Some five million Britons could be on the waiting list for social housing in the next two years, it has been reported.

In research carried out by the Local Government Association (LGA) it was revealed that an increasing number of people may be on the search for this kind of property due to significant increases in house prices over recent years, Public Servant Daily reports.

Paul Bettison, chairman of the LGA’’s environment board, said: "Social housing has to be a top priority because the harsh reality is that fewer people are getting on to the housing ladder."

He added that those councils which want to provide homes for people unable to purchase a property or rent in the private sector have been hampered by an inability to borrow off council assets in order to invest in property for "those who need them most".

Such news might be of interest to those seeking jobs in housing.

The association’’s comments come after figures from the Ministry of Justice showed that the number of households on social housing lists rose from one million to 1.6 million between 2001 and 2006.

Last week, Plaid Cymru president Dafydd Iwan called for the need for a mixture of affordable properties to be made available throughout Wales.

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