Paddy Mooney

Addressing the housing emergency

Patrick Mooney argues that post-appointment of a new PM, the case for building more social and affordable homes for rent has never been stronger. A review of official reports and statistics published over the summer has revealed the huge scale of... View Article

Back to business

Brian Berry of the Federation of Master Builders (FMB), considers what the new Government must focus on, for construction to prosper as the dust settles. Certainty has finally been restored after a summer with a caretaker government. The lack of... View Article

The new housing secretary’s Catch 22

Patrick Mooney, housing consultant and news editor of Housing, Management & Maintenance magazine, discusses the Government’s ‘transitioning’ housing policies. The Government has sensibly accepted that its long-standing commitment to build 300,000 new homes each year by the mid 2020s is... View Article

Political aims hit turbulence

Brian Berry, chief executive of the Federation of Master Builders (FMB) wonders whether the UK’s current political turmoil will halt the ‘levelling up’ ambitions. The constant political turbulence over the last few years continues in earnest with a government on... View Article

Rising to the challenge of future floods

As building on flood plains continues to be an uncomfortable necessity, James Parker reports on a project to develop a house prototype that rises and falls as and when a flood occurs, thereby unlocking previously unviable sites across the UK.... View Article

Achieving 
quantity and quality

Patrick Mooney, housing consultant and news editor of Housing, Management & Maintenance magazine, asks: has good design been squeezed out by our efforts to increase housing supply? “Too many housing estates are designed for nowhere in particular. They can be... View Article
Paddy Mooney

An uncertain future

Patrick Mooney explores how contrasting news on planning approvals, new homes and public finances are providing a confused picture of the future housing market In many respects the housing market was remarkably unaffected by the Covid pandemic, with strong demand... View Article

A schooling in planning strategy

Neal Allcock, partner at property consultant Carter Jonas Birmingham, discusses how strategic planning could help address the current shortfall in student accommodation being built across the UK. The shortage of student accommodation is well known. Recently we have seen some... View Article

There may be turbulence ahead

Brain Berry confronts some of the myriad challenges that housebuilders are facing at present, including rising prices, inflation, shortages and new regulations. Not for the first time, small, local housebuilders are facing some tough months ahead. While the industry closed... View Article

A net gain for the nation

John Richards of Cala Homes details the company’s journey so far in achieving the increasingly essential requirement of biodiversity net gain, across its Thames region According to a 2021 study, it is estimated that the UK has lost almost half... View Article

Playing our part in levelling up

Brian Berry, CEO of the Federation of Master Builders (FMB), discusses why SME housebuilders should be utilised in achieving the Government’s agenda to ‘level up.’  The industry closed out last year on a relative high with workloads doing well, despite... View Article
Paddy Mooney

Building genuinely affordable homes

Patrick Mooney, housing consultant and news editor of Housing, Management and Maintenance magazine discusses why levelling up requires more genuinely affordable homes, including homes for social rent. There are approximately 24 million households in England, and a surprisingly high number... View Article

Playing our part in levelling up

Brian Berry of the Federation of Master Builders (FMB) discusses why the government should be harnessing the power of SME housebuilders to achieve ‘levelling up.’ The industry closed out last year on a relative high with workloads doing well, despite... View Article
Paddy Mooney

The road to ‘levelling up’

Patrick Mooney says that the number of new homes needed across the North and Midlands to deliver the Government’s ‘levelling up’ agenda runs to hundreds of thousands, every year. The Government’s housebuilding policies have been ‘on hold’ ever since the... View Article

A tough year for SME builders

Brian Berry of the Federation of Master Builders (FMB), takes a look at the barriers SME housebuilders have overcome in 2021, and the challenges that face them moving forwards. The industry closes out another year with enquiries still high and... View Article

Our rural communities are missing out

Patrick Mooney, housing consultant and news editor of Housing, Management & Maintenance says that rural schemes are being built without vital infrastructure in the current rash of permitted development conversions. In trying to inch its way towards achieving the near... View Article
Paddy Mooney

Invest in long-term savings

Patrick Mooney, housing consultant and editor of Housing, Management & Maintenance, explores why recent hikes in spending on temporary accommodation for the homeless highlights the urgency to build more social housing. The case for building tens of thousands of new... View Article

Making homes fit for the future

Brian Berry, CEO of the Federation of Master Builders (FMB), explores a potential, more sustainable future for housebuilding in the UK. This summer’s floods – and last year’s heatwaves – remind us of the importance of future-proofing Britain’s homes. Ventilation... View Article