The undersupply of homes in England is well-documented, with an estimated 550,000 new builds required each year until 2031 to make up the shortfall. The government has pledged to build 1.5 million homes over the next five years, which still wouldn’t meet the shortfall, but nonetheless will help to ease the current crisis if the target is met.
Here’s a look at the issues, and how timber frame suppliers can contribute to achieving the targets.
The issues holding back new developments
Part of the current problems have been created by an overly restrictive planning system, which can make getting new projects off the ground a lengthy and difficult process. There has also been a steady decline in government funding for social housing schemes, which has compounded the problem.
The government has announced new measures to remove these obstacles and make it quicker and more straightforward to acquire suitable land for building homes, and to obtain planning permission. The overhaul will enable councils to buy cheaper land through the use of Compulsory Purchase Orders, without inflated ‘hope value’ costs.
The removal of hope value laws
Hope value refers to the obligation on local authorities to pay the landowner the value of what vacant or derelict land could be worth if planning permissions were obtained in the future, even if the landowner has no intention of selling or redeveloping the land. According to Inside Housing, this can increase the value of the plot by 275 times.
The government plans to remove the hope value legislation in certain circumstances to enable councils to buy more land for affordable and social housing.
A consultation is announced
Matthew Pennycook, the Housing and Planning Minister, said: “In our manifesto, we committed ourselves to further compulsory purchase reform to deliver more housing, infrastructure, amenity, and transport benefits in the public interest.”
“The consultation we are launching today is the next step in fulfilling that commitment – proposing reforms that will make the process faster and more efficient, enabling more land value to be captured and then invested in schemes for public benefit.”
The proposals will be subject to an eight-week consultation process that will consider views from the construction industry and councils. This follows the introduction of mandatory housing targets for councils and £100m extra funding to fund the necessary staff and resources.
How timber frame suppliers can help meet housing targets
Besides the much-needed reforms to land acquisition and planning permission, the biggest issues facing the housebuilding sector are often costs, time pressures and concerns about sustainability. Here’s a look at how timber frame suppliers can help to provide the solution.
Shorter construction times
Timber frames are manufactured off-site and can be rapidly assembled on-site, speeding up the construction process and minimising disruption. This means that they are ideal for building projects with tight timelines, and can help developers to deliver much-needed new homes on time and within budget.
Cost effectiveness
Timber frames are typically a cost-effective construction material, with lower price points and less price volatility than alternatives such as steel. It is also a lightweight material that is less costly to transport and quicker and easier to work with. Timber frames are prefabricated in the majority of cases, further reducing construction times and therefore costs.
A sustainable resource
When sourced from responsibly managed forests, such as those with certification from the Forest Stewardship Council, timber has a significantly lower environmental impact that non-renewable materials such as steel or concrete.
The use of timber in construction is therefore set to sharply increase in the future as efforts to conserve the earth’s natural resources are stepped up. Timber is also a natural carbon sink, able to store CO2 both before and after harvesting, so it offsets a portion of the CO2 emissions generated by the construction process.
Energy efficiency
Wood is a natural insulating material, so it can be used as part of the energy-efficiency measures that are now required to meet modern standards of housebuilding. They can also contribute to a housing stock that is fit for purpose and has manageable running costs.