£39bn housing programme: what the latest funding announcement means for social and affordable housing in the North
New Government funding for social and affordable housing could provide a significant boost to housing delivery across the North of England, creating new opportunities for local authorities, housing associations and their delivery partners.
The first major allocations from the Government’s £39 billion Social and Affordable Homes Programme have now been announced, with substantial investment earmarked for regions including Greater Manchester, Liverpool City Region, West Yorkshire, South Yorkshire and the North East.
For a region where housing need, regeneration and economic growth are high on the agenda, the scale of investment represents an important opportunity to accelerate the delivery of much-needed new homes.
A major opportunity for Northern housing
The Social and Affordable Homes Programme will run from 2026 to 2036 and is intended to support the delivery of around 300,000 social and affordable homes nationally.
At least 60% of the homes delivered through the programme are expected to be for Social Rent, putting local authorities and housing associations at the heart of the Government’s ambitions.
For Northern towns and cities, the programme has the potential to support not only new housing delivery, but wider regeneration and placemaking.
From unlocking underutilised land and regenerating existing estates to supporting the growth of towns and cities, housing investment can act as a catalyst for wider economic and social benefits.
From funding to delivery
The challenge now is turning those funding commitments into completed homes.
Local authorities and housing providers will need to identify viable opportunities, develop robust business cases, secure additional investment where required and successfully navigate planning, procurement, design, building safety and construction.
Capacity will also be an important consideration. Delivering major housing programmes alongside existing investment priorities can place significant demands on internal teams, making access to experienced development and technical expertise increasingly important.
Taking a strategic approach at the outset can help ensure programmes are viable, deliverable and structured around the long-term needs of communities.
Supporting housing and regeneration across the North
For Airey Miller, the announcement comes as we continue to strengthen our own presence across the North of England.
Our growing team in the Manchester region gives us a permanent base from which to work more closely with local authorities, housing associations, developers, other partners across the North, as well as other Celnor Group member companies.
Having supported housing providers and local authorities for more than 30 years, we bring extensive experience in affordable housing, regeneration, project delivery and building safety. Our multidisciplinary teams provide services including project management, employer’s agent, building surveying, cost consultancy, principal designer, fire engineering and building safety.
Airey Miller has consistently supported the delivery of more than 1,000 public-sector residential homes every year since 2008, more than 18,000 housing completions over that period.
We also recognise that there is no single solution to increasing housing delivery. Through our Councils Building Homes initiative, Airey Miller has worked with councils from across the country to share knowledge and explore practical approaches to overcoming the financial, technical and delivery challenges associated with local authority housebuilding.
As greater investment flows into affordable housing across the North, collaboration between local authorities, housing associations, developers and their professional partners will be critical.
The funding provides an important opportunity. The focus now needs to be on turning that investment into viable programmes, successful regeneration and, ultimately, more high-quality homes for communities across the North.
