We’ve had John Lewis enter the rental sector, along with Lloyds Bank – now it appears Network Rail is joining in too, at least in terms of providing land for rental housing.

Network Rail and London & Continental Railways are creating a new property company to release land in a venture expected to deliver 40,000 new homes over the next 10 years, mostly for renting.

Four major sites have been named for the first part of the project.

They are Newcastle Forth Yards, a 100-acre regeneration opportunity which could accommodate 5,000 new homes; Manchester Mayfield with the opportunity for 1,500 new homes; Cambridge where a mixed-use development could host 425 homes; and some 200 new homes on a site in Nottingham. 

At the same time the government has formed a new taskforce to promote land release across government – unused land will be identified, developed and released by a cross-government collaboration.

First out of the blocks on this is the the Ministry of Defence which, working with Homes England, will provide landforms 1,300 homes at Chetwynd Barracks in Nottinghamshire.

Defence Secretary John Healey says he has identified the long-term opportunity to build over 100,000 homes on surplus defence land, and comments: “This work will unlock thousands of new homes on surplus defence land, including in North Yorkshire, Nottingham and Cambridgeshire – developments promised for years by the last government, but never delivered.

“This heralds a new, trailblazer approach to the use of public land which will not be a fire sale of public assets, but a truly cross-government effort to remove blockers, deliver homes and boost growth in support of our Plan for Change.

“This taskforce is a bold first step, as we make the most of an historic opportunity to build over 100,000 homes on surplus defence land in the coming years, delivering on our commitments to British families and our Armed Forces.”