The 222,190 new homes resulted from 195,290 new-build homes, 29,720 gains from change of use between non-domestic and residential, 4,550 from conversions between houses and flats, and 680 other gains (caravans, houseboats etc), which were offset by 8,050 demolitions.

This represented the highest level of new homes delivered across England in all but one of the last 31 years and brings the total number of additional homes delivered since 2010 to 1.3 million.

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James Brokenshire, secretary of state for housing, communities and local government (pictured above), welcomed the rise in new homes delivered.

“Today’s figures are great news and show another yearly increase in the number of new homes delivered, but we are determined to do more to keep us on track to deliver the homes communities need.

“That’s why we have set out an ambitious package of measures to deliver 300,000 homes a year by the mid-2020s.

“This includes over £44bn [in] investment, rewriting the planning rules and scrapping the borrowing cap so councils can deliver a new generation of council housing.”