COVID-19 and the Housing Delivery Test

2020-04-07T15:13:40Z

I was deliberating how MHCLG were perhaps going to treat the impact arising from COVID-19 on councils who are making all efforts to positively manage their local housing delivery. Whilst the worst of the pandemic sadly lays ahead in its health and societal impacts, i'm conscious that the likely tail-off of activities on housing construction sites up and down the country is going to see the numbers of net dwellings drop dramatically during Q4 for 2019-20. This will consequently have a bearing on figures used by MHCLG to determine 2020 Housing Delivery Test performance.

It's probably too early to say, but I hope Government are willing to consider some leniency towards councils given the circumstances behind the drop in new-builds is a matter completely out of our hands. The difference that a few homes which in a normal environment would have been completed during Q4, but now sit unfinished on mothballed construction sites could represent the difference between a council either being subject to the presumption in favour of sustainable development or not.

Any wider thoughts on the current situation?