Infrastructure Investment Plan 2021-22 to 2025-26: programme pipeline update - March 2022

Sector: Housing

Programme name: Affordable Housing

Programme description: The delivery of 50,000 affordable homes over the five years of the previous Parliament (2016-2021). Working with local authorities, housing associations and private developers, we are committed to investment and ensuring best value in order to maximise the number of affordable homes that can be delivered from available resources.

Estimated total investment: Over £3.5 billion

How is programme being funded: Capital funding committed from Scottish Government for the five years to 2021.

Programme delivery timetable: Delivery was targeted for the end of the last Parliamentary period.

Latest programme progress: Over the period 1 April 2016 to 31 December 2021, a total of 47,404 affordable homes have been delivered towards the 50,000 affordable homes target. This includes 32,361 for social rent, 5,804 for affordable rent and 9,239 for affordable home ownership.

Delivery of the 50,000 affordable homes target has been challenging due to the ongoing impact of global issues around materials and skilled labour shortages and associated rising costs, as well as the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic still having an effect. We are continuing to work closely with our housing delivery partners to ensure the delivery of the remaining homes as quickly as it is possible to do so.

Official statistics for the period to end March 2022 are due to be reported in the next quarterly statistics release in June 2022.

Contribution to economic development: The delivery of 50,000 affordable homes over five years (excluding periods when construction was interrupted by COVID-19) has been estimated to support on average between 11,000 and 13,000 full-time equivalent jobs per annum in the construction and related sectors in the Scottish economy.

Contact for public enquiries: email: morehomesbusman@gov.scot

Programme name: Alternative Funding to Support Affordable Housing

Programme description: The Affordable Housing Supply Programme is focussed on delivering more affordable and social homes, helping to create great places, and continuing to ensure the right types of homes in the right places to support Local Housing Strategies and regional development priorities / Delivery of the Housing to 2040 strategy Vision and aims.

Estimated total investment: £5.8 billion of which £3.6 billion is SG capital grant towards delivery of affordable homes, with the remainder being an investment contribution by delivery partners.

How is programme being funded: Capital funding committed from Scottish Government for five years to 2025-26 as well as borrowing by local authorities and registered social landlords / Housing Capital budget and private sector investment.

Programme delivery timetable: Initial phase 2021-22 to 2031-32.

Latest programme progress: Once the previous 50,000 affordable homes target has been delivered we will work towards delivering 110,000 affordable homes by 2032 with 70% of these homes for social rent and 10% in remote, rural and island areas.

We are co-ordinating social and affordable housing investment with other essential infrastructure investment to increase opportunity for private investment in place initiatives that are key to business and regional growth.

Also, in line with the Housing to 2040 Vision, we will continue to support the building of homes for private rent, with a focus on maximising delivery of these homes at the affordable end of market rents, working with private sector investors and partners whose business models match our ambition to improve affordability for tenants.

• Funding City Regional Deal housing activity including investing in strategic sites to deliver strong place-based investments over the next 20 years
• Continued support for housing infrastructure investment, building on the success of the Housing Infrastructure Fund (HIF), which has invested nearly £50 million to date in unlocking developments. A new round of HIF grant funding was opened in October 2021
• Continued delivery of over £100 million of long-term loan investment by the Scottish Government into the expansion of affordable, mid-market rent (MMR) housing
• Delivery of the National Housing Trust (NHT) initiative, which has delivered over 1,700 new MMR homes across Scotland through the provision of a Scottish Government guarantee. Over 1,000 homes have left the NHT initiative. Positive outcomes have been achieved for tenants with the majority of homes being retained by local authorities as long term affordable housing
• Continuing to support the small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) Housebuilding sector to recover from the impacts of COVID-19 through the careful management of the SME Housebuilder Liquidity Fund. This was opened in response to COVID-19 which resulted in the temporary closure of construction sites and operated during the pandemic lockdown period
• Working with the Scottish National Investment Bank to seek out funding opportunities in the housing sector that align with the Banks mission and the Housing to 2040 strategy aims

Contribution to economic development: Delivering this ambitious 110,000 affordable homes target would support a total investment package of around £18 billion (in 2022 prices) and up to 15,000 full-time equivalent jobs each year in the construction and related sectors in the Scottish economy.

Contact for public enquiries: email: morehomesbusman@gov.scot

Programme name: Housing Supply Supporting Home Ownership

Programme description: The delivery of support for Help to Buy, First Home Fund and Open Market Shared Equity.

Estimated total investment: £148 million.

How is programme being funded: Financial Transactions capital.

Programme delivery timetable: 2021-22.

Latest programme progress: Financial Transactions funding totalling £84 million were made available across both the First Home Fund (FHF) and Help to Buy (Scotland) Affordable New Build and Smaller Developers Scheme (HtoB). £60 million was allocated to FHF and £24 million to HtoB.

Both these schemes closed on 31 March 2022. There are currently a small number of transactions across both schemes which will now settle during financial year 2022-23.

Open Market Shared Equity (OMSE) saw an allocation of £64 million. This scheme remains open for financial year 2022-23 and contributes towards the Affordable Housing Supply Programme (AHSP).

Contribution to economic development: A strong and growing house-building industry is key contributing factor to Scotland's future economic prosperity.

Contact for public enquiries: email: morehomesbusman@gov.scot