12 INDUSTRY NEWS


Events & awards


2017


NHF Annual Conference & Housing Exhibition 19 – 20 September, Birmingham annual.housing.org.uk


British Homes Awards 21 September, London www.britishhomesawards.co.uk


UK Construction Week 10 – 12 October, Birmingham www.ukconstructionweek.com


Build Show 10 – 12 October, Birmingham www.ukconstructionweek.com/build-show


24housing Awards 12 October, Coventry www.24housingawards.co.uk


London Build Expo 25 – 26 October, London www.londonbuildexpo.com


RCI Show 1 – 2 November, Coventry www.rcishow.co.uk


Housebuilder Awards 3 November, London www.house-builder.co.uk/events


Women in Housing Conference 2 November, Manchester www.womeninhousingconference.co.uk


Women in Housing Awards 2 November, Manchester www.womeninhousingawards.co.uk


London Development Conference 7 November, London www.housing.org.uk/events


WhatHouse? Awards 17 November, London www.whathouse.com/awards


Homes 22 – 23 November, London homesevent.co.uk


HBF Ball 1 December, London www.hbf.co.uk/events-meetings


Decades of shortfall in London home building could be reversed


The capital has seen a record number of requests to build new homes in 2017, according to analysis from the Fifty Thousand Homes campaign. Over 42,000 planning applications for housing have been submitted in the first six months of 2017, a 38 per cent increase on the average rates since 2010, and the highest number of applications over this period. According to the campaign, this provides London with an opportunity to reverse decades of housing deficit. But, with more than one in three planning permissions falling by the wayside in 2016, the UK capital faces a huge challenge ahead to convert planning appli- cations into new front doors opening. The analysis, developed by Grant Thornton UK, which is part of the Fifty Thousand Homes campaign, found that London is currently building less than half the number of homes it needs, with construction over a full year peaking at 23,913 in 2015.


Central London appears to be building the overwhelming majority of properties, with boroughs in zones one to 3 building nearly 70 per cent of all the capital’s new homes. Unless, however, boroughs in zones five and six dramatically step up the pace, they will miss the housing targets for 2017 set out in the Mayor’s London plan by over 50 per cent. Jasmine Whitbread, chief executive of


London First, called on the Mayor, boroughs and developers to “step up and make that ambition a reality.” “Nobody expects London’s housing crisis to be solved overnight,” she said,” but 2017 is an opportunity for local authorities to grant more permissions than ever before and for record breaking levels of construction to begin.” Ian Tasker, director at Grant Thornton UK recognised the urgent need to boost housing supply across the capital. He said: “The uplift in the first half of 2017, in both applications and permissions, is encouraging, but there is still more to be done. London’s status as a leading global city relies heavily on businesses being able to attract local and global talent, and we need to find new ways of working collaboratively to tackle the ongoing housing pressures they face.” “We have the appetite,” he concluded, “now we need to focus on how we convert this into homes.”


81 per cent of UK avoids new builds


A survey of 2,000 UK adults has revealed that buyers snub new-build housing developments.


Research by MFS found that homebuy- ers dislike the current increasing number of new builds, despite these constructions forming a core priority of the Government’s housing policy.


The independent, nationwide survey found that 81 per cent of the country, the equivalent of 41.58 million people, consciously avoids new-build properties, despite living through the worst housing crisis in decades.


The research found that the majority (60 per cent) of UK adults feel that there are now too many poorly built, unattractive new builds popping up across the country. A further 41 per cent do not favour new build properties, saying that developments not only lack character, but can also be ‘eyesores’ within their local area. 23 per cent however said they would consider buying a newly built property as a buy-to-let investment.


The MFS data comes as a record 162,880 new homes have been built across the UK in the past year. MFS has urged the Government to prioritise the refurbishment and restoration of traditional properties across the country.


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