Archives for February 2010
Social housing jobs ”depend on spending”
An increase in London households seeking social homes has been met with dismay be one expert.
Jim Vine, head of UK housing policy and practice at the Building and Social Housing Foundation, said that it was vital for people in social housing jobs that the government prioritise spending on solutions to the national housing crisis.
He spoke out as the National Housing Federation revealed that, although numbers of Londoners seeking social homes had fallen in 11 boroughs, they had increased in some 22 regions.
Figures released by the organisation showed that the number of London households on social housing waiting lists increased annually by 1,259 to 354,389 on April 1st last year.
Mr Vine pointed out that an increase in spending in this area was necessary to drag Britain out of the downturn.
"Not only does it help to meet the need for decent roofs over families” heads, but investment in housing also keeps people in work," he concluded.
Social homes to benefit from green technology
Those in social housing jobs may benefit from a new low-carbon property technology scheme announced today.
Some 87 social housing units across the UK will have retrofitted green technology implemented in the properties, housing minister John Healey said alongside science minister Lord Drayson.
These units are the winners of an earlier initiative, in which over 190 groups were given £20,000 each in order to conduct tests and trials over how feasible green technology was in their area.
Now each will get £142,000 to implement the innovations and will be monitored by the Energy Saving Trust for two years.
Mr Healey said that the social and councils homes would benefit from the scheme, as may those in social housing jobs.
"[It] will make them warmer, greener and cheaper to run," he pointed out.
Retrofit for the Future is driven in part by the Technology Strategy Board.
It was recently announced that some 600 eco-homes will be built this year.
Social care for older people to improve through housing?
Those in social housing jobs may be able to improve care for older people.
Care services minister Phil Hope has today (February 23rd) announced that an innovation fund of £3.5 million is to be awarded to local authorities with adult social care responsibility.
In order to achieve these funds, Mr Hope said at the Laing and Buisson conference, councils will have to demonstrate their commitment and ideas for the cause.
He noted that the local governments would have to "act now and act decisively" to improve property options for older people, especially when it came to innovative houses designed specifically to meet their needs.
"They are at the heart of the technological change that will define our ageing society, enable more people to live well and live independently in their own home for longer," Mr Hope added.
Young people looking for employment are being urged to think of jobs in social care as part of a new government campaign advertising how fulfilling these careers can be.
8,000 more homes to be built through government funding
The government is to pour another £500 million into funding for affordable housing, in news which may benefit those in social housing jobs.
Housing minister John Healey said that this would bring the total for government grants for the sector to £3.5 billion since June of last year.
Some 8,000 properties are set to be built through the funding, including almost 5,000 affordable homes.
The other 3,000 are said to be designed to help first-time buyers get on the first rung of the property ladder.
Along with this announcement, Mr Healey reinstated his request that housing associations and similar organisations create social housing jobs and apprenticeships.
"We have used the power of public investment to ensure that even during the downturn we continued to build the homes this country needs," he added.
It was recently announced by Mr Healey that guideline rent increases for social tenants this year and next are to be halved.
“Only” 6,000 social homes built in last quarter of 2009
A national homelessness charity has pointed out that there were only 6,000 new social homes built in the final three months of 2009.
According to data released by Shelter, the last quarter of last year saw the lowest level of new homes being built in 60 years.
Some 28,200 new homes were built in October, November and December – 6,000 of which were registered social homes and 40 were new local authority properties.
These figures compare to some 43,430 homes built in the last quarter of 2007.
Director of policy, campaigns and communications for the organisation Kay Boycott said the lack of social homes built last year demonstrated the gap between demand and supply.
"It is no surprise that more and more young people are struggling to get a decent and affordable place to live. It is vital that this and future governments place investment in housing at the very top of their political priorities," she added.
Housing minister John Healey recently announced that rent guidelines were to be halved in 2010 and 2011.
Rural areas to receive new social homes funding
Some 10,000 new homes could be built through new government funding, in a move which may create rural social housing jobs.
The housing minister John Healey, along with the rural affairs minister Lord Davies, have announced 36 councils which are to split £1 million in funding for new homes, a large proportion of which will be affordable properties.
Local authorities eligible for the cash will also benefit from expert urban planning advice which is designed to help with the placement of the homes.
Mr Healey said that the project was intended to eliminate the lack of affordable housing in rural areas, as communities in these regions were necessary for a prosperous future.
"That’’s why we”re backing rural councils with funding for the skills to provide homes young families can afford, where they want to live," he noted.
It was recently announced that communities in rural areas are being urged to commit to participatory budgeting plans by the Commission for Rural Communities.
Agreement for Cambridgeshire affordable housing made
More housing jobs could be available in Cambridge after a funding agreement was struck to allow development work to begin.
The agreement will release the necessary funds to allow the construction of affordable housing at the Trumpington Meadows development that was given planning permission back in September 2009.
Some 40 per cent of the total homes scheduled for the site will be delivered through the agreement between the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) and Bedfordshire Pilgrims Housing Association.
The development is part of the Cambridge challenge project that seeks to build 3,300 affordable homes in Cambridgeshire.
John O”Mahony, the head of strategy, programmes and performance for the HCA in the east of England, paid tribute to the hard work of all the parties involved in allowing the development to progress.
Mr O”Mahony said: "Getting the right projects forward in the right timescales is the key to delivering our housing needs in the region."
Earlier this month the HCA provided a £5 million grant to allow the development of 56 rental units in Gravesham, Kent.
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Government-owned land may be used for social homes
The first government-owned land has been made available for new properties and social homes.
Housing minister John Healey announced that today (February 17th) marks a new day in housebuilding now that the space is available under the Public Land Initiative.
Those in social housing jobs may particularly benefit from the news, which could deliver up to 500 new homes – many of which will be affordable properties.
Moreover, some 1,700 housing jobs may be created through the initiative.
John Healey said the deal, which means the government takes on much of the cost of housebuilding, is proof that Britain can get through the recession together with UK firms.
"This is a drive to make better use of Government-owned land to build new homes," he added.
"I am now looking to new companies to bring a new competitive edge to the industry."
It was recently announced that guideline rent increases for social homes is to be halved this year and next.
Workers in social housing jobs need “certainty and clarity”
in social housing jobs, along with those in planning jobs, are demanding a clearer picture of the housing sector in Britain.
This is the implication of comments from Brian Berry, director of external affairs at the Federation of Master Builders.
He spoke out after the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors published research which showed that, despite a net balance of six per cent in the precious quarter, 12 per cent more surveyors experienced a decline rather than a rise in their workload over the last three months of 2009.
Mr Berry said there was a "housing crisis in the country which was having an adverse impact on housing and planning jobs, the latter of which was in particularly dire straits.
"We need to get the general election over and out of the way to find some certainty and clarity about the future of housing policy in this country," he added.
Tenants left without heating for months
People in one apartment building have been without hot water and heating for months after a faulty boiler broke once and for all, those considering central heating insurance may wish to note.
The New York Daily News reports that the Brooklyn building – which is in danger of being repossessed – has left tenants shivering since last year.
Paulette Walker told the newspaper that she, her husband and their teenage son had to rely on their oven to heat their flat.
"I boil water for the steam, turn on the grill and let the burners go," she added.
Ms Walker noted that to take a bath, her family members were forced to boil countless pots of water.
"We really shouldn”t have to live this way," she concluded.
As another cold snap is forecasted to hit Britain soon, those considering central heating insurance may wish to organise their thoughts before another round of freezing weather sets in.
