Our survey says

Five key takeaways from the survey

1. All respondents have plans to develop new homes over the next five years within their current business plans. 52% of respondents intend to deliver more than 500 homes a year.
2. At 34%, a higher proportion of affordable housing supply over the next 5 years is expected to consist of nil grant or part grant S106, up from 29% in 2024.
3. For 67% of respondents, their appetite for S106 remains unchanged after the Spending Review, whilst 23% are reporting an increase in S106 requirements. 
4. Beyond the SAHP, rent convergence at £3 per week and a reduction in the cost of debt would have the greatest impact on improving financial capacity in the sector. 
5. More needs to be done to align the design, sustainability and specification of S106 homes with HA requirements.

We surveyed the top 50 developing Housing Associations identified by the Inside Housing annual survey, alongside the major FPRPs, to understand how much appetite for S106 has changed following the Spending Review. A total of 31 providers responded to the survey between 21st July and 1st August 2025. Participants in the survey differed from 2024, with 30% of 2025 respondents also featuring in the 2024 survey.

A turning point for the sector?

Last year, our survey revealed that appetite for S106 homes had dropped off sharply amongst Registered Providers, primarily driven by the severely constrained financial capacity of the sector.

This year, following the raft of changes announced in the June 2025 Spending Review, including a long term £39 billion Social and Affordable Homes Programme (SAHP), a 10 year rent settlement and a consultation on rent convergence, and confirmation of funding for building safety remediation and energy efficiency works on existing homes, we have re-run our survey to understand the extent to which appetite for S106 has shifted.

All respondents are planning to develop new homes over the next five years as part of their current business plans, a marked shift from last year where 6% of respondents had no plans to develop homes. 52% plan to deliver more than 500 homes a year over the next five years, and in contrast to last year’s results, none of the respondents are planning to decrease housing delivery.

The Spending Review will allow providers to rebuild their financial capacity and plan for the longer term. When this survey was conducted in July, the measures werealready starting to have an impact on sentiment, with 39% of respondents planning to increase delivery following the review. The other 61% are planning to maintain delivery levels and wait for further clarity around the details of the new SAHP and the ongoing consultation on rent convergence.

In July the NHF surveyed housing associations who own more than 10,000 homes, producing similar results. 50% reported they would buy more s106 homes as a result of the announcements made in the spending review.

With increased expectations for new development compared to last year, there are also notable shifts in the pattern of future affordable housing delivery. Over the next five years, grant funded delivery will contribute to roughly half of future supply - broadly comparable with last year’s findings (53%) - as providers focus on grant funded delivery under the new Social and Affordable Homes Programme. Although grant funded delivery will continue to grow, S106 delivery is expected to take a greater share of the future development pipeline at 34%, up from 29% in 2024.

There has been a shift in appetite for acquiring S106 homes, with the measures introduced  causing almost one in three providers to change their plans for delivery. In total, 23% of respondents reported an increase following the Spending Review and 7% reported a decrease, with the remaining providers either not changing their plans or having no intentions to buy S106 to begin with.

All of those reporting a change in appetite have plans to boost their activity within the next three years. With a majority reporting their position hasn’t changed, the Spending Review hasn’t completely turned the dial on S106 for most providers, but there has undoubtedly been a positive shift in sentiment over the last year even though some key policies are still to be confirmed, including the introduction of rent convergence and details of the new regulatory regime.