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92% of councils not meeting affordable housing needs, says thinktank
Almost all local authorities are failing to deliver enough affordable housing, according to a new report.
The study, by progressive thinktank the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR), warned that 92% of councils are not meeting affordable housing need in their areas.
It found that affordable housing represented the biggest delivery challenge – with two-thirds, or 67%, of authorities failing to meet overall housing demand in 2015/16.
The report called on chancellor Philip Hammond to make further investment in affordable housing at the Budget later this month, including through allowing councils to take on extra borrowing in order to build new homes.
And researchers said that sub-market housing products such as affordable rent and shared ownership are becoming increasingly out of reach for low and middle-income earners in most areas.
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The study examined affordable housing markets in four combined authority areas – Greater Manchester, West Midlands, Tees Valley and the West of England.
It found that Tees Valley was the only area where affordable housebuilding met need estimates, while Greater Manchester misses its target by 4,518 homes a year, or 42%.
The West Midlands and the West of England fall short by 2,812 and 1,060 affordable homes a year respectively.
Luke Murphy, senior research fellow at IPPR, said: “The decades-long failure to build enough homes has seen housing become ever more unaffordable.
“But as this report makes clear, it’s not just about how many homes are built but how affordable they are, too.
“The chancellor should use the Autumn Budget to provide city region mayors and local authorities with the powers and resources they require to build the affordable homes their communities need.”
The IPPR said the government should adopt a 35% affordable housing threshold for all private developments, with a 50% minimum on public land.
And it recommended that combined authorities set up housing companies to bring forward land for affordable development, as well as being devolved greater funding powers by ministers to help boost supply.
Researchers calculated the 92% figure by applying the 35% affordable housing requirement to the government’s new estimate of housing need in each local authority area studied.
