High praise for Leeds City Council at UK Housing Awards 2024

Leeds was shortlisted in September for the prestigious annual event’s council or combined authority of the year prize.

And yesterday (Tuesday, November 26) the council was named as one of two highly-commended entrants during an awards ceremony that celebrated excellence across the UK housing sector.

Councillor Jess Lennox, Leeds’s executive member for housing, represented the council at the ceremony, which was held at Manchester’s Point conference and events centre.

The judging panel for the awards chose to commend Leeds after receiving a presentation earlier this year which showcased the positive results being achieved by the council’s housing service. Key points in the presentation included:

• Leeds’s impressive recent housing growth, with a total of 4,441 homes being built in the city during the 2023/24 financial year – the highest level of local delivery since the early 1980s;
• The impact of the city’s Council Housing Growth Programme (CHGP), which has driven the construction or acquisition of nearly 700 homes;
• The difference made to people’s lives by individual CHGP schemes such as the Gascoigne House extra care development in Middleton;
• The council’s efforts to ensure that new residential developments meet different housing needs, with a greater number of affordable homes being built in Leeds over the last five years than in any other large city in the country outside London;
• The bright future for housing in Leeds, with plans already in the pipeline for the revitalisation of six neighbourhoods in and around the city centre – including Mabgate, Holbeck and Hunslet – that will unlock the delivery of thousands of new homes.

Leeds’s category was won by the London Borough of Haringey, with Birmingham City Council named as the other highly-commended entrant. The London Borough of Newham and Westminster City Council completed the five-strong shortlist.

Awards were given out in a total of 17 categories at yesterday’s ceremony, including homebuilder of the year, professional services partner of the year and homelessness project of the year.

Councillor Jess Lennox, Leeds City Council’s executive member for housing, said:

“As a council, we are determined to use every tool at our disposal to drive housing growth and deliver the kind of homes that can transform communities and, most importantly, people’s lives.

“It was really pleasing, therefore, to be shortlisted for this award and then to receive a special commendation at Tuesday's ceremony.

“That recognition is testament to both the council’s long-term vision for housing in Leeds and the hard work being done on the ground by our dedicated teams and partners.

“Congratulations to Haringey and the other winners and shortlisted entrants in all the event’s categories, the breadth and quality of the achievements celebrated by these awards was great to see.”

The UK Housing Awards are organised by Inside Housing magazine and Ocean Media Group.

ENDS