From The Ground Up How The Government Can Build More Homes
Build More Homes is not just a political slogan—it is an urgent national imperative for England, where decades of under-building have created a chronic housing shortage with profound economic and social consequences. According to the Institute for Government's comprehensive analysis From the Ground Up: How the Government Can Build More Homes, the UK now has 10% fewer dwellings per person than the OECD average, while average house prices have reached eight times average earnings. This deep-dive summary examines the persistent barriers to progress and the ten evidence-based principles that could finally enable the government to build more homes at the scale required.
Understanding England's Housing Deficit
The Scale of the Challenge
England's housing crisis stems from sustained under-supply relative to population growth and changing household formation patterns. Since 1996, the number of households in the UK has increased by approximately 0.7% annually, adding four million more households than existed in the mid-1990s. Simultaneously, average household size has declined from 2.91 people per household in 1971 to 2.32 by 1998, reflecting both demographic shifts and constrained housing options.
The affordability crisis is particularly acute for first-time buyers. The typical first-time buyer in England was 33.5 years old in 2022/23—three years older than in 2006/07—with more than one-third relying on family financial assistance. Meanwhile, housing benefit expenditures have surged as cost pressures at the bottom of the market intensify, with only 5% of private rental properties affordable for those on housing benefit in early 2023, down from 22% a decade earlier.
Why Supply Matters
While economists debate the precise relationship between housing supply and prices, the Institute for Government judges that increasing housing supply remains a primary policy lever for improving long-term affordability. Research indicates that a 1% increase in the housing stock lowers prices by approximately 2%, meaning sustained higher build rates would meaningfully affect the housing stock over a decade. Beyond price effects, strategic housebuilding can enhance productivity by enabling workers to access higher-opportunity employment centers and supporting viable public transport networks in second-tier cities.
The Ten Principles to Build More Homes Effectively
H2: Core Strategies to Build More Homes at Scale
The report identifies ten interconnected principles that, if implemented coherently, could enable successive governments to finally build more homes at the required pace and quality.
1. Maintain Consistent Political Priority from the Top
Housebuilding has suffered from ministerial churn and inconsistent prioritization. To build more homes sustainably, housing must remain a top-tier priority led by the Prime Minister, Chancellor, and Deputy Prime Minister. The report recommends that housing ministers remain in post long enough to develop deep expertise and stakeholder relationships, providing the industry with the policy certainty needed for long-term investment.
2. Define Clear Success Metrics Beyond Numerical Targets
While recent governments have shared the ambition to build more homes, they have often lacked comprehensive visions articulating desired outcomes and trade-offs. A credible long-term housing strategy should set a 10-year vision with robust five-year delivery plans, including analysis of how policies will affect housing availability and affordability compared to counterfactual scenarios.
3. Reconcile Housing Goals with Environmental and Regulatory Commitments
New regulations on building standards and environmental protection, while vital, can inadvertently delay development if not carefully coordinated. The government should commission joint reviews between environmental bodies and housing delivery experts to develop coherent pathways that advance both sustainability and supply objectives. Where possible, regulations should be updated at predictable intervals with advance warning to enable industry planning.
H2: Planning Reform and Strategic Alignment
4. Prioritize National Housing Targets Over Local Vetoes
England's discretionary planning system, which grants local authorities significant power to reject compliant developments, has consistently undermined national housing ambitions. The reinstatement of mandatory housing targets represents a necessary step, but enforcement will require political resolve to ensure national needs are not routinely overridden by local objections.
5. Direct Housing to Areas of Greatest Need and Strategic Value
Current patterns of housebuilding are poorly aligned with affordability pressures and economic opportunity. The report recommends that the government consult infrastructure planning bodies like the National Infrastructure Commission when refining housing target methodologies, ensuring new supply supports productivity growth and regional rebalancing objectives.
