How can we deliver the family-sized and accessible social homes London needs?

Viability is essential, as we all know without it sites cannot proceed. Too often though, appraisal models are driven by assumptions about sales values, grant rates and immediate returns that inadvertently disincentivise the very homes communities most urgently require.

Larger family homes occupy more floorspace, while fully wheelchair-accessible homes require more generous layouts and careful detailing. Both can appear less efficient when assessed only on number of homes per square foot.

If we want different outcomes, we need to change the framework within which decisions are made. Funding structures, grant levels and planning assessments all send powerful signals about what is truly valued. When family housing and inclusive design are treated as aspirations rather than a core part of the delivery, they are often the first elements to be diluted during planning and construction.

“While shared ownership and other intermediate tenures have an important role to play, the most acute pressure locally was for genuinely affordable rented homes of a size that could relieve overcrowding”

When they are embedded as clear priorities, and backed by collaborative problem-solving, the right homes for the community can finally be delivered. And context should be taken into consideration. If a local authority has a large proportion of families on its housing waiting list, the affordable element of a development should provide more family housing.

At Muse, we have seen what that shift can achieve at our Stroudley Walk neighbourhood in Bromley-by-Bow, Tower Hamlets. Delivered in partnership with Poplar HARCA and supported by the Greater London Authority, Stroudley Walk will provide 274 new homes once complete, with 50% affordable by habitable room. This is an important distinction as it allows the family housing to be entirely London Affordable Rent.

An early detailed assessment of local housing need identified a distinct shortage of larger homes for affordable rent, particularly three-bedroom properties suitable for families. While shared ownership and other intermediate tenures have an important role to play, the most acute pressure locally was for genuinely affordable rented homes of a size that could relieve overcrowding.

In response, 82 three-bedroom family homes at London Affordable Rent have already been delivered. In a borough where over 15,800 people live in overcrowded conditions and 28,469 households are on the housing waiting list, the demand for genuinely family-sized, adaptable housing is clear. These homes were designed from the outset to respond to that need.

Engagement with our registered provider partner, Poplar HARCA, also highlighted a significant number of families on the housing waiting list with autistic children. Inclusive design was therefore central to our approach.

Two affordable homes were co-designed with families with autistic children, shaping decisions about layout, storage, acoustics and access to outdoor space. One tenth of homes across the development are fully wheelchair-accessible.

These choices reflect early conversations about who the homes are for, and what would allow residents to thrive within the community they live.

“London’s housing crisis will not be solved by quantity alone. If we continue to focus narrowly on annual targets, we risk reproducing the same structural imbalances year after year”

Bringing the GLA on board as an active and collaborative partner alongside Poplar HARCA helped structure the plans to balance viability with social purpose. Grant funding, tenure mix and design ambition were aligned early in the process. That alignment created the headroom to deliver larger homes and higher accessibility standards without jeopardising deliverability.

Tenure mix remains critical, but it must reflect local evidence. At Stroudley Walk, an affordable provision with a combination of London Affordable Rent and shared ownership offered different routes into secure housing.

London’s housing crisis will not be solved by quantity alone. If we continue to focus narrowly on annual targets, we risk reproducing the same structural imbalances year after year: too few family homes, too little accessible housing and too many people living in unsuitable conditions.

Each site has its own constraints and opportunities, but Stroudley Walk demonstrates that if we align funding, policy and viability models with an honest assessment of local need, in partnership with councils, funders, developers and housing associations, we can begin to close the gap between targets on paper and community needs on the ground.

The question should not simply be whether we are building enough homes; it should be whether we are building the right homes that work for families, for residents with additional needs and for communities in the long term. Until we address that fundamental mismatch, the crisis will persist, no matter how many homes we count.

Isabelle Asante, development director, Muse