‘Everyone has a basic human right to a decent and affordable home.’
This is the opening line of the foreword to UNISON’s housing manifesto, launched in January 2020. The manifesto outlined the crisis in the UK’s housing system and UNISON’s plan to make this fundamental right a reality.
However, since then little has changed in the UK’s housing situation. In fact, for some people, their homes have become not just inadequate and unaffordable places to live but also, after COVID, inadequate, unaffordable places to work.
The truth is, housing has been neglected by successive governments for far too long. It’s a complex problem with no single solution, and even small progress will require long-term strategic thinking, tough decisions, and substantial investment.
But the rewards can be huge. Housing is a foundation stone for any society. Get it right, and people become happier, healthier, and more productive. Good, affordable, secure housing builds communities, supports families, protects the environment, creates jobs, boosts the economy, and can help address the root causes of racial, gender, and economic inequality.
And UNISON has skin in the game. The union represents tens of thousands of members working in housing associations, council housing and planning departments, and the charitable sector. UNISON also understands the ripple effects housing has on the personal and working lives of all public service workers.
The inability to afford to live near work takes personal time away from family. Poor-quality housing puts additional pressure on NHS services due to increased health problems. Chronic homelessness drains local government budgets, as councils struggle to provide temporary accommodation. The list goes on.
No-one denies that the solutions to the housing crisis are complex, but UNISON’s guiding principle remains simple: ‘Everyone has a basic human right to a decent and affordable home.’
Firm Foundations
This article is the first in a series, Firm Foundations, which will explore various issues within our housing system — social housing, private housing, the effects of the housing crisis on young people, housebuilding, and the new government’s housing and planning reforms.
But first, to set the stage. What is happening now? How did housing get to this point? What is the new government pledging to do about it? And what is UNISON campaigning for?
How did we get into a housing crisis?
In 2004, economist Kate Barker was commissioned by the Treasury to review Britain’s housing supply. When the report was published, the then chancellor, Gordon Brown, called it “the most detailed housing review in 50 years”.
Barker wrote: “I do not believe that continuing at the current rate of housebuilding is a realistic option, unless we are prepared to accept increasing problems of homelessness, affordability and social division, decline in standards of public service delivery, and increasing the costs of doing business in the UK – hampering our economic success.”
Since then, the UK has underperformed what Ms Barker considered the ‘current rate of housebuilding’, never mind the targets she set. In 2004 just over 200,000 new homes were completed. In the 20 years since, the average has looked more like 180,000 a year.
In short, for a long time – long before Barker’s report and continuing since – there has been a failure to build enough homes, and Barker’s predictions have come true.
Homeownership: out of reach
Housing in the UK is increasingly unaffordable. In 2024, the average house costs 8.3 times the average wage, up from 5.1 times in 2004. As a result, the percentage of households owning their own homes has fallen from nearly 71% to just under 65% over the same period.
People are buying their first homes later – at an average age of 33.5 years, compared to 31.4 years in 2004. At the same time, more 20 to 34-year-olds are living with their parents, up from 22% to 28%.
Private Renting: a growing strain
The decline in home ownership has been mirrored by a rise in private renting, which has increased from 11% in 2004 to 19% in 2024. But private renting has also become increasingly unaffordable. According to the Office of National Statistics, average private rents in the UK increased by 9.2% in the 12 months to March 2024.
In a UNISON report, Through the Roof, published before this 9.2% increase, almost a third of surveyed UNISON members living in private rented accommodation said they spent more than 60% of their household income on housing. Additionally, 47% of private renters surveyed said the cost of housing was prompting them to look for more affordable locations to live.
Social Housing: stagnation and rising costs
Meanwhile, the social housing sector has stagnated. The number of new social homes completed each year barely replaces those lost through the Right to Buy scheme or demolitions.
Additionally, the shift by housing associations from ‘social rents’ (which are up to 50-60% of market rates) to ‘affordable rents’ (up to 80% of market rates) has resulted in significant cost increases for tenants. Up until 2013, social rents made up the majority of new affordable housing supply each year, but by 2022/23, this had fallen to just 15%.
Housing and the new government
What is the new government doing to address the housing crisis? Labour prioritised housing in its 2024 election manifesto, identifying it as a key area for driving economic growth through investment and new building. So far, there have been a number of key announcements:
Housebuilding and planning reform: The government has committed to building 1.5 million homes during its five-year term. It plans to achieve this through planning reforms and mandatory housing targets for local councils. Chancellor Rachel Reeves allocated £5 billion for housing in the budget, which includes an additional £500 million for affordable homes.However, it’s worth noting that many governments since 2004 have set similar targets of 300,000 new homes per year – and none have succeeded in meeting them.
The prime minister Sir Keir Starmer and deputy prime minister Angela Rayner during a visit to a housing development in South Ribble in Lancashire
Renters’ rights: The government has introduced the Renters’ Rights Bill, designed to overhaul the private rented sector and rebalance the tenant-landlord power dynamic. The bill aims to improve security and protections for tenants, and includes measures to limit rent increases, improve the quality of rental properties and ban no-fault evictions, which is currently the biggest cause of homelessness.
Social housing: The government has also confirmed that the Right to Buy scheme will be curbed, with reduced discounts to buy your social housing, and will be allowing councils to retain 100% of receipts from sales. This aims to make it easier for local authorities to replace homes sold into private ownership.
UNISON’s view
So, how is UNISON approaching the issue with the new government? UNISON’s housing policy officer, Sylvia Jones, says: “It’s clear that Labour is looking to make progress on housing, and their general direction is the right one. But UNISON is lobbying for bolder, more progressive action, pushing further than any government has in decades.
“The 1.5 million homes target is necessary, but UNISON urges the government to move past the failures of previous administrations and actually meet it.”
The union also stresses the importance of building the right type of homes, she says: truly affordable, energy efficient, fit for purpose, and future proof. Local government should play a key role in this process, with a focus on building a new generation of low-cost social rented homes.
On renters’ rights, UNISON believes that the bill is a step in the right direction, especially after the Conservative’s watered-down version, but UNISON wants to see stronger reforms, such as preventing backdoor eviction tactics, tackling affordability and adequately resourcing council enforcement teams to hold bad landlords accountable.
On social housing, the move to allow councils to keep 100% of Right to Buy receipts is a good start in protecting and expanding social housing stock, but UNISON argues that Right to Buy should be abolished entirely.
Additionally, the union is calling for an end to the conversion of social rents to affordable rents, and a new definition of ‘affordable housing’ tied to the incomes of the lowest earners, not market prices.
“Finally, UNISON emphasises the urgent need for investment in the housing service and workforce, which is currently understaffed, overworked and underpaid,” Ms Jones says.
“Proper staffing and resources are essential to deliver high-quality housing services. Housing is more than bricks and mortar, it’s about the people who work and live in these homes, and government policy often overlooks this human element.”
