The Mayor of London Sir Sadiq Khan has announced that his City Hall Land Fund has brought forward the delivery of 8,000 new homes by five years, hitting a milestone originally slated for 2030.
Established in 2017 with a budget of more than £736 million – including £486 million from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government – the Fund provides flexible debt and equity financing to unlock development sites across the capital.
Since its inception, the Land Fund has helped underwrite projects such as Peabody Trust’s nearly 1,000-home scheme on the former Holloway Prison site, the acquisition of surplus hospital land to deliver up to 1,000 homes across Enfield and Haringey and mezzanine finance for build-to-rent homes at Mitre Yard in Old Oak & Park Royal.
Last year London recorded 11,600 home completions – the second highest annual total since 2015–16 – with almost 6,700 delivered at social rent levels, the strongest performance in a decade.
GREEN BELT RELEASED
Yet the capital still needs approximately 88,000 new dwellings a year for the next 10 years to meet demand, prompting Khan to explore releasing parts of the green belt alongside his commitment to build 40,000 new council homes by 2030.
Sir Sadiq Khan (main picture) says: “The innovative Land Fund has enabled us to tackle the housing crisis head on, starting more than 8,000 new homes five years ahead of schedule.
“I am proud that nearly 6,700 affordable homes at social rent levels were completed last year, which is the highest in a decade.”
NATIONAL SUPPORT
And he adds: “But we know there is more work to do to fix the housing crisis in London.
“I’m pleased that the Government has committed to work with me to establish the City Hall Developer Investment Fund to unlock further housing in London.
“I will continue to work closely with them to secure even more national support to help build the level of new housing London needs, as we build a better, fairer London for everyone.”
HOUSING CRISIS
Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Secretary Angela Rayner adds: “We’re facing a housing crisis which has stopped our young people from achieving the dream of homeownership, especially in London where there is a real demand to build the “affordable homes we need.
“That’s why we welcome the Mayor of London pushing ahead to build these homes, and we will continue to work hand-in-hand with him to deliver on our stretching target of 1.5 million homes through our Plan for Change.”
The new City Hall Developer Investment Fund, backed by a record £11.7 billion from central Government over the next decade, is set to build on the Land Fund’s success, cementing London’s position at the forefront of the national drive to increase supply of affordable and social housing.
