List of approved partners

23/03/06:  Media contacts: Katy Nicholson/Naomi Evans/Sandra White   on 020 7393 2115/2118/2094        

Ref: 26/06

The Government has today announced it is investing nearly £4bn over the next two years in the Housing Corporation’s National Affordable Housing Programme (NAHP) to deliver 84,000 new homes.

The investment of £3.9bn for 2006-08 is 15 per cent up on the last two years, and the projected creation of new affordable homes is up by 33 per cent, meaning 84,000 new affordable homes being provided across England, 21,000 more than in 2004-2006.

The funding boost also reflects yesterday’s budget proposals to help young people, particularly first time buyers, get a foot on the housing ladder, with an increased allocation of £970 million through the NAHP to deliver 35,000 new low cost home ownership properties over the next two years.  In addition there is a significant increase in new social housing to help those who can’t afford to rent, with 49,000 social rented homes to be built during the same period.

Housing Minister Yvette Cooper said: “We need more affordable homes, both for families to rent and for first time buyers as well.  This Programme will significantly increase affordable housing as part of the Government’s plans to build new homes for the next generation.”

This step change has been created by four factors: further development of the Partnership approach which has delivered additional efficiency gains, new rigorous bid assessment procedures developed by the Housing Corporation, increased competition with private sector developers able to bid for public money for the first time, and support from lenders for a new Homebuy shared equity option.

The successful private sector organisations were named today as Barratt, Bellway, Gentect, Lovell, Persimmon, Taylor Woodrow and George Wimpey.

Housing associations have been particularly successful in meeting the challenges of this bid round.  Of the 81 Partners announced today, 74 are led by housing associations, either alone or in consortia.

While 49,000 of the new homes are for affordable rent, 35,000 are for Low Cost Home Ownership, which will be delivered by three new Homebuy options developed by the Government and the Housing Corporation. 

Commenting on the announcement, Housing Corporation Chairman Peter Dixon welcomed the involvement of the private sector and praised housing associations for raising their game so successfully:

“All our Partners are to be congratulated for their commitment to best value as well as quality, to create this programme.  Increased Government commitment, the competitive environment, our new assessment tools, and the evolving gains delivered by our Partnership approach have all combined to increase the number of much-needed homes for people who cannot afford market housing.

“This major investment in affordable housing right across England meets local priorities in each area, and will be delivered within the context of existing and planned infrastructures to create sustainable communities where people choose to live and stay.”

Pete Redfern, Chief Executive of housebuilder George Wimpey, welcomed the announcement, saying: “We are delighted that the award of this grant recognises the quality of George Wimpey's work, and our commitment to delivering affordable homes.  Amongst private developers, there is an increasing commitment to drive quality and value for money and, at the same time, increase the supply of affordable housing.”

The £3.9 billion programme also gives provision for new rural housing to support smaller communities, and supported housing for elderly and vulnerable people.  The shortfall in larger homes, particularly in London, has been addressed to meet the Government’s national target, ensuring that nearly 35% of new London homes will meet the needs of families.

The new homes will meet the EcoHomes rating of “Very Good”, emitting 6% less Carbon Dioxide than those built under the latest 2006 Building Regulations and delivering further savings on utility bills for residents.  They are all required to meet specific design standards, and half will be built using Modern Methods of Construction. 

The programmes are in addition to other housing support including that delivered by planning obligations (Section 106) without grant funding.

Further information for the media is available from the Housing Corporation press office, contacts Katy Nicholson on 020 7393 2115, Naomi Evans on 020 7393 2118 or Sandra White on 020 7393 2094

Ends.

Notes to editors:

1. A full list of the successful Partners is given below.
2. Government funding for the Housing Corporation’s 2004-06 round totalled £3.3 billion, to deliver 63,000 homes.   Funding for 2006-08 has risen by 15% to total £3.9 billion, which is set to deliver 84,000 homes – a rise of 33%.  As a result Public Spending per affordable home created by the Programme is set to drop from an average of around £52,000 in 2004-06 to £46,000 in 2006-08, with the balance from private sector lenders.
3. Estimated regional outputs are as follows:
• East Midlands – 5,300 homes, delivered with around £166 million
• East of England – 10,250 homes, delivered with around £356 million
• London – 28,650 homes, delivered with around £1.7 billion
• North East – 1,550 homes, delivered with around £82 million
• North West – 5,150 homes, delivered with around £224 million
• South East – 18,000 homes, delivered with around £744 million
• South West – 7,600 homes, delivered with around £281 million
• West Midlands – 4,900 homes, delivered with around £198 million
• Yorkshire and Humberside – 2,600 homes, delivered with around £138 million
4. The three new HomeBuy products are as follows:
• Social Homebuy – for existing council and housing association tenants, to help more people buy their current homes;
• New Build HomeBuy – to help key workers and other eligible families and individuals to buy a share of a newly built home; and
• Open Market HomeBuy – to help key workers and other eligible families and individuals to buy a home on the open market using their own mortgage capability combined with an equity loan. 
  The Housing Corporation will oversee the work of the housing associations acting as the designated HomeBuy agents in each given geographic area.  HomeBuy Zone Agents were announced by the Housing Corporation in January 2006, press release ref: 06/06.
5. Reflecting well-evidenced local needs, a total of 11,789 of the proposed new homes will be 3-bed or larger.
6. The funding process under the Corporation’s National Affordable Housing Programme (NAHP) begins when Regional Housing Boards prepare regional housing strategies to identify the priorities for housing in their region.  Central Government approves the recommendations and allocates the funds to the Housing Corporation for allocation to its developing ‘Partners’.  Potential ‘Partner’ organisations are then invited to bid for a share of the funding, via a two-stage bid process.  As part of this process the Housing Corporation submits its final allocation decision which meets the priorities identified by the RHB, to the Housing Minister to approve.
7. Traditionally, the Housing Corporation’s development ‘Partners’ have been not-for-profit Housing Associations, working in partnership with household name private developers.  For the first time under the 2006-08 programme, Private developers have been invited to bid for public money direct, in order to drive quality and maximise value for money and the number of homes built.
8. As well as managing the Government’s investment in new affordable homes, The Housing Corporation regulates over 1500 Housing Associations across England.  Between them, these Associations own or manage over 2 million affordable homes.  More information is available at www.housingcorp.gov.uk.  The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM) is the Corporation’s sponsoring Department.  More information about ODPM can be found at www.odpm.gov.uk.
   

Approved Partners for the Housing Corporation's 2006-08 National Affordable Housing Programme