Homes England launches Strategic Plan

Homes England has launched its next five-year Strategic Plan, setting out how it will support the delivery of more good quality, affordable homes alongside the regeneration of towns and cities across England.

There has been a notable shortage of housing across the country over a number of years, with government seeking to address the problem through strategies including releasing land, supporting brownfield regeneration with infrastructure and dialogue with development partners.

Some £16Bn of government funding backs the Strategic Plan, with sustainability, decency and good design at its heart, the updated plan is both a call-to-arms and an offer to the entire housing and regeneration sector. It sets out how, working with its partners, the Agency can deliver a revitalised built environment across England that serves the needs of all communities.

The strategic plan also commits Homes England to working in a more place-based way – tailoring its powers, funding, expertise and technical capacity to the specific challenges faced in different parts of the England. This will build on Homes England’s strategic place partnership with Greater Manchester, and a stream of similar partnerships the Agency will be establishing over the following months, including in the West Midlands.

Chair of Homes England, Peter Freeman, said: “There is no doubt that housing plays an enormous role in the wellbeing and prosperity of our country. As an Agency, we firmly believe that affordable, quality homes in well-designed places are key to improving people’s lives. And our updated strategic plan has been designed to enable us to deliver against that.

“Over the next five years, we will continue to work with housebuilders of all shapes and sizes to boost housing supply. But we will also focus on the places those homes sit in, working ever more closely with local leaders and other partners to build communities as well as housing, be it through housing-led, mixed-use regeneration or new settlements.

“This is a pivotal moment for Homes England as we reaffirm our role as the Government’s housing and regeneration agency and go even further in helping to create the thriving places of the future.”

Rachel Maclean, Minister for Housing, said: “Creating high-quality and sustainable homes that people can be proud of is an absolute priority for this Government. We continue to work with partners and developers to facilitate a brownfield-first approach to meet local housing needs for local people.

“That is why we are supporting Homes England’s Strategic Plan which will help deliver the affordable, well-designed homes the country needs, in the places people want them.”

Chief Executive of Homes England, Peter Denton, said: “Our driving focus since 2018 has been on accelerating housing supply through a wide range of tools, interventions and support.

“This mission, however, was not undertaken with only numbers and data in mind. Housing touches everyone’s lives and the importance of creating good quality, affordable homes and minimising their impact on the environment has always had a place in our work. We are already promoting schemes that are building to the new requirements of the Future Homes Standard, promoting biodiversity net gain and adhering to Building for a Healthy Life guidance. But as we move forward, the quality, decency, design and sustainability of what is built will increasingly take centre stage in our work with partners.

“Our commitment to regeneration is rooted in our DNA, whether it be using our tools and capabilities to facilitate the large-scale transformations of York Central and Bristol Temple Quarter or engaging with local leaders in the West Midlands to support their ambitions to restore pride of place in Digbeth. We will continue our work with partners to support the creation, regeneration and continued wellbeing of communities right across England.”

The 2023-2028 strategic plan is a signal of intent, to maintain a rigorous focus on increasing housing supply, while working with partners to support the creation, regeneration and continued wellbeing of communities right across England. We will deliver homes and places people are proud to live in for generations to come.

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