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Government will directly commission the building of new homes

Christina Hoghton
Written By:
Christina Hoghton
Posted:
Updated:
27/02/2024

13,000 new homes are to be built on publicly-owned land, says Cameron

The Government plans to directly commission 13,000 new homes to be built on publicly-owned land.

The plans offer smaller building companies the chance to build on government sites where planning permission is already in place, with up to 40% of the new homes quota already reserved for affordable starter homes.

Cameron said: “Today’s package signals a huge shift in government policy. Nothing like this has been done on this scale in three decades – government rolling its sleeves up and directly getting homes built.

“Backed up with a further £1.2bn to get homes built on brownfield sites, it shows we will do everything we can to get Britain building and let more people have the security that comes with a home of their own.”

Government figures suggest the top eight house builders provide 50% of new homes. The direct commissioning approach will support smaller builders and new entrants who are ready to build but lack the resources and access to land, it said.

The new plan for direct commissioning on publicly owned land will be piloted in five sites in the south and south east.

Brian Berry, chief executive of the Federation of Master Builders (FMB), said: “When it comes to building new homes, the availability of small sites is the single biggest barrier to SME house builders increasing their output.
Any measures that the government can introduce that will increase the number of small sites suitable for SME house builders will help address the housing shortfall.

“It is also encouraging that the majority of these sites will already have planning permission in place as obtaining permission is all-too-often a lengthy and protracted process – avoiding this time delay should help house builders increase their supply much more quickly.”