Case Studies
Building a £2bn sustainable finance programme for The Housing Finance Corporation
We advised The Housing Finance Corporation on all aspects of the structuring and development of its National Wealth Fund-guaranteed retrofit funding programme, through which notes are issued to investors and the proceeds on-lent to registered providers of social housing.
The programme requires that each housing association client takes two loans from separate issuers: a secured tranche, supported by real estate security, and a guaranteed tranche for retrofit investment, where scheduled principal and interest payments are guaranteed by the National Wealth Fund (NWF). Eligible retrofit works include low-carbon heating and lighting, insulation, ventilation, renewable energy, resilience measures and biodiversity.
Our multidisciplinary team provided structuring, financial regulatory, insolvency and public sector subsidy advice, as well as advising on the update of the Secured Euro Medium Term Note Programme and negotiating transaction documents with dealer counsel and other participants.
We also advised on the guarantee structure and drafted the model on-lending and security documentation for both tranches. This provides The Housing Finance Corporation with the legal framework for a flexible, long-term sustainable finance proposition for the affordable housing sector.
“Working with the Trowers & Hamlins team on this innovative financing programme has been a genuinely positive experience. The programme gives housing associations cost-effective access to the capital markets to fund the retrofit and decarbonisation of their homes, backed by a National Wealth Fund guarantee. Making it simple for borrowers took a great deal of work behind the scenes, and Trowers’ collaborative approach and in-depth knowledge of the documentation were invaluable in bringing it all together.”
Andrea Jelic, Senior Director, Capital Markets, The Housing Finance Corporation
Financing greener, more sustainable homes
Supporting investment in social housing
THFC Sustainable Finance, launched in 2023, operates a £2bn Secured Euro Medium Term Note Programme to help housing associations access capital markets funding for investment in new and existing homes. The National Wealth Fund-backed element, launched at £150m in February 2025 and increased to £250m in August 2026, provides guaranteed loans for retrofit projects. The guarantee structure enables funding for measures including low-carbon heating, insulation, renewable energy, ventilation and biodiversity. At launch, the scale of the challenge was clear: around 34% of socially rented homes in England had an EPC rating below C, while the National Housing Federation estimated that close to £36bn of investment would be needed to fully decarbonise housing association properties.
