Britain needs to build the right houses in the right places

A new report from the Centre for Cities calls on the government to deliver on its pledge to build 3 million new homes by 2020, by tailoring new housing to the needs of city economies. Only by building from accurate assessments of local housing markets will the government deliver the homes Britain's economy needs.

Taking a uniform national approach to the government's "3 million homes" target, and simply increasing the overall supply of housing, will not fix the wide range of economic challenges faced by Britain's towns and cities. Houses need to be built in response to the economic needs of individual cities - some (such as Cambridge or Bristol) have problems with affordability and supply, but others (eg Hull, Sunderland and Bradford) need to focus on widening the range of private housing on offer to local people.

Today's report, Home Economics: How Housing Shapes City Economies, recommends that cities should plan new housing supply based on a better understanding of the demand from local people. Local authorities should collaborate across boundaries to address ‘real' economic areas, rather than working in isolation. And cities should work together with local employers and house-builders, to make sure that the right houses are built in the right places.

The report identifies two types of cities at either end of the spectrum - those which need more houses, and those which need better houses...

Download the full report here