Transport for London (TfL) is bringing forward 10 small sites to boost the number of 'affordable' housing in the capital.

The sites are being made available through Mayor Sadiq Khan's 'Small Sites, Small Builders' programme and have capacity ranging from between two to 42 homes. The land will be made more accessible for smaller builders through a simple bidding process with standardised legal contracts, and two of the sites will be dedicated specifically to community-led housing groups.

Overall, 10 plots will deliver 111 new homes, of which 68% will be 'affordable'. Land at Cable Street, near the Shadwell DLR in Tower Hamlets, and a site at Christchurch Road in Lambeth, will both be earmarked for community-led housing and will deliver 100 % 'affordable' housing.

Discussions are now underway with other public sector landowners about using their small sites for housing too, and a review of the new process for bringing forward the 10 TfL pilot sites will be carried out to determine how and when the programme can be used by other public land owners in the capital.


Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: "Through my new small sites programme, I want to make more public land available to help contribute not only to tackling the housing crisis in London, but also to reinvigorating our small and medium-sized homebuilding sector. I also want to provide more opportunities for Community Land Trusts, which is why I have earmarked two sites specifically for community-led housing.

"I am leading the way by bringing forward TfL sites to pilot my new approach, and I want to offer a real opportunity for small builders and community-led housing groups to play their part in building the new and genuinely affordable homes Londoners so desperately need."

Graeme Craig, Director of Commercial Development at TfL, said: "As one of the biggest landowners in London we're in an ideal position to help provide the homes that London desperately needs, deliver genuinely affordable homes and generate revenue to reinvest in the transport network.

"We're excited to be working with the Mayor to make our smaller sites available to small and medium size developers, housing associations and community-led organisations and these ten, at locations across London, are the first of a number of small sites that we'll be bringing to market."

Welcoming the news, Director of the Federation of Master Builders (FMB) London Barry Mortimer said: "If we are to build the 66,000 new homes we need each year in London we need to unlock the potential of small and medium sized (SME) house builders. Research by the Federation of Master Builders (FMB) shows that a lack of available and viable land is the main barrier to small builders delivering more new homes. Indeed, over half of SME house builders believe that the number of small sites available is decreasing.

"We therefore welcome this move by the Mayor of London, which will help bring forward a small number of small sites across the capital and give SME builders the land they are crying out for. This is a step in the right direction but if we are to address London's housing shortage, we need many more of these initiatives going forward."

(LM)