Angela Rayner, Deputy Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, has pledged to deliver the biggest boost to affordable, social, and council housing in a generation, aiming to build 1.5 million new homes.
And in her first speech as Chancellor, Rachel Reeves said the Government was prepared to make “tough” choices on growth to increase living standards across the UK. She claimed Labour was willing to take the brunt of short-term “political pain” on issues such as housebuilding to “fix Britain’s foundations”.
The Chancellor said a set of new planning rules would help businesses build key infrastructure.
In the King’s Speech on July 17, a new Planning and Infrastructure Bill was announced to modernise planning committees and boost capacity in local authorities. Rules around compulsory purchase of land will be reformed which should make council and social housing development more viable.
Section 21 no fault evictions will be banned and a right to challenge rent hikes was also included.
The Renters’ Rights Bill will introduce a new Housing Ombudsman for the private rented sector giving tenants greater rights and protections. It promises quicker, cheaper resolutions when there are disputes between private landlords and tenants and a fair, impartial, and binding resolution while reducing the need to go to court.
There are also plans for leasehold reform and to extend the Decent Homes Standard to the private rented sector.
We are excited by the ambitions of the new government and will be watching progress very closely.
Local housing news
Our supported housing service provides homes for 104 people who are homeless, and we have 23 affordable long-term homes for individuals, couple, and families in housing need.
Our supported housing provides a stable place for people to live for up to two years while they work with a Launchpad support worker to break the cycle of homelessness and tackle the issues that are holding them back (this could be substance misuse or money worries).
In the last three months, we have successfully moved on ten Launchpad clients to independent accommodation. These are people who have worked towards independent living and were ready to move on thanks to a mixture of their own determination and our support.
We offer all who move on successfully eight weeks of resettlement support, helping them set up their bills, acquiring white goods and bedding, ensuring they get off to the best possible start in their new life.
Because of the lack of affordable housing in Reading, Launchpad has been looking at ways that we can fill the gap so we can help our clients who are ready to move on – and anyone else in Reading who is struggling to find a short-term tenancy. Last year, thanks to the generosity of our donors and funders, we were able to buy two properties in central Reading, and refurbish the 10 rooms and one studio flat to the high standard our tenants expect.
This year, we have added these properties to Reading Borough Council’s Rent Guarantee Scheme, which is a way of helping people who can’t afford a deposit to access to private rented accommodation and provides assured shorthold tenancies.
Earlier this year we also took on the lease of a property with eight rooms which will become part of our supported housing scheme.
As a result of this new lease, we will add another of our current supported housing homes to the RGS scheme – helping more people to move on.
Reference:
Rachel Reeves Brings Back Compulsory Housebuilding Targets To Boost UK Growth (politicshome.com)
Inside Housing – Insight – 6 things we learned from the King’s Speech 2024