Affordable homes top 260,000 mark

16 Jun 2015 09:54 AM

New figures released today (16 June 2015) have revealed that more than 260,000 affordable homes have been delivered since April 2010.

Housing Minister Brandon Lewis hailed the efforts and said work had already started on delivering a further 275,000 homes with £38 billion public and private investment for the Affordable Homes Programme in the next 5 years.

Today’s figures show that nearly 60,000 affordable homes were delivered in the last year alone – a rise of 63% on the previous year.

This means the government’s 2011 to 2015 Affordable Homes Programme has exceeded expectations, delivering nearly 186,000 affordable homes since April 2011 – 16,000 more than originally planned.

In total, government figures show that 263,600 affordable homes have been delivered since April 2010, providing a real boost to families across the country.

Housing Minister Brandon Lewis said:

This government is determined to ensure anyone who works hard and aspires to own their own home should have the opportunity to turn their dream into a reality.

Our affordable housebuilding efforts are exceeding our ambitions and delivering more than 260,000 affordable homes. It’s a boost to families across the country, providing them with new quality homes that are available at an affordable rent or to buy through our shared ownership scheme.

This is real progress but we know there is more to do. That’s why £38 billion of public and private investment will be made available over the next 5 years to deliver 275,000 extra affordable homes – the fastest rate of delivery for 20 years.

The Affordable Homes Programme includes social rented homes, affordable rented homes and affordable home ownership schemes, and is a key part of the government’s long-term economic plan.

Nearly a third of affordable homes delivered last year were in London.

Council areas that have seen some of the biggest numbers of affordable homes delivered since 2010, include:

• Cornwall – 3,750
• Birmingham – 3,460
• Wiltshire – 3,420
• Leeds – 2,360
• Liverpool – 2,270
• Manchester – 2,160

The government is committed to getting Britain building and providing new homes for hard-working families across the country. This has seen:

• more than 570,000 new homes built since April 2010
• planning permissions for 253,000 new homes in the last year to December
• housing starts at their highest annual level since 2007
• housing construction orders almost doubled since 2009
• more council houses built since 2010 than in the previous 13 years
• number of empty homes across England at lowest rate since records began
• the number of first-time buyers at a 7-year high

Further information

The latest affordable housing statistics are published today (table 1012).

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