The Administrative Framework

Abstract

State intervention in housing has developed over many years and, as it has developed, the respective roles of central and local government have changed. For most of the history of active housing policy local authorities have been the favoured agencies for housing provision alongside the private sector. Latterly local authority housing provision has been in decline with sales to sitting tenants and large-scale transfers to registered social landlords occurring alongside low rates of new local authority housebuilding. The role of local authorities has shifted towards an enabling role with key roles for housing associations and their regulators alongside private provision. The powers and duties of local authorities and central government have expanded but the constraints, and in particular financial constraints imposed by central government, have increased considerably. Any attempt to describe or understand the operation of housing policy has to take account of the ways in which both public and private sector agencies involved in the housing market act in relation to housing. This chapter focuses on the framework for public sector administration relating to housing and on central and local government and housing associations. As was emphasised in Chapter 1, these institutions operate within a wider context in which there are a range of private sector agencies involved in the production of housing. In addition to builders and developers, others such as estate agents, solicitors, building societies and other financial institutions are involved in the production or consumption of housing.