Social Rented Housing

Grant Shapps

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many households lived in social housing in each year since 1997. (265000)

The information requested is not readily available for the United Kingdom.

Estimates of the number of households in England who were living in social housing in each year since 1997 are set out in the following table.

*Households in social rented accommodation, England 1997 to 2008*
	Number (Thousand)
1997	4,170
1998	4,148
1999	4,072
2000	3,953
2001	3,983
2002	3,972
2003	3,804
2004	3,797
2005	3,696
2006	3,736
2007	3,755
2008	3,797
Source: ONS Labour Force Survey

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much her Department plans to spend on providing social rented housing in (a) 2008-09 and (b) each of the next three years. (265267)

In England, over the three years 2008 to 2011, we are investing over £8 billion in affordable housing through the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA). Around £6.5 billion of this will be directed towards social rented homes.

We have not allocated specific funds in each of the next three years to allow full flexibility within the Affordable Housing programme operated by the HCA. This has allowed us to bring forward £550 million from 2010-11 into earlier years for social rented homes.

Future levels of funds available for social rent and all affordable housing beyond 2010-11 will be dependent upon the next spending review.

Volume 490: debated on Monday 23 March 2009