The National Housing Federation has warned that the number of new homes built in England and Wales in 2009/10 will be the lowest since 1923, (disregarding the war years) which has raised fears that a chronic shortage of housing will leave millions of people trapped in overcrowded and substandard housing for a generation to come.

The National Housing Federation has predicted that house builders will build an estimated 122,700 homes between April 2009 and March 2010, which is 18,000 less than were built in the previous financial year.

This  will be the second successive year that numbers have fallen significantly, after 2008/9 saw only 140,950 homes built, compared to 176,660 the year before.

The number of people on waiting lists has risen to 4.5 million people in England with unemployment and repossessions increasing the demand for affordable housing during the economic downturn, but the supply has not keptup with demand, and for millions of people the prospects of an affordable home are worse than ever.

The National Housing Federation has called on the three major political parties to go make an election pledge to ring-fence spending on housing, similar to their pledges to protect spending on health, education and policing.

The Federation says that unless spending on housing is ring-fenced, the consequences will be dire for millions of families stuck on housing waiting lists.

Over 2.3 million people are living in overcrowded housing in England, and that number is expected to increase considerably in the next five years because of the shortage of affordable homes. Overcrowding is one of the causes of poor health and family breakdown and can also have a damaging impact on children’s education.

NHF chief executive David Orr said:

“With record housing waiting lists and overcrowding reaching epidemic proportions in many places across the country, the need for more affordable housing has never been greater.

“The three main political parties must demonstrate their commitment to helping the millions of Britons in desperate need of an affordable home by pledging to safeguard investment in housing – and giving it the same priority as health, education and policing.”

Commenting on the report, Liberal Democrat Shadow Housing Minister, Sarah Teather said:

“This is the legacy of decades of underinvestment and neglect by consecutive Tory and Labour Governments which today means people who have been hardest hit by the recession are struggling most to access affordable housing.

“The housing shortage is one of the biggest crises facing Britain today and tackling it must be a priority of any future government. That is why Liberal Democrats would bring hundreds of thousands of empty homes back into use, as well as empower local councils to borrow against their assets and finance necessary investment in housing in their area.”