NatWest has launched a £250 million Section 106 Loan Fund, supporting housing associations to acquire affordable homes from housebuilders.

The launch of the loan fund aims helping unlock stalled housing delivery in England.

Section 106 homes are affordable properties delivered by housebuilders as part of planning agreements with local authorities.

The new NatWest fund matches the £250 million of funding recently announced by Homes England as part of its £2.5 billion low-cost loan programme, increasing total funding available for S106 acquisitions to £500 million.

The fund will be available to existing Housing Association customers that are successful in securing S106 Low Cost Loan, which will double their capacity to purchase S106 homes.

The funding could support the acquisition of around 2,500 S106 homes and facilitate the delivery of more homes for market sale.

The loans will be offered at discounted margins and fees.

This follows its recent announcement of a new £10 billion funding ambition for UK social housing by the end of 2028, taking total support for the sector to more than £35 billion since 2018.

NatWest head of residential and housing finance Paul Eyre says: “In February, we set out a £10 billion ambition to support the delivery and maintenance of social housing across the UK.”

“This new £250 million S106 Loan Fund is a practical example of that commitment in action — helping housing associations in England unlock sites, bring affordable homes into use and support wider housing delivery at a critical time.”

Meanwhile, housing secretary Steve Reed adds: “We need to build more affordable homes to bring down the number of families stuck on housing waiting lists.”

“Housebuilding is a national mission and businesses like NatWest will have a pivotal role to play in helping us unlock stalled housing sites across the country and build the homes we need.”