Autumn Budget and Spending Review 2021

Key announcements

On housing:

• Confirmation of £800m for the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund, which can be used by housing associations to carry out energy efficiency upgrades in homes.
• Confirmation of £1.8bn to use 1,500 hectares of brownfield land.
• Reconfirmation of the £5bn to remove unsafe cladding from the highest risk buildings, partially funded by the Residential Property Developers Tax.
• Reconfirmation of the £11.5bn Affordable Housing Programme, as part of a multi-year housing settlement of £24bn.
• Confirmation of £639m a year for rough sleeping and homelessness by 2024, a cash increase of 85% compared to 2019-20. We are seeking clarity on whether this is new additional funding, and the timing and scope of this commitment.
• An additional £65m investment to improve the planning regime, through a new digital system.

On levelling up:

• The first 105 allocated places are set to receive funding, including for regeneration, from the £4.8 billion Levelling Up Fund.
• Reiteration of plans to publish the Levelling Up White Paper later this year.
• Reconfirmation of the UK Shared Prosperity Fund worth over £2.6bn, focused on funding programmes to help people into jobs in places of greatest need.

On supporting jobs and people:

• By 1 December this year, the Universal Credit taper rate will be cut by 8%, with the work allowance rising by £500.
• Confirmation that skills spending will increase by £3.8bn this Parliament, with a new UK-wide numeracy skills programme announced.