Council secures £300,000 funding for housebuilding

West Northamptonshire Council said the £300,000 would be used to develop a "pipeline" of future housing schemes

A council says it has secured £300,000 to help accelerate the delivery of affordable homes.

West Northamptonshire Council, which is run by Reform UK, said it secured the money from the Labour government's Council Housebuilding Support Fund (CHSF).

It said the money would be used to develop a "strong pipeline" of future housing schemes.

Charlie Hastie, Reform UK cabinet member for housing and communities, said: "This investment will help us strengthen our capacity and expertise so that we can bring forward more affordable homes for local people, faster."

The money is the maximum allocation and is part of a wider £5.5m national fund from the government and Homes England.

An affordable homes delivery plan was approved by the council's cabinet in November 2024 in an aim to build more and better homes by 2029/30.

Hastie said: "As demand for affordable homes continues to grow, this funding will play a key role in helping us deliver high-quality, sustainable homes that meet the needs of our residents and communities."

He said the money was "an important step" in ensuring it was prepared to "deliver homes in the right places".

The authority said it would also invest in training for its teams in housing delivery.