Newsroom

25 March 2026

Blackpool Housing Company celebrates 10 years of changing lives

Blackpool Housing Company (BHC) has celebrated 10 years of raising housing standards and helping residents build brighter futures in the town.

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Tackling tough housing challenges was a key priority when Blackpool Council formed the company back in 2015.

Over decades, many of Blackpool’s once-proud guesthouses and holiday flats had become poor-quality rented accommodation. Too many people were trapped in unstable, substandard housing, moving from one temporary flat to another.

Now, the picture is dramatically changing. Guided by the vision “Improving Lives, Homes and Neighbourhoods”, BHC has delivered high-quality, well-managed homes that offer choice, value and stability.

In just ten years, BHC has:

  • Invested £63 million in better housing and neighbourhoods
  • Delivered 772 homes into its lettings portfolio
  • Managed the delivery of 440 new homes for Blackpool Council
  • Supported 1,829 people into permanent accommodation
  • Issued 1,668 tenancies and sustained 80% of tenancies in 2024/25 – higher than the private rented sector average

These milestones are not just statistics. They represent a life improved, a family settled, or a community strengthened.

Cllr Neal Brookes, Chair of Blackpool Housing Company, said: 

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“The main objective set for Blackpool Housing Company 10 years ago was the disruption of the private rental sector in Blackpool’s inner areas. By challenging the business model that filled run down hotels and guest houses with as many people as possible, enabled by the largely unsupervised housing benefit system. BHC’s mission is and continues to be the provision of high-quality family accommodation as an alternative to bedsit accommodation.” “I am extremely proud to be able to say that today, we can see the real difference this investment has made to people’s lives and neighbourhoods. It’s not just about bricks and mortar; it’s about helping people feel secure, supported and part of a community.”
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BHC operates primarily in the private rented sector through its My Blackpool Home lettings and management service. By buying and transforming empty or poor-quality properties, the company has set new standards for what good rental housing in the town can look like, and what Blackpool tenants should deserve.

One of BHC’s largest and earliest redevelopment schemes involved the re-use of the former Malibu and Astoria Hotels—one fire-damaged and one linked to anti-social behaviour—into 20 modern, high-quality apartments. 

In addition to the redevelopment of run down properties in the heart of Blackpool, BHC has managed two landmark schemes in Queens Park and Foxhall Village. 

At Foxhall Village, 7.7 hectares of brownfield land has been transformed into around 300 new homes, including affordable rent and family homes for sale, alongside green spaces that encourage community life. 

BHC also played a pivotal role in the delivery of the new houses at Grange Park. All 133 council, affordable houses have been built to the highest industry energy efficiency standards (EPC A rated) many with heat source pumps and all with solar panels; ensuring those that live there are paying as little as possible for heating and energy.

As Blackpool Housing Company marks its 10th anniversary, the focus now turns to the future.

Cllr Lynn Williams, Leader of Blackpool Council, said: 

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“Our next chapter is about building on what we’ve achieved – creating more high-quality homes, supporting more residents, and continuing to make Blackpool better. The central housing regeneration project that is currently underway will do exactly that. We have evidence from Queens Park and Foxhall Village that this improves neighbourhoods for local people and this project will have a major impact on the area around Central Drive.”

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