Environmentally-sustainable practices and materials should be adopted by all hew home building projects, according the the National housing Federation (NHF).

Dedicated to the provision of social housing, the federation has asserted that its developments exceed the standards expected from the private sector and that such standards should be given a wider remit.

A spokesperson for the federation commented: "We do need a massive expansion, not just of public house building by housing associations, but also commercial house building as well.

"There could be a big environmental impact if these homes are not built in a sustainable way.

"We'd like to see those standards applied to the private sector."

Meanwhile, the NHF has asserted that meeting the need for new housing does not require "concrete over greenfields" and that a supply of brownfield sites remain.

It added that, while some greenfield sites may be adopted for future development, building news homes in regeneration areas is also valuable.