On 24 February, Homes England opened bidding for the Social and Affordable Homes Programme 2026-2036 (SAHP) outside Greater London.  Homes England has been charged with overseeing the allocation of £27 billion of the Government’s £39 billion investment programme for social and affordable housing announced at Spending Review 2025.

The Agency published updated bidding guidance to help bidders gain a clear understanding of the programme’s requirements and expectations. As previously announced, access to the programme is available through two routes. The first is Continuous Market Engagement (CME), which enables partners to work with the Agency throughout the life of the programme on a scheme-by-scheme basis. This approach provides greater certainty around grant funding while allowing Homes England to respond flexibly to specific local housing needs. The second route is the Strategic Partnership Framework, which offers long-term funding certainty to partners delivering at pace and scale, enabling the Agency to allocate larger funding packages to support ambitious delivery programmes.

A key requirement of the programme is that partners must be able to deliver at least 60% of homes for social rent, underlining the government’s commitment to prioritising the most affordable tenures.

The updated bidding guidance is accessible here.