A major new report from Centre for London, published today, examines the structural causes of London’s housing crisis and the reforms needed to improve access to affordable housing across the capital.
The report, supported by G15, Barratt London, the Royal Borough of Greenwich and Impact on Urban Health, argues that London’s housing challenge is not only about overall housing supply, but also about who can access homes and how housing is distributed across the city.
It highlights growing inequality in access to affordable and secure housing, rising overcrowding and homelessness, and the long-term decline in social housing availability. The report also explores a wide range of policy proposals covering planning reform, social housing investment, housing delivery, taxation and market regulation.
The report makes a significant contribution to the debate about how London responds to its housing crisis and reflects the scale and complexity of the challenge facing the capital.
Commenting on the report, G15 Chair Ian McDermott said:
“This is a thoughtful and ambitious report that reflects the scale and complexity of London’s housing crisis. One of its most important contributions is highlighting that the challenge is not only about the number of homes, but about who can access them and how housing is distributed across the city.
“The report rightly shows that many Londoners are experiencing worsening overcrowding, insecurity and unaffordability even where overall housing supply has grown. That underlines the importance of increasing the supply of genuinely affordable homes alongside wider housing reform.
“We particularly welcome the report’s focus on increasing social housing delivery capacity, improving grant flexibility, supporting acquisitions during market downturns, and creating more stable long-term funding mechanisms for affordable housing. London needs practical reforms that improve delivery across the whole system while ensuring social housing remains central to the city’s long-term housing strategy.
“The report also makes an important contribution to the debate on how housing and tax policy can better support mobility, affordability and long-term investment in housing. London’s housing market operates differently from the rest of the country, and there is a strong case for greater fiscal devolution so the capital has more flexibility to respond to its specific housing pressures and invest in the homes and infrastructure Londoners need.”
We look forward to continuing to work with Centre for London and partners across the sector to support practical, long-term solutions to London’s housing crisis.
