face high private rents or lengthy waits for housing.
Leader of Newcastle Labour, Cllr Ged Bell, said:
“Everyone deserves a safe, secure and affordable place to call home, and this investment is a huge opportunity for Newcastle and the wider North East.
“The £445 million expected to be invested across our region can help deliver thousands of much-needed new homes, including homes for social rent.
“Newcastle Labour wants to see our city getting its fair share of that investment. We are calling on the Liberal Democrat administration to work constructively with the Labour Government, Kim McGuinness and partners across the city to bring forward ambitious plans and get more council and affordable homes built in Newcastle.
“Labour councillors will support every constructive effort to secure investment, tackle housing need and give more Newcastle families the security of a decent home.”
Prime Minister Andy Burnham said:
“No child should be raised in a hostel room and no family should wait ten years for a front door of their own. I have said from my first day in this job that everything starts with a good home.
“Nearly £10 billion will go to councils and housing associations to build genuinely affordable homes, most of them for social rent, in the places where families are waiting longest.
“Councils built this country out of a housing crisis once before. Backed properly, and trusted to get on with it, they will do it again.”
The Government has also introduced a series of measures designed to help councils build again, including allowing them to retain 100% of receipts from Right to Buy sales and providing £46 million over three years to strengthen councils’ housebuilding skills and capacity.
The £9.58 billion announced today is only the first major wave of funding, with more than £16 billion still to be allocated outside London during the lifetime of the programme. Future funding rounds are expected to prioritise social rent and council housebuilding.