Let's build social housing

Social homes provide a stable foundation for families to settle and communities to thrive.

In England, we need to build 90,000 social homes a year to end the housing emergency and reverse the trend of rising homelessness.

History shows us that to deliver enough social homes, we need to get councils building.

A large group of campaigners standing opposite the Houses of Parliament, holding signs reading 'A future free from homelessness', 'Homes that are good for our health' and 'Homes families can truly afford'. Next to them is a door with the signage 'Invest in social homes'.

We need to get councils building social homes

Right now, homelessness is at record levels and housing costs are spiralling. One of the most appalling symptoms of the housing emergency is that over 177,000 children are homeless in temporary accommodation.

This accommodation is far from 'temporary', as families can be stuck there for months or even years. It's often overcrowded, with families cramped in hotel rooms or bed and breakfasts. For too many children, there's no space to play or do their homework. And it can lack the basics for family life, such as cooking facilities.

Social housing is a long-term solution to move families out of unsuitable temporary accommodation and into safe, secure and genuinely affordable homes.

Together, let's call on the government to get councils building social homes.

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4,793 people slept rough on any given night in autumn 2025 - this number has more than doubled since 2010
177,530 children are stuck homeless in damaging temporary accommodation, a record high
1.3 million households are on social housing waiting lists - forcing too many people into unsuitable, unaffordable and unstable private renting

Our campaign asks

Following a Shelter campaign last year, the government announced £39 billion over ten years for the Social and Affordable Homes Programme. With this game-changing investment, they promised a council and social housing revolution. But we're still not building anywhere near enough social homes every year.

The only way to deliver a new generation of social homes is to give councils the funding and support they need to get building. Local councils are best placed to build homes that will meet the needs of their communities.

That's why we're calling on the government to put ambitious changes in place at the Autumn Budget to get councils building again. Our asks are:

Did you know?

The last time over 300,000 homes were built in a single year in England was 1969. And almost half of them were genuinely affordable social homes built by councils.

1. Remove the debt that stops councils building

Councils are spending their money paying interest on £31.8 billion of Housing Revenue Account (HRA) debt and it's stopping them from building social homes. Cancelling the debt would free up councils to build around 280,000 new social homes.

And, the debt is held mostly by the government – the money is owed from one part of the public sector (councils) to another (the treasury). This means cancelling the debt has limited immediate impact on government fiscal rules.

2. Give councils access to fair, low-cost loans

Housing associations and for-profit providers can borrow at 0.1% from government. Councils are getting a far worse deal - having to borrow at around 5-6% which is preventing them from building.

Lower interest loans will support councils to build.

3. Bring forward and increase the £39bn Social and Affordable Homes Programme

The funding for social housing in the Social and Affordable Housing Programme announced last year was much needed, but it remains below what is required and is weighted toward later years. But families in temporary accommodation can’t wait.

Bringing forward a greater share of spending sooner, and increasing the overall programme, is vital to kickstart social house building.

4. Change public borrowing rules to enable greater investment in social housing

Treasury rules too often treat public spending on council and social housing delivery as a financial burden, rather than as an investment.

The government should make investing in council and social housing easier by changing the way it treats the loans and grants required to build social housing at scale.

Two smiling parents and their child, stood at the window of their social home.

Read the evidence: Foundation to Thrive

Our new report sets out how our campaign asks will unlock a council housing revolution.

By rebuilding the capacity and culture of housing delivery in local government, we can get councils building again at scale and bring an end to the housing emergency.

Find out more

Social housing benefits everyone

If we all support the building of new social homes, this will transform our society. It will:

end homelessness by clearing social housing waiting lists, providing stable homes for families in temporary accommodation, and ending rough sleeping
deliver more genuinely affordable homes – social rents are linked to local incomes, so they are the most affordable type of home
be a great investment for the taxpayer – 90,000 new social homes would boost the economy and help create 140,000 jobs in the first year

With secure, long-term tenancies, people can put down roots. Social homes create stronger communities and a fairer society. Right now, it has never been more urgent to fight for them.