More than 200 registered providers and councils sign up to Homes England’s Section 106 service

Some 140 RPs and more than 70 local authorities have already registered for the service as potential buyers, and are viewing available information about potential opportunities on a regular basis.

More than 70 house builders have registered to provide details of affordable homes they have planning permission to build but have been unable to find a buyer for, alongside private homes.

Homes England has urged registered users, especially sellers, to continue their support by providing crucial details in addition to basic registration information such as site location, construction progress, number of homes and types of tenure.

The agency said the service will develop over the coming months and will be refined according to user feedback.

Ian Workman, chief customer officer at Homes England, said: “This is a relatively simple but potentially impactful service that means greater visibility of opportunities to get affordable homes sold and occupied. I would urge house builders in particular to register and add as much detail as they can.

“Over 200 registered providers and local authorities have already signed up, and regularly checking for potential opportunities to acquire homes for the communities they serve.

“Listening, acting and working hand-in-glove with partners is fundamental, if we are to move forward and find solutions together to the challenges the sector is facing. I am grateful to all those who have helped to shape this service so far, with promising early signs of uptake.”

Housing minister Matthew Pennycook, said: “We recognise the challenge posed by the reduced appetite of registered providers of social housing to buy affordable homes delivered under Section 106 agreements.

“The new clearing service we have worked in partnership with Homes England to establish will help improve the functioning of the market and unblock the delivery of Section 106 affordable housing.

“Hundreds of developers and providers have already come forward to engage with this new service and real progress is being made as a result.”

Sector reaction

Social Housing revealed in June last year that the National Housing Federation (NHF) was in talks with house builder trade body the Home Builders Federation (HBF), as well as the government, on solutions to this problem.

Kate Henderson, chief executive of the NHF, said this clearing service is “a welcome tool” in tackling the current issue in the delivery of Section 106 affordable homes.

“Building new relationships between developers and social housing providers is important in overcoming the immediate challenges, as well as helping developers to understand the requirements of housing associations in the future,” she said.

“Housing associations are facing significant competing financial pressures, which is also impacting their ability to both buy Section 106 homes and build other new affordable homes.

“In the longer term, housing associations are committed to working in partnership with the government on a long-term housing strategy to rebuild their capacity and deliver more much-needed social and affordable homes.”

Adam Hug, housing spokesperson at the Local Government Association (LGA), said that this service is a “positive step” to promoting stalled sites to registered providers of affordable housing, and the LGA encourages all local authorities to engage with it.

He said: “But it is just one tool which will help bring forward more affordable housing. Much more needs to be done.”

“Councils urgently want to deliver more affordable housing including those affordable homes agreed in Section 106 agreements with developers in local planning applications.”

David O’Leary, executive director at the HBF, told Social Housing that the creation of this new clearing service is a “welcome recognition” by government of the problems in the Section 106 market.

“Home builders have registered for the service and it will hopefully bring some benefit,” he said.

“However, while improving information flows may help, the problems in the Section 106 market are more fundamental and require urgent attention by government.

“The lack of housing association capacity or appetite to invest leaves developers with legal obligations they are simply unable to discharge and an increasing number of both affordable and private homes unbuilt.

“Improving the financial capacity of housing associations will inevitably take time and in the near term we need to see pragmatism and flexibility and consideration of how different affordable housing tenures might appeal to registered providers.”