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Next Affordable Homes Programme will deliver 32,000 social rent homes, minister confirms
The next five-year Affordable Homes Programme (AHP) is set to deliver more than double the amount of social rent homes than the current programme, the housing minister has confirmed.
In an answer to a written parliamentary question, housing minister Christopher Pincher said the new AHP, due to run from this year till 2026, will deliver roughly 32,000 social rent homes outside of London. He said that this would double the amount of social rent homes funded when compared with the current programme; but we do not have updated numbers on social rent homes built up to 2021 yet.
The most recent government data on the AHP shows that between 2016 and 2019, just 3,583 homes for social rent were built using government grant outside of the capital.
This is in part due to funding rules that prohibited the use of AHP funding for social rent until 2017.
The next AHP is worth £11.5bn, £7.38bn of which will be delivered by Homes England outside of London and the rest to be delivered in the capital by the Greater London Authority (GLA).
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Homes England has previously confirmed that its share of the funding will be split 50/50 between homeownership products, predominantly shared ownership, and homes for rent, which will be a mix of social and affordable rent. In London, the GLA has confirmed that 50% of the homes funded under the AHP will be for social rent.
Under the current programme, Homes England will only fund social rent homes within ‘areas of high affordability pressure’, which are predominantly in London and the South of England.
Homes England said social rent homes can be provided outside of these areas as part of the next AHP, however providers in these areas cannot request a higher level of grant than they would for affordable rent.
This sparked anger from housing associations based in the North of England, which said the restrictions would see funding diverted to the South.
Mr Pincher’s response said: “We do not ringfence the funding for the AHP by tenure.
“As part of the AHP 21-26, social rent homes can now be funded across the country at the same grant rates as affordable rent.
“Additional funding to deliver social rent is available in local authority areas where affordability pressures are highest.
“This will ensure that social rent homes are built where they are most needed. The new AHP will deliver around 32,000 social rent homes, more than double the delivery of the current programme.”
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