Since 2008 – the year of the great financial crash – development plans across social housing generally were either frozen or abandoned.
But development is a risk area that attracts a lot of regulatory attention, so it’s encouraging that 87 per cent of respondents in Scotland are still building what they planned to, or even more.
Those plans could yet be derailed by ongoing issues with the supply chain, including rising costs and the scarcity of materials.
One answer to these challenges may lie with modular builds. Some RSLs already have projects well underway, with funding support from the Scottish government.
Diversification
Because they receive larger grants for new housing, Scottish RSLs aren’t under as much pressure as registered providers of social housing in England are to diversify their income sources and this may explain why Scottish RSLs are more risk averse than their English counterparts. It may also explain why Scotland could be ahead of the rest of the UK for the first time when it comes to the mid-market. .
England and Wales v Scotland RSL comparison
