Labour’s Housebuilding Targets Set To Double

Labour’s proposed reforms to planning regulations could lead to a significant rise in housebuilding targets across Herefordshire and Worcestershire. Under these new plans, local councils would be required to approve the construction of 5,337 new homes annually, a marked increase from the previous target of 2,706 homes.

Photo by Ambitious Studio* | Rick Barrett on Unsplash

In July, Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Secretary Angela Rayner announced Labour’s ambitious goal of delivering 1.5 million new homes by 2029. The proposed reforms, which are currently out for consultation, have been met with mixed reactions. While housing developers have welcomed the changes, some local Conservative MPs and Liberal Democrat councillors have criticised the “top-down” approach.

Andy Faizey, a director at Worcester-based Lioncourt Strategic Land, expressed support for the reforms, describing them as a “marked change… a change for the better.” Lioncourt is currently developing 120 new homes on the outskirts of Rushwick, a village near Worcester, with 40% of the properties classified as affordable housing. Faizey highlighted the government’s recognition of the need to address the UK’s economic challenges through increased housing construction. However, he also cautioned that local planning authorities and committees could pose significant challenges to meeting these targets. “Government will set its targets and that’s great… but when you get down to a local level it’s how local planning authorities and planning committees deal with those planning applications,” he said.

Lioncourt’s development in Rushwick only received approval after the company successfully appealed a local council decision.

Affordability remains a pressing issue in Herefordshire and Worcestershire, where in 2023, average house prices were about ten times the average earnings across much of the two counties. Rayner has urged council leaders to embrace their “moral obligation to see more homes built.”

According to Labour’s proposals:

  • Bromsgrove would need to deliver 704 new homes annually, an 82% increase on the current target.
  • Herefordshire would see an expected delivery of 1,375 homes per year, a 78% rise.
  • Redditch would be tasked with building 489 new homes annually, a staggering 242% increase.
  • Wyre Forest’s target would rise to 617 homes, representing a 192% increase.
  • The combined target for the South Worcestershire councils—Malvern Hills, Wychavon, and Worcester—would be 2,152 new homes each year, an 80% increase.

In Pinvin, a village in Worcestershire, teaching assistant Gemma Lawe recently secured social housing and described herself as “lucky” to have found an affordable home. A single mother, Lawe had been renting privately in Essex before receiving a Section 21 eviction notice from her landlord, forcing her to return to Worcestershire to be closer to family. After struggling to find affordable private rentals in both Essex and Worcestershire, she joined the social housing waiting list last year. “I think you have to build homes for people’s needs,” she said.

However, not everyone agrees that the new targets will address the shortage of affordable housing. On the same road where Lawe now lives, 13 socially rented properties remain unfinished after the developer encountered financial difficulties. Rooftop, the housing association responsible for the site, has confirmed it is searching for a new contractor to complete the work.

Local Liberal Democrat councillor Dan Boatright-Greene argued that the situation reflects broader issues in the housing sector. He criticised the new “arbitrary” targets, arguing that they do not address local needs and that councils should be given greater powers to build affordable housing themselves. “We’ve got a massive shortage of social housing… in the Pershore area we’ve got 1,000 families who are sat on the register… and we’ve got half-finished homes,” he said. Boatright-Greene contended that the focus should be on constructing homes for those who need affordable rental options. “We have a huge number of people who want to rent, who are looking for social houses. Those are the houses we need to build first.”

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