Social housing boost for Greater Manchester and West Midlands

Construction of social housing in Greater Manchester and the West Midlands is set for a boost after the recent Budget.

Around £250 million will be ploughed into helping kick-start developments in the two regions as part of devolution plans put into place by the government.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt said the two regions will also “set the overall strategic direction, strategy, objectives and local leadership for the deployment of the [national] Affordable Homes Programme.”

The agreement will see also Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) and the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) take more responsibility for grant funding and distribution.

Manchester boost

In Manchester, funding of £150 million will be provided to the area’s local authorities to help get brownfield land ready for development of social housing and support GMCA plans to build 7,000 new homes over the next three years. As part of the agreement, GMCA will now have a greater say in selection of sites for social housing.

The agreement should benefit the 17 registered social landlords (RSLs) that make up the Manchester Housing Providers Partnership (MHPP). Members range from small local RSLs such as Mosscare St Vincents and Southway Housing Trust to some of the UK’s biggest social housing providers such as Great Places and Clarion.

Glenigan’s construction industry analysis has identified swathes of projects being developed by MHPP members.

Mosscare St Vincent recently secured planning permission for 42 flats at Saint Simon Street (Project ID: 22265571), while bids have just been submitted for Southway Housing Trust’s plans for 24 flats at Francis Road in Manchester (Project ID: 22317398).

Great Places is behind swathes of social housing schemes across Greater Manchester and recently secured planning permission to build 73 flats on a former car wash at King Street West in Stockport (pictured) (Project ID: 22343221).

Clarion applied to build more social housing across the UK than any other housebuilder in 2022 – a total of 1,707 homes according to Glenigan’s construction intelligence – and is behind major Manchester schemes such as the £195 million Old Brewery Gardens development (Project ID: 18040393).

West Midlands boost

In the West Midlands, there will be funding of £100 million to ready brownfield land for new social housing. As part of the agreement, there will be joint working between the government and the WMCA through the West Midlands Public Land Taskforce.

The main RSLs in the West Midlands according to Government guidance from 2020 are Citizen Housing (formerly WM Housing), Midland Heart, Shropshire Housing, Haig Housing and Stoll.

Glenigan’s construction industry research has identified a number of schemes on site and in pipeline at these RSLS.

Citizen is developing 600 homes at The Crescent in Kidderminster (Project ID: 17065386) and is planning 112 homes in a refurbishment William Malcolm House in Coventry (Project ID: 21419822).

Midland Heart has started procurement for development of 50 homes at Hill Top Farm in Earl Shilton, Leicestershire (Project ID: 20519919) and is waiting on planning over a second tranche of homes at Abbey Park Road in Leicester (Project ID: 23066373).

Shropshire Housing is particularly active in Oswestry. Plans were approved earlier this year for 20 houses and 12 flats at Fairfield Close (Project ID: 22416689) and an application has been made for 27 flats at Hammonds Place (Project ID: 23078687).

In this region and Greater Manchester, development of social housing should now be easier with RSLs having access to more funds to prepare sites.