Housing delivery
New housing is needed in the city to provide adequate accommodation for our growing population. The delivery of new housing is monitored to ensure we are meeting this need and to see how we are performing against the Government’s housing targets for Southampton. However, it is important to recognise that some factors related to housing delivery are outside of the council's control and that numerous stakeholders are involved in facilitating the delivery of housing, such as developers, infrastructure providers, landowners, and other public bodies.
The Housing Delivery Test
To monitor national housing delivery performance, the Government undertakes an annual Housing Delivery Test. The test records how many new homes have been delivered within each council area over a rolling three-year period and compares this to the council’s housing target for that same period. If the delivery of homes falls below 95% of target, then the following consequences apply:
| Delivery level | Action |
|---|---|
| Between 85% and 95% of target | The council must prepare an action plan setting out clear actions to increase housing delivery |
| Between 75% and 85% of target | We must apply a 20% buffer to our five-year housing land supply as well as prepare an action plan |
| Below 75% of target | We must apply the presumption in favour of sustainable development when considering new housing developments, apply a 20% buffer to our five-year housing land supply, and prepare an action plan |
Find out more about the Housing Delivery Test in the Government's Planning Practice Guidance.
Test results
The Housing Delivery Test results are published annually by the Government and cover the three previous monitoring years. Each monitoring year runs from 1 April to 31 March. The latest Housing Delivery Test, the 2023 measurement, was published by the Government in December 2024, and covers the 2020-21, 2021-22 and 2022-23 monitoring years. The results of this and previous Housing Delivery Tests, along with the supporting rule book, can be found on GOV.UK.
In this latest set of results, Southampton recorded housing delivery at 50% of target. There are a number of potential reasons for this including:
- The impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic
- Challenges around development viability in the city
- The need for new developments to demonstrate nutrient neutrality
- Changes in Southampton’s housing target which has significantly increased in recent years, whilst the supply of available housing land has not kept pace
With this result we are now required to apply a 20% buffer to its five-year housing land supply. Find out more about the consequences of this and details of the council's current five-year housing land supply position.
Action plan
The council has also published an updated Action Plan as required by Government. It explores in more detail the reasons why housing delivery has fallen below the target and sets out actions to try and remedy this.
| Document | Type | Size |
|---|---|---|
| Housing Delivery Test Action Plan for 2022 Measurement | 883.1 KB | |
| Housing Delivery Test Action Plan for 2023 Measurement | 804.0 KB |
