Agency trade body backs latest brownfield housebuilding fund

Propertymark has backed the launch of the Government’s £80m brownfield regeneration scheme.

Councils across England can now bid for a share of the final round of the Brownfield Land Release Fund 2.  

The latest round aims to release land for more than 8,000 new homes by March 2028, creating thousands of construction jobs and transforming underused sites into places where people want to live and work, while protecting green spaces.  

The £180m Brownfield Land Release Fund 2 was launched in July 2022 and is designed to help to bring neglected urban areas back into use, support regeneration projects and boost local economies.  

The full brownfield fund is due to deliver over 17,600 new homes and 56,000 skilled new jobs over the next four years, helping to level up communities across the country.  

There have been two rounds of funding allocations already announced in November 2022 and October 2023 and to date, the fund is supporting 89 local authorities, more than 160 projects, and has provided more than £100m to support councils to release land for nearly 8,600 homes.  

Nathan Emerson, chief executive at Propertymark, said: “Propertymark welcomes this pledge from the UK Government to increase development on brownfield land within town and city centres, especially where there is already a huge demand for housing. However, it is vital that thought goes into the type, tenure and location of these homes to ensure that the correct balance is stuck to enable the country to receive the correct housing infrastructure it desperately needs.”  

The agency trade body has also backed Labour’s pledge to build more on brownfield sites.

If elected, Labour also intends to rewrite planning rules to set out national standards for five-storey Georgian-style townhouse blocks. Developers would be more likely to be granted planning permission on brownfield sites if they follow them. 

Housing is set to be a central political issue in next year’s general election, with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak claiming to have built a ‘record number of new homes’ at the last session of Prime Minister’s Questions before Christmas this week.