Raft of announcements aim to boost housing

A series of government announcements over the past week seem designed to boost housing in the UK.From funding to policy changes, there’s a lot to get to grips with. In parallel, a series of consultations have opened too – so lots of opportunities for organisations to influence change.

The Building Safety Regulator (BSR) is considering removing fire doorset work from building control approval, to save time and cost (in part due to gateway delays) and allow self-certification of installations and maintenance. It’s part of the consultation on the Conditions of Authorisation (CoA) for competent person schemes. Great piece in Inside Housing on this here.

There's a consultation on making fire risk assessors a regulated profession running until June. Sticking with fire, there are also changes proposed to Approved Document B (including safety around solar PV installations, a provision for evacuation lifts in residential buildings above 18m in height, and alarms or sprinklers in specialised housing). Aim to is boost “inclusive design, safe evacuation strategies and robust fire safety standards.”

On Higher Risk Buildings (HRBs), a consultation is looking at Gateway 2 “proportionality” and proposed changes to the legal definition of Category A work, exempting work inside an individual flat and small-scale works in communal areas of all HRBs.

The Government aims to make plug-in solar available within months. This could open up renewable energy to more households, particularly those in flats or homes where rooftop panels are not practical. But before it is rolled out fully, safety, fire risk, and clear guidance will need to be properly considered to ensure the solar industry remains compliant and safe.

On homes, we’ve had the government's response on the Future Homes Standard consultation. Taking effect from March 2027 (plus a 12-month transitional period), the aim is to reduce emissions from new housing stock by 75%. It includes improved standards on air tightness to minimise heat loss, linking new builds to district heating or air source heat pumps, and installing solar PV coverage equivalent to 40% of the homes ground floor area. It means updates to Part F (ventilation) and Part L (fuel and power) of building regs.Seven sites have been selected for the New Towns Programme - Tempsford; Leeds South Bank; Crews Hill and Chase Park; Manchester Victoria North; Thamesmead; Brabazon and West Innovation Arc, and Milton Keynes. Each location could see 10,000 – 40,000 new homes.

The ‘Pride in Place’ fund has been extended, with 40 more communities joining the programme. They’ll receive up to £20m of funding over the next decade to improve community assets, such as youth centres, playgrounds and other shared spaces.

£301m is going to High Streets Innovation Partnerships to reimagine high streets, and there's a further £18m for 66 locations to improve playgrounds.

There’s some help for London too, with fast-track planning for sites with 20% or more in affordable housing, a temporary relief from the Community Infrastructure Levy, and a £324m grant to the GLA’s City Hall Developer Investment Fund.

There’s also a consultation on planning committee reform.

On skills, the Industry Training Board reform consultation is open, which could see the Engineering Construction Industry Training Board (ECITB) and Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) merged. And on Thursday, there was £70m earmarked for up to 700 new Registered Building Inspectors, upskilling existing RBIs and further training for fire engineers.

And finally, a proposal to ban retentions as part of a crackdown on late payments. Changes will include a 60-day cap on payment terms for large firms paying smaller suppliers, and mandatory interest on late payments (set at 8% above the Bank of England base rate). Fines will be introduced for persistent late payers too.

As with any change, there's going to be more detail and analysis over the coming weeks. If you're in the sector, it's time to get to grips with these topics so that you're well placed to act. For us, here at LMC | Certified B Corp it's been an exciting end to March, working with our clients to explain these issues and do some fast reactive commentary (always a highlight!).