Companies wanted to build 8,000 new affordable homes in Southampton

Southampton City Council is looking for housing providers to take on the scheme to bring 8,000 affordable homes to the city by 2040.

Set to be built on cleared sites, in already vacant properties, and in areas with residential garages, the first phase of the project is expected to provide up to 300 homes.

The local authority is looking for “experienced providers of affordable housing” as it seeks to develop the already selected plots.

Council leader, Satvir Kaur. (Image: Stuart Martin.)

Council leader, Cllr Satvir Kaur said: “We all know that while homes are getting built in Southampton, often they are not homes that local individuals and families can access.

“We’re in the middle of a national housing crisis and for too long, private developers are failing to address local housing need in our city.

“That is why as a council, we’re being proactive, delivering ourselves as well as working in partnership through our new Affordable Housing Framework, to ensure new high-quality, accessible and affordable homes can be built across our city, to benefit our communities.”

The brownfield sites are sized between 0.06 and 2.5 hectares and are valued from nothing to £1.5m.

The first sites were approved for the Affordable Housing Framework in December.

READ MORE: More affordable homes to be delivered in Southampton

The framework is expected to address the “significant need” for affordable housing in Southampton and will see the development of social rent, affordable rent and shared ownership properties.

As of October 2022, 7,508 households were on the housing register with wait times ranging from one year and four months up to over 11 years.

Housing providers have until May 31 to apply for a place on the scheme which could see further plots emerge over the next four years.

The contract is due to begin on July 12 this year and end on July 11, 2027.

Tory opposition spokesman Cllr Jeremy Moulton said: "The new affordable housing framework was initially launched in March 22 by the Conservative run council and will enable far more affordable homes to be built in Southampton.

"At the same time the city set a target of 8,000 new affordable homes by 2040.

"This means building nearly 400 a year and this can only be achieved through leveraging the resources and the capacity of housing associations and utilising council owned land.

"I would next like to see the city council seek to achieve a long term strategic partnership with Homes England."

A city council spokesperson added: "We hope to provide information on the list of sites later on in the year."