The Chartered Institute of Housing has called on the government to avoid reforms of social housing that will turn it into a tenure of last resort.

CIH, the professional body for people working in housing has actively been speaking to politicians from across the political parties about housing reforms since the 2008 publication of its proposals, Rethinking Housing.

Richard Capie, Director of Policy and Practice said: "The bottom line is demand for social housing massively outstrips supply.

"More and more people can't afford to buy, can't afford to rent privately or don't like the idea of renting on six month tenancy in private housing where standards can be mixed. "With less than 50% of the homes we need being built demand for social housing is only going to skyrocket. Recent changes around housing benefit will shut down parts of the private rented sector and this will also see demand for social housing and its cheaper rents and higher standards go up and up.

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"We do need to think about more flexible approaches to rented housing so we can help those millions of people languishing on our waiting lists. New homes are key but we could do other things to make the most of the existing homes we already have.

"As the Prime Minister has acknowledged this is a complex issue that needs to be carefully thought through. Any changes would affect households for many years to come. Social housing is home to a wide range of people, including large numbers of pensioners, families, and people with health needs. The last thing we want to end up with is social housing as a revolving tenure of last resort.

"That's why CIH is calling on government to support detailed work to look in to social housing reform that could explore the key issues of waiting lists, allocations, rents and tenancies. We need to ensure that any changes are anchored in supporting people to make informed choices."

CIH urges government to build on work carried out under the Hills and Cave reviews in 2006 and 2007 and to also be willing to re-visit the role of the private rented sector.

(CD)