The Government has announced new measures to support homebuyers, the building of more homes, to increase building safety and to create a commonwealth games legacy
The measures include:
- A new Homes Ombudsman to support homebuyers facing problems with their newly built home,
- plans to help provide the homes the country needs through planning reform,
- plans to create a lasting legacy from the 2022 Commonwealth Games,
- measures to improve the safety of high-rise buildings.
The New Homes Ombudsman will protect the interests of homebuyers and hold developers to account when things go wrong.
The measures will assist the government’s plans to deliver 300,000 homes a year by the mid-2020s by making better use of vacant land and buildings.
Local authorities will also receive additional freedom to make the most of existing brownfield land and dispose of surplus land that could instead accommodate new homes.
To support the 2022 Commonwealth Games and local communities once the games are over, £165m has been granted to produce 5,100 homes in Birmingham and infrastructure to support the homes.
With construction due to begin in 2019, the government will work with the West Midlands Combined Authority and Birmingham City council to support these ambitious plans.
In addition, to further building safety measures throughout the industry following the Grenfell Tower tragedy, the government has announced that they will ban the use of combustible materials on external walls of high-rise buildings.
The ban will extend to cover care homes, hospitals and student accommodations over 18 metres high.
This ban will be delivered through changes to building regulations guidance and will limit materials available to products achieving a European classification of Class A1 or A2.
