A new Director of Accelerated Construction has been appointed by the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA).
Stephen Kinsella will be leading the HCA’s Accelerated Construction unit, as part of their plans to increase the pace and scale of building more homes. The agency also intends on working with new entrants in order to develop “smarter approaches to house building”.
Expected to cost £2bn, the programme will involve the HCA taking direct action to construct homes on supplementary public sector land. In addition to speeding up the pace of house building, the HCA also intend to diversify the market through supporting modern construction methods and smaller builders.
Both of these aims were set out in February’s Housing White Paper.
Stephen will be reporting to the HCA Chief Executive, Nick Walkley. Commenting on the new appointment, Mr Walkley stated: “This is a very important appointment for the agency and we’re very pleased to have found someone who has the same ambition and passion to transform housebuilding in this country so more people can have a home of their own. Stephen is a private sector housebuilding leader with a comprehensive understanding of developing on public land. He will bring strong leadership skills, extensive industry knowledge and a track record for doing things differently.”
Also commenting was Sir Edward Lister. The Chairman of the HCA highlighted the evidential nature of the new appointment, indicating the Agency’s aim to both increase construction speed and diversify the market.
“This is a very important appointment for the agency and we’re very pleased to have found someone who has the same ambition and passion to transform housebuilding in this country so more people can have a home of their own. Stephen is a private sector housebuilding leader with a comprehensive understanding of developing on public land. He will bring strong leadership skills, extensive industry knowledge and a track record for doing things differently.”
Stephen also expressed his own enthusiasm on the appointment, stating: “I am excited by this opportunity to create a new delivery model for housing supply and increase innovation in the sector. The major housebuilders have a huge role to play in increasing supply but it is clear to me that Accelerated Construction and other HCA-backed initiatives are essential to diversify the market and ensure we can meet the pent-up demand for housing in this country.”
