Berkshire Secures Funding for Affordable Housing

A government agency is helping councils in Berkshire to provide more affordable and social housing.

Homes England is working with Berkshire councils to boost social and affordable housing across the county.

Launched in 2018, the agency has backed several local projects. In Reading it has provided more than £5 million in grant funding to help the borough deliver around 100 affordable homes.

In Bracknell, Homes England helped make 81 of the 169 apartments at the Brickmark Place development in Market Place affordable. It is also working with Wokingham Borough Council to fund the South Wokingham Distributor Road and to help fund 119 affordable flats at Sterling Gardens in Newbury.

Homes England leaders presented to the Berkshire Prosperity Board — made up of the county’s six councils — and outlined a new £39 billion Social and Affordable Homes Programme for 2026–2036.

Dilys Jones, assistant director for Affordable Housing Growth at Homes England, said: “One of the clear objectives of government is to support local authorities to increase council house building and there have been a number of other reforms in terms of the housing revenue accounts (HRAs) and also around Right to Buy, and one of the key aspects which should unlock capacity is that local authorities are able to align Right to Buy receipts and combine those with funding from the affordable homes programme.”

Of the six Berkshire councils, Reading, Wokingham and Slough own and manage council housing. The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, West Berkshire and Bracknell Forest instead rely on Registered Providers — such as Abri, Metropolitan Thames Valley and Sovereign Housing Association — to deliver social and affordable homes.

Wokingham leader Stephen Conway raised a related point about land: “I’m sure you’re aware that in Berkshire we have a variety of means of delivering affordable housing.

“And I just wanted to focus for a moment on something that sadly only applies to three of our six and that’s delivering more council housing.

“One of the barriers currently to our delivering more [council housing] stock is lack of land. Is Homes England prepared to issue grants to enable us to acquire land on which we’d be able to build more council housing?”

Ms Jones replied: “I absolutely accept that most local authorities have uh traditionally developed out on their own land. But there is that ability within the grant program for land acquisition.

“Obviously, there would need to be value for money considerations, but yes, land acquisition is part of the eligible cost for grant funding.”

The Berkshire Prosperity Board meeting was hosted at Wokingham Borough Council on 15 December.

James Aldridge, Local Democracy Reporter