On 15th June 2026, the Second Church Estates Commissioner, Marsha De Cordova MP, gave the following written answer to a question from an MP:
James Cleverley MP (Con, Braintree): To ask the hon. Member for Battersea, representing the Church Commissioners, with reference to the Answer of 20 March 2026, to Question 118770, on Church of England: Council Tax, if she will publish a copy of the high-level assessment.
Continue reading “Church Commissioners Written Questions: Clergy Housing”
The Bishop of Chelmsford received the following written answers on 21st May 2026:
The Lord Bishop of Chelmsford asked His Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to support SME builders in order to diversify the housebuilding sector.
Continue reading “Bishop of Chelmsford asks about housing supply and housebuilding”
The Bishop of Chelmsford spoke in the King’s Speech debate on 20th May 2026 on the topic of housing, urging government action to tackle the crisis in housing affordability:
The Lord Bishop of Chelmsford: My Lords, as the Church of England’s lead bishop for housing, I commend the measures in the gracious Speech that will improve different parts of our housing system.
The housing affordability crisis threatens to unravel the unwritten social contract: that if you get a decent education and then work hard, you should be able to earn enough to save for a deposit, buy a home, get married, start a family and provide stability for your children until they can do likewise. While these proposed Bills are important and worth while, I urge the Government to use this forthcoming legislation to address the most acute part of the housing crisis: the affordability of homes, whether for rent or for purchase.
Continue reading “King’s Speech Debate: Bishop of Chelmsford raises issue of affordable housing”The Bishop of Chelmsford received the following written answers on 24th March 2026:
The Lord Bishop of Chelmsford asked His Majesty’s Government when they expect to publish the National Centre for Social Research evaluation of the pilot move on period for newly recognised refugees to leave asylum accommodation.
Continue reading “Bishop of Chelmsford asks about changes to refugee status and housing”The Bishop of Chelmsford received the following written answer on 18th March 2026:
The Lord Bishop of Chelmsford asked His Majesty’s Government whether they plan for a proportion of their 1.5 million homes target to be met by bringing empty homes back into use.
Continue reading “Bishop of Chelmsford asks about making housing available”The Bishop of Chelmsford received the following written answers on 16th March 2026:
The Lord Bishop of Chelmsford asked His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact of labour shortages, planning and regulatory rules, and any viability challenges, on the delivery of their target to build 1.5 million homes.
Continue reading “Bishop of Chelmsford asks about government housing targets”The Bishop of Manchester asked a question on support for community land trusts and social housing initiatives during a discussion on the government’s new homes target on 8th January 2026:
The Lord Bishop of Manchester: My Lords, I am grateful for the answers that we have had, particularly around social rent and affordable rent. Does the Minister agree that we also need to make space for things such as community land trusts and other community-led social housing initiatives, which can often provide accommodation in particular niches and communities that is much more sensitive to the needs of local communities? They may not be volume builders, but I would urge that they have a vital part to play.
Continue reading “Bishop of Manchester asks about affordable housing”On 15th July 2025, the House of Lords debated the Renters Rights Bill. Votes were held on an amendment to the bill, in which a Bishop took part:
The Bishop of Manchester spoke at the second reading of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill on 25th June 2025, welcoming the legislation and the expansion of social housing in the UK, and raising the needs of rural and minority communities in relation to housing and land development:
The Lord Bishop of Manchester: My Lords, it is always a great privilege to follow the noble Lord, Lord Best, whose wisdom on housing is quite unparalleled. I draw attention to my own interests in social housing, as set out in the register, and to the fact that a number of provisions in the Bill might impact on the interests of the Church Commissioners for England, who pay my stipend and own the house I live in.
I welcome the Bill. We desperately need a rapid expansion in the building of social homes, ideally at social rents. Enactment of the measures here included can be part of the architecture—please excuse the pun—we need if we are going to underpin the ambition for a mixed economy for housing, one which will live up to the Archbishops’ Commission on Housing’s values of homes that are safe and sustainable.
Continue reading “Planning and Infrastructure Bill: Bishop of Manchester supports legislation and raises need for equality in housing access”
The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 2nd June 2025:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to ensure the effective management of artificial light in new build homes.
Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about lighting in new build homes”
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