A new report from the RIBA proposes a new model to address the UK’s worsening social housing crisis by utilising public land for the development of mixed-tenure homes. The report, Foundations for the Future, suggests that local authorities build on publicly-owned land at no cost, with the sale of market homes reinvested to fund future social housing projects.

The model comes at a time of acute housing need, with nearly 1.3 million households currently on local authority waiting lists, the highest level since 2014. RIBA’s analysis suggests that the approach could create a pipeline of new social homes with significantly reduced reliance on central government funding.

The report highlights the economic and social benefits of such a scheme. “The cost of land is often a major barrier to new housing,” the report states, proposing that publicly-owned land be used at zero cost, leaving only construction expenses. It further argues that this model can generate a nearly self-sustaining system, where market homes are sold, and all proceeds reinvested into building more housing stock.

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