Timber -
The answer to the UK’s housebuilding crisis
Ever since Chancellor Philip Hammond’s £15 billion Autumn Budget pledge to help fix the UK’s broken housing market, pressure on local authorities to put forward viable housebuilding plans has intensified.
Sajid Javid, Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, has since threatened government intervention and warned that a lack of housebuilding progress from local authorities “will no longer be tolerated”. He even went as far as to publicly name and shame 15 failing local authorities in a written statement to the Commons, and recently introduced Homes England - a new national housing agency. All these acts offer a stark reminder of this government’s ambitious plans to build 300,000 new homes a year.
Government commitments, underpinned by the prospect of Brexit depleting the labour force and an ever-increasing necessity for sustainability, means 2018 is set to be a challenging one for local authorities and developers.
What’s clear is that the construction industry cannot possible deliver these new homes using traditional building methods alone. 2018 will see scrutiny turn toward how these houses will be built; how quickly they can be built; and how much money they’re likely to cost. Timber may prove to be just the answer.
Jeremy English, Sales Director at Sodra - Sweden’s largest forest- owner association - explains why timber is the solution to the UK’s housing crisis, and how it can help developers adopt less labour- intensive, offsite building techniques to build more quickly and reduce dependence on traditional timber.
TIMBER - AN IMPORTANT HOUSEBUILDING ALTERNATIVE
Strong, resilient and adaptable, timber must undoubtedly become and integral resource for the UK construction industry. It enables quicker, cheaper and less disruptive construction, with a more attractive end- product than many traditional methods. Quiet to build with and naturally lightweight, it’s also ideal for brownfield site construction, urban developments and building above underground structures, such as Crossrail 2.
Timber can sometimes be thought of as a weaker form of construction, but that certainly isn’t true - it’s remarkably strong and durable, offering assurance that regardless of speedy construction, there’s no compromise on quality. It’s also extremely versatile and offers design flexibility. A timber frame, for example, can be cladded in external materials that complement specific local regulations and planning requirements.
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