The British Business Bank has agreed a £200m increase to its ENABLE Build guarantee facility with Shawbrook, taking the total to £350m. The bank acts for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), and the facility supports Shawbrook's development finance and bridging lending to smaller housebuilders across the UK, including Scotland.
Shawbrook has lent more than £3bn to UK property developers since 2016. Around £240m of that lending, which has supported around 1,200 homes, has entered the existing ENABLE Build transaction between December 2024 and June 2026. With the larger facility, Shawbrook expects around £700m of lending to be included over the life of the scheme.
The British Business Bank delivers ENABLE Build for the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government. The programme aims to encourage more lending to smaller housebuilders and is open to finance providers that provide, or plan to provide, development finance to viable smaller housebuilders in the UK.
As at March 2026, ENABLE Build had supported over £2bn of finance and over 10,000 homes. The bank also works with private-sector lenders to increase the supply and variety of debt finance for smaller businesses and housebuilders.
"By increasing this ENABLE Build guarantee facility with Shawbrook, we are taking a deliberate step to support the funding smaller housebuilders need to help address housing shortages," said Michael Strevens, managing director, structured financial institution solutions at the British Business Bank.
"The additional capacity created will help Shawbrook achieve its growth ambitions in the sector, allowing more developers to bring new homes forward and strengthening the pipeline of housing supply across the country."
"Building on our partnership with the British Business Bank, this increased facility will enable us to extend our support to even more housebuilders," said Simon Knowles, senior director, development finance at Shawbrook.
"Smaller housebuilders have a vital role to play in increasing housing supply, and this additional capacity means we can provide further specialist funding to progress new developments and deliver much-needed homes."
