Thousands of new council homes announced for London

The Mayor of London has agreed a deal with government to provide nearly £3.5bn for new homes with councils and housing associations across London in the first round of bidding for the Mayor’s five-year affordable housing programme.

The scheme is expected to deliver nearly 30,000 homes in the first round, with 57% of the houses for social rent, and will see 79,000 new homes started over the next five years in total.

This will build on the Mayor’s previous housebuilding programme, which has already started the construction of more than 72,550 affordable homes.

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: ‘I am delighted that we have been able to come to a deal with the Government to get started on nearly 30,000 genuinely affordable homes. Over the last five years I have overseen a council homes renaissance in London thanks to our relentless focus on giving boroughs the funding and expertise they need to build. I’m pleased to see this is now paying off with more than half the homes being funded at social rent levels in this deal being built by councils.

‘All Londoners deserve a safe, secure home with enough space to live comfortably, and private outside space to enjoy fresh air. I want to deliver a new generation of genuinely affordable housing in London that sets the standard nationally when it comes to excellent design, safety and sustainability. Today’s funding is good news but I know we can still go further, faster, working with ministers, housing associations and councils to deliver more of the homes Londoners so desperately need.’

The homes will be available at a mix of social rent, shared ownership and London Living Rent, which can help Londoners on average incomes into home ownership.

The Mayor also requires all homes built with the funding to meet new environmental standards, with all developments of ten or more homes expected to be net zero-carbon and incorporate sustainable urban green spaces.

Cllr Darren Rodwell, London Council’s executive member for housing and planning, added: ‘We urgently need more affordable homes in London – especially social housing. So it’s great news that this much-needed boost to housing delivery in the capital has been agreed. London boroughs are determined to play our part in making this happen. We want to see quality – as well as quantity – in the new homes built in our communities. We support this push for a new generation of affordable homes that London can be proud of.’

In related news, new analysis shows London needs to build 90-100,000 new homes each year to tackle the housing crisis – double the number currently being built according to recent government data.

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