- Housing Taskforce sets out roadmap to recovery after coronavirus
- Ministers must back multi-billion-pound recovery package to give housing sector confidence and support jobs
- Skills crisis intensified by the pandemic - so investment in training, a new post-Brexit construction visa and the latest construction tech will be key to get London building again
The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has today set out a major new plan to ‘reboot the London housing sector’ in the wake of Covid-19 – with fresh investment to get London building again and a new focus on the latest technology, skills and career opportunities as a catalyst to support the construction jobs of the future.
The Mayor is joined by key figures from across the housing industry in also calling for significant government funding to support affordable homes, as well as increased investment in precision manufactured and modular housing.
This comes in the wake of research by Shelter and Savills that predicts that up to 244,000 constructions jobs could be lost across the country in a year, and 300,000 fewer homes will be built over five years, unless the Government invests in social housing.
The recommendations are part of the final report from Deputy Mayor Tom Copley’s ‘Covid-19 Housing Delivery Taskforce’, bringing together London builders, councils, housing associations and unions to consider the challenges posed by the pandemic and plan a route to recovery.
A 2019 industry survey found 330,000 Londoners worked in construction and the sector accounted for five per cent of the capital’s economic output. 37 per cent of construction workers in London are self-employed. Analysis by the estate agents Savills estimates that the Coronavirus has led to construction being halted on sites involving 28,600 homes in London, equivalent to 79 per cent of total supply in 2018/19.
The only way to deliver the homes London needs is to have a workforce capable of building them. With this in mind, the Taskforce believes it is essential to develop the skills and expertise of existing workers, build on the successes of the Mayor’s Construction Academy by training new construction workers through apprenticeship and training programmes, and ensure London continues to be an attractive destination for skilled construction site workers from overseas by developing a new post-Brexit visa system for construction workers that works for London.
Developing new skills is essential for embracing new methods of construction such as ‘precision manufactured housing’ – in which components are manufactured in a factory, transported to a site and mostly, or entirely, completed and assembled on location. The Taskforce recommends the GLA and Government invest in this technology to support businesses in expanding their operations and develop new environmentally friendly products that can help the industry work towards a zero-carbon future.
The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan said: “The work of London’s Covid-19 Housing Delivery Taskforce has been collaborative, comprehensive and timely. Building the social and other genuinely affordable homes Londoners need has always been my top priority but the pandemic has challenged that ambition like nothing before.
“Now we have a unique opportunity to reboot the London housing sector. This roadmap to recovery builds on the skills, expertise and experience we have whilst investing in the latest technology and training to maintain our world-leading workforce.
“The housing industry is speaking with one voice and its message is clear. Now Ministers must listen and support our recommendations so we can emerge from this crisis with improved resilience, a greater sense of co-operation and a new-found resolve to deliver the genuinely affordable homes that London so desperately needs.”
Kate Henderson, Chief Executive of the National Housing Federation, said: "It has been a privilege to be part of the Mayor's Housing Delivery Taskforce, examining what needs to be done to put housing at the heart of the country's recovery from coronavirus.
"Investing in housing is one of the most important steps the government can take to help get the economy moving again. As well as being the right thing to do, putting money into new social housing always pays dividends through support for jobs, businesses and the wider economy. Indeed, building the 90,000 new social homes this country needs every year would add £4.8bn to the economy and support 86,000 jobs. This is why it's vital that the coronavirus pandemic doesn't get in the way of tackling the housing crisis."
Cllr Darren Rodwell, London Councils’ executive member for housing & planning said: “We need a new deal for London’s housing sector in line with the government’s commitment to ‘build build build’.
“Boroughs are playing a leading role in tackling the capital’s chronic shortage of affordable homes. This includes embracing innovative new approaches, such as our collaborative project PLACE that will use modular housing units as high-quality temporary accommodation for homeless Londoners.
“But with the sector under massive pressure due to Covid-19, there’s a clear and urgent need for government support. Only central government has the resources to boost housebuilding in the capital with an emergency recovery package, which would secure jobs and help us deliver the homes Londoners need.”
Suzannah Nichol MBE, Chief Executive of Build UK, said: “The construction sector has a huge part to play in building the homes and places that make life better for Londoners and strengthen the communities around them.
“By working collaboratively we can provide quality homes, using greener and more modern technologies, that are safe, affordable, and which people want to live and work in.”
Sam Gurney, TUC Regional Secretary for London and the South East, said: “London is asking the UK government to commit to funding a massive increase in the number of new social homes in London. Not only will that provide some of the new low-cost homes we need, but it will act as a stimulus to the economy and provide thousands of new high-quality jobs in construction and related industries.
“New careers in construction should be open to all, including those groups that are presently under-represented in the sector, such as woman, BME, young and disabled workers.
“The key to this will be quality terms and conditions of employment, more direct employment, better training and improving the industry’s image. It is time to build to succeed.”
Notes to editors
The report identifies several vital actions that should be taken as soon as possible to get the London housing sector and the wider economy on the road to recovery:
- An emergency £4.83bn recovery package for London from Government to provide confidence to the housing industry in the short-term. This should comprise a £1.33bn programme to facilitate changes of tenure in the remaining three years of the Affordable Homes programme, and a £3.5bn buyer of last resort scheme. The package could ensure that nearly 44,000 council, social and other genuinely affordable homes would continue to be built over the next three years.
- Recognition from Government of the true cost of building affordable homes in London by expanding the next Affordable Homes Programme from the £12bn nationally announced in March to the £4.9bn a year London requires to build the affordable homes the capital needs.
- City Hall and Whitehall to co-operate on a major campaign to promote the construction sector as a career that can be considered by all, whether young people finishing their studies and entering the job market for the first time, people changing careers, or those whose jobs are at risk due to the economic impact of Covid-19, alongside a major investment in apprenticeships.
- Direct investment from the Government and GLA to enable the procurement of precision manufactured homes at greater scale and in a more standardised way, building a pipeline of demand to support manufacturers, and giving confidence to new entrants to market.
- Government and City Hall to step up efforts to bring forward land that is ready for development, including public land for affordable-housing led development and sites suitable for smaller builders. This should include the Government granting public bodies such as councils and the GLA powers to compulsory purchase land much more cheaply, and a new Compulsory Selling Order power for local authorities.
The full taskforce report can be read here: www.london.gov.uk/housing-delivery-taskforce
The taskforce was convened in April 2020 and made up of senior representatives from local and regional government, along with a range of membership bodies representing organisations directly involved in the delivery of new homes in London, spanning the public, private, and third sectors. Members of the taskforce were nominated on the basis of their expertise to comment on the ‘nuts and bolts’ of housing delivery, as well as their leadership capacity to mobilise larger groups of organisations around potential solutions.
The taskforce comprised the following core members:
London’s housing sector is unique in the UK – not only in its scale but also in the systems of planning and governance behind it. The Mayor has statutory housing and planning responsibilities in London and manages London’s affordable homes programme. The Mayor also supports the construction industry through programmes such as the Mayor’s Construction Academy.