Andy Burnham faces significant challenges in fulfilling his commitment to lead the largest council housebuilding programme since the post-war era without securing an additional £7 billion in funding, according to recent analysis. The prime minister pledged more than £40 billion over 10 years for the Social and Affordable Homes Programme (SAHP), including an extra £1.5 billion announced in the latest Budget. However, experts warn that current funding levels will fall short of the scale needed to address England’s social housing demand.
A report by the New Economics Foundation (NEF) estimates that the government’s plans will result in about 18,000 new social homes built annually, far below the 90,000 new social homes per year experts say are necessary to meet existing demand. During the 1970s post-war peak, English local authorities constructed around 103,000 council homes annually; by contrast, local authorities built roughly 2,000 homes per year in the lead-up to 2025. The NEF and other housing organizations including Crisis and Shelter indicate that without an additional £7 billion funding injection at the next spending review, the government’s promise risks not materializing.
Molly Harris, senior researcher at NEF, emphasized that investing in new social housing is critical to resolving the housing crisis, noting that many households face overcrowding, unaffordable rents, or extended stays in temporary accommodation. The report suggests that providing the additional funds earlier in the SAHP could enable the construction of over 100,000 new council and social homes by 2030, setting a trajectory toward meeting the 90,000 annual target by 2032-33.
Mairi MacRae, acting chief executive of Shelter, called the current funding boost a significant but insufficient step and urged the government to do more. She highlighted that decades of limited council housebuilding and financial constraints, including historical housing debt on council balance sheets, have hindered supply. MacRae argued that revising the fiscal framework could unlock further investment necessary to scale up council homebuilding.
The Conservative Party, however, criticized the proposal as lacking a clear plan for financing. Shadow housing secretary Katie Lam acknowledged the need for more homes but questioned where the additional billions would come from, suggesting eventual tax increases or borrowing.
Parallel to funding concerns, the government announced measures aimed at stimulating housebuilding, including reducing regulatory barriers associated with net zero targets, restricting new social housing tenancies to British nationals, and abolishing stamp duty to encourage market activity. The Budget also allocated over £1 billion to social and affordable housing and expanded borrowing powers for councils through preferential interest rates. England’s mayors and regional leaders were granted greater authority and resources intended to boost economic growth and housing supply.
The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) warned that meeting the government’s social housing commitments would require building at least 22,000 additional council homes annually beyond current projections, at an estimated extra cost of £3 billion to £4 billion per year.
Housing advocates such as Jasmine Basran of Crisis stressed the necessity of scaling up social rent housing to combat rising homelessness, pointing out that past social home demolitions have exceeded new construction, worsening housing insecurity. Analysts from think tanks like the Centre for Cities indicated that fulfilling promises will require not only increased spending but also regulatory reforms and difficult fiscal decisions amid broader economic constraints.
A government spokesperson stated that the comprehensive package of £40 billion-plus investment, council loan schemes, and reforms to the right-to-buy policy represent the largest social and affordable housing boost in a generation, with a focus on increasing social rent and council homes.