PPR in Property Investor News on the SME housebuilding squeeze

PPR in Property Investor News on the SME housebuilding squeeze

Representing SMEs on the Parliamentary Liaison Group for Housing Delivery & Growth, PPR Estates (PPR) recently submitted proposals to streamline the NPPF to unlock the regeneration and GDP-growth potential of small urban sites.

In March, PPR Director Nick Hopkinson set out in Property Investor News (link attached)  why simpler, more predictable planning rules for SMEs are essential if the UK is to come close to its housing targets. Two months on, the updated NPPF and consultation response remain unpublished with no public timetable. Latest official data shows only around 342,000 net additional homes delivered since the start of this Parliament. This is less than a quarter of the 1.5 million new homes pledged. Analysts are now forecasting a Parliament total significantly below 1 million new homes in England, unless the government acts urgently.

Nick Hopkinson commented: “Recent research identified over 8,200 vacant local authority buildings in England last year. Combined with over 175,000 privately owned offices, shops and leisure premises sitting empty, there is huge scope for adaptive reuse to help meet the housing crisis – if government unlocks the planning system and lets the SME sector deliver. As I explained in Property Investor News, planning reform is one of very few cost free policy areas that the government can impact to unleash the SME-Led regeneration of small urban sites.”

PPR Estates is actively seeking suitable sites to add value to in strong town centres.