NatWest Group has announced an updated package of targeted lending and support for UK social housing, which it says is aimed at supporting local housing authorities and homeowners alike in the face of ongoing economic pressures.

Through a new ambition of £7.5 billion of lending (new funding gross of repayments and amortisations) over three years from 1 January 2024 to year-end 2026, the bank is aiming to support the delivery and maintenance of social housing in the UK.

According to a 2024 report by the Centre for Economics and Business Research Cebr, National Housing Federation and Shelter, social homes are more stable than private renting, as tenancies are secure, leading to better socioeconomic outcomes and increasing rates of employment. The report also found that in 2023 there was a net loss of nearly 12,000 social homes, while 1.3 million households are on a waiting list in England.

NatWest says the lending should help the social housing sector deliver a pipeline of new homes and improve living conditions in existing properties. Alongside the construction of new properties, this lending could also help housing associations finance energy efficiency and environmental solutions, such as retrofits, the bank says.

Robert Begbie, CEO, Commercial & Institutional Banking, NatWest Group, said: “NatWest continues to be a leading lender to the UK social housing sector, and we are pleased at being able to increase our lending to the sector as demand continues to grow.

“The sector continues to be a key priority as we aim to help more people and families have access to housing. By further increasing our ambition to provide £7.5 billion in funding by the end of next year, we will continue to drive growth in this important sector, supporting those who need it most.”

The announcement is the bank’s latest signal of support to the housing association sector. In February 2021, it issued a €1bn affordable housing social bond, the first of its kind by a UK bank, using the bond proceeds to finance or refinance loans to not-for-profit registered housing associations operating in the UK.

bank’s Regional Boards across the UK, and at a national level, the bank is exploring a response, in a collective effort to help prevent homelessness in these areas.