The Week in Housing: AHP top-up, apprenticeship changes, and new cladding remediation enforcement unit

More than 100 sites in England have been put forward as part of the drive for the next generation of new towns. During a visit to a housing development this week, the prime minister unveiled plans for these sites, alongside funding boosts for planning, the environment and the Building Safety Regulator (BSR).

Sir Keir Starmer believes the plans will “pave the way for the largest housebuilding programme since the post-war era”.

Senior figures across the sector have largely welcomed the news. We rounded up some key responses here.

One Inside Housing columnist believes the news on the AHP cash and new towns shows some hopeful signs.

The BSR and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government revealed discussions about a dedicated unit to enforce cladding remediation.

Talk of a new unit follows previous reports that the BSR had signed off just 14% of developers’ remediation plans in 2023-24.

There were also calls last year from within the sector for the government to increase capacity at the BSR to address the significant delays to gateway application approvals.

On the issue of building safety, London Assembly members heard that confusion around second staircases and additional lifts in high-rise buildings is causing development delays across the capital.

Five MPs called for an urgent fraud investigation and independent inquiry over the “systemic failures” of the External Wall System 1 assessment process, which they said has left thousands of leaseholders in financial limbo.

Additional policy announcements by the government included Right to Manage changes for leaseholders being brought forward using secondary legislation.

Plus, it is hoped that changes to apprenticeships will encourage their take-up in the construction sector, helping the government to achieve its target of building 1.5 million homes.

This announcement came as part of National Apprenticeship Week. For which, Inside Housing spoke to an apprenticeship mentor about his role and his team of mentors who are guiding a new intake of apprentices through their first few months on the job.

We also spoke to the housing association offering trade skills to GCSE students, as part a new programme for teenagers where they can learn trade skills two days a week.

While much of the recent focus has been on new build capacity, an interesting analysis from Housemark revealed the social housing sector spent more than £1bn in 2023-24 on empty properties.

A report from the G15  highlighted how the largest landlords in London were responsible for community investment totalling £27.5m last year, which helped 320,000 people.

One London landlord was in court in Romford, where its attempt to evict an autistic resident has been paused so social services can explain how he will be rehoused if a possession order is made. This is a case that asks questions of the right level of support being provided.

The shortage of supported housing has been well documented of late. The National Housing Federation published a new analysis which found patients ready to be discharged collectively spent almost 300 years stuck in mental health hospitals in England last year.

The Housing Ombudsman reported a 100% increase in the number of case determinations for social housing residents in its latest annual report.

The English regulator also reported an increase for the second year in a row. But this was a rise in the fees providers pay to the Regulator of Social Housing to help it meet its expanded regulatory duties.

Under this remit, Flagship Housing Group had its governance rating upgraded to G1 by the regulator in its latest round of judgements.

The Northern Ireland Housing Executive revealed it will increase rents by 2.7% from April.

There is additional concern that the lack of water infrastructure capacity in Northern Ireland will take a decade to fix.

Just beyond the Brecon Beacons National Park, Carmarthenshire County Council approved a three-year, £282m housing investment plan as it looks to reduce its repairs backlog and build more homes.

New research in Wales found that up to 7,000 homes could be created if unused faith-owned buildings are redeveloped as social housing.

Finally, one major housing association is celebrating its 100th birthday this year. Inside Housing spoke to the chief executive about his ambitious plans for the future and why the next five years will be a significant milestone in the landlord’s history.

Have a great weekend.

Stephen Delahunty, news editor, Inside Housing

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