Investment to provide more council and specialist homes

Wokingham Borough Council has approved a £24 million programme to provide council housing and specialist homes for local people.

The programme, which was approved by the council’s decision-making executive last night (Thursday 24 September), will see the money used to buy suitable homes, buy-back Right to Buy properties and to build new homes. 

Depending on availability and costs, the investment would provide between 127 and 165 new homes. 

The need for social and specialist housing in the borough is increasing. As of June 2026, there were 1,319 households on the Housing Register, while homelessness and the need for temporary accommodation continue to rise. This summer, 82 temporary accommodation units were occupied.

The number of people coming to the council as homeless has broadly doubled since the Covid-19 pandemic and there is no evidence that demand will reduce in the medium term. 

The programme is intended to prioritise people in the greatest housing need, including families living in temporary accommodation, residents requiring specialist accommodation and households on the Housing Register who have the most urgent need.

Specialist housing pressures include demand for learning-disability supported living, mental health support needs, domestic abuse related homelessness, care leaver accommodation needs and older people requiring accessible or adapted housing. 

Cllr Stephen Conway, leader of the council, said: “A good home is vital for a good life, providing the security, safety and stability we all need to thrive. This fund will be the council’s most significant investment in social housing for many years. It will directly help local families who are in inappropriate, insecure or over-crowded housing to get the right home for their needs.

“As well as the regular council housing, the fund will be used for specialist accommodation, such as for people with learning disabilities, care leavers or domestic abuse victims, that will make a significant difference in their lives."

Decisions on investment from the fund would be based on individual business cases for each project. 

These business cases would need to demonstrate a housing need and a financial benefit to the council, either through rental income or cost savings. 

Cost saving would come from specialist housing that replaced the need for the council to pay for expensive commissioned accommodation - estimated to be savings of between approximately £20,000 and £25,000 per bed space per year for adult social care.

Cllr Conway said: “This fund will bring multiple benefits. It will allow us to provide much-needed housing for local families and individuals, generate long-term income and reduce costs.”

Funding for the programme will come from a combination of Housing Revenue Account borrowing, money from Right to Buy sales and other capital receipts, commuted sums (money provided by housing developers for affordable housing) and external grants.

The Council Housing Acquisition and Investment Programme was approved by the council’s executive on 24 September.