already on local authority housing need registers have been waiting for an affordable, decent home for more than five years.

Councils and their housing management organisations are calling on new communities minister Michael Gove to bid for support for the building of 100,000 new social homes a year in the upcoming spending review. They argue that this would boost the government’s levelling-up agenda and inject much-needed cash into the post-pandemic economy.

Commissioned by the National Federation of ALMOs, the Local Government Association and the Association of Retained Council Housing, Building post-pandemic prosperity shows that giving councils the powers and funding to meet a third of the government’s current target of 300,000 new homes year would actually improve the public finances – over 30 years, by £24.5 billion.

Meanwhile lockdown freezes on construction have cut around 100,000 new homes from the number that would have been built, adding to pre-pandemic estimates that suggested the UK had a million fewer homes than needed.

The report’s research argues that pushing public money into construction supply chains for social housing would create jobs, both nationally and for the communities most in need of new, good quality and affordable housing. It would also target public money at less prosperous local economies and hold it, in the form of new homes and the income they generate, in the national infrastructure.

However, this approach would also demand reform to the current Right to Buy rules to prevent good quality new homes being sold at a discount, effectively subsidised by the taxpayer. The LGA, NFA, and ARCH are also calling on the government to reform Right to Buy rules to allow councils to retain 100 per cent of receipts, set discounts locally so that they reflect housing need in each area, and have the flexibility to combine money from Right to Buy sales with other government grants to invest in more new housing.

Social housing providers, including councils and their ALMOs, are already ahead of the curve on building ‘green’ and their expertise would boost national efforts towards meeting 2050 zero-carbon goals. Over time, the report’s authors estimate that £600 million would return to tenants, landlords and the economy from 100,000 ‘green’ homes, compared to 100,000 ‘old build’ homes heated by fossil fuels.

Sarita-Marie Rehman Wall, Chair and Tenant Member of the NFA Board, said: “The struggle to find a good home, and a home that is affordable, is now very real and very tough for millions of people.

“Our national housing shortage isn’t just hitting one small group. It is creating hardship for all kinds of people in all walks of life, whether we’re talking about young people just heading out into adult or family life, or older people whose income drops at the very time when their needs for support and the right kind of home increase.

“Then there are our key workers, often driven by a sense of vocation but who must manage on less than generous wages.

“We all need these extra homes. We all need the boost and the new jobs and the investment in our communities that building them will bring. We’re all suffering in some way from lack of investment in social housing, and everyone will benefit if we change this now.”

Cllr David Renard, the Local Government Association’s lead on housing added: “There is a desperate need to build more social housing in this country, which should be a central part of the Government’s ambition to level-up and build back better following the pandemic. Social housing gives families the security and stability of a decent home, as well as being a route to owning your own home through Right to Buy.

“The benefits are clear – a programme of 100,000 social homes a year would shorten council housing waiting lists, reduce homelessness and cut carbon emissions, while delivering a multi-billion long-term boost to the economy.

“Councils stand ready to work with the Government to tackle our housing crisis, which is why we are calling for the powers to build homes on this scale in the Spending Review.”