Hundreds of thousands of new homes that are currently locked in the planning system could soon be unlocked, according to the government.
The government has identified 300,000 new homes across 200 sites in England with outline or detailed plans that are yet to be built.
It hopes that its New Homes Accelerator programme will speed up construction, which has so far been delayed by the planning process and red tape.
New sites named
The sites include Stretton Hall in Leicestershire, Tendring Colchester Borders Garden Community in Essex, and Biggleswade Garden Community in Central Bedfordshire.
These have the potential to unlock more than 10,000 new homes when completed.
Government plans to tackle stalled housing schemes were first unveiled by the Chancellor last month.
At that time, four sites were named to build 14,000 homes across Liverpool, Worcester, Northstowe and Sutton Coldfield.
Planning obstacles
Stephen Teagle, chief executive of partnerships and regeneration at Vistry Group, said: “The creation of the New Homes Accelerator shows the government is listening to both our industry and the millions of people who are unable to access a decent, permanent home.
“Delivering large-scale housing development involves overcoming a host of overlapping obstacles, from planning and infrastructure through to funding challenges.”
David O’Leary, executive director of the Home Builders Federation, said: “The planning process and everything associated with it delivers too little land and has long been a significant constraint on housebuilding.
“A lack of planning department capacity and misaligned incentives has created a process with huge uncertainty. This creates an abundance of risk, resulting in longer development timescales and severe challenges.”
‘Shovels in the ground’
The latest move is part of the new government’s plans to deliver one-and-a-half million new homes during the next five years.
Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner said: “For far too long, the delivery of tens of thousands of new homes has been held back by a failure to make sure the development system is working as it should.
“This government has a moral obligation to do everything within our power to build the homes that people desperately need and we won’t hesitate to intervene where we need to.
“Our New Homes Accelerator will quickly identify blockages, fix problems and support local authorities and developers to get shovels in the ground.”
