HTB comments on ONS construction data/new private housing

12 June 2025

Neil Leitch, Managing Director of Development Finance at Hampshire Trust Bank

“Another month of growth in private housing is an encouraging sign of resilience in the market. Developers are finding ways to move forward despite challenging conditions, but we cannot ignore the biggest hurdle they face: the planning system. Painfully long waits for approvals are still holding back delivery of much-needed homes.

“The government’s recent proposals to streamline the system for SME developers are a welcome signal, and it is positive to see the issues raised by the industry starting to gain traction. But we have to be clear-eyed about what this will achieve in practice. Without serious and sustained investment in local planning departments, the system simply lacks the capacity to deliver faster outcomes.

“Policy ambition alone is not enough. Developers are dealing with an unpredictable system where delays can derail project timelines, add cost pressures and affect funding viability. Until those practical realities are addressed on the ground, it will remain an uphill battle to get anywhere close to the government’s long-standing ambition of building 300,000 new homes per year.”