The government is proposing to build seven new towns across England to support the biggest housebuilding programme in over fifty years. This will help more people buy a home and live close to jobs and transport links. In addition, it is also announcing more details about the new National Housing Bank, backed by up to £16billion in funding to support building 500,000 new homes.
🌟 What could this mean for you?
If you're a first-time buyer, a renter or simply looking for a place your family can call home - these announcements could be for you.
📍 Where will the new towns be?
- Tempsford, Bedfordshire: over 40,000 homes to be built around a new East West Rail station, connecting you to vibrant cities Cambridge, Oxford, London and Milton Keynes.
- Leeds South Bank, West Yorkshire: circa 20,000 homes, capitalising on the city's economic momentum and a £2.1 billion local transport investment.
- Crews Hill and Chase Park, Enfield: up to 21,000 homes to help meet London's housing need
- Thamesmead, Greenwich: up to 15,000 homes unlocking riverside land in London, enabled by a planned Docklands Light Railway extension.
- Manchester Victoria North, Greater Manchester: at least 15,000 homes regenerating the heart of Greater Manchester, with a new Metrolink stop linking residents to jobs across the city.
- Brabazon and the West Innovation Arc, South Gloucestershire: up to 40,000 homes at the heart of a world-class research and advanced engineering economy.
- Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire: building on its history as one of the original new towns, to take forward the ‘renewed town’ vision to expand the city by around 40,000 homes and reinvigorate the centre with a new local transport system, boosting connectivity in the Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor.
🏠 What will these towns be like?
- Every new town will be designed for modern, everyday life – with neighbourhoods that people can easily get around without a car, shared green spaces and vibrant high streets.
- Every new town will aim for at least 40% affordable housing - these are homes that are priced below the usual market rate, so people on ordinary incomes can afford them.
- At least half of those will be available at social rent - these are properties typically owned by the council or a housing association, with rents set low enough that even people on the lowest incomes can afford a stable, secure home.
🏦 The National Housing Bank - what is it and how does it help you?
- Launching on 1 April, the new National Housing Bank will be backed by up to £16 billion of public investment which is designed to unlock a further £53 billion of private investment and support the building of over 500,000 new homes.
- This is a government-backed financial institution that will make it easier, faster and less risky for developers to build the homes the country needs, including on large, complex sites that might otherwise sit empty for years.
- With an additional £400 million of support, both the National Housing Bank and regional Mayors will be able to issue loans and investments at lower interest rates to close viability gaps and unlock housebuilding across the country.
- For you, this means more homes being built, sooner, in the places where people want to live.
📅 What happens next?
- Final locations will be confirmed later this year after the consultation and an environmental assessment are complete.
- The National Housing Bank becomes operational on 1 April 2026.
- Together, all these measures form part of the government's commitment to build 1.5 million new homes this Parliament.