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Kitchen RMI on Local
Authority Housing - Number of Dwellings 2006/7
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The UK Social Housing market
is defined as consisting of houses, apartments and other dwellings which
are funded in full, or part by public expenditure either through central
Government or local authority funding. Primarily, these dwellings are
provided by one of the following:-
Funding for these
organisations is provided from the public monies and distributed or
raised through the following means:-
-
HRA (Housing Revenue
Account)
-
HIP (Housing Investment
Programme)
-
PFI / PPP (Private Finance
Initiative / Public Private Partnerships)
-
Other publicly funded
grants & loans
This report specifically
excludes affordable housing schemes which are financed wholly by the
private sector. The accompanying spreadsheet identifies the expenditure
by local authorities on capital works which are funded through the HRA or
HIP.
The UK social housing market
primarily consists of houses and flats owned by local authorities and
housing associations. In total, for 2007 it is estimated that there are
around 26.7 million dwellings in the UK, including privately owned,
privately rented and publicly owned homes.
The social housing market has
experienced dramatic change in the last decade influenced by a wide range
of issues, not least political agendas. In 2000, there were just under
5.4 million dwellings owned by either local authorities or housing
associations. In 2007, this is estimated to currently stand at around 4.9
million units – a decline in overall terms of more than 9%.
The decline in social housing
units is likely to cease within the next 1-2 years, with minimal growth
likely in the medium to longer term, following continued pressure from
the Government to raise new build levels in both the private and public
sectors. By 2012, indications are that the total social housing stock
will have climbed to around 5 million units, reflecting around 18% of the
total UK housing stock. | 
