Split across two lots, the partners would fund the cost of providing new council homes on these sites, and also create some housing for private sale to help pay for the new council homes.
The council is aiming for at least 50% of the new homes across each lot to be genuinely affordable homes. Southwark will always seek to maximise the numbers of council homes on any development.
This procurement is being launched as councils across England face a very difficult outlook for building new council homes, after several years of escalating interest rates and rising construction costs.
Cllr Helen Dennis, Cabinet Member for New Homes and Sustainable Development, said,
“At a time when councils face major challenges in delivering more homes, and many schemes across England have stalled, we are still committed to building, and will always seek to deliver as many council homes as we can across Southwark.
“With over 18,000 households on our waiting list, doing nothing is not an option. Partnering with builders is a tried and tested way of providing fantastic high-quality new council homes at the pace and scale we need, and we’re now seeking to establish partnerships so we can keep building more council homes over the coming years.
“I look forward to working closely with local people as these plans develop and to ensure that this next chapter meets our residents’ needs.”
Southwark is one of the largest local authority home builders in the country, having built or started construction on over 3,000 new council homes.
Southwark Council is campaigning for the future of council homes. Its report Securing the Future of Council Housing, is backed by more than 100 councils across England.
It is calling for five actions from Government to save council homes, including steps to make it easier to build new and replacement homes.
The first stage of the procurement will close on the Monday 24 March. A series of dialogue sessions will follow for shortlisted bidders with the entire procurement exercise expected to complete in autumn 2025.
Those interested in the opportunity can find all the information here.
NOTES
Southwark Council will always seek to maximise the number of council homes on any development.
The council will aim for 50% of new homes built on any developments on its existing estates to be council homes.