<< More Updates
Applications are now open for the second round of funding for the Self and Custom Build Fund, coordinated by One Public Estate (OPE), with a deadline for applications of 8 November.
All English councils can apply for funding, on the condition that the land in question is in local authority ownership and is being brought forward for custom and self build housing.
For the second phase the eligibility criteria has been expanded, with the Mayoral Combined Authorities (MCAs) now eligible to apply, including their constituent authorities.
Equally, authorities that missed out on the first round of funding in the Self and Custom Build Fund (SCBF) can reapply, as can authorities that already received funding on either the CSBF and/or the Brownfield Land Release Fund (BLRF).
The original SCBF was launched in April alongside the BLRF, with a combined loan value of up to £75 million, with the dedicated fund for Custom and Self Build worth £25 million. £5million of this was allocated to councils that bid to unlock land in their own allocation for self and custom build for sites. Unlike the larger Brownfield Land Release Fund, the Custom and Self Build fund is available for sites on both brownfield and greenfield land.
The fund, originally announced by Chancellor Rishi Sunak in the Spending Review 2020, is a capital grant designed to unlock land for housing, as long as the land is in council ownership, and funds must be spent by March 2022.
Not all the money was allocated from the first fund, resulting in this second wave of the funding. OPE has not released details of the winning bidders from the first round of funding.
Self and Custom Build Fund – October 2021
One Public Estate is now looking for new projects to come forward, with circa £26 million of funding on offer for both OPE and SCB funding.
This is made up of:
- c.£20 million capital grant for the second phase of the Self and Custom Build Fund, to support delivery of S&CB projects on brownfield or greenfield land, and
- £6 million revenue grant for the ninth phase of OPE, 75 per cent of which will be awarded as sustainable grant funding, to support cross-public sector land and property projects
In general, the fund programme is designed to unlock local authority owned small sites where viability issues prevented them from coming forwards for housing. Previous rounds of OPE funding has demonstrated how early stage support through funding can act as a catalyst for change, and support collaboration across the public sector to unlock housing that otherwise may not come forward.
The window for applying is tight with a deadline of 8 November for applications. These must demonstrate that they feel that the project in question will meet the custom and self build definition, and evidence how the site was blocked from progressing.
Many of the first awards were for affordable housing for those on housing lists, but the Task Force would encourage local authorities to consider a range of people’s needs. As such, many authorities may look at affordable housing provision, intermediate housing but also should consider serviced plots.
For this round, the OPE also welcomes applications from community models, such as Community Land Trusts, where the land is in local authority ownership, and will be held in perpetuity to ensure affordability in the future.
A core element of working with the OPE is to use its regional teams for support, and anyone considering applying should reach out to their regional representative early on to discuss their application.
The online prospectus gives full details of how to apply, including the eligibility criteria
The fund aims to:
- Release local authority-owned land by the end of September 2024 for housing development that otherwise would not come forward in this period.
- Encourage the use of public assets to drive innovative delivery, as recommended in the Bacon Review
- Demonstrate a return for government investment in these small sites
- Be confident that schemes to deliver within the funding timescale
The funding is designed to support projects facing viability issues and market failure in bringing on serviced plots. Funding can be used for a range of aspects, such as:
- site levelling, groundworks
- provision of small-scale infrastructure
- highways works or other access challenges
- addressing environmental constraints
- providing services to the plots
As before, must satisfy a Gateway Criteria including:
- meeting a threshold of a score of 1.5 for Benefit Cost Ratio, plus non-monetised benefits.
- demonstrating that the funding will be for capital works on local authority-owned land
- enabling the sale of the first plot for housing by September 2024 at the latest, and
- is addressing a market failure, and that the works are deliverable to the timeline.
These must be evidenced in the application – contact your regional rep for support to ensure you are meeting them.
Catch up on the OPE Bid Writing Workshop for the Custom and Self Build Fund - here
Sally Tagg, Acting Head of the Right to Build Task Force, said: “It is fantastic that there is a second round of the Self and Custom Build Fund, and we encourage as many councils as possible to apply. This will make a genuine difference to those authorities working to deliver a more diverse route to delivering high-quality housing.
“Support for replicable exemplars of this innovative route to housing helps in scaling up custom and self build. These sites will help showcase the wide range of benefits that custom and self build can deliver, complementing wider housing delivery.”
One Public Estate (OPE) is a partnership between the Office of Government Property in the Cabinet Office (OGP), the Local Government Association (LGA) and the Department of Levelling Up, Communities and Housing (DLUHC).