Council approves interim plan for more than 1,800 affordable homes

The interim plan also means it can respond to the “significant policy changes happening at a national, regional and local level”.

At the end of 2024, 1,811 affordable homes were “in active delivery” and are scheduled to be delivered by March 2028, the council said. 

Of these, 1,202 are for social rent, affordable rent and affordable private rent, while 609 are for shared ownership. Bristol City Council will deliver 259 new council homes and Goram Homes, its housing company, will build 335.

The current plan, Project 1000, runs until March 2025 and set a target for the city to deliver 1,000 affordable homes a year by 2024.

Around 500 homes are forecast to be delivered in 2024-25, with a total of 1,416 set to be delivered over the plan period of 2022 to 2025.

The council said that while this fell short of the target, there had been an increase in delivery compared to the previous three years, when 1,046 affordable homes were delivered.

Plus, 607 new affordable homes had been built in the city in 2023-24, delivered through partnerships with providers, the council house development programme and the private development sector.

The current future pipeline of around 46 sites could produce a further 1,400 new affordable homes.

The interim plan also set out “important officer delegations in terms of decision-making and approvals” to make sure decisions are made efficiently.

Social rent homes remain the council’s priority for delivery. There are currently more than 21,000 households on the housing waiting list in Bristol.

Barry Parsons, chair of the council’s Homes and Housing Delivery Committee, said: “High house prices, rents and energy bills make the city unaffordable for many. We urgently need to build new high-quality affordable homes that are safe, contribute positively to health and well-being, address the climate emergency, and help to build resilient communities.

“Building homes is not just about the numbers. It is about investing in our neighbourhoods and communities to create places where residents can thrive.

“We also recognise that we can make better use of existing housing stock to deliver more affordable and specialist housing, working with partners to acquire, remodel and regenerate buildings across Bristol.”

Earlier this year, Inside Housing reported that Bristol City Council is considering withdrawing from a contract between its wholly owned housing company and house builder Vistry, with the aim of selling the homes to a housing association.