This report discusses the future of social housing in England. It is a contribution to the debate begun by the Government-commissioned Hills and Cave Reviews in 2007. The report argues that the concerns behind the creation of a social housing sector historically have not gone away, while the private sector has not filled the gap left by reductions in social house building in recent decades. Within this context the report rails against arguments that we no longer need social housing or that social exclusion and concentrations of poverty can be tackled by reducing the security and rights of tenants.

There is a positive future role for social housing built upon coalescing Government themes of recent times: quality, choice, regeneration and local democracy. Socialhousing’s future is inextricably bound up with that of neighbourhoods, the need to enhance the tenure’s appeal, and to take actions that enhance the real-life
experience of tenants and their communities. The report puts forward a range of proposals that will enable social housing to play a continuing and important role in supporting ‘human’ cities.