Homes England has announced that grant funding provided through the
Government’s Affordable Homes Programme 2021-26 can now be used to fund
replacement homes, alongside new affordable homes, as part of wider estate
regeneration plans.
This means that the housing and regeneration agency can better support its
partners to replace housing that is outdated and no longer fit-for-purpose,
with a larger number of high-quality, energy efficient new affordable homes.
Housing Minister Rachel Maclean said: “We remain committed to building the
affordable homes this country needs and a key part of this is improving the
quality and supply of social housing.
“The changes I am announcing today will unlock more affordable housing by
ensuring we replace old homes with ones that are fit for the future. This is
absolutely critical in helping us regenerate communities, speed up housing
delivery and provide high-quality homes for more families.
“I’ll continue to work with Homes England and developers to
get delivering through this scheme as quickly as possible.”
Peter Denton, Chief Executive of Homes England, said: “The affordable
housing sector has always had to balance the investment it makes in existing
homes with the investment in makes in building new homes. Over the past year,
increasing financial pressures have made achieving that balance even more
difficult to manage.
“This change is something the sector has been calling for, and with it there
is a real opportunity to accelerate the regeneration of social housing and help
level up communities across the country.
“We’ll be working quickly to make this funding available to
ensure partners can get the maximum benefit from this change, and are ready to
use all of the tools, capacity and capability we have available to us to
support delivery. We encourage all affordable housing providers and local
authorities to come and talk to us as early as possible if they need support to
develop their proposals – we’re here to help.”
This change to the Affordable Homes Programme has been agreed with the
Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, and is part of the
Agency’s wider efforts to help bolster the affordable housing sector and
maintain housing supply.
It also aligns with the agency’s five-year
strategic plan, published in May, which clarifies its mandate to drive
regeneration and housing delivery to create high quality homes and thriving
places across England.
Grant funding for estate regeneration is available to partners looking to
replace existing homes with new affordable homes and build additional new
affordable homes. Grant funding from the Affordable Homes Programme is also
still available to those looking to only build new affordable homes. Providers
can apply through Homes England’s continuous market engagement route, while
existing Strategic Partners will be able to use grant already allocated to
them.
The change will come into effect immediately and funding decisions will be
made on a regular basis up until the end of March 2025, subject to availability
of funding. Homes England is keen to see proposals that can deliver at pace,
maximise the number of new affordable homes, and enhance wider efforts to level
up and regenerate communities. All schemes must start on site by 31 March 2025
and will need to complete within the Affordable Homes Programme’s current
timeframes.
