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The Manchester Social Housing Commission today makes an urgent call for both national and local government to tackle the growing housing crisis in the city.
At a launch event in parliament the Right Reverend Dr. David Walker, Bishop of Manchester presented ‘Why We Need Sustainable Homes for Social Rent: An Agenda for Change’. The report argues that the market-driven approach to housing has failed, resulting in increasing unaffordability, homelessness, and a decline in the availability of social rented housing.
The Commission's report highlights the stark reality of the current housing situation in the city:
· Manchester has the second-highest homelessness rate and the highest rate of temporary accommodation outside London.
· Nearly 18,000 households are on the city's social housing waiting list.
· Manchester has lost over 16,000 social rented homes since 1979 due to Right to Buy sales and a failure to replace lost stock.
· The private rented sector, where many people are forced to live, often provides poor quality, insecure, and unaffordable housing. 43%, or 17,565 of Manchester’s private rented housing has been assessed as ‘non-decent’.
The Right Reverend Dr. David Walker, Bishop of Manchester and Chair of the Commission, said: "Access to safe, secure, and affordable housing is a fundamental human right. The current housing crisis is a moral and economic imperative that demands immediate action. The Commission’s research sets out a clear path forward and we urge the government to adopt our recommendations to ensure everyone has a place to call home."
The Manchester Social Housing Commission brings together tenants, grassroots community organisations, campaigners, political leaders and officers at Manchester City Council, senior public and voluntary sector housing and planning professionals, and academics.
The core mission of the Commission is to significantly increase the availability of sustainable homes for social rent in Manchester and other parts of England. Social housing rents are set by a government formula that is linked to local incomes on a secure, lifetime basis. On average, social rents are 33% less than private rents.
Commissioner Thirza Amina Asanga-Rae, an organiser with Greater Manchester Tenants Union, said: “150,000 children are living in temporary accommodation across the UK. A business as usual approach to housing will continue to blight their lives and prospects. Investing in a new generation of sustainable homes for social rent would reduce homelessness, save millions currently going to private landlords and give whole communities the basis to thrive long into the future.”
The Manchester Social Housing Commission is making five key demands of national government:
1. Reinvest in social rent:
The government must significantly increase public investment in ecologically sustainable social rented housing.
2. Reform planning to prioritise sustainable social rent:
The planning system needs reform to promote and require a higher percentage of social rent in new housing developments and ensure new homes are sustainable.
3. Rethink the right to buy:
The Right to Buy scheme, which has contributed to the loss of over 2 million social homes in England, should be suspended for new and existing tenants.
4. Retrofit empty homes for sustainable social rent:
Bring long-term empty homes back into use as social rented housing, retrofitted to high energy standards.
5. Embed community voice and ownership into the planning system:
Empower communities and their elected representatives to shape investment decisions in their neighbourhoods.
Commissioner Venus Galarza, policy manager at Shelter, said “In the past decade we’ve lost more social homes than we’ve built, causing private rents to soar and leaving our housing system on its knees. Thousands of families across the country are stuck in unsuitable temporary accommodation, with little hope of finding a stable home. The only way we’ll turn the tide is by investing in a new generation of social homes. Research shows building 90,000 social rent homes would not only pay for themselves in just three years and add £51.2 billion to the economy over the next 30 years, but they would also help end homelessness for good."
Notes to editors:
· For interviews or media inquiries, please contact christopher.jordan@manchester.ac.uk (07989 381153) or sophie.king@class-uk.com (07816752525).
· Additional background information on the Manchester Social Housing Commission is available here