Then housing minister Grant Shapps pushed forward plans to establish the first social housing REITs, publishing a consultation on how to bring more private investment into the sector and encourage providers to convert or launch REITs.

This came as the sector was in crisis, with fewer than five million social rented homes in the UK and government funding cut severely, leaving five million people on the social housing waiting list.

Reliance on private investment has had mixed results, with several social housing REITs since established but more than one million families still on the waiting list.

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