Housing Strategy

Lord Bishop of Newcastle Excerpts

Wednesday 24th March 2021 Grand Committee

[The Lord Bishop of Newcastle]

My Lords, at a time when spirit-lifting is much needed, I can say with pleasure that my spirit has been lifted, as indeed has my heart, by this report from the Archbishop’s Commission. My heart and my spirit have been lifted because this report recognises that building homes and communities, not just houses, is of the deepest significance to the human dignity of every man, woman and child in this country and to the kind of society we aspire to build.

When I spoke in your Lordships’ House during the debate on the excellent report from the Economic Affairs Committee, Building More Homes, I began by referring to one of the greatest social thinkers in recent history: Archbishop William Temple. It is completely unsurprising that he has been a part of this debate and has been alluded by my episcopal colleagues, my most reverend friend the Archbishop of Canterbury and my right reverend friend the Bishop of Manchester. It is not surprising because this report stands firmly in the William Temple tradition. He wrote:

“Every child should find itself a member of a family housed with decency and dignity, so it may grow up as a member of that basic community in a happy fellowship unspoilt by underfeeding or overcrowding, by dirty and drab surroundings.”


I think Archbishop William Temple would have approved of this report commissioned by his successors in York and Canterbury, with its five key values that homes should be sustainable, safe, stable, sociable and satisfying—homes which are a “delight” to return to.

Another key reason my heart has been lifted by this report, and why I feel I can speak in this debate with integrity as bishop who is a Church Commissioner, is that in the report we challenge ourselves as the Church at least as hard as we challenge others. This report begins by setting out actions and recommendations for the Church of England before moving on to recommendations for government and other actors in the housing market.

At the heart of the report is a recognition that we have to act together to stand a hope of realising the change that is needed. Moreover, there is no one overarching strategy, no one-size-fits-all solution to the challenges that face us. Each region of our country has a particular context, with particular problems to be addressed. Having been an archdeacon in south-east London and being now a bishop in the north-east of England, I know very well from experience how the contexts are so different.

I want to talk first of all about the challenge of sub-standard private housing across the north of England. A 2018 Northern Housing Consortium report, The Hidden Costs of Poor Quality Housing in the North, showed that across the north of England as a whole a major issue was the poor state of much of the existing housing stock, particularly in the owner-occupied sector. The report found that across the north there were 1 million owner-occupied homes and 354,000 privately rented homes that did not meet the decent homes standard. The report also found that nearly half of all non-decent homes in the north have at least one person with a long-term illness or disability living in them, well above the average for England. Owner-occupiers are often seen as asset rich, with the means to repair and improve their homes, but this study showed that many areas of the north have low-value, poor-quality houses with little or no equity. This has resulted in whole streets and neighbourhoods falling into disrepair. You are caught in a double bind: you cannot afford to invest and you cannot afford to move. What this means in human terms is that many people, many of them elderly or disabled, have been living in these homes during lockdown and will have experienced numerous difficulties, including damp, cold and cramped living conditions.

One of the few sources of funding for improvements in owner-occupied homes is the government green homes grant, as raised by my noble friend Lord Shipley. It is a £1.5 billion grant fund. The scheme is modest, allowing two-thirds of the cost, up to £5,000, for improvements. However, as my noble friend mentioned, the scheme has indeed been beset with problems, with reports of delays in vouchers being issued and problems with the application process. As a result, I understand that more than £1 billion is left unspent and only £320 million will be rolled over to next year. Can the Minister comment on the problems with the scheme and give us any encouragement that changes will be made to enable this funding to be spent on the improvements for which it was intended?

The decent homes programme has achieved a good level of success in the social housing sector, with only 9% of homes now not meeting the standard. Could the Minister comment on whether there are plans to address this serious problem in the private sector, for example, through increased home improvement grants, perhaps a new decent private homes programme, and new devolution housing deals?

The quality of our homes has always been at the heart of the quality of our lives, but during this past year the quality of our homes has become more important than ever. We have all had to spend more time in our homes than we could ever have imagined and, as a result, space in our homes has become an extremely precious resource. Having a spare room that can be used for home working or, perhaps even more importantly, for home schooling, has become an essential, so finally I would like to speak about the underoccupation charge.

The pandemic has highlighted the consequences for many of the underoccupation charge, commonly known as the bedroom tax. The charge falls on tenants living in council or social housing who face a reduction in housing benefit or universal credit if a room is deemed to be spare. Will the Minister say whether the Government will be reviewing the underoccupancy charge in the light of pupils’ experience during the pandemic, especially with the experience of those on low incomes in cramped conditions?

I began with the words of Archbishop William Temple and I will end with the words of Holly, who lives with her partner and two preschool children in a Karbon Homes property. Karbon Homes is a housing association that builds and manages around 30,000 homes across the north-east and Yorkshire. Just over a year ago, Holly and her family were living in a small, cramped, two-bedroom property. Three months before lockdown, they moved into a larger Karbon Homes house with a garden. Holly has given me permission to give voice to her words today. She says: “The house has been amazing this year. We were so lucky to have moved in when we did, just three months before lockdown happened. We got the garden turfed right at the start of lockdown, with a slide and a swing. That took a massive load off us as the kids could play out in the gorgeous weather we had. If we had lockdown in our old house, that would have put a massive strain on our relationship. It’s nice here with our neighbours because we have all supported one another. The whole street has been fantastic.” These words from a young woman show even more powerfully than the words of Archbishop William Temple the human flourishing that results when we build homes and communities, not just houses, homes that embody the five values—sustainable, safe, stable, sociable and satisfying—at the heart of this Coming Home report.