Unlocking over 500,000 good quality homes in the North  

The housing crisis looks different in different places. In many areas of the North, housing-led regeneration is an essential part of delivering new homes and making sure no one and nowhere is left behind. 

To define the regeneration challenge facing the North we issued a Call for Evidence. We received submissions from organisations responsible for around 1 million of the North’s 1.4 million social homes. This includes insights from more than 160 individual regeneration schemes and sites.  

This full report is based on this insight, alongside wider research and engagement. 

Read the full report.
Read the Executive Summary.
Read companion paper ‘The Social and Economic Case for Housing-Led Regeneration’

Northern Housing Consortium Chief Executive Tracy Harrison said:  

“Now is the time to put the final pieces of the jigsaw in place to tackle the housing crisis, build thriving places and healthier homes, and deliver northern growth… 

“If the Government is serious about delivering 1.5m homes and making sure no-one and nowhere is left behind it must act now to further support housing-led regeneration in the North. Replacing old and cold homes people no longer want to live in will give forgotten areas a new lease of life, transforming communities and encouraging development.”

Headline policy recommendations include:  

Long-term devolved regeneration funding 

  • A £500m per year, 10-year Place Based Regeneration Fund for Mayoral Strategic Authorities.
  • Increase the term of the National Housing Delivery Fund to 10 years to unlock more sites with higher upfront costs.

A national framework to enable local delivery: 

  • A Minister for Regeneration to drive cross-government coordination.

Build local capacity and expertise: 

  • Create a National Centre for Regeneration, based in the North, to rebuild capacity across the sector and lead research and innovation.

Build trust with residents: 

  • Agree a set of standards and rights with residents involved in regeneration.

The report has found: