Marvin OnumonuMayor of London Sadiq Khan has launched plans for thousands of rent-controlled, affordable homes aimed at key workers in the capital.
The scheme is set to provide long-term rental options for workers like teachers, nurses, carers and bus drivers, offering rents below private market rates.
Khan said: “Key workers, including teachers, nurses and bus drivers, play a critical role in keeping our city moving, working around the clock to deliver vital public services for millions of Londoners.
“It is only right that these hardworking Londoners can afford to live in a decent, safe home in the city they are serving.
“That’s why I’m proud to launch my innovative ‘Key Worker Living Rent’ scheme, which will help NHS staff, police, firefighters and others into thousands of affordable homes for long-term rent, saving potentially thousands of pounds each year.”
Khan added: “I will continue to work closely with the Government and partners to do everything I can to accelerate the delivery of affordable homes, as we build a better and fairer London for everyone.”
The plan covers up to 6,000 new homes by 2030, including options for people who want to share.
The homes are not linked to shared ownership and offer a simpler approach to rent setting.
Research found that tenants could save nearly £4,500 a year on a one-bedroom home, and around £7,000 on a two-bedroom home, compared to average private rents.
Khan has urged housing associations and councils to bid for funding through the affordable homes programme, which has received £11.7bn investment from the Government over the next decade.
The Mayor is also encouraging investors to partner with the public sector to help build more homes for key workers.
REACTION:
Councillor Peray Ahmet, Leader of Haringey Council:
“We welcome the announcement from the Mayor of London to deliver thousands of rent-controlled affordable homes for key workers.
“This is a major step forward in the mission to build genuinely affordable housing in Haringey and London.
“Our nurses, carers, teachers, council workers, firefighters, police officers and other key workers are the backbone of our community.
“We are building thousands of council homes in Haringey – 1,000 already and at least 3,000 by 2031 – which provide council rents to those in the greatest need.
“We want to build genuinely affordable homes for key workers in Haringey too, with rents that are tied to real wages.
“The Mayor’s plan for Key Worker Living Rent homes will be essential for us to drive this forward.”
Councillor Helen Dennis, Cabinet Member for New Homes and Sustainable Development, at Southwark Council:
“Keyworkers are the backbone of any community and ensuring that their work is recognised and that local public services are well supported is absolutely vital.
“That is why Southwark is 100% committed to the Mayor’s pledge on affordable, rent-capped homes for keyworkers, and is at the forefront of delivery, with our pilot plans for over 150 Keyworker Homes in Bermondsey making excellent progress.
“Creating affordable housing in London at the moment is certainly a challenge but we are dedicated to meeting this challenge head-on with support from the Mayor of London.”
Oliver Campbell, managing director at Bouygues UK:
“Providing keyworkers with affordable homes is a vital step in supporting those who are indispensable to our communities.
“Bouygues Development, the property development arm of Bouygues UK, Funding Affordable Homes Housing Association, and the London Borough of Southwark are working in partnership on an anticipated grant funding bid to the GLA to help provide key worker accommodation in the Borough.
“Bouygues UK is proud to have submitted a planning application for a pilot scheme of 152 new key worker homes in Bermondsey.
“All the partners fully support the GLA’s objective to provide more affordable homes that will keep key workers in our city, and afford them a better quality of life close to where they work.”
Olivia Harris, CEO at Dolphin Living:
“Key workers are the backbone of London yet too many face rising housing costs that push them further from their communities and into long commutes.
“Providing genuinely affordable, high quality homes close to where people work is essential to retaining this workforce, protecting the social fabric of our neighbourhoods and safeguarding the capital’s long-term competitiveness.
“Dolphin Living has long championed the delivery of affordable housing for critical workers in the Capital and we welcome the Mayor’s announcement today.”
Ben Twomey, CEO of Generation Rent:
“Soaring rents have made London the most expensive place to live in Europe. Key workers are the backbone of our communities.
“They care for us when we are sick, build the homes we live in, keep essential services running and educate our children.
“Yet many are being priced out of the very city they serve. It’s right that the Mayor of London is exploring new ways to protect key workers from sky high rents and to provide more stable, genuinely affordable homes.
“Controlling the rents of key workers is a positive first step towards a fairer approach for all of London’s renters.”
