22/07/2025
Recent housing announcements
Katie Dyer
June and July 2025 have seen a substantial number of housing announcements from the Government following the Comprehensive Spending Review announcements in June. The sector views this positively as it should provide better long-term financial certainty than the sector has had for many years. There are however challenges ahead and some of the measures proposed will have cost implications for the sector to ensure they are effectively implemented.
Recent announcements that will have an impact on the finances of the housing sector and registered providers include:
- 300,000 new homes – Around 300,000 social and affordable homes to be built over the next 10 years through the £39billion newly named Social and Affordable Homes Programme. 60% of these new homes will be for social rent linked to local incomes with a plan to improve the build standards for these homes across the country; an ambitious target of delivering 180,000 homes for social rent has been set and the longer-term nature of the plan enabling developers more certainty to plan and invest to deliver this goal.
Hundreds of thousands to get secure roof over their heads - GOV.UK
- Rent convergence – a consultation seeking views of the sector to rent convergence proposals has been launched with a closing date of 27 August 2025. In order to implement a 10-year rent settlement for the sector clear feedback was given that this may only be achievable through some form of rent convergence. Details of the level and how this may be implemented is planned to be announcement in the 2025 Autumn budget. Details on how to submit your views for the consultation can be found here:
How to implement Social Rent convergence - GOV.UK
- Right to Buy Reforms – the Housing Minister Matthew Pennycook has announced several Right to Buy reforms including a requirement that newly built social homes are to be exempt from the Right to Buy for 35 years and increasing the time for qualifying for the Right to Buy from three to five years.
- New Decent Homes Standard – a consultation on implementing a new Decent Homes Standard which will extend to cover not only social housing, but also privately rented housing has been launched with a closing date of 10 September 2025. The purpose of the consultation is to update the existing Decent Homes Standards to ensure that every home is safe warm and decent and set out what tenants should expect from their landlords. Details on the consultation and how to submit your views can be found here:
Consultation on a reformed Decent Homes Standard for social and privately rented homes - GOV.UK
- Minimum Energy Efficiency standards – a consultation on the introduction of minimum energy efficiency standards (MEES) which has been talked about for a number of years has recently been launched. The consultation has a closing date of 10 September 2025. The consultation aims to take views from the sector on imposing an EPC C standard or equivalent for socially rented homes by 2030 (which matches similar proposals for MEES for private rented units). The standards would then be incorporated into the new Decent Homes Standard when this is launched. For details of how to submit your views and the consultation please see here:
Improving the Energy Efficiency of Socially Rented Homes in England - GOV.UK
- Access to Building Safety Fund – Matthew Pennycook MP issued a letter on 11 June 2025 following the Spending Review 2025 confirming that the Government will give social landlords equal access to its remediation funding (under the Building Safety Fund and Cladding Safety Scheme) and will make it “significantly easier for social landlords to secure upfront capital for remediation through government schemes”.
- National Housing Bank – To drive forward its ambition of delivering 1.5 million homes this Parliament, the UK Government has announced the creation of the National Housing Bank, which will become designated as a new public financial institution under Homes England. Backed initially by £16 billion (made up of investment capital and contingent liability capacity), the Bank aims to accelerate complex housing developments and improve long-term financing options, particularly for social and affordable homes. The initiative is supported by a separate £5 billion capital grant fund to unlock major infrastructure and regeneration projects which the Government stated would be fully operational by 1 April 2026. More details about the Government announcement can be found here:
Written statements - Written questions, answers and statements - UK Parliament
- New Competence and Conduct Standard – the Government has also announced that it will be directing the Regulator of Social Housing (RSH) to set new standards and competence and conduct for all staff working in social housing to improve the overall professionalism of the sector and meet customer needs. The standard is due to come into force in October 2026.
Written statements - Written questions, answers and statements - UK Parliament
- Awaab's Law update – draft regulations which will implement Awaab’s law have been issued by the Government on 25 June 2025. The “Hazards in Social Housing (Prescribed Requirements) (England) Regulations 2025” which are still subject to Parliamentary approval are intended to come into force on 27 October 2025. Please see our detailed article for more information on what this means for the housing sector.
Awaab’s Law: Draft guidance for social landlords - GOV.UK
- Proposed ban on upwards only rent reviews in commercial property – the Government published the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill on 10 July 2025 which includes a ban on upwards only rent review provisions that are contained in Commercial Leases for any new lease granted (and where there is no pre-commencement agreement prior to the Bill coming into force). The Bill is not retrospective and so will not affect existing leases, unless and until they come up for renewal, when they could be affected.
