Housing policy and housing associations are central to securing sustainable communities

1
Housing policy and housing associations are
central to securing sustainable communities

• Michael Newey BSc FRICS MCIH
• Chief Executive, Broadland Housing Association
• Deputy Chair, RICS Management Board

2
First an apology!

• A perspective from a housing professional
  working within a housing provider
• Chartered Surveyors (RICS) work on every side of
  the sector
• Providers
• Developers
• Consultants
• Landlords
• Research and academia

3
Agenda

• Defining sustainable communities
• Broadlands challenges
• The delivery triangle
• The active actors
• Examples of initiatives
• The scene setters
• Some conclusions

4
Sustainable communities?

• Active, inclusive safe
• Well run
• Environmentally sensitive
• Well designed built
• Well connected
• Thriving
• Well served
• Fair for everyone

5
Broadland Housing

• Properties
• 4,300 rented homes
• 200 new homes each year
• Status
• Not for profit charity
• Regulated
• Finances
• 20 million turnover
• 140 million debt

6
Broadland continued

• People
• 12 community board members, including 4 elected
  tenants
• 114 staff
• Geography
• Norfolk (East Anglia)

7
Broadlands community challenges

• Delivering sustainable communities in primarily
  rural areas
• Delivering sustainable communities in urban areas
  where our homes are scattered not concentrated
• Empowering our tenants to lead in their
  neighbourhoods

8
Virtuous triangle
9
Active actors
10
Residents

• Tenure neutral - not just tenants
• Owners and tenants
• Influencing through choice
• Personal investment decisions
• Political allegiance
• Shaping with restrictions
• Income and wealth levels

11
Private sector involvement

• Developers
• Building for owner occupation and private
  investment
• Businesses
• Providing employment and services
• Private Landlords
• Sometimes good sometimes bad

12
Community housing

• The not for profit landlords
• Frequently landlords for those with few
  alternative choices

13
English Housing Associations

• Involvement of tenants
• Beyond tokenism
• Quality of homes
• Decent homes standard
• Stretching assets for new homes
• Affordability of rents
• Regulation target rents
• Participation of the wider community
• Board membership and neighbourhood consultation

14
Housing Associations role

• Building and supporting local identity
• Representing the community
• Regulating harmful and disruptive behaviours
• Maintaining the cohesiveness of the community
• Working with other bodies to respond to complex
  challenges
• Working to make local/regional economies more
  successful

15
Housing Associations impact

• So much more than bricks and mortar

16
Some quick examples
17
Education, training employment

• YOUTHBUILD
• Accent in partnership with Bradford District
  Training and Enterprise Council
• Training and developing young people (16 21)
• provides individual support, job search skills
  training, personal development training, support
  to enrol for vocational training at a local
  college and a work experience placement

18
Health

• Healthy Community Workers
• Working with 500 households
• Funded jointly by the HA and Lottery
• Healthy eating and living programmes
• Parenting groups

19
Health

• Teenage Pregnancy Floating Support
• Impact Housing bringing together Education,
  Training Health Services
• Personalised to the user
• Available to the whole community not just tenants

20
Financial inclusion

• Credit Unions
• First Dorset Credit Union Magna Housing
• Affordable borrowing
• Affordable loans
• Cambridge Housing Society and Cambridge Building
  Society
• Discounts on future mortgages

21
Improving homes for owners

• West Pennine HA / HomeImprove
• Lending to owners for improvements
• 3 million so far

22
Resident voice / empowerment

• The Vision Club _at_ Broadland
• Loyalty scheme
• Recognising and encouraging involvement and
  influence
• Forums
• Workshops
• Focus groups
• Emails
• Surveys
• Continuous improvement panels

23
Some other Broadland schemes

• Norfolk Money Advice
• The Vision Bus
• Apprentices
• In house
• With contractors
• Football in the Community
• Out and About Campaign

And more ..
24
Community leaders

• Housing Associations often lead communities in
• Overcoming differences
• Beating deprivation
• Finding better options
• Defeating isolation
• And so make neighbourhoods better places to live
  and work

25
Policy levers
26
Some quick policy examples
27
Investment policy

• Subsidies to meet Capital and Revenue Costs
• New build
• Refurbishment
• Supported housing
• Floating support
• The cash to meet the gap!
• Sometimes!

28
Legislative

• Tenancy agreements
• Anti social behaviour orders

29
Regulation

• The Housing Corporation
• Rents
• Condition
• Regulatory code
• The Audit Commission
• Inspection and improvement plans

30
So from my perspective

• Policy actors (housing / planning) are really
  stage setters
• Providers either achieve or fail within their
  framework
• Both need the other to be focussed on the bigger
  picture if either group is to make a difference

31
Conclusions

• Housing Associations and other delivery agents
  are central to sustainable communities
• Policies need to at worst do no harm and
  ideally make it easier for the delivery agents
• Policies do not make sustainable communities, but
  they can stop them!

32
Thank you

• www.rics.org
• www.broadlandhousing.org