Speaking at the Chartered Institute for Housing conference in Manchester, Pickles said over £53m will be released from the Government’s Local Infrastructure Fund to accelerate construction of more than 7,000 homes on large developments in Manchester, Medway, Swindon and Kettering.

A further £49m is also to be released from the Government’s Build to Rent programme to support projects in Hampshire and Croydon.

This funding will help deliver over 540 homes specifically for private rent, bringing the total number of homes supported through the programme so far to over 1,600

A new £3m fund is being made available to help planning authorities tackle barriers to work starting on site.

This will give authorities additional capacity to focus on issues such as finalising section 106 agreements and signing off planning conditions, to help get work started on sites as quickly as possible.

Communities Secretary Eric Pickles said: “The investment we’re announcing will help us meet this challenge by driving up the supply of new homes in every corner of the housing market. From new places for rent to people designing to those building their own properties – we will support and deliver the homes this country needs.”