Stonewater pitches for grant to support £400m building plan

The £400m programme depends on support from the Homes & Communities Agency (HCA).

Stonewater has pitched for funding from the next round of grant funding being allocated by the HCA under its Shared Ownership Affordable Homes 2016-2021 programme. The HCA is making £4.7bn of capital grant available to housing associations and private builders and developers to help deliver a minimum of 153,000 affordable homes in England over the next five years.

Stonewater’s funding bid is for the development of 484 new affordable homes as part of its wider development programme.

“We plan to invest nearly £400m in the creation of new affordable homes across a wide range of tenures over the next five years,” said Nicholas Harris, Stonewater chief executive designate.   “This investment aims to help hard-working people who are struggling to access the housing market and to secure a new home of their own.  We expect to deliver around 2,765 homes over the period.”

Stonewater currently owns and manages more than 30,000 homes across England. Last year the housing provider delivered 650 new homes. It expects to exceed this number during 2016/17.

Mr Harris said: “This additional funding support from the HCA would give a significant boost to our shared ownership housing development programme, enabling Stonewater to use the money to build more low-cost homeownership homes in areas of the country where they are most needed. It will also help us provide much-needed specialist supported housing which is a vital part of our social purpose.”

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