Longhurst Group and NCHA to receive £71million Government funding boost to build affordable new homes

Longhurst Group and Nottingham Community Housing Association (NCHA) will receive £71.7m in extra Government funding to build more affordable homes after being selected by Homes England as strategic partners.

The two organisations are among a list of 11 organisations that form the latest wave of strategic partners, who agree to expand their development programmes by a specified number of homes in return for additional Government funding.

Following the announcement, Longhurst Group, NCHA and nine other housing associations will be given a total of £497m to build more than 11,500 new affordable homes across the UK.

Ian Jackson, Longhurst Group’s Executive Director, Portfolio Investment, said: “We’re absolutely delighted to have been selected, along with our partners at NCHA, as one of Homes England’s strategic partners.

“This will enable us to significantly increase our development programme, allowing us to provide many more much-needed affordable homes, across a wide geography and through different tenure types.

“We’re very excited to be playing our part in responding to the Government’s challenge to the housing sector to deliver 300,000 new homes a year and look forward to working with our partners to do so.

“This heralds a new relationship with Homes England and the Government and one that will equip us with the tools to do even more to help fix the UK housing crisis.”

Communities Secretary, Rt Hon James Brokenshire MP said: “By providing targeted investment in affordable homes, and funding innovative projects to build rooftop properties, we are making our housing market work for everyone.

“Our £500 million funding boost for housing associations will help them build thousands of extra affordable homes – including properties for social rent.

“These measures are all part of our plans to deliver 300,000 homes a year by the mid-2020s.”

Together, Longhurst Group and the NCHA own Pitch; which was formed in 2005 to provide development services to other Housing Associations and Local Authorities to enable the delivery of more affordable homes for families and people in housing need.

Allan Fisher, Director of Development and Assets for NCHA added: “We’re delighted to have been selected as one Homes England’s Strategic Partners enabling us to deliver more affordable homes to people that need them.  There’s a huge shortage of social housing in and around the areas which we work, so we’re looking forward to working with our partners to deliver these much needed homes.”

The other associations to have agreed deals are Bromford, Curo & Swan, Liverpool Mutual Homes & Torus, Together, Walsall Housing Group, Yorkshire and Your Housing Group.

The latest wave of associations takes the number of Homes England strategic partners to 23, with the government handing out nearly £1.7bn to deliver an additional 39,000 new homes.