Housing plans ‘could add £23.2bn to economy’
PLANS by housing associations to build 75,000 affordable homes between now and 2036 would add £23.2bn of economic activity to Wales and create 50,000 jobs, claims a new report.
Research carried out by Community Housing Cymru – the umbrella body for housing associations – in partnership with Amion Consulting says the cost of building that number of homes will be an estimated £11.7bn, with the decarbonisation of existing homes estimated to cost a further £4.8bn.
But the report says: “These are large sums of investment by any measure, but the value this investment could bring would be enormous.
“The research shows that up to 2036, if housing associations are successful in delivering our vision, the sector would support £23.2bn of economic activity across Wales, create 50,000 jobs in the wider economy, provide 19,500 training and apprenticeship opportunities and grow to employ a total of 16,000 employees.
“These traditional Wales-wide economic measures only tell part of the story. Power is now being dispersed across the three regions of Wales, with new regional structures created and important decisions that affect housing associations moving away from Westminster and Cardiff Bay.
“Demonstrating impact at a local and regional level is increasingly important, and for the first time, the analysis of economic impact is broken down by the three economic regions of Wales.
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“Across the six local authorities of north Wales, the economic impact would sit at around £5.4bn.
“In mid and west Wales – covering figures make interesting both the Swansea City Deal Region and the proposed Mid Wales Growth Deal – we would see £8.1bn of economic activity.
“Meanwhile, the 10 local authorities of the Cardiff City Region could see economic growth of £9.7bn.
“Further to this, a series of the report’s findings demonstrate how the health and wellbeing of individuals and our environment would benefit from housing associations achieving their vision.
“Some 75,000 affordable homes would generate a well-being impact of more than £190m.
“Retrofitting existing stock to deliver on the vision of near zero carbon homes would generate a further £1.2bn of savings.
“The report demonstrates many more benefits, including the work housing associations do to improve the public realm through their commitment to place making, and the potential that developing at scale could bring for improved links with transport, as well as our ability to offer genuine scale to activities in the foundational economy.”
Aaron Hill, head of policy and external affairs at Community Housing Cymru, said: “Just over a year out from the first election to the soon-to-berenamed Welsh Parliament, many politicians will be considering their vision for the Welsh economy, public services and how they should be delivered.
“This research gives a flavour of what long-term investment in housing could bring and the impact a Wales where good housing is a basic right for all would make.”