News from Siân Berry: Social housing numbers in London set to fall again

Sian Berry AM challenged the Mayor today over new data showing that new council home building in London is failing to keep up with the alarming loss of council homes from Right to Buy and

demolition. He agreed to work with Sian to address this vitally important issue. 

Data compiled by Sian Berry show that Sadiq Khan’s policies have so far failed stop the net loss of council homes in London. 

Figures from councils on the ground show a net loss of 3,600 council homes last year, adding to more than 20,000 lost since 2012. The two biggest components of this loss in 2020 are Right to Buy sales (-1,468) and continued demolitions (-1,678).[1] 

In addition, Sian warned the Mayor that the city is on target to see an overall net reduction in social housing. It is not expected that new building from housing associations will make up for the net loss in council homes when their data for 2020 is released later this year. In 2019, housing associations reported the addition of just 2,800 social rent homes to their stock.[2]  

At the same time, a quarter of a million people across the city are on waiting lists for social housing. [3]  

Sian Berry says:  

Today I urged the Mayor to step up his efforts and join me in calling for an emergency suspension of Right to Buy. I was very disappointed that he did not agree to this, since these sales are responsible for so much of the net loss of council homes over the years, and continue to prevent London from turning a corner on this crisis. 

The Mayor needs more joined up thinking and to stop undercutting his own progress by supporting Right to Buy and allowing the continued knocking down of council homes in damaging ‘regeneration’ schemes. He needs to do everything he can to stop demolitions and sales reducing our stocks of secure housing for Londoners on lower incomes.  

Londoners desperate for affordable homes cannot afford this muddled policy of one step forward and two steps back.

I will continue to cut through his spin with real scrutiny to show what’s really happening on the ground until London turns the corner and starts gaining rather than losing council homes.

The data released today by Sian Berry looked at council housing stock returns for 2020, showing the numbers of new builds, acquisitions, demolitions, sell offs and Right to Buy sales in London. Adding these up shows that more council homes are being lost every year from Right to Buy, demolition and sell offs than are being built or acquired. 

On the current Mayor’s watch, losses to demolition are continuing, despite the introduction of a hard-won ballot policy implemented in 2018 giving residents the right to vote on demolition plans for their estates, following a long campaign by Sian and residents of estates across London.  

Last week Sian Berry published a report on the planning pipeline of estate redevelopment schemes, which showed 6,748 social and council homes have been lost to demolition in London since 2003, with the city on track for a net loss of 13,500 council homes overall if current currently approved plans go ahead. [4]