Despite the urgent need for new homes for the less well-off across the UK growth in the number of homes being built for social rent is expected to slide this year, according to new figures from Experian.

While the removal of the local authority housing cap last October would prove to be a “game changer” for the social housing sector, Experian said both output and new orders faltered last year, “suggesting that a significant increase in activity may be a little way off”.