Church Commissioners
The Church Commissioners for England (the Commissioners) supports the Church of England’s ministry through responsible and ethical management of its permanent endowment fund, which includes circa 80,000 acres of land, used for farming, renewable energy production, and delivering housing and commercial spaces. This diverse portfolio enables them to provide financial support for the Church, by helping to ensure funding is intentionally used for mission and growth.
The Commissioners currently has land available in England with the potential to deliver about 70,000 new homes and communities. Approximately 32,000 of these homes – 9,000 of which will be affordable – could be delivered over the next 5-20 years. Currently there are live planning applications with local authorities to deliver 8,000 new homes. With this pipeline, the Commissioners has the potential to make a significant contribution to the delivery of new homes and communities across England.
In addition to the opportunity outlined above, the Commissioners has identified over 70 potential Rural Exception Sites (RESs). These are relatively small plots of land in rural areas upon which the Commissioners can deliver higher levels of affordable housing than would be usual, subject to planning approvals.
Over half of these sites identified have been placed with housing associations for them to investigate the feasibility of developing affordable new homes.
The Commissioners is actively taking forward 21 rural exception sites which will potentially provide 365 homes. Affordability is a key requirement in many rural communities and the Commissioners is keen to help alleviate the housing crisis in these locations, where possible.
Further details can be found on the Church Commissioners website here.
Church Commissioners News
