Resources for investment in affordable housing in Scotland

Capital investment in new affordable housing has been one of the main victims of the reductions in the Scottish Government’s budget. The overall housing budget has been cut by 19% in the current year – in reality this is a cut of 30% once earlier adjustments are taken into account.

The Scottish Government has firm commitments to fund 6,000 new homes each year over the period of the spending review.
Based on these commitments, we have argued that an annual programme outlined below best reflects the balance between meeting the most acute outstanding needs and the ability of housing organisations to deliver:

- No less than 4,000 new socially rented homes each year
- 1,000 homes for subsidised home-ownership
- 1,000 intermediate rented homes through the National Housing Trust.

In addition, we have estimated the cost of making good the shortfall in housing supply in the current year (2011/12) set against the Scottish Government’s own targets. We have allocated the shortfall reduction to the first two years of the Spending Review in line with the Scottish Government’s targets.

So the Spending Review needs to make allowance for approvals of new housing of not less than the following amounts (all in current prices):

- £220m in 2012/13
- £220m in 2013/14
- £170m in 2014/15

These amounts are only for new affordable homes based on the Scottish Government’s own published commitments. They fall short of what CIH Scotland and Shelter Scotland have estimated is required to address the backlog of housing need. They also do not include the need for the housing and regeneration budget to fund other housing priorities.