After a successful three years, the Council-Led Housing Network has a new mandate to support local authority housebuilding. Here’s what public and private sector partners, including Deputy Mayor Tom Copley, said about the challenges of council-led development.
The Greater London Authority has renewed financial support for the Council-Led Housing Network, which provides support to London boroughs’ in-house development teams.
The network was launched by Future of London in 2023 to support knowledge-sharing between boroughs and enable them to access free expertise from private sector advisors, including architects, property lawyers and planning consultants.
While local authorities across London have firmly re-established themselves as housebuilders, councils need help balancing housing demand with rising development costs and new building safety standards.
Nnenna Urum-Eke, Assistant Director for Strategic Housing Delivery and Partnerships at Lewisham Council, and Chair of the CLHN steering group, said:
“The challenges facing council-led housing teams are becoming more complex at a time when they are under increasing pressure to meet stretching housing targets. They often face the same challenges as other boroughs across London, so it makes sense to share learning and look for innovative solutions together.
“The renewal of funding and increasing engagement by boroughs show the network is making a valued contribution to council-led housing delivery.”
Building capacity through peer-to-peer learning
The network has successfully implemented the recommendations of Bloomberg Associates’ review of council skills, with a renewed emphasis on building capacity through peer-to-peer learning.
By bringing together local authorities across London, the network is directly supporting the mayor’s housing strategy of providing investment, skills and expertise to councils.
Tom Copley, Deputy Mayor for Housing and Residential Development, said:
“The Mayor and I are proud to support the Council-Led Housing Network, which enables boroughs to share learning, ideas and identify innovative solutions to the challenge of building more council homes in the capital.
“Since 2018 more than 25,000 new council homes have been built or are underway thanks to the immense efforts of London boroughs, supported by the Mayor. The Mayor and I will continue to support London’s councils as we tackle London’s housing crisis and build a better, fairer London for everyone.”
The Council-Led Housing Network has supported 65 peer learning sessions on topics ranging from social value and low embodied carbon to large panel systems and working with small sites. The network met its target of working with 29 London boroughs since its launch.
There have also been 20 expert panel sessions where borough housing teams get expert guidance on specific council-led housing issues, such as post-Building Safety Act fire safety requirements and working with investment partnerships.
Future of London also delivers the Housing Development Academy, which was set up by the London Housing Directors’ Group to provide development management courses specifically for council teams.
Private sector partners on council-led housing challenges
The Council-Led Housing Network is supported by private sector funding partners who provide expertise and experience in housing development. Here’s what they said about the challenges and opportunities facing local authorities.
Neill Campbell, Partner, Architecture, BPTW
“Local authorities are uniquely positioned to deliver new homes for their residents through their extensive land ownership and understanding of their residents’ needs.
“From an architecture and urban design perspective, this creates a powerful opportunity to develop well-planned neighbourhoods that prioritise quality and sustainability, targeting new homes in the places that might otherwise be overlooked. This network creates a place for debate, sharing ideas and promoting solutions to overcome the many obstacles affecting delivery of new homes.”
John Mumby, Director, Iceni
“In a time where there are unprecedented pressures on the delivery of both affordable and market housing within London, we are happy to use our expertise in a valuable way to support those who work at the front end of delivery within councils.
“Future of London’s approach allows thinking to be shared across the public and private sectors to seek to provide the highest quality development possible, which is to the benefit of all involved.”
Nicola Tilbury, Director, Potter Raper
“As councils work to deliver more homes in 2026, the challenge is how to address viability issues while meeting long‑term quality and climate resilience. The opportunity is there to embed sustainability and performance into every stage of delivery. As proud sponsors of Future of London, we’re committed to supporting the Council‑Led Housing Network as it helps local authorities build the skills and leadership needed for the homes and neighbourhoods of the future.”
Danny Sutcliffe, Partner, Red Loft
“The Council-Led Housing Network is a great forum for London councils to share challenges, ideas and best practice and we have really enjoyed being part of the network. Great places need brilliant advice, and we are proud to be one of the sponsors and participants on the expert panel helping with practical solutions to the challenges local authorities face and sharing that information across the capital.”
David Meecham, Partner, TLT
“London’s councils are under real pressure to deliver the homes their communities rely on, and the Council-Led Housing Network is proving critical in helping teams tackle those challenges head‑on. By combining peer learning with access to trusted expert advice, the network is strengthening capability and speeding up delivery. We’re proud to support a programme that is giving boroughs the clarity, confidence and support they need to keep building.”
Find out more about the Council-Led Housing Network, including peer groups, expert panels and the case study resource library.
The Council-Led Housing Network is supported by the Mayor of London as part of the commitment to increase council housebuilding.
We are also grateful for the support of the following expert partners:
BPTW | Iceni Projects | Potter Raper | Red Loft | TLT
