Local authorities should invest pension funds into Local Housing Development Funds in order to deliver new homes, according to the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA).

RIBA has published 20 recommendations to help tackle the housing criss, including better use of public sector land, increased support for new types of housing development and a more transparent housing market.

According to the document, councils should have the power to decide the requirements for affordable housing, they should set up public sector investment vehicles to deliver new housing, and consider setting up Community Land Trusts.

Alex Ely from RIBA’s Housing Group said: 'Demand for new homes continues to outstrip supply and successive governments have failed to keep up. In particular, there is a huge shortage of genuinely affordable new homes to buy or rent in many parts of the country.

'Housing policy alone won’t be enough to solve a housing crisis with roots that are as complex as they are varied. The only solution lies in bringing together the public and private sector to promote, enable and finance new homes, and improve the quality of the homes we already have and are already building.'