G15 secures further partnerships and funding from the GLA

Two further G15 members have become strategic partners of the GLA, while three members have been awarded over £270m in grant to start 4,500 homes

A2Dominion and Catalyst have struck deals with the Mayor of London to become strategic partners of the Greater London Authority (GLA). They join seven other G15 members in attaining this privileged status – Clarion, Hyde, L&Q, Network, Notting Hill Genesis, Optivo and Peabody.

Strategic partnership status is available to housing associations committed to building a substantial number of new homes in the capital with at least 60 per cent being affordable.

In return, partners are granted certain privileges including more flexible funding conditions.

The announcement of further partnerships came as G15 members secured further grant funding to start almost 4,500 additional affordable homes up to 2022.

Between them L&Q, Optivo and Catalyst have secured the bulk of the £288m granted as part of the Mayor’s funding arrangements for the period 2021/22. This will enable 4,705 affordable homes to be started by 2022. Roughly 3,250 will have rents based on social rent levels, while 1,450 will be for London Living Rent (based on a third of average local household incomes) or London Shared Ownership.

The new allocations are:

• £114.4m for L&Q to deliver 2,000 affordable homes
• £80m for the London BME consortium (led by L&Q) to deliver 1,000 new affordable homes
• £57.2m for Optivo to deliver 1,000 new affordable homes
• £22.3m for Catalyst to deliver 455 new affordable homes
• The latest allocations mean G15 members will be responsible for four in ten of the 116,000 affordable homes the Mayor has targeted to be started by 2022.

Commenting on the announcements Paul Hackett, Chief Executive of Optivo and chair of the G15, said: