Mind the gap: why housing delivery in the North West is stalling and what needs to change
The 1.5m homes target is a huge undertaking for British house building. Here at Mansell, it’s a target we’ve been speaking about at length over the last year. We’re going to dip our toes into those murky waters again today, hopefully doing our bit to clarify things and find a way towards making the target a reality.
In the North West, there is no shortage of appetite to help meet that target. Local authorities, developers, contractors and housing associations are broadly aligned on the need for more homes and the desire to create vibrant, sustainable communities. Spatial strategies, regeneration frameworks and public-private partnerships all exist. And yet, despite this shared ambition, the pace of delivery remains woefully short of what's required.
If we are to make any meaningful progress, we must be honest about why. Let’s explore.
Collaboration is important, but it isn’t enough
Collaboration has an important part to play in overcoming the challenges of building 1.5m homes. We’ve been notable, along with the rest of the industry, in calling for better partnerships between public and private sectors because of the potential for unlocking stalled housing delivery. This instinct is understandable. Genuine collaboration, where parties work together openly and consistently towards shared objectives, has the potential to accelerate delivery, reduce risk and create better places.
However, while collaboration is important, it isn’t enough. Partnership working cannot overcome structural financial challenges, unclear funding routes, or systemic resource constraints. It can’t make an unviable scheme viable. It can’t conjure skilled workers into being when there’s a national shortage. And it can’t compensate for national policies that do not reflect local economic realities.
At Mansell, we have seen this reality firsthand. We have been involved in schemes where planning permission has been secured and there is strong support from local communities and stakeholders. Yet progress has stalled because of issues beyond the control of even the most committed collaborators. Viability cannot be demonstrated, public funding mechanisms are opaque or delayed, and planning departments lack the capacity to respond at the required pace.
In such an environment, greater collaboration can’t deliver the results needed unless the underlying issues are addressed.
Mind the Gap: the real barriers to building
This is why we support Place North West's Mind the Gap campaign. It articulates what many in the industry already know but what is often missing from public discourse: the North has the land, skills and will to deliver new homes, but faces significant economic and structural barriers that prevent schemes from progressing.
The most pressing of these is the viability gap. In many areas, particularly outside major urban centres, low land values mean that development margins are extremely thin. Even where land is available and planning permission has been granted, the costs of delivering new housing – including construction costs, remediation of brownfield sites and meeting environmental standards – often exceed the market value of the completed homes. Developers can’t afford to proceed without additional funding support.
When you add to this the nature of the land available, the problems are compounded. Greenbelt land is rightly protected and, where it’s released for development, often faces strong local opposition. Brownfield sites, which are preferable in planning terms, frequently come with significant remediation costs that further erode viability. In short, the land is there, but it’s not easy or cheap to develop.
Funding is another critical challenge. While the government has announced a £1 billion fund to support the delivery of affordable housing and address viability challenges, there’s still no clear guidance on how this funding will be allocated or how developers and local authorities can access it. Uncertainty about funding streams adds delay and risk to projects that are already struggling to stack up financially.
Planning and resource pressures
Planning departments are under intense pressure. Years of underinvestment have left many local authorities struggling to recruit and retain experienced planning officers. This shortage of skilled personnel contributes to lengthy delays in processing applications and creates inconsistency in decision-making. Even where local authorities are proactive and supportive, they often lack the capacity to engage in the kind of detailed, ongoing dialogue that complex developments require.
Policy misalignment between national housing targets and local development plans further complicates the planning landscape. Local authorities are tasked with delivering ambitious housing numbers but are constrained by local infrastructure capacity, political considerations and the technical challenges of bringing forward difficult sites.
Infrastructure and skills shortages
Infrastructure limitations are another barrier to delivery. Many areas lack the transport links, utilities and digital connectivity needed to support new housing at scale. Where infrastructure upgrades are required, funding and delivery timelines are often uncertain, adding another layer of complexity and delay.
The construction sector also faces a significant skills shortage. Brexit and an ageing workforce have exacerbated existing gaps in key trades such as bricklaying, electrical work and site management. At the same time, the push for net zero and the adoption of modern methods of construction (MMC) require new skills and training that are not yet available at the necessary scale.
Environmental and regulatory pressures
Developers must also navigate a growing array of environmental and regulatory requirements. Homes must meet increasingly stringent energy efficiency and sustainability standards. Flood risk management and biodiversity net gain requirements add further complexity and cost to projects. While these measures are essential for creating resilient, future-proof communities, they increase the technical and financial challenges of delivery. Thus the gap widens.
Plans without pace in Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) has made significant strides in developing a coherent spatial strategy and identifying opportunities for growth beyond the city centre. The mayoral development zones and other initiatives demonstrate a clear vision for how the city region can accommodate new housing while promoting inclusive growth.
Discussions at MIPIM 2025 reinforced this commitment, with a strong focus on place-based development, cross-borough collaboration and moving from planning to delivery. However, the reality is that progress remains slow. The same barriers – viability, funding uncertainty, planning delays, infrastructure challenges and skills shortages – continue to hold back delivery.
We know what to build and where to build it. What remains elusive is how to deliver it at the pace and scale required. We’re fully behind the GMCA and want to do all we can to deliver on these amazing new plans. What seems to be missing is guidance and support from central government.
What’s got to happen next?
If we are serious about addressing the housing crisis in the North West, we have to move beyond high-level aspirations and tackle the underlying barriers to delivery. This requires coordinated action across multiple fronts:
The government must urgently clarify the criteria and application process for the £1 billion viability fund and ensure that funding is accessible and responsive to market conditions
National housing policies must be adapted to reflect the specific economic realities of the North West, rather than adopting a one-size-fits-all approach
Local authorities need sustained investment in planning capacity, including recruitment, training and digital systems that can streamline application processing
Developers, contractors and public sector partners should work together to establish long-term partnership frameworks that go beyond ad hoc consultations and promote consistent, transparent decision-making
The industry must continue to invest in skills development, apprenticeships and the adoption of MMC to build the workforce and technologies needed for modern housing delivery.
Shared barriers require shared solutions
This is not a question of apportioning blame. Local authorities, developers, contractors and policymakers are all grappling with the same systemic challenges. Collaboration remains essential, but it cannot succeed unless the fundamental barriers to viability, funding and capacity are addressed.
The North West has the ambition, the plans and the people to deliver the homes our communities need. What we require now is the political will, financial clarity and practical support to turn those plans into reality.
It is time to stop circling the problem and start fixing it together.