The Scottish Government has exceeded its 30,000 affordable homes target by more than 10 per cent, according to official statistics released for the first time today.
Over the last Parliamentary term, 33,490 affordable homes were delivered:
22,523 were for social rent – 2,523 more than the five year target. These include 5,992 council house completions – almost 20 per cent more than the five year target
3,473 were for other affordable rent
7,494 were for affordable home ownership
The rate of house building completions across all sectors puts Scotland in the lead of every other country in the UK, with more completions than Northern Ireland for the first time since 2006.
Housing minister Kevin Stewart welcomed the statistics while visiting a new affordable housing development by Castle Rock Edinvar in Wester Hailes.
He said: “I’m delighted we have today officially cemented our excellent record on housing. Exceeding the ambitious 30,000 target is no mean feat in a challenging financial environment. Our investment of more than £1.7bn, as well as the re-introduction of council house building, has meant high quality, energy efficient, affordable homes have been built the length and breadth of the country.
“We are building at a rate faster than anywhere else in the UK, and in fact since 2007 we have built over 41,000 more homes than would have been built at England’s lower per-capita rate. That’s the equivalent of a new town the size of Paisley.
“We have worked hard with the housing sector to deliver these homes as well as develop innovative funding initiatives that have helped both buyers and developers. We can now look forward to continuing with these innovations over the next five years, increasing private and affordable housing supply to rent and buy and further safeguarding social housing for the future.
“Not only do these numbers show we have more than achieved our targets, but they also tell us approvals for affordable homes have increased by 26 per cent in the 12 months to March. This marks an excellent start to being able to deliver our new, higher target and help supply the homes people and communities need.”
Ed Monaghan, chief executive of Mactaggart & Mickel Group, added: “The statistics released by the Scottish Government today showing a year-on-year rise in new build completions highlight the continued progress being made by the industry to tackle Scotland’s housing problems.
“It’s positive news for the sector, particularly given the current uncertainty over the impending European Union referendum. I’m optimistic that we are on the right track to deliver on Homes for Scotland’s manifesto call for a 10 per cent year-on-year growth to address the backlog of demand.
“Hopefully the Scottish Government’s commitment to inject a £3bn investment into the industry to deliver 50,000 new affordable homes will assist us in continuing to improve the housing market in Scotland.”
Key Statistics:
New Build Housing – All Sectors:
There were 3,988 new build homes completed between October and December 2015; a 5 per cent decrease on the same quarter in 2014. This brings the total for the year to end December 2015 to 15,954, up 3 per cent (479 homes) compared to the 15,475 completed in the previous year.
There were 3,585 new build homes started between October and December 2015; 12 per cent fewer than the same quarter in 2014. This brings the total for the year to end December 2015 to 17,231 which is up by 3 per cent (508 homes) compared to the 16,723 homes started in the previous year.
New Build Housing – Private-led Housing:
Between October and December 2015, 3,120 private sector led homes were completed; 5 per cent down on the same quarter in 2014. This brings the total for 2015 to 11,917, which is 2 per cent (205 homes) lower than the 12,122 completions in the previous year.
There were 2,491 private sector led starts between October and December 2015, 23 per cent down on the same quarter in 2014. This brings the total for 2015 to 12,896, which is 0.2 per cent (27 homes) lower than the 12,923 starts in the previous year.
New Build Housing – Social Sector Housing (Housing Association and Local Authority combined):
There were 868 social housing completions between October and December 2015; 2 per cent down on the same quarter in 2014. This brings the total for the year to end December 2015 to 4,037. This is 20 per cent increase on the 3,353 social sector completed in the previous year.
Meanwhile 1,094 social sector homes were started between October and December 2015; 29 per cent more than the same quarter in 2014. This brings the total for the 12 months to end December 2015 to 4,335; a 14 per cent increase on the previous year.
More up-to-date figures show that, in January to March 2016, 1,098 social sector homes were completed (35 per cent fewer than the 1,677 completions in the same quarter in 2014), and 1,910 were started (5 per cent more than the same quarter in 2014). This brings the total completions for the 12 months to end December 2015 to 3,458 (an 18 per cent decrease on the 4,221 social sector homes completed in the previous year). Total starts over the 12 months to end December 2015 are now at 4,418 (13 per cent more than the 3,902 started in the previous year).
New Build Housing – Housing Association Homes:
There were 567 housing association completions between October and December 2015, which is 8 per cent fewer than the same quarter in 2014. This brings the total for the year to end December 2015 to 2,954. This is a 24 per cent (568 homes) increase on the 2,386 completions over the previous year.
There were 785 housing association approvals between October and December 2015; 54 per cent more than the same quarter in the previous year. This brings the total for the year to end December 2015 to 2,893. This is an increase of 12 per cent (320 homes) on the 2,573 approvals in the previous year.
More up-to-date figures show that a total of 700 Housing Association homes were completed between January to March 2016, a 48 per cent decrease on the 1,334 homes completed in the same period in 2014. This brings the total completions for the 12 months to end March 2016 to 2,320, which is a decrease of 24 per cent on the 3,064 homes completed in the previous year. A total of 1,610 Housing Association homes were approved between January to March 2016, which is 1 per cent more than the same quarter in 2015. This brings the total approvals for the 12 months to end December 2015 to 2,892, a 10 per cent increase on the 2,634 approvals in the previous year.
New Build Housing – Local Authority Homes:
There were 301 local authority completions between October and December 2015, which is 12 per cent more than the number that were completed in the same quarter in 2014. This brings the total for 2015 to 1,083. This is a 12 per cent (116 homes) increase on the 967 completions the previous year.
There were 309 local authority starts between October and December 2015; 9 per cent lower than the number in the same quarter in 2014. This brings the total for 2015 to 1,442. This is a 18 per cent (215 homes) increase on the 1,227 starts in the previous year.
More up-to-date figures show that, in January to March 2016, 398 local authority houses were completed (an 16 per cent increase on the same quarter in 2014), and 300 were started (up by 30 per cent on the same quarter in 2015). This brings the total completions for the year to end March 2016 to 1,138, 2 per cent fewer than the 1,157 completions in the previous year. Total starts for the 12 months to end March 2016 now stands at 1,512 which is an increase of 19 per cent on the 1,268 local authority homes completed in the previous year.
Affordable Housing Supply – up to end March 2016
Affordable Housing Supply Programme (AHSP) statistics reflect the broader supply of affordable homes (i.e. for social rent, affordable rent and affordable home ownership) and include off-the-shelf purchases and rehabilitations as well as new build.
The latest quarterly statistics for the year to end March 2016 show that affordable housing supply completions have totalled 6,518 for the year up to March 2016, down 8 per cent on the previous year. This includes a decrease in affordable rent completions (down by 8 per cent or 87 homes), and social rent completions (down by 12 per cent or 523 homes), and an increase affordable home ownership completions (up by 4 per cent, or 59 homes). Meanwhile, there were 7,945 affordable housing approvals over the year up to end March 2016, up by 26 per cent or 1,645 homes. There were 7,682 new affordable houses started, up by 16 per cent, or 1,041 homes, compared to the previous year.
Right to Buy Applications and Sales:
Following the announcement of the end of Right to Buy in July 2013 the number of applications and the number of sales both increased. The most recent figures available are for October to December 2015. During this period there were 913 Right to Buy applications (47 per cent higher than in the same quarter the previous year) and 475sales (1 per cent higher than in the same quarter in the previous year).
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