Last edited 17 Jun 2021

Scotland reaches homebuilding milestone in 2021

Statistics published on 15 June 2021 show that 102,055 affordable homes have been delivered since April 2007, with 70,866 of these for social rent. Over the five years from 2016-17 to 2020-21, there were a total of 53,936 affordable homes approved, 53,078 started and 41,353 delivered.

Based on this data, Scotland delivered over 75% more affordable homes per head of population than both England and Wales in the four years to 2019-20, and over nine times more social rented homes per head than in England during the same period.

After the announcement was made, Housing Secretary Shona Robison thanked registered social landlords, local authorities, the construction sector and other partners who helped the country achieve this milestone.

Robison explained that the COVID-19 pandemic slowed the pace of construction in the country. She noted, “While this has affected our ability to meet our target of delivering 50,000 affordable homes over the last parliamentary period, we are continuing to work closely with partners across the housing sector to deliver the remaining homes as quickly as it is safe to do so.

“We will then deliver a further 100,000 homes by 2032, with at least 70% of these for social rent. This is just one of the actions set out in our Housing to 2040 strategy for building a fairer, more equal housing sector, alongside taking steps to tackle high rents in the private sector, setting a single set of standards for housing quality and accessibility, and continuing our work to end homelessness and rough sleeping once and for all.”