Briefings and responses

The LGA and ADASS welcomes the Government’s decision not to apply the Local Housing Allowance Rate to supported housing or wider social housing. The consultation is an opportunity to strengthen local commissioning and deliver a sustainable funding solution that maintains and grows supply in accordance with local need.

Councils want their residents to live in homes that are decent, safe and secure, and councils’ housing teams work hard to ensure homes are fit for purpose.

We are pleased that the Government has listened to the concerns raised by the LGA, as well as in the report of the joint select committee inquiry, and decided not to apply the Local Housing Allowance Rate to supported housing or wider social housing.

We are pleased to submit some headline views on the draft regulations which will enable the creation, via further statutory instruments, of locally- led New Town Development Corporations.

The Autumn Budget has taken a step forward by lifting the housing borrowing cap for some councils. We welcome this announcement, but it does not go far enough.

Councils are working hard to deliver the right kind of homes, and are currently approving nine out of ten planning permissions.

The national housing shortage is one of the most pressing issues we face. Councils are working with communities to ensure more homes are built, but only an increase of all types of housing – including those for affordable or social rent – will solve the housing crisis.

Councils are working hard to deliver the right kind of homes, and are currently approving nine out of ten planning permissions. However, planning departments are severely under-resourced. Taxpayers are subsidising the costs of planning applications by around £200 million a year.

In our response we have stressed that any model needs to be responsive to local housing need and allow councils to reflect the complexities of different housing markets.

Homelessness is a tragedy for all those it affects, and is one of the most visible signs of the nation’s housing crisis. It is damaging for individuals, families and communities, and limits peoples’ ability to play a full and active role in society and the economy.