Councils ‘sitting on hundreds of millions’ in cash earmarked for affordable homes
2 min read
Local authorities are reportedly sitting on hundreds of millions of pounds in funds earmarked for affordable housing.
According to HuffPost UK, councils across the country have failed to spend £375 million in cash that could have been spent building homes.
Two thirds of the money is being held by just 14 local authorities, including £21 million by Tory-run Kensington and Chelsea council, which has been criticised for failing to rehouse victims of the Grenfell Tower fire.
James Prestwich, Head of Policy at the National Housing Federation described the findings as “deeply concerning” and called for “a clear strategy” for spending the cash.
“We would encourage all of these councils with unspent money to immediately contact their local housing association and discuss how to spend it straight away,” he said.
Housing Campaign group Priced Out added: “Building affordable housing is doubly necessary as it provides homes for those who can’t afford to rent or buy privately, as well as contributing to the overall 300,000 homes we need to build every year.
“Councils should be doing all they can to get affordable housing built.”
The two largest amounts are being held by Labour-run councils Southwark and Camden, who have £53 million and £38 million in unspent funds respectively.
While Elmbridge local authority – which is in Housing Minister Dominic Raab’s Surrey constituency - is sitting on £8 million.
Housing Secretary Sajid Javid said: “We expect councils to use funding from developers in line with the priorities agreed in their local plans.”
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