Building more homes, including affordable ones, is a crucial part of solving the national housing crisis which naturally has major ramifications on the mortgage sector.
The new Labour Government has made a commitment to build 1.5million homes in the next four years which is welcome news for everyone struggling to find a home of their own.
However, the current UK planning process could become a huge sticking point in making this a reality and is something as a lender that wants to put homeownership within reach of more people, generation after generation, that we want to address.
The planning process is currently weighted towards the minority of people who oppose development, those whose voices are drowning out the people who support building more homes.
This is why we’ve worked with Public First, the research consultancy, to explore ways of unlocking opportunities for home building. Our aim is to share these findings to support the government in making its homebuilding pledges a reality.
In countries like New Zealand, the planning process has been altered to make decisions on housebuilding faster and easier, by setting out what kind of homes they want, and where, at the outset.
The Christchurch earthquake led to the need to build quickly, so a new approach was introduced which led to a tripling of the number of homes delivered and a marked impact on prices. Other places in New Zealand learned from Christchurch and went out and consulted their communities on building more. The support for these ideas led to housing becoming more affordable.
This is something we want to take inspiration from, and we want to advocate for vital changes needed. Our research is part of a series of suggestions from MPs and industry experts outlining much needed reform to the housebuilding planning process.
Hearing from a broader cross section of voices earlier in the planning process – rather than only those opposed to individual schemes once they are drawn up – will create a fairer system that reduces barriers to homeownership.
The report we have produced alongside Public First shows that those voicing concerns with local planning are typically older, richer, and much more likely to be well-housed. They do not speak for the whole of the community.
We need to change the planning system so that local councils and developers are obliged to listen to a representative cross section of local people.
The research undertaken by Public First was conducted in a constituency in Berkshire where housing is costly. Having conducted representative research online and face-to-face, not one person interviewed had ever responded to a planning issue. Our planning system privileges the voices of people who are time-rich, well-educated and confident.
Of those questioned, three in four wanted more houses in their area, but four out of five want councils and developers to be obliged to consult the community fairly and equally. Councils must consider the views of the whole community, which can only happen if they make it simpler for people to get involved.
Not everyone will agree, but by consulting widely, politicians can be confident that those tough choices are seen as necessary and are supported by the majority of local people. The system must therefore be made more representative and inclusive.
For many, the dream of ownership currently feels unrealistic as there simply aren’t enough homes to meet demand and mortgage lenders and brokers know all too well the challenges people face.
Pushing local authorities and developers to widen community consultation could be key to unlocking unmet housing need and doing so in a way that builds cohesion rather than division by listening to a full range of local voices.
Martese Carton is director of mortgage distribution at Leeds Building Society
