Every single person in Oldham and across the country deserves to have a safe, secure place to call home. The reality, though, is that far too many are being locked out of home ownership or are struggling to find a rental property that doesnโt break the bank.
At the end of last year over 7,500 families were on the social housing register in Oldham alone, and I regularly have constituents contacting me, both through casework and on social media, about the difficulty of accessing affordable housing options. This is a crisis that needs immediate action.
That is why I welcome this weeks commitment by the Government of ยฃ2bn of funding aimed at delivering up to 18,000 new social and affordable homes across the country.
In Oldham, this funding will enable the Council to fulfil its pledge of ๐ฑ๐ฌ๐ฌ ๐ป๐ฒ๐ ๐๐ผ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฎ๐น ๐ต๐ผ๐บ๐ฒ๐ as part of their ‘local solutions to a national crisis’, whilst also providing scope to go even further.
This new investment is not just about building homes; itโs about creating a future where hardworking people and families in Oldham can get on the housing ladder and live with the stability they deserve. This boost to affordable homes, both to buy and to rent, will put homeownership within reach and ensure that working people have the access to a decent home in the place that they are from.
This investment is also part of our broader Plan for Change โ a commitment to deliver 1.5 million new homes across the country, ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฏ๐ถ๐ด๐ด๐ฒ๐๐ ๐ถ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐ถ๐ป ๐๐ผ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฎ๐น ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ฎ๐ณ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ฑ๐ฎ๐ฏ๐น๐ฒ ๐ต๐ผ๐๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ฒโ๐๐ฒ ๐๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ป ๐ถ๐ป ๐ฎ ๐ด๐ฒ๐ป๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป. For Oldham, this means the future will bring real change and an end to the housing crisis.
Tackling the crisis head-on, giving people the support they need, and building the homes we desperately need to strengthen our communities right here in Oldham.
Jim McMahon OBE MP 