£60m allocated to revive brownfield land for 6,000 homes

More than 6,000 new homes will be built on brownfield sites following the Government’s award of a £60m fund.

This investment is part of the second phase of the £180m Brownfield Land Release Fund. Cash will go directly to councils in order to release land and begin building as soon as possible.

Regeneration Projects

The awards to councils will support nearly 100 regeneration projects around the country. Funding will come from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.

The fund has so far supported at least 89 local authorities and over 160 projects. Almost £100m has been provided to support councils to release land for almost 8,600 homes.

Unused car parks, town centre buildings that have fallen into disrepair and industrial sites will all benefit from the new funding.

Minister for Housing and Planning, Rachel Maclean MP said:

"We know we need to build more homes, but this cannot come at the expense of concreting over our precious countryside.

"That is why we are doing all we can to make sure we’re making use of wasteland and unused brownfield land, so we can turn these eyesores into beautiful and thriving communities.

This is all part of our long-term plan for housing – making sure we deliver the homes we need across the country."

Growth

Cabinet Office Minister, Alex Burghart MP said:

“This funding will unleash the much-needed redevelopment of brownfield sites: stimulating growth and helping local areas reach their full potential. 

“It’s fantastic news for business, and even better news for local people who will now see new investment, job opportunities, and family homes in their communities.”

The fund release builds on the success of the first round of Brownfield Land Release Fund 2. That funding has enabled the release of land for almost 2,400 homes.

Applications for the final round of £80m funding are due in by Spring 2024.

Awards

Councils awarded include:

» East Suffolk District Council will receive over £4.2m

» Solihull will be awarded £1.05m

» Newcastle: £1.82m to boost wider regeneration by releasing a complex site to deliver 146 build-to-rent homes for communities in Benwell and Scotswood.


» Hull: delivering 99 new homes for affordable rent on the site of a derelict school, backed by £980,000 Government funding as part of the city centre regeneration.


» Sunderland: turning a former riverside industrial site that has been unused for over 20 years into 140 low-carbon build to rent homes at Farringdon Row, with £1.8m for Sunderland Council to kick-start the project.

Minister for Housing and Planning, Rachel Maclean MP said:

“We know we need to build more homes, but this cannot come at the expense of concreting over our precious countryside.

"That is why we are doing all we can to make sure we’re making use of wasteland and unused brownfield land, so we can turn these eyesores into beautiful and thriving communities.

This is all part of our long-term plan for housing – making sure we deliver the homes we need across the country.”