Briefing: Social Housing Provision

For generations, social housing played a vital role in meeting the housing needs of ordinary people, giving millions the quality and dignity of life that insecure and unaffordable private renting could not. A steep decline in social housebuilding has contributed to a huge increase in private renting as more and more cannot afford to buy a home, and increases in homelessness. Government is currently spending billions of pounds a year on housing benefit, much of which goes to private landlords, and councils are spending hundreds of millions on temporary accommodation to house homeless households.

There is a clear economic case for investing this money in to social housebuilding and Shelter is calling on the government to make an ambitious, long-term commitment to increase provision of social housing. This would not only be a more efficient use of public funds, but would provide many with the affordable, secure housing they currently have no chance of accessing.