Lowick’s Post

Yesterday's announcement by Deputy Prime Minister Angela marks a significant step forward in addressing the UK's housing crisis. The revised National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) outlines ambitious reforms aimed at increasing the annual housing targets to 370,000 homes and streamlining planning processes. These changes reflect many of the strategic aims detailed in our Manifesto for Growth.   Key Highlights from the Announcement:   - The government plans to uplift housing targets, particularly focusing on high-demand areas. - There is a commitment to ensuring that local plans cater to community needs and prioritise development on accessible 'Grey Belt' land. - A pledge to support necessary infrastructures such as schools and transport links alongside new developments.   At the Independent Networks Association (INA), we're particularly encouraged by these developments. Currently, 80% of new homes are connected through independent networks, which have consistently demonstrated the ability to energise homes more quickly than incumbents, thus speeding up the availability of new homes on the market.   Our members have long advocated for efficient and sustainable housing development that does not sacrifice the needs of local communities or environmental standards. The government's commitment to simplifying and accelerating clean energy developments aligns perfectly with our vision for a sustainable future, and we welcome these changes as a positive step forward for the industry and Great Britain as a whole.

🌍🏡 Building a Brighter Future for Housing in the UK! 🏡🌍 Today marks a pivotal moment in the UK House of Commons as Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Secretary Angela Rayner unveiled an ambitious plan to build 1.5 million homes over the next five years. This transformative initiative aims to prioritize locals and first-time buyers, reflecting Angela Rayner’s own journey growing up in a council house. Key Highlights: ✅ 1.5 Million New Homes: A bold commitment to tackle the housing crisis head-on. ✅ Focus on Locals & First-Time Buyers: Ensuring the new generation can step onto the property ladder. ✅ Potential Use of Green Belt Land: Balancing development with environmental considerations. While the plan has sparked enthusiastic support, especially for its innovative approach to green belt land and local housing targets, it has also raised questions about feasibility. Can the private sector and local planning capacities meet such an ambitious target? Beyond housing, this discussion opens a window into broader fiscal challenges: 💼 £22 Billion Deficit: A critical issue that needs addressing. 🏥 Public Spending on Healthcare and Salaries: Essential services that require sustainable funding. The debates underscore the complexities of policy-making and the necessity for transparent, economically sound decisions. Join the conversation and share your thoughts on this ambitious housing plan. How can we collectively support its success while ensuring economic stability? 🤔🏠💬 #HousingCrisis #UKHousing #FirstTimeBuyers #GreenBelt #EconomicStability #PublicSpending #AngelaRayner #FutureOfHousing

🏚𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗿𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺 𝗰𝗮𝗻'𝘁 𝘀𝗼𝗹𝘃𝗲 𝗨𝗞 𝗛𝗼𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗺 𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝘁'𝘀 𝗼𝘄𝗻🏚 Interesting article, arguing that planning reforms alone won’t solve the UK's housing crisis. While the government aims to build 1.5 million homes, the freeing up of green belt land risks urban sprawl and environmental damage. It suggests using brownfield sites, the need to link housing plans with transport, limiting car use and building near public transport. To truly tackle housing issues, the article calls for more affordable housing, tax reforms, and investment in planners. Overall, solving the housing crisis requires a broader approach that tackles housing, environment, and social inequalities together. What are your thoughts guys? Full article in the comments! #housing #planningreform #ukplanning

More Great news this weekend from Deputy Prime Minister, Angela Rayner. This Tuesday the Government are due to unveil their new National Planning Policy Framework. The plan for delivering Social and Affordable Housing at scale, 'starting this Autumn' is yet more positive talk for our new build sector. This needs to be backed in  Autumn Statement financially; as recent conversations with our EN members has indicated that most RPs have run out of money for new developments until 2026. #affordabelhousing #socialhousing Efficiency North EN:Able Futures EN:Able Build Limited Homes England

🚨 Reforming Planning for the Future of Housing 🚨 The new government has pledged to deliver 1.5 million homes over the next five years, with a focus on reforming the planning system in England and Wales. The Planning and Infrastructure Bill is packed with initiatives to support this ambitious goal, but the big question remains: Will these measures truly address the urgent need for affordable housing? Recently, The Hill Group hosted an Inside Housing roundtable discussion chaired by Martin Hilditch who was joined by a panel of industry experts including Andy Hill OBE, Group Chief Executive, to explore these critical issues. The debate was rich, focusing on the nuances of the proposed planning reforms and whether they go far enough to meet the social housing demands of the UK. The roundtable was an insightful look into the challenges ahead. Read the full article for expert perspectives on the future of housing in the UK: https://lnkd.in/ecXfisHS Special thanks to all the panellists who took part – Tom Titherington, Vicky Savage, Tom Oliver, Amy Shaw, Richard Jones, Neil Jefferson, Alan Harris and Prof. Stammira Milcheva. #Housing #AffordableHousing #PlanningReforms #Infrastructure #SocialHousing #UKPolicy #BuildingForTheFuture #TheHillGroup

