There were 16,955 housing starts on site and 14,792 housing completions delivered through programmes in England in the six months to 30th September, according to the latest figures from Homes England.

Levels of starts were the highest for 10 years and levels of completions are the second highest they have been since 2011.

Affordable homes boost

A significant 73 per cent of housing starts on site in this period were for affordable homes. This represents an increase of 24 per cent on the 9,893 affordable homes started in the same period last year. Numbers of affordable starts were the highest for over 10 years.

Andrew Southern, chairman of property developer Southern Grove, said: “The industry is providing affordable homes at an increasingly rapid rate and this is one of the most important trends in house building right now.

“Affordable housing is a growing focus for both private companies and those responsible for spending government support wisely because of the disconnect between property prices and the scale of housebuilding being achieved nationwide.

“In some areas such as London, where house prices are least affordable, this socially conscious initiative has already become an essential strategy.”

Joseph Daniels, founder of modular developer Project Etopia, added: “There is a long way to go to plug the hole in England’s housing deficit, but Homes England is chipping away at it at an ever-growing rate, reaching a 10-year high for starts on new homes.

“In particular it is making much-needed inroads in affordable housing levels, which represents more than 70% of its work.

“The 24% growth in affordable home starts, compared to the same time period last year, indicates that Homes England is succeeding in driving delivery forward in that area of the market. Its efforts bode well for the coming year with a bumper rise in completions expected to follow.”