Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of (a) reopening or (b) replacing the Community Ownership Fund to support communities seeking to take local assets into community ownership.

Although the Community Ownership Fund is now closed, this Government remains committed to the communities’ sector and to community empowerment.

Through the English Devolution Bill, we will introduce a new Community Right to Buy to help local people to acquire valued community spaces, such as pubs, if they come up for sale. These powers will help to keep these assets in the hands of the community, bringing more spaces back into use and rejuvenating local high streets across the country.

We have no current plans to replace the Community Ownership Fund. However, at Spending Review 2025, the Chancellor announced that up to 350 of the most deprived places will receive support from government. That includes the 75 places named in the Plan for Neighbourhoods in March 2025. Further information will be published in due course.