The Week in Housing: Warm Homes Plan revealed alongside new build design guidance

Stronger regulation is mostly welcomed across the sector, but often leaves landlords facing difficult choices in how they prioritise their new and existing stock targets. That’s why sector leaders have called for more pragmatism from the Welsh government on the housing quality standards, which they said can hinder landlords’ development plans.

In Northern Ireland, the government announced it will pay for energy efficiency upgrades in 1,000 low-income homes after adding £2m to the country’s Sustainable Energy Programme.

For new homes, the government also published a raft of design guidance that places focus on quality and places that are resilient to climate change.

The guidance marks another attempt to boost housebuilding figures, as Homes England revealed that strategic partners are likely to start receiving grant payments from October under the new Social and Affordable Homes Programme.

The government’s delivery plans came under scrutiny this week during an MP-led inquiry session, where housing secretary Steve Reed insisted he will hold developers to the government’s target of 40% affordable housing in its flagship new towns, but said he cannot give any “cast-iron guarantees”.

Westminster and the Greater London Authority (GLA) also heard why there will be challenges enforcing the new regulations set out in the Renters’ Rights Act. Representatives from renters’ advocacy groups raised fears with GLA members that authorities will be unable to enforce new regulations set out in the act, including the ban on Section 21 no-fault evictions.

At the same time, Alison McGovern, minister for local government and homelessness, said she will be “on the hunt” for local authorities where guidance on out-of-area placements needs to be strengthened.

Inside Housing was also in Westminster to interview Paula Barker, who was briefly shadow homelessness minister before Labour came to power, and is now advocating for homelessness from the back benches. She sets out how Labour can “get our sh*t together” on homelessness here.

In a moving interview, Paul Dolan told Inside Housing how he had to partially step back as chief executive of Riverside after finding out he had bowel cancer only two weeks into the job, and shared the launch of his year-long fundraising campaign to raise money for a children’s cancer charity with a housing angle.

We also took a tour of one of Riverside’s developments under construction to find out more about the landlord’s 1,000-a-year development and regeneration plans.

Big news in Scotland came as the government announced plans to create a new public body to drive up housebuilding, with a focus on large-scale affordable housing developments.

The More Homes Scotland executive agency will be set up next year and will be “fully functional” by 2028-29. As well as affordable schemes, the body will prioritise rural and island housing, land acquisition and release and infrastructure work to progress stalled sites.

A date was also set for Awaab’s Law to come into force in Scotland: 6 October this year. This came after the Scottish government launched a call for evidence to help “set the agenda” for its planned review into fire safety standards in buildings.

The Chartered Institute of Housing argued for housing to be embedded in the government’s plans for a National Care Service, as part of its evidence to an independent commission.

There was an interesting ruling from the Supreme Court, which found in favour of Hexagon Housing Association in its dispute with a contractor over late payments.

There was no shortage of regulatory and legal updates this week, as the London borough at the centre of an ongoing housing fraud investigation – Operation Chandrila – revealed that some of the properties involved were being illegally sublet on Airbnb.

The Housing Ombudsman is consulting on its role in new requirements allowing tenants to request information from their landlord about the management of their homes.

Finally, the Regulator of Social Housing is considering using its powers to remove a small South West landlord from its register after it failed to resolve “serious regulatory concerns”.

Have a great weekend.

Stephen Delahunty, news editor, Inside Housing

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