Tax receipts from the original construction activity and supply chain work that goes into building those new social homes will be worth £2.6 billion for every 100,000 homes built, exactly the kind of boost our post-pandemic economy needs. 

Savings on unemployment benefit will come as many new tenants see their employment prospects improve – good work is hard to find if you can’t sleep, eat, wash and keep warm. Moving 100,000 households out of poor quality homes and temporary accommodation will save the NHS £33 million every year – and that’s a conservative estimate, based on well-documented evidence about the impact of good housing on health outcomes. 

And every year, £24 million would be cut from the energy bills of these modern net-zero houses compared to current poorly insulated and expensively heated housing stock. In turn, that leaves room for higher rents that give a realistic rate of return on investment to cover maintenance and invest in future builds. If and when families move on to home ownership as their circumstances improve, these houses should remain part of the public infrastructure, on hand for future generations. 

At a time when local authorities are being handed a very long, very expensive shopping list by central government, the question has to be – why on earth wouldn’t we?
All council homes must reach EPC Band C or better by 2030; new building safety and fire safety legislation and a new Decent Homes standard are all on the horizon; the government wants an end to all rough sleeping and homelessness.

Let’s look forward. it’s never been so important to consider how money raised from taxes is spent, and how much return our communities get from it.

Somehow councils have to find a way to build more homes and house the homeless, while current Right to Buy rules still make it impossible to replace each home sold with one to rent; and their hands remain tied by government rules on rent pricing. 

Since the introduction of self-financing for council housing in 2012, local authorities have been encouraged to take a long-term view of their housing management and, indeed, they are still keen to do that. This was a great idea that should by now be delivering real efficiency benefits. 

A whole-of-life approach to housing asset management across a 30-year plan makes sound fiscal sense. It would sustain the quality of current stock and anticipate future investment need. In practice, however, a succession of changes in Government policy driven largely by short-term considerations has hollowed out any such benefits. 

So let’s look forward. We can all see it’s never been so important to consider how money raised from taxes is spent, and how much return our communities get from it. Every last penny of public money must earn its keep – several times over, if possible. 

It isn’t even all about seed money. Government can also remove uncertainty to let councils confidently plan ahead and schedule investment without having to wonder what future shifts in the policy goal posts will affect rent income, Right to Buy sales and reasonable borrowing capacity. 

We need 300,000 new homes a year, starting now. We’re hoping for a spending review that lets us do our bit – and puts money back into the public pocket.