New £30 million housing bond announced

Wednesday 25 July 2012

Mencap’s housing charity launches property bond to develop housing for people with a learning disability

National housing charity Golden Lane Housing has been awarded £349,000 from Next Steps – the Big Lottery Fund’s social investment programme. The grant will be used to develop a new social investment bond, which aims to raise £30 million to invest in permanent homes for people with a learning disability. 

As the housing branch of Mencap, Golden Lane Housing specialises in providing homes for people with a learning disability. It hopes that the bond, which will be launched in 2013, will offer a commercially-viable property investment with a direct social impact – funding housing for up to 250 people with a learning disability.

Golden Lane Housing hopes that the bond will create a new model for social investment within the charity and housing sectors. Funding awarded by the Big Lottery Fund will be used to develop and launch a property investment bond that will attract around £100 of private finance investment for every £1 from the Big Lottery Fund has contributed.

A national shortage of social housing means many people with a learning disability struggle to find housing that meets their needs. When they are offered housing, it is often in areas away from their friends and family, putting a greater burden on local authorities to provide formal paid support.

“People with a disability struggle to compete on the open market and can even be openly discriminated against, making it virtually impossible to find housing in some areas where social housing isn’t available,” explains Alastair Graham Director of Golden Lane Housing.

“This innovative approach to financing housing will allow Golden Lane Housing to meet the growing need for supported living housing for people with a learning disability, transforming the lives of people who may otherwise be forced to become homeless, move away from areas they know or to live in unsuitable residential or institutional care homes.” 

Find out more about Golden Lane Housing