Autumn Budget 2026

NHF response to 2026 Autumn Budget

Today’s Budget takes vital steps towards ending rough sleeping, delivering more social housing, and easing the cost-of-living pressures facing millions of families.

We share the Prime Minister’s determination to end rough sleeping and housing associations have rallied behind his call, identifying over 2,000 potential homes to support this pledge. The additional funding announced today will help provide the ongoing support people need to stay off the streets and in long-term, secure accommodation.

Having made the case for additional grant funding for new social homes, the announcement of an additional £1.5bn for the early years of the Social and Affordable Homes Programme is hugely welcome. It will enable housing associations and councils, which are already working in partnership to deliver tens of thousands of new social homes, to go further and build faster for families in need.

Housing associations and their residents are concerned about rising energy bills. We therefore welcome the government's continued focus on reducing energy costs, including removing standing charges from gas bills and exploring how the same can be achieved for electricity. The £100 council tax rebate will also undoubtedly provide relief for millions of households.

With more than 177,000 children currently living in temporary accommodation and over 1.3m on waiting lists, it’s right that the government is prioritising social housebuilding. Housing associations stand ready to work in partnership with councils, Mayoral Strategic Authorities and the government to build the homes needed in communities across the country.

This government was elected on a manifesto that pledged to support housing associations and councils to rebuild their capacity and deliver the biggest increase in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation.

Over the last 18 months, we have worked closely with the government to produce a financial and regulatory package that has set us on the right path and momentum is building quickly. Last year, housing associations built the highest number of social rent homes in over a decade, and our data shows a 57% increase in social rent starts to March 2026. This was largely due to the increased capacity of our members: 77% of all social housing last year was delivered by housing associations.

We warmly welcome the government's ongoing support for housing associations through reforms to rent policy, grant funding and regulation. The recent confirmation of Strategic Partners to the Social and Affordable Homes Programme (SAHP) was an important vote of confidence in not-for-profit housing associations. Housing associations whose Strategic Partner status was confirmed are now able to kickstart construction on tens of thousands of desperately needed new social homes.

Maximising the contribution of both housing associations and councils is vital to meeting these record and urgent levels of housing need. More than 1.3 million households are currently on social housing waiting lists in England, nearly 180,000 children are living in temporary accommodation, and too many people cannot access the supported housing they need. The scale and urgency of this crisis are compounding to create a lasting impact on thousands of families, preventing them from having the secure foundations for a good life that we all need.

The challenge now is to go further and faster. Decisions taken at this Budget will determine whether initial progress can be translated into lasting delivery at the scale and pace the country needs. With the right decisions, housing associations can accelerate the delivery of a new generation of social housing.

Ambitious rhetoric must be matched with ambitious funding, and a practical approach that recognises the unique capability of the housing association sector, in partnership with local councils, to deliver the new social homes our country urgently needs. With roots in the co-operative movement, housing associations are community benefit societies that exist to tackle housing need and deliver for communities across the country. Housing associations are embedded within our communities and are directly accountable to residents, with every penny of investment raised locked in for public benefit.

Solving the housing crisis requires every delivery partner operating at full capacity. Housing associations and councils have a shared mission: delivering the affordable homes needed to reduce homelessness, cut temporary accommodation costs and give more people a safe, secure home. With record levels of housing need, failure to fully harness housing associations’ capacity and scale risks stalling delivery and missing out on a once-in-a-generation opportunity to end the housing crisis.

We therefore urge the government to:

• Match the ambition of the housing association sector and increase investment in the Social and Affordable Homes Programme (SAHP), by reopening a second wave of Strategic Partner bids for housing associations and councils, confirming long-term plans for the distribution of Continuous Market Engagement funding as soon as possible, and permitting Strategic Partners to top up existing allocations to the SP+ cap of £700m or higher where they demonstrate quick and ambitious delivery.
• Establish a sustainable long-term funding settlement for supported housing, recognising its crucial role in preventing homelessness that saves billions of pounds for public services every year and helps relieve poor health and social exclusion.
• Support further investment in energy efficiency and the quality of existing homes. Announce further funding for the Warm Homes Plan, support for heat networks, targeted funding to improve the quality of existing homes and reforms to VAT that enable housing associations to invest more in both existing and new homes.
• Invest in housing-led employment support and tackle welfare barriers. Provide long-term support for programmes such as JobsPlus, restore Local Housing Allowance to cover at least the cheapest 30% of rents, and remove the household benefit cap.
• Reform the Economic Crime Levy to better reflect housing associations’ limited regulated activities, preventing resources from being diverted away from new homes and resident services.