British Business Bank increases existing ENABLE Build guarantee facility with Shawbrook to £350m
Press release
The British Business Bank, acting on behalf of the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), has agreed an increase of £200m to its existing £150m ENABLE Build guarantee facility with specialist bank Shawbrook.
This brings the total guarantee facility size to £350m and will further support Shawbrook in providing development finance and bridging lending to UK smaller housebuilders, meaning more new homes can be built across the UK, including Scotland.
Shawbrook has now surpassed £3bn of lending to UK property developers since 2016. From December 2024 to June 2026, around £240m of this lending, which has supported around 1,200 homes, has been included in the existing ENABLE Build transaction.
With the new facility, around £700m of lending is expected to be included over the lifetime of the scheme.
Shawbrook provides specialist lending to businesses and property customers across the UK, including structured credit facilities for growth-focused businesses, and specialist property finance for professional landlords, property investors and developers.
The British Business Bank partners with the private sector to increase the supply and variety of debt finance for smaller businesses and housebuilders across the UK.
The ENABLE Build programme is delivered by the British Business Bank on behalf of the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government. It is designed to encourage additional lending to smaller housebuilders in the UK, ultimately supporting the Government’s ambitions to build more homes across the UK. The programme is open to finance providers which provide, or intend to provide, development finance to viable smaller housebuilders operating in the UK.
As at March 2026, ENABLE Build has supported over £2bn of finance to smaller housebuilders, delivering over 10,000 homes.
Michael Strevens, Managing Director, Structured Financial Institution Solutions, British Business Bank, said:
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. 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.
Simon Knowles, Senior Director, Development Finance at Shawbrook, said:
Building on our partnership with the British Business Bank, this increased facility will enable us to extend our support to even more housebuilders. 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.
Further Information
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Notes to editors
About the British Business Bank
The British Business Bank is the UK government’s economic development bank. Established in November 2014, its mission is to drive economic growth by helping smaller businesses get the finance they need to start, scale and stay in the UK. Its remit is to design, deliver and efficiently manage UK-wide smaller business access to finance programmes for the UK government.
In 2025/26, the Bank supported UK smaller businesses to access £9.4bn of finance, made up of £1.3bn of public funding, £4.3bn of private capital crowded in by the Bank and £3.7bn of lending the Bank guaranteed. The funding benefited 38,000 UK businesses, including around 30,000 businesses the Bank had not previously helped to fund.
British Business Bank plc is a public limited company registered in England and Wales, registration number 08616013, registered office at Steel City House, West Street, Sheffield, S1 2GQ. It is a development bank wholly owned by HM Government. British Business Bank plc and its subsidiaries are not banking institutions and do not operate as such.
With the exception of BBB Investment Services Limited they are not authorised or regulated by the Prudential Regulation Authority or the Financial Conduct Authority. BBB Investment Services Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. A complete legal structure chart for the group can be found at british-business-bank.co.uk.
The transaction described above does not constitute or imply any endorsement, warranty or recommendation by the UK government, the British Business Bank plc, its subsidiaries or any other party of Shawbrook Bank or its products or services.
The ENABLE Build programme is managed by British Business Financial Services Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of British Business Bank plc, on behalf of, and with the financial backing of, the Secretary of State for the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government.
About Shawbrook
Shawbrook is a UK bank providing specialist lending and savings products to consumers, SMEs and professional real estate investors. Our business model combines specialist lending expertise with a scalable, technology-enabled platform and disciplined credit underwriting. Shawbrook serves approximately 600,000 customers through its portfolio of brands. Shawbrook Group plc is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index.
Visit shawbrook.co.uk and follow us on X @ShawbrookBroker
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