Housing Act

The Housing Bill finally received Royal Assent on 19th November 2004 after protracted disagreements over the introduction of compulsory Home Information Packs (HIPs).  The House of Lords fought and lost to make HIPs voluntary, therefore HIPs will become mandatory in England and Wales on the 1st June 2007.

The independent regulatory body, the National Home Building Council (NHBC), has expressed doubts over the necessity of compulsory Home Condition Reports (HCR’s) for homes already under warranty.  On Tuesday 18^th July 2006, the Housing Minister, Ms Yvette Cooper, stated that she would not require the HIPs to include a HCR.  Having analysed testing information and ascertained concerns over industry readiness, the Government has amended their phased introduction of HIPs; establishing precedence towards the aspect of energy efficiency ratings information, with further testing later this year on the other aspects of HIPs.  A spokesman for the Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG) said that making HCRs compulsory was still an option, “The first stage is to see how they work on the ground.  This is not a U-turn.  We are bringing them in on a phased basis”.

 

One of the most crucial issues for private house builders however, is a provision within the Housing Bill, which permits them to apply for Social Housing Grant.  Until now Social Housing Grants had only been available to Registered Social Landlords; this move clears the way for house builders to get more directly involved with the provision of affordable housing rather than simply through Section 106 agreements.

 

In March 2005, the Housing Corporation launched the pilot £200 million New Partnerships in Affordable Housing Programme (NPiAH), which allowed unregistered bodies, such as house builders, to bid for funding.  Four of the successful bidders are private developers:  Bellway Homes, Bovis Homes Group, First Base Limited, Persimmon PLC, and the remaining 13 successful bids are from RSLs. 

 

In addition, the Housing Corporation has changed the name of the Approved Development Programme (ADP) to the National Affordable Housing Programme (NAHP).  For the first time ever, this will also be open to unregistered bodies, as well as RSLs.  However, only unregistered bodies that satisfied the pre-qualification requirement for the £200 million New Partnerships in Affordable Housing Programme (NPiAH) are likely to receive funding status.
 

For full details on both programmes, please see Housing Corporation section