Archives for August 2009
Housing associations ”building properties when others aren”t”
Despite the ongoing problems being faced in the wider property markets, the housing association industry is proving to be resilient, an industry commentator claims.
Indeed, those with jobs in housing could be interested to hear comments made by Gavin Smart, research and futures assistant director for the National Housing Federation (NHF), that the sector is the only one within the overall house building industry that continues to build more properties every year.
However, the NHF director claims that with even greater government investment in affordable properties, "housing associations can do even more to deliver decent homes and help support the economy, including the construction sector".
Such calls for more money to be ploughed into the building of homes comes as recent figures from house builder Persimmon revealed that it completed a total of 4,006 properties during the first six months of this year, a fall from the 5,501 that were finished during the same period of time in 2008.
Meanwhile, Clare Miller, executive director of risk and assurance for the Tenant Services Authority, recently stated that "housing associations continue to demonstrate resilience" despite the overall difficulties witnessed in the property markets.
Social housing rent ‘’should not be a political football”
Moves to limit rent increases for those living in council properties have created divisions within the social housing sector, it has been claimed.
In an open letter, Michael Gelling, chair of the Tenants and Residents Organisations of England (TAROE), comments that the government’’s decision last March to cut local authority rent increases by half saw the convergence system which all housing providers were working towards destroyed.
He adds that the moves – which tenants were not consulted for – has seen those living in council properties treated differently to housing association residents.
"If there are commitments to rent freezes by tenants today, those decisions must be recognised in future years. We are not political footballs and nor is our rent," Mr Gelling states.
The TAROE chair adds that as the government looks to take more action on rent decreases or freezes, residents should be able to receive the benefits of such action.
Meanwhile, Chorley Community Housing recently revealed that it is offering a £30 rebate to its tenants who make the move to switch their rent payments to a direct debit scheme.
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CCH invites residents to take part in cashback scheme
Tenants of a housing association in Lancashire are being offered a cashback scheme, it has been revealed.
For each resident who makes the decision to change how they pay for their rent to direct debit, Chorley Community Housing (CCH) will give them £30, those with jobs in housing could be interested to hear.
To qualify for the refund, tenants will have to pay by direct debit for three months, with more than 130 already benefiting from the scheme, This is Lancashire reports.
Carla Stark, senior income management officer for the housing association, states: "Direct debit is the most cost effective way for us to collect rent payments from our tenants and we”ve decided to pass some of this saving on to our tenants."
The news comes as it was recently revealed that CCH has reached a milestone in its home improvement project by completing work on the 100th property to receive a specially adapted bathroom which has been created for 90-year-old resident Emily Collins.
HCA reveals low carbon infrastructure recipients
Details of a low carbon infrastructure scheme have been unveiled by the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA).
Revealing the recipients of the £8.8 million initiative, the agency points out such money will allow people to access low-carbon energy, those with jobs in housing could be interested to hear.
Under the project, £500,000 is to be made available to the Hackney area of London, which will see three housing estates receive pipework supplying them with combined heat and power.
Meanwhile, Manton and Reynolds Towers in Birmingham are to benefit from a new biomass energy system.
Sir Bob Kerslake, HCA chief executive, points out that alongside the money allocated to low carbon infrastructure schemes last month "this funding will help ensure that more people have access to energy that is both less harmful to the environment than traditional sources and lower cost for them".
He adds that "there is a real appetite" for such infrastructure and the benefits it brings to communities and the industry as a whole.
Last month, the HCA unveiled the 46 recipients of funding from the Social Housing Energy Saving Programme – including local councils and Registered Social Landlords – which is aimed at helping to reduce the carbon footprint of the homes they manage.
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Housing association reaches home improvement milestone
Those with housing jobs at a Lancashire housing association have reached a milestone in a property improvement project.
Following the installation of a new bathroom and kitchen at a home in Shakespeare Terrace, Chorley Community Housing (CCH) has now improved 1,000 former local authority properties.
Work on the properties has been delivered by CCH alongside Bullock Construction, Adactus Housing Group and Arcus Consulting, the Chorley Citizen reports.
Richard Houghton, director of operations for CCH, commended the benchmark for having been reached in the space of just 12 months, stating that the fact 96 per cent of residents are satisfied with the standard of improvements "is testimony to how well the teams have worked together to carry out the programme".
The event was commemorated with the slicing of a specially baked cake.
