Loans will be made available to eligible housing associations, which are existing customers of the bank, in response to feedback that more funding is required.

These loans will be incentivised with discounted interest margins and no arrangement fee.

“The housing crisis is one of the biggest issues facing our country which is why we have made a £7.5bn lending ambition to the social housing sector,” said Paul Thwaite, CEO at NatWest Group.

“As part of this, our first of its kind £500m social loan offering is the latest support for our customers to help social rent house building across the UK.

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“With over 1.3 million people on social housing waiting lists, this is a step in the right direction to help those who need it most.”

The National Housing Federation is calling for 90,000 social homes to be built each year in England over the next decade to address the housing crisis.

NatWest has already partnered with the National Wealth Fund, agreeing a £500m loan to help retrofit existing social homes.

“As a Homewards Activator, NatWest has been doing some great work, so we are excited to build on this and go even further through our work together,” said Liz Laurence, programme director for The Royal Foundation’s Homewards programme.

“Homelessness is a societal issue that requires a collective response, and we hope more organisations will be inspired to play their part as a result of NatWest’s significant commitment today.”