You are viewing 1 of your 1 free articles
More than 80,000 fewer homes to be delivered this year due to coronavirus, analysis finds
Shelter is calling on the government to accelerate funding for affordable homes after a new analysis carried out by Savills predicted that housing delivery is set to fall by a third this year.
The analysis, which was carried out by Savills on behalf of Shelter, estimates that just 171,000 homes will be delivered in 2020/21, compared to 255,000 in 2019/20.
Savills predicts that over a five-year period, roughly 218,000 homes will be lost as a result of the pandemic, including 41,000 affordable homes, of which 4,600 would be for social rent.
It is estimated that just 4,300 social rent homes will be delivered during this financial year, which would be the lowest number of social homes built in any year since World War II.
The analysis comes as the prime minister is expected to announce plans for Britain to build its way out of the economic slump caused by months of coronavirus lockdown.
Shelter is calling on the government to bring forward the £12.2bn it has committed to spending over the next five years via the Affordable Homes Programme.
READ MORE
The charity said spending the funding over the next two years on building social homes could help to plug the housing delivery gap and save tens of thousands of jobs.
Savills has estimated that 116,000 construction jobs could be lost by 2020/21 because of the impact of coronavirus on the housebuilding industry.
The analysis suggests that an initial dip in housebuilding will be down to a reduction in capacity on building sites that have been forced to introduce social distancing measures.
However, Savills also predicts further decreases in activity due to a reduced demand for market sale homes, combined with a heavy reliance on private sector house builders.
Polly Neate, chief executive of Shelter, said: “As the government prepares a major push on infrastructure and investment, it has a perilously short window to avert a lengthy housebuilding crash that will wipe out tens of thousands of new homes and jobs.
“By bringing forward planned spending and building social housing, the government has the chance to avert disaster.
“There are over a million households on social housing waiting lists, and even more likely to join them as the recession bites – making the case for social homes self-evident. The pandemic has shown that a safe home is fundamental, but just not enough people have one.
“As part of the prime minister’s ‘build, build, build’ speech tomorrow, he should bring forward the spending promised under the Affordable Homes Programme. This would stimulate the economy, save jobs, and most importantly provide the social homes we urgently need. We can and we must build this country back better.”
A Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government spokesperson said: “Last year we delivered over 241,000 new homes across England – more than at any point in the last 30 years.
“Building the homes the country needs is central to the mission of this government and is an important part of our plans to recover from the impact of the coronavirus.
“That’s why we’re rethinking the planning system from first principles and spending £12bn on affordable housing from 2021, the biggest cash investment in a decade.”
