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A National Housing Federation-backed framework has appointed 20 traditional construction companies and two MMC firms to help increase the delivery of social housing through modern methods of construction.

ºÚ¶´ÉçÇø Better, an alliance of 30 housing associations and local authorities backed by the National Housing Federation, along with the social housing procurement consortium Procurement for Housing (PfH), has appointed these 22 firms to an £800m framework that will run for four years.

There will be an option to extend the framework for a further two years.

PfH and ºÚ¶´ÉçÇø Better created this integrated framework, combining traditional and MMC construction, based on feedback from social housing organisations.

Social housing providers said they wanted trusted local building firms to lead MMC projects and deliver traditional construction elements as needed.

ºÚ¶´ÉçÇø Better was established in 2018 under the National Housing Federation’s Greenhouse innovation programme.

In February, ºÚ¶´ÉçÇø Better and PfH put a call out for contractors to apply to join the framework.

Firms from across 37 different regions of England and Wales have been appointed, ensuring that housing associations and local authorities can work with contractors from their own communities.

The framework is split into two lots. Lot one provides principal construction services for smaller sites of up to 30 units, including small infill sites, housing and low-rise apartments of up to 11 metres.

Lot two provides principal construction services for larger sites of over 30 units, including medium high-rise developments over 11 metres, apartments, housing and extra care homes.