Government set to streamline housebuilding

The government has pledged to save housebuilders and councils £114m per year by streamlining Britain’s housebuilding process.

Housing standards will be reduced down to five key areas; security, space, age friendly housing, wheelchair user housing and water efficiency.

The security standards will protect families from burglary, while water efficiency gives councils the ability to set higher efficiency standards in areas of water shortage.

Under the current system councils can stipulate an unlimited amount of local rules onto housebuilding which the government said creates ‘cost, uncertainty and duplication for housebuilders’.

Stephen Williams, communities minister, said: “We need to build more homes and better quality homes and this government is delivering on both.

“It’s now time to go further by freeing up housebuilders from unnecessary red tape and let them get on with the real job building the right homes, in the right places, to help families and first time buyers onto the property ladder.”

“The current system of housing standards creates a labyrinth of bureaucratic rules for housebuilders to try and navigate, often of little benefit and significant cost.

“We are now slashing this mass of unnecessary rules down to just 5 core standards saving housebuilders.

“Current housing standards required of new development can be unworkable, including demands for solar and wind energy sources that can’t physically fit onto the roofs of apartment buildings, or unnecessary including compliance regimes which add thousands to the cost of building a new home without any benefit.”