A quick summary from Angela Raynor's statement just now in Parliament. Quite simply, this is one of the most ambitious and central workstreams of this government. Raynor talks about planning targets, ambition, rules on local authorities, and something that we will hear a lot in the next few years "Labour will get Britain building" She admitted some of what is being proposed is controversial but emphasised its urgency due to the acute housing crisis we have. (It is a housing affordability crisis!) She used her speech to criticise the Conservatives, saying they couldn't get anywhere near their target of 300,000 homes, but these plans she is proposing will be for 370,000. The point is coming across that it's now about how we deliver new housing, and not if. Local mandatory targets will be in place. There is a more strategic system in place for the green belt. Local authorities will have to review the green belt if they are to meet their goals. Fifty per cent of housing on the green belt will need to be affordable, but affordable for who, and is this genuinely affordable? This is a very ambitious program, and there will be legislation. This is the first step from the Government to solve the nation's #housingaffordabilitycrisis and probably more than any government has done for a long time.   Given the Chancellor's statement yesterday, I wonder who will pay for all the infrastructure and social housing we need. Will it work, I remain sceptical that they can meet these targets in the time frame they have set themselves, but with the urgent need for housing, I look forward to contributing to discussions and making the case for genuine community involvement to help shape where people live. Now to read the documents: https://lnkd.in/eNgNN2y3

Today the Chancellor set out the new Government's ambition to reform planning. These reforms are very welcome, but many will take time to impact on the UK's housing stock. That's why Kane Emerson and John Myers have set out three 'fast wins' to get Britain building. 1️⃣ Learn from Haringey Council and let residents build up. Gentle density is beautiful and practical, allowing home-owners to use their space more efficiently, and providing housing where it is most needed. 2️⃣ Street votes empower communities to encourage densification and value creation. Schemes have been enormously successful in Vancouver, Seoul and Tel Aviv. 3️⃣ Estate renewal should be a top priority for the new government. Ambitious renewal plans can fund new council homes for every existing resident through cross-subsidy, a win-win for councils and communities. Our planning system requires radical reform. But in the meantime, gentle densification can make a real, immediate difference to the UK's housing crisis. Read the full briefing: https://lnkd.in/ep9SJX6k

Encouraging that the new UK Government is focusing on finally "fixing" the country's housing shortage, https://lnkd.in/evSsyiGb But how? Is this a once in a generation opportunity to develop a holistic, strategic, national landscape-led vision for the UK? A vision that avoids repeating the catastrophic planning decisions of the past, yielding deep social inequality, poor investment, economic black-holes, plummeting public health outcomes, poor educational and life opportunities for the most disadvantaged and catastrophic environmental impacts that will only get worse. Let's have a grown-up conversation about planning so that these houses get built in the optimum locations, not just the easiest ones. Business as usual just won't cut it. Rt Hon Rachel Reeves, Richard Parker, Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, Kevin Lee, Lucy Caldicott, Kathryn Moore, Tony Juniper CBE #UKGovernment #HousingShortage #landscape #levellingup #climateemergency

“A sweeping overhaul of planning rules to trigger the building of many more affordable homes will be announced by the government this week.” “Deputy prime minister Angela Rayner will unveil a new National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) to MPs on Tuesday before they depart for the summer recess in a move that will strengthen requirements for far higher numbers of affordable homes to be built in areas of need, starting this autumn.” See The Guardian 👇 I think we can all welcome more affordable housing and improvements to the NPPF, but is The Labour Party able to align its Net Zero and climate action, environmental credentials with its Housing ambition? And how do we square the growing commercial viability challenge if we are to increase the numbers of affordable homes and force volume house-builders to shift towards more sustainable construction? Challenge on!! 🏡 ♻️ 🧱 🪵 🌱🧍♂️ #sustainabilityleadership SDG 8,9,11,12,13 +

🏘️ It’s election week and I'm glad that one of the major parties is open about the need to build on greenbelt land to meet housing demand. As Lichfields outlined in their 2022 report (link in the comments), there just isn’t enough brownfield land to meet housing needs in England. They found that: 🏠 Building to the full capacity of each designated site on the local authority Brownfield Registers would result in 1.4 million net dwellings. 🏠 This is less than a third of the 4.5 million new homes that will be needed in the next 15 years. 🏠 There is less brownfield land available in the areas where housing demand is highest. 🏠 Brownfield is expected to deliver many sites at higher densities, leaving little space for new family homes with gardens. So it seems inevitable that we are going to have to build on the greenbelt to meet future housing needs. Labour have highlighted that there are poor-quality areas in the green belt, dubbed "grey belt", that would be ideal for new housing and development. Building on this land would not come close to 'concreting over the countryside', as less than 6% of the UK is actually built on, including buildings, roads, airports, railways, etc. But if we are going to get anywhere near building 300,000 homes a year and easing the housing crisis, then we need a grown-up conversation about how we can deliver that. Can we just have some serious politicians back in the room who actually want to address this crisis that is gripping our country and hammering the younger generations? Please.