Full list of UK cities getting 40,000 new homes in £1bn mega-project

Neighbourhoods in the UK are set to be transformed with up to 40,000 new homes on disused railway land over the next 10 years. The government has confirmed the £1 billion mega-project which will also see new green spaces, shops and hotels built, creating thousands of new jobs.

The homes will be built on former goods yards, industrial sites and station buildings as Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander plans to "unlock" brownfield sites for development. The Labour Government previously pledged to build 1.5 million new homes by the end of this parliament. However, this is far greater than the 15,000 that are planned to built in the first five years of the new project.

Platform4, a new development company, is being created to deliver the new homes over the next decade. It will be consisted of two existing bodies - London and Continental Railways and Network Rail's Property Development Team.

The government hopes the project will create "thriving communities" across the nation. The plans will start with previously identified projects in Manchester, Newcastle, Nottingham and Cambridge.

Ms Alexander said: "Our railways are more than just connections between places - they create economic opportunity and drive regeneration.

"It's exciting to picture the thousands of families who will live in these future homes, the vibrant neighbourhoods springing up and the new businesses that will launch thanks to these developments."

She added: "Platform4 will breathe new life into these spaces, delivering tens of thousands of new homes as part of our Plan for Change promise to build 1.5 million homes, while reviving communities around rail stations, supporting jobs and driving economic growth."

According to the government, four sites have been identified for development across the UK. They include:

• Newcastle Forth Goods Yard - up to 600 new homes and "unlocking additional new homes".
• Manchester Mayfield - up to 1,500 new homes.
• Cambridge - a mixed-use development with 425 homes.
• Nottingham - 200 new homes.

Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Secretary, Angela Rayner, said: "We are facing a housing crisis which has led to a generation being locked out of homeownership, all while land sits empty and disused across the country.

"We said we'd do everything possible to get Britain building, and that's why today we're setting out how we'll get more homes built across surplus railway network sites in line with our brownfield-first approach and our Plan for Change target of delivering 1.5 million homes."

As reported by the BBC, the National Federation of Builders (NFB) said existing building projects are being blocked by planning delays. At least 40,000 new homes, which is the same amount proposed by the new government plans, are currently being held up by regulators.

These include 700 projects waiting for confirmation from the Building Safety Regulator. The body was set up after the Grenfell Tower fire to oversee higher-risk buildings.

The planning delays are also impacting small businesses who are being forced to leave the construction industry. This then impacts training and apprenticeships.

The NFB's head of policy and market insight, Rico Wojtulewicz, said the government's plans are a "winning blueprint". He added that building houses near railways is perfect because stations "already connect up to local and regional communities".