industry news


Extra homes needed for young Londoners - LSE


A new report from the London School of Economics showed 250,000 new homes for rent and sale need to be built over the next decade for younger households entering the housing market for the first time. The report, “Rising to the challenge:


London’s housing crisis”, has highlighted the need for smaller properties - studios, one- bedroom and some two-bedroom flats. London Mayor Sadiq Khan has a target of


building 50,000 new homes per year, but this programme must be additional to that.


“The new properties must be in addition to Sadiq Khan's target of 50,000 homes per year already announced“


Professor Christine Whitehead, Emeritus


Professor of Housing Economics and one of the authors of the report, said: “We’re calling for a post-student housing initiative. Over the last decade London managed to ramp up the production of purpose-built student housing to help the increasing numbers going to university. Now we need to do the same for young working households trying to buy or rent their first home. “London’s housing crisis is too large to be


addressed by traditional means. On current projections, even if London were able to double the amount of housing currently being built and do the same every year for the next 20 years, young couples and single people in London would still face worse housing conditions in 2037 than in 2011.” The report notes a number of positive


approaches which are beginning to help London’s housing crisis, such as purpose- built private rented housing and allowing vacant office to be converted into residential use. But it says the model needs to be refined to make it more acceptable to local communities. Professor Whitehead said: “The enormous


scale of the capital’s housing problem means it is now not just a local but a national emergency. “It must be addressed with political


courage and additional resources including land, building capacity and finance backed by central government, the Greater London Authority and the boroughs.”


“The enormous scale of the capital’s housing problem means it is now not just a local but a national emergency. “ – C. Whitehead


Fed supports ‘buy as you go’ scheme


Almost 1.5 million people could benefit from a new ‘buy as you go’ model as an alternative to shared ownership, according to the National Housing Federation. Based on schemes developed by several


housing associations including Gentoo, Home Group, Tamar Housing and Two Castles, the scheme allows tenants to build up equity by paying a near market rent and eventually owning their property outright. It is intended to cater for tenants caught in a ‘no man’s ground’, unable to access social


housing or to save a deposit for a mortgage. The current model sees tenants paying a


monthly sum equivalent to 90 per cent of the market rent for the local area. Homelessness charity Shelter has called


for the rents to be set at lower levels and asked for clarity on what happens if tenants want to move or they are unable to keep up with the rent. Sunderland based Gentoo ran a similar


scheme in 2015/16 but were unable to expand it outside of the North East.


www.housingmmonline.co.uk | HMM January 2017 | 13


Government urged to change housing policies by key decision makers


Ministers need to alter the course of current housing policies to ensure local communities can successfully deal with the challenges of modern life. An independent report based on the views


of 100 key figures working in housing found that 94 per cent of them want to see significant changes, including a greater focus on encouraging renting in both private and public sectors. The report titled “The Changing Landscape


for Social Housing” was published just before the Autumn Statement altered the Government’s course, but probably not enough to entirely satisfy the group drawn from social housing providers and other bodies such as the Chartered Institute of Housing and SOLACE.


Among other findings are:


• 65 per cent want central housing policy to focus on a broader range of tenures beyond home ownership and 49 per cent want to see the annual 1 per cent rent cut reduced or scrapped entirely


• They will be prioritising the safeguarding of jobs (59 per cent), cutting costs and driving efficiencies (57 per cent), improving customer service and satisfaction (57 per cent) and dealing with changing regulations and reforms (52 per cent) over the next 12 months


• Technology will play a vital role in achieving


these objectives with 50 per cent planning to use digital services to transform and modernise customer services and to unlock significant savings


• Board members and senior leaders need to improve their risk management (41 per cent) and change management (41 per cent), governance (38 per cent) and strategy and development (37 per cent) skills to drive transformation.


The group were brought together by specialist system and outsourcing services company Civica. Terrie Alafat, Chief Executive, Chartered


Institute of Housing, explains: “The current policy and political environment make this a pivotal time for social housing. The Government has promised to build more homes of all tenures that everyone can afford and this research very clearly highlights there is a consensus that this is what we need.”


Technology


The report draws attention to the struggles organisations face with current housing policy. Technology is widely expected to play an increasingly vital role in achieving these objectives with 50 per cent of social housing providers planning to use digital technology and automation to transform and modernise services and to unlock significant savings.


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