The provisions of the Bill could affect Registered Providers who have commercial property in their portfolio. The changes will only affect business tenancies and will prevent the upwards only element of rent-review clauses from taking effect. In practice it may not have too much of an impact where rents are reviewed in line with RPI or CPI as it has been rare in recent times that over the review period there is deflation. The decision to implement this into the Bill is potentially to support smaller businesses and struggling high-streets however in most cases these leases are for much shorter terms and as a result generally do not have rent review provisions in them anyway so there may be little impact for businesses who most need the support.
English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill - Parliamentary Bills - UK Parliament
Pensions Bill
Joel Eytle
Imminent changes affecting Housing Sector Pension Schemes – an important judgment and government intervention: On 5 June, the government announced that it will introduce legislation to resolve the issues and uncertainty created by the case of Virgin Media Limited v NTL Pension Trustees Limited. This Court of Appeal case raised doubts about the validity of historic benefit changes made by pension schemes, depending on whether they met statutory tests which applied at that time.
It has left a large number of defined benefit pension schemes in limbo, as the potential liability exposure created by the case is significant. This uncertainty applies in respect of the Social Housing Pension Scheme, to which many employers in the housing sector belong, and is likely to apply to a large majority of “stand-alone” defined benefit pension schemes.
The government’s statement did not provide any details about the future legislation, so whilst this statement is helpful, it does not immediately resolve the issues or allow employers and pension scheme trustees to be confident that the solution will work for them in the right timeframe.
In addition to the government’s announcement, we are also waiting for the judgment in the court case of Verity Trustees Limited v Wood. This case is expected to cover some of the issues raised by the Virgin Media case and could provide further options or pathways to solve the issues. The Social Housing Pension Scheme is one of two housing schemes being considered in this case (the other being the Scottish Housing Association Pension Scheme), so the outcome of the case will have a direct impact on organisations and entities operating in the housing sector.
This means that, for now, we are still in “wait and see” mode. We suspect that the time to revisit the position will be in the Autumn once the Verity Trustees judgment has been issued and/or more detail is provided by the government on its proposed solution. At that point it will be important to review the position to see: (a) if you are affected by these issues; and (b) what actions should be taken to resolve the position.
Pension Schemes Bill: on the same day that the government made the pensions announcement referred to above, this long-awaited bill was finally published. As expected, it includes provisions relating to releasing surplus from defined benefit pension schemes, consolidation of small pensions pots and establishment of DB superfunds, among other changes.
Although the ability to access a pension scheme surplus may prove significant, this legislation will not become law until 2027 at the earliest, with lots of the detail to still be fleshed out. As a result, there is little that will change for pension scheme trustees, employers, lenders and members in the short term. For registered providers that operate stand-alone defined benefit pension schemes, if that scheme is in a healthy funding position, there is now the prospect of a financial return to the employer to support future investments.
National Wealth Fund Loans
Anna Clark
Bevan Brittan (Anna Clark and Louise Mookerjee) acted for Vivid Housing, who became the first registered provider (RP) to secure a loan from any of the four retrofit funding schemes supported by £1.3bn of National Wealth Fund (NWF) guarantees. Barclays, Lloyds, NatWest, and The Housing Financing Corporation have all signed up to partnerships backed by the guarantees. The provision of guarantees enables RPs to access competitively priced funding to improve housing stock in desperate need of retrofit upgrade.
The funding will help RPs with decarbonisation, reducing energy consumption and emissions and improving the quality of life of their residents. RPs will be able to use the loans for eligible retrofit measures, including low carbon heating, insulation, low carbon lighting, renewable energy, ventilation and heating controls, as well for resilience measures and biodiversity. It is also worth noting that there are a wide range of retrofit measures RPs may already be undertaking that are considered eligible for funding under the NWF scheme, including those taking a fabric first approach to decarbonisation, minimising heat loss and gain through focussing on improving the physical structure of their buildings to maximise energy efficiency.
Vivid completed a £50m loan from Barclays, the largest that can be issued under the scheme, which comes with a 70% guarantee from NWF. The funding will be used to retrofit and improve the energy efficiency of more than 2,000 homes owned by Vivid.
Please contact Louise Leaver or Anna Clark if you would discuss any of the retrofit funding products.
Top Tips for securing Commercial Properties for value in Funding Agreements
Katie Dyer | Samia Mohamed
With funders increasingly open to attributing value to commercial, market-rented, and other non-core assets in loan agreements, registered providers are exploring new ways to unlock additional value from their security. But obtaining value from commercial properties comes with a layer of complexity that goes beyond standard social housing asset charging. Here are a few tips to help you prepare:
Lease documentation is key: Keep full records of current leases, rent deposit deeds, authorised guarantee agreements, and assignments. Leases under 7 years will not appear on the Land Registry title, so your own records must be kept up to date with any renewed lease terms or surrenders.
