Posted 24.09.12
In his first speech as Housing Minister, Mark Prisk urged housing associations to turn their expertise in providing social homes to also building new homes for private rent.
He called on landlords to bid for a share of a £10 billion Government Guarantee and "provide the spark to get Britain building", delivering homes built for new tenants - whether in social homes or for private rent.
A review of the private rented sector by Sir Adrian Montague highlighted real potential for the development of homes built specifically for private rent, with funding for these new properties coming from institutional investors.
But speaking to the National Housing Federation in Birmingham, the Housing Minister argued that social landlords could also make the most of the potential that Sir Adrian's report identified.
The Minister pointed to Thames Valley Housing Association's "Fizzy Living" scheme, which offers newly-built flats for rent on the open market in London's East End, and urged more landlords to "take that leap of faith".
He argued that with years of experience and expertise in providing affordable homes to rent and buy, housing associations could both continue delivering services for social tenants and offer homes for private tenants.