6. Enable Strategic Spatial Planning at Regional Scales
Since the abolition of regional spatial strategies in 2010, the planning system has struggled to coordinate housing with infrastructure at meaningful geographic scales. The proposed expansion of spatial development strategies led by metro mayors could enable better alignment, provided these strategies have sufficient authority to influence local planning decisions.
H2: Enabling Delivery Through Resources and Market Shaping
7. Ensure Communities Share in Development Benefits
Public support for new housing depends on visible local benefits. The government's commitments to increased affordable housing proportions (40% in new towns, 50% on green belt developments) and infrastructure-linked funding are positive steps. Reforms to compulsory purchase compensation that capture more land value uplift for public benefit could further strengthen the social license for development.
8. Equip Planning Authorities with Adequate Resources
Planning departments are critically under-resourced, with only 40% of local authorities maintaining up-to-date local plans. While funding 300 new planning officers is a start, the report recommends developing a comprehensive workforce strategy with sector bodies like the Royal Town Planning Institute and exploring sustainable funding mechanisms, potentially through reformed planning fees.
9. Support Industry Skills Development
The construction sector's reliance on subcontracting creates volatile skills pipelines that struggle to ramp up after market downturns. The proposed Skills England body should develop a dedicated construction skills strategy, while the government may need to consider targeted visa reforms to address immediate labor shortages in critical trades.
10. Continuously Evaluate and Adapt Market Interventions
Given the government's reliance on private market delivery, ongoing monitoring is essential. The report recommends that within 18 months of planning reforms taking effect, the Ministry of Housing should evaluate whether the market is delivering expected volumes and tenure mixes, with contingency policies prepared should market responses prove inadequate.
Implementation Challenges and Critical Success Factors
Navigating Regulatory Complexity
Several complex policy frameworks will significantly influence the government's ability to build more homes. The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) provides the overarching guidance for local planning decisions, while emerging requirements like Biodiversity Net Gain mandate that new developments leave the natural environment in a measurably better state. Additionally, reforms to Compulsory Purchase Orders could affect land assembly for large-scale projects. Understanding how these frameworks interact—and ensuring they are applied coherently—will be crucial for delivery.
The Infrastructure-Housing Nexus
A recurring theme in the analysis is that housing cannot be planned in isolation. New homes require supporting infrastructure—transport, schools, healthcare, utilities—to be sustainable and publicly acceptable. The report emphasizes that spatial planning at regional scales, potentially led by metro mayors with strategic planning powers, offers the best mechanism for aligning housing delivery with infrastructure investment timelines and funding mechanisms.
Affordability and Tenure Mix
While increasing overall supply is necessary, it is not sufficient to address affordability challenges across all income groups. The government's commitment to the "biggest increase in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation" recognizes that targeted interventions remain essential. However, securing developer contributions and managing land value capture without undermining project viability requires careful policy design and ongoing market monitoring.
Conclusion: A Roadmap for Sustainable Progress
The Institute for Government's analysis provides a sober but actionable assessment: to build more homes at the scale England requires, the new government must learn from two decades of policy churn and implementation gaps. Success will depend not on any single reform but on the coherent application of all ten principles—from maintaining political priority and defining clear outcomes, through planning reform and resource allocation, to continuous market evaluation.
The target of 1.5 million homes in five years is ambitious, requiring completion rates not seen since the 1960s. Yet the report's evidence-based framework offers a credible pathway forward. By prioritizing strategic alignment, ensuring local communities share in benefits, and equipping both the planning system and construction industry for sustained delivery, the government can begin to reverse decades of under-building.
Ultimately, the ability to build more homes consistently and strategically represents more than a housing policy challenge—it is foundational to addressing affordability, enhancing productivity, and creating sustainable communities. The principles outlined in From the Ground Up provide the analytical foundation for turning political commitment into tangible progress. For researchers, policymakers, and housing professionals worldwide, this document offers enduring value as a blueprint for navigating the complex intersection of planning, economics, and social policy in pursuit of adequate, affordable housing for all.