Lambeth sets “ambition” for 10,000 new homes over the next decade – but most won’t be built by the council itself

A Lambeth Cabinet report due to be discussed next week sets out a new housing “ambition” for the borough: enabling 10,000 new homes over the next decade, with 40 per cent of them classed as affordable.

The New Homes Programme update, going before councillors, reframes the council’s housing target in broad terms — but crucially as an “enablement” goal, meaning many of the homes will come from private development rather than direct council construction.

That distinction matters. The report signals Lambeth’s desire to accelerate housing delivery, but it does not represent a pledge that the council itself will build anything like that number of homes.

Instead, the 10,000 figure reflects the council’s ambition to facilitate housing across a mix of council-led schemes, private developments and housing association projects over the next ten years.

The report describes the revised target as part of a “bolder delivery ambition” aligned with the borough’s Growth Plan and Housing Strategy, suggesting a more optimistic outlook for development after a difficult period for the housing sector.

But the council’s own programme of building on council-owned land is far more modest. The New Homes Programme forecasts around 900 affordable homes starting construction by 2030 through council-led schemes, a figure that remains dependent on planning approvals, funding and market conditions.

The gap between aspiration and delivery is likely to attract scrutiny.

A Brixton Buzz investigation in 2022 revealed that Lambeth Council built just four council houses over a four-year period, despite a previous Labour pledge to construct 1,000 homes.

Against that backdrop, the language of “ambition” in the new report carries no formal commitment. It signals intent rather than a binding target or guarantee.

Still, all eyes will be on Lambeth to see whether the borough can begin to turn the rhetoric into reality — particularly given the national political context.

The local MP for Streatham and Croydon North, Communities and Housing Secretary Steve Reed, has said the Labour government intends to deliver 1.5 million new homes across the country. If that ambition is to be realised, boroughs like Lambeth will be expected to play a significant role.

Alongside the new long-term housing target, the Cabinet report also outlines several major development projects and policy shifts.

Among the most high-profile schemes is the long-planned redevelopment of 49 Brixton Station Road and 6 Canterbury Crescent, the site currently occupied by Pop Brixton and International House.

The scheme proposes 288 homes, including 98 for social rent, and is expected to go before Lambeth’s Planning Applications Committee this month.

If approved, the council says the next stage will involve detailed design work and securing vacant possession of the site once the temporary “meanwhile uses” at Pop Brixton and International House come to an end. Construction could begin in the 2027/28 financial year.

Elsewhere in the borough, the controversial South Lambeth Estate regeneration has returned to the agenda.

The first phase of redevelopment delivered 30 affordable homes in 2022, but the council is now reviewing the wider masterplan to maximise development capacity and ensure it meets updated regulatory requirements.

Cabinet is expected to receive a further report in autumn 2026 setting out proposals for the next phase of redevelopment.

The housing programme also includes measures aimed at tackling the borough’s growing homelessness pressures.

From April 2026, Lambeth expects to receive £33 million through the government’s Local Authority Housing Fund, allowing the council to acquire 137 homes over four years, primarily family-sized properties.

The intention is to reduce reliance on costly nightly-paid temporary accommodation and bed-and-breakfast placements by increasing the supply of council-owned housing.

Looking further ahead, the council is preparing a major funding bid to the next round of the London Social Affordable Housing Programme, identifying around 40 potential development sites with a theoretical pipeline capacity of up to 5,000 homes if funding and approvals can be secured.

Even so, the report acknowledges the constraints facing councils attempting to build new housing.

High construction costs, funding pressures and regulatory requirements continue to make direct council delivery difficult. As a result, Lambeth says many schemes will need to be delivered in partnership with private developers or housing associations rather than through council construction alone.

In the meantime, the New Homes Programme sets out the council’s broad strategy for the rest of the decade: use public land where possible, seek government grants, work with development partners and intensify development on under-used sites.

Whether that approach will translate into anything close to 10,000 new homes in the borough remains to be seen.

For now, the target stands as an ambition — and one that will inevitably be judged against Lambeth’s past record as the housing crisis in the borough continues to deepen.