Modern prefabricated housing

Summary

Damian Collins MP (Conservative, Folkestone & Hythe) has secured a Westminster Hall debate at 9.30pm on Wednesday 4 November 2015 on the subject of modern prefabricated housing.

The long-term failure of successive Governments to build enough housing to meet growing need is widely accepted. In the 12 months to June 2015 there were 131,060 housing completions in England; this compares with estimates of a requirement for housing in excess of 230,000 units a year. Within this context, there is a view that increased use of off-site construction methods can help to meet housing demand. It is (relatively speaking) easier to deliver homes to higher quality standards using factory made and pre-assembled products than it is using traditional construction techniques. In addition to reduced costs, off-site construction can offer higher quality finishes, cheaper construction financing and reduced working capital requirements.

In 2012 the Construction Industry Council (CIC) was commissioned by the Coalition Government to review the potential of prefabricated housing to help meet housing demand. CIC published its Offsite Housing Review in February 2013 in which it suggested that prefabricated construction methods could form part of the solution to England’s housing supply crisis.