Skip to content

Date published: 08 October 2017

Yesterday’s Housing White Paper is a step in the right direction and indicates a shift in Government housing strategy towards a more balanced approach to building new homes that meets the needs of people in all financial circumstances. It is good to see a focus now on creating more low-cost rental homes as well as proposals to speed up housing construction and free up public land and brownfield sites for more affordable housing across all tenures.

"We welcome the clarity on the Government’s position that housing associations belong in the private sector, and we look forward to understanding more about plans to implement the necessary deregulatory measures to allow housing associations to be classified as private sector bodies once more. We also await with interest, for further details on the new rent policy for the period beyond 2020.

"Housing associations are responsible for almost a third of all new homes built in England, making a significant contribution to tackling the housing crisis and creating thousands of new jobs in the construction industry. Stonewater is pleased that the Communities Secretary, Sajid Javid MP, has recognised the vital role housing associations play in delivering the right mix of housing where it is most needed. We look forward to responding to the Housing White Paper consultation shortly."

Nicholas Harris, Chief Executive, Stonewater

Nicholas Harris, Chief Executive, Stonewater