Know your income profile: Confirm and check rental terms including turnover rents, rent-free periods, and rent review clauses. Funders will expect full transparency on such terms.
Checking lease terms: Be ready to explain alienation, insurance and repairing responsibilities, planning and lease use restrictions, and especially how commercial units interconnect with residential units on mixed-use schemes.
Access and services: Clarify how units are accessed, which areas are communal, and how service charges are recovered and apportioned.
Final Thoughts
When considering commercial assets as security, always assume funders will want a deeper dive into the due diligence on these assets. Detailed responses to legal due diligence enquiries will be required and your advisors will need to provide fuller title disclosures on the lease terms. Following industry standard form commercial leases and strong internal recordkeeping can significantly increase the security value attributed. Think ahead: are there break clauses, shared infrastructure, or residential units above. Are the units easily re-let and is the extent of the commercial lease area accurately defined and set out? These can all affect the funder’s appetite for securing such assets. A proactive, detail-driven approach helps turn commercial complexity into a funding opportunity.
If you are looking to secure your commercial assets for value, then do get in touch as we have an experienced commercial letting team who can assist you.
Shared Ownership Code Update
Richard Stirk
June 2025 saw the launch of the new shared ownership code to improve the “shared ownership experience” across the sector for existing and prospective shared owners. The Code has been compiled and refined through focus groups, practitioner engagement and an active 4-month pilot with eight housing providers.
The core elements of the Code relate to providing consistency and clarity of information to shared owners around the cost and process of shared ownership both at the initial point of sale and throughout the shared ownership journey. The Code requires, amongst other things, clear explanations of the form of SO lease being used, clear service charge information, clarity on fees, defined process for informal lease extensions, reduced nominations period (where possible) and clear defects process for new-build shared ownership units.
The report on the pilot concluded that 73% of the Code was being complied with at the outset, but there were a number of areas where improvement was required which related, mostly, to the provisions of information on block ownership, lease details, maintenance issues and service charge information. The Code is currently voluntary but considering the increased focus on consumer standards and tenant satisfaction, we anticipate that there will be an expectation within the sector that RPs sign up.
Portfolio Trends
Rebecca Gibson
There has been wide coverage in the press recently about Registered Providers (RP) disposing of stock in the traditional manner and/or disposing of the legal interest in the properties and retaining the management. Some senior officers at large RPs do not see this management only model as an issue but as a way to improve their existing stock and increase their development programme as the selling RPs will receive a capital receipt. However, some in the sector simply do not like the idea and the Regulator of Social Housing is keen for RPs to consider the “what if” scenarios around no longer owning homes.
Wherever the music stops on this (and it is likely to be somewhere in the middle) we are still very much in a buyer’s market for portfolios of occupied homes and the market for selling portfolios, particularly in London and the Southeast remains challenging.
Getting the marketing, timing and lotting correct now is even more crucial alongside ensuring the properties that are to be sold are able to be sold i.e. ensuring that the seller (and their legal team) carry out sufficient legal due diligence on the titles to the properties before these go to market to give buyers confidence that there are no “red flags” in the portfolio that will stall or end the transaction.
A buyer and their team finding “red flags” halfway through a transaction will not give the buyer any confidence whatsoever as to the quality of the portfolio and may lead to price chips, elongated timetable, or the nuclear option of withdrawing from the transaction.
If you are considering selling (or buying) a portfolio please do get in touch with Rebecca Gibson at Bevan Brittan who has over 15 years’ experience of buying, selling and swapping portfolios of occupied homes in this sector.
Economic Crime Levy
Rose Klemperer | Sarah Greenhalgh
There are some changes to corporate law which could have implications for finance and treasury teams within the housing sector. The new Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act brings in verification requirements for new/existing directors (and equivalents for LLPs) at Companies House. Even if a RP is a Co-operative and Community Benefit Society, there could be circumstances, for example through Joint Venture (JV) arrangements or treasury vehicles where officers are directors of those entities.
Our Company Secretary Snapshot contains more details and you should check with your governance teams what the plans are for completing the verification process. Secondly there is a failure to prevent fraud offence for large organisations and given finance and treasury teams are often dealing with significant financial transactions and payments, this should be high up the list of risks and priorities.
The Company Secretary Snapshot also flags some changes to consumer credit reporting, key learnings from the Housing Ombudsman’s latest severe maladministration decision, Supported Housing Regulatory Oversight Act.
For more information do contact Rose Klemperer or Sarah Greenhalgh in our Governance team.
AOB
We will be attending the Housing Community Summit (8 - 9 September) and NHF Treasury Conference (9 October) so get in touch if you are too.