Meanwhile, housing group Moat recently revealed that an arcade of shops in Ashford has been demolished to be replaced with office space and library facilities as part of a mixed-use regeneration scheme which will see more than 440 new homes built.
Stanhope steps towards next milestone
Another milestone is taking shape for those with planning jobs in Stanhope, a neighbourhood in Ashford, Kent.
Housing group Moat explains that the neighbourhood is undergoing a series of redevelopment projects, covering both its residential and commercial property stocks.
Most recently, an arcade of old shops was demolished, with plans to build the Legacy centre, with offices for local service providers and library facilities for residents, on the site.
Seven apartment blocks in the area are also scheduled for replacement, with 442 new homes due to be constructed to a high standard in their place.
People with planning jobs in the area also face the task of refurbishing 323 further homes, rather than rebuilding them, under the plans already published.
Moat also recently told of the successful community day held for residents of Stanhope and its neighbouring community of The Limes.
One resident’’s attendance of the event was rewarded with a flatscreen television, the first prize in a raffle operated by sheltered services and support team members from Stanhope.
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Housing association fun day in Kent
London and south-east housing association Moat held a day of fun for residents at Stanhope and The Limes in Ashford, Kent.
Moat and Places for People organised the event to encourage residents to discover more about the Stanhope area, although individuals in housing association jobs may have also found out something new about the area they work in.
Members of the Stanhope Tenants” and Residents” Association also encouraged residents to join the association, while groups including Riding for the Disabled, Find a Voice, Kent Police and the RSPCA also got involved with residents and housing association staff.
Commenting about the day, Moat’’s neighbourhood contracts manager Pam Millington said: "Moat makes it a priority to ensure that we work together with local groups and organisations to provide the best services possible to Stanhope residents."
The housing association recently revealed that residents and staff from the RAVI refuge in Medway enjoyed a day at Margate beach, with Kent People’’s Trust donating £400 towards costs of the day.
Mortgage Rescue begins in north-west
The government’’s Mortgage Rescue scheme has allowed its first family in the north-west to remain in their home during a time of financial difficulty.
Under the initiative, people in housing jobs work with government bodies to purchase property from families who are struggling to meet their mortgage repayments.
Their home is then rented back to them at a rate that they can afford, allowing them to continue living there while minimising their outgoings.
Mortgage Rescue also allows professionals in housing jobs to work with the families that they help to upgrade the property to a standard acceptable by government guidelines.
Deborah McLaughlin, regional director of the Homes and Communities Agency, comments on the first application of the scheme in the north-west: "As someone who loses their home would need to be re-housed anyway, it makes sense to buy their home and rent it to them."
Mortgage Rescue is intended to support up to 6,000 households in difficulty and has been allocated a budget of more than £200 million to cover the cost of purchasing and upgrading homes.
Audit Commission publishes positive housing association reports
Two positive housing association reports have been published by the Audit Commission, including a two-star assessment of Herefordshire Housing Limited.
According to the report, the housing association is focused on the needs of its customers and is now delivering services that have improved significantly since its last inspection.
Enhancements to the quality of service delivered to residents in the area have been achieved through a "culture of continuous improvements", the Audit Commission claims.
Herefordshire Housing Limited is now rated "good" with "excellent prospects" for further improvement to be made in the coming months.
Cheshire Peaks and Plains Housing Trust has scored a similar rating in its own recent inspection.
The latest report from the Audit Commission assesses the trust as good, again with excellent prospects for the future.
Particular praise is given to the housing association’’s ability to deliver good standards of service since 2006, when it took over Macclesfield Council’’s housing stock.
FHM overhauls sheltered housing scheme
Community housing regeneration specialist Frank Haslam Milan (FHM) has revamped a sheltered housing scheme in Blyth – and has even introduced an in-house hairdresser.
The flats have been decorated, rewired and fitted with new kitchens and bathrooms, supporting local housing jobs in the process, 24dash.com reports.
Simon Ferry, lead resident liaison officer at FHM, commented: "FHM prides itself at being at the heart of the communities where we work and, where possible, we aim to give that little bit extra."
The work was carried out by FHM on behalf of Homes for Northumberland, which manages council properties in the area and provides housing jobs to the local workforce.
Improvements are currently being made to 8,500 properties in the county, as part of the £30 million Decent Homes initiative.
The Essex Echo reported earlier this month that £100,000 is to be spent on improving insulation at a Benfleet sheltered housing complex.
Several doors will be replaced and double glazing will be installed in one of the common rooms.
