Partnerships: The Engine Powering The UK’s Affordable Housing Goals
21 June 2025
It’s safe to say that everyone from the government to local authorities, house builders, registered providers, and our communities, is keen to increase the supply of housing and, importantly, affordable homes. There’s plenty that needs to be done to ensure that the government target of delivering 1.5m homes in the next 5 years is met, and the willingness is certainly there.
But let’s be honest – the numbers are sobering. There are 1.3 million households stuck on social housing waiting lists in England alone and a record number of households – including 160,000 children – living in temporary accommodation – and with housing starts at their lowest level in the last decade the numbers are unlikely to get better unless radical action is taken.
Housing starts declined significantly in 2024, down 25.7% compared to 2023, and 30.8% lower than in 2019. England saw a 41% decrease in new build starts in the year to September 2024, compared to the previous year. London also witnessed a dramatic drop in affordable housing starts, with supply sliding from 26,386 homes in the past year to just 3,156 affordable housing builds in 2023/2024. High interest rates, rising costs from fire safety upgrades and repairs to existing homes only add to the pressure on providers, making government targets seem like a hard mountain to climb.
But all is not lost. I’ll reiterate what’s been said before by colleagues and industry peers – we can tackle this together by forging powerful partnerships between government, developers, housing associations and institutional investors. With collaboration at the heart of this ambition, these players have the potential to transform the housing landscape when working together and build a brighter future for all.
Key to successful partnerships is being openminded about the diverse elements that will be brought together. Housing associations bring their deep-rooted expertise and passion for community well-being, while institutional investors offer patient capital and a long-term outlook. Institutionally-backed registered providers like L&G are an important part of this equation for many reasons – first and foremost being vehicles to channel private capital into affordable housing but also delivering high standards in customer service. They can also support the sector by buying older tenanted stock from councils and housing associations, freeing them up to divert the investment towards more pressing community needs or investing in new build housing. The final key player is government, which will need to be agile to facilitate stable policies for the sector and continue to provide subsidies and targeted support to fill the funding gaps.
Together, we can create a dynamic team effort that can create more affordable homes, lift quality standards, and give families the security they crave – provided the policy environment stays steady. Along with collaboration, this approach would benefit from baking in flexibility – joint ventures where investors and housing providers team up to build new stock, pooling resources to tackle the supply crunch, shaping equity schemes that make home ownership a reality for more people. These models cannot be one-size-fits-all, rather they must be tailored to fit local needs and ambitions. And for housing associations facing tough calls like whether to merge with others to survive, partnering with institutional registered providers could be a fresher, more energising path forward, avoiding the constraints of blending together cash strapped entities.
Of course, making it a reality will not be easy or quick. Success hinges on the government playing its part, delivering a clear and stable policy framework, considering a period of de-regulation around certain policies that are challenging viability and backing viability with subsidy to give investors the confidence to step up. But when these pieces click into place, the potential is promising. We could see thousands of new homes where once there were only waiting lists, communities strengthened and thriving, and a housing plan that works for everyone.
More than fixing a problem, it’s about seizing an opportunity to reshape the UK for the better. The crisis is big, but our collective resolve can be bigger. With the right partnerships, we can turn the tide, building homes and hope one step at a time.
By Anette Simpson, director of development and partnerships at L&G’s Affordable Homes division
This article first appeared online at https://housingevent.com/leadership-symposium-thought-leaders