Londoners don’t get the ‘right’ housing

A London Assembly report concludes that the type and mix of affordable housing being built does not match the needs of Londoners.

The report also criticises a lack of clarity in defining ‘affordable housing’ in borough development plans.

The report found there is a surplus of over 12,000 one-bedroom homes while there is a shortage of 28,000 homes that people actually need. Where developers are meeting targets, they may not be meeting local need. In order to meet their ‘affordable units’ targets, house-builders often supply only the smallest units, as they are the cheapest.

Tony Arbour, chairman of the assembly's planning and spatial development committee, said: "Too many Londoners are having to squeeze into unsuitable housing because it isn't being designed to meet the capital's needs."

"The provision of affordable housing for Londoners must recognise that, like the rest of the population, they will have families that need more than a one-bedroom flat."

Th e report calls for changes to the Mayor’s London Plan, his main strategic planning document, to better incentivise the building of homes with more bedrooms and more sophisticated methods of calculating necessary housing requirements.

Tony Arbour also criticises the use of the ‘affordable housing’ label, particularly when developers may label apartments at over £400,000 as ‘affordable’. "My personal view is that ‘affordable housing’ is a phrase that is increasingly seen as meaningless," said Arbour. "Greater clarity could be brought to the housing market if ‘affordable housing’ was better described as ‘subsidised housing’ provision."