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Homes England to accept new strategic partnership bids
Homes England has announced that it will be accepting new applications for strategic partnerships as part of the Affordable Homes Programme (AHP) that begins next year.
In guidance released today for the £12bn grant programme, Homes England said it anticipates that it will be accepting proposals for strategic partnerships by the start of 2021.
Applications will be made through a competitive bidding process, in which bids will be assessed, scored and ranked based on a number of factors.
Strategic partners must commit to delivering at least 25% of their programme using modern methods of construction (MMC), while applications which “contribute to the government’s ambition to increase access to home ownership” will be prioritised.
First launched in 2018, strategic partnerships are long-term agreements between one or more housing associations and Homes England, through which funding is granted for an entire development programme rather than on a scheme-by-scheme basis.
It is one of two ways through which registered providers can access funding from the next AHP, the other being scheme-by-scheme bidding through continuous market engagement (CME).
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Under the current AHP, Homes England has formed 23 strategic partnerships with 27 housing associations – the majority of which are large landlords that own tens of thousands of homes.
In the new guidance, Homes England has said it is “committed to working with a diverse range of partners to establish bespoke partnering arrangements best suited to their needs”.
Inside Housing understands that existing partners will need to submit new bids to Homes England, taking into account the new policy requirements set out by the government around MMC and homeownership. Bids from new providers will be welcomed.
Existing partners will continue to deliver existing commitments up to 2023 and then submit new bids under the 2026 AHP.
Last year, existing strategic partners submitted bids for funding up until 2029, however the bidding process was put on hold as a result of the general election and the announcement of the shared ownership Right to Buy model.
Providers will be contacted to discuss the approach to bid for this 2029 funding. Inside Housing has asked Homes England to confirm whether this means that the old bids are no longer being considered.
Announced during the Spring Budget, the next AHP will run from 2021 to 2026 and will provide £7.4bn for affordable housing outside of London. Grant for London is managed by the Greater London Authority (GLA).
All schemes funded within the next programme through strategic partnerships must start on site by March 2026 and be completed by March 2028.
