24/03/2004

£3.5bn affordable housing programme announced

The government has today announced a major new affordable house-building programme worth nearly £3.5 billion over the next two years.

The funding, announced by Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott, has been allocated to the Housing Corporation's Approved Development Programme and should deliver 67,000 new affordable homes across the country.

In addition English Partnership's London Wide initiative will provide 2,000 key worker homes across the capital during the next two to three years. The partnership is committed to delivering some 3,500 houses across London through a pilot scheme with private sector developers.

The initial pilot scheme, for which brownfield sites have been targeted, will include a mixture of housing tenures, such as homes for low cost home ownership, homes for affordable rent and homes for sale at market value.

The cash injection follows yesterday's launch of the £690 million Key Worker Living programme which will help key workers to buy or rent a home in London and the wider South East, where the high cost of housing is undermining recruitment and retention in education, health and community safety.

(gmcg)

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