INDUSTRY NEWS 5
home or rent, residents deserve security, dignity and opportunities.” Over 8,000 residents from across the country have shared their views of social housing as part of the Government’s ‘ listening exercise.’
The Green Paper consultation will run until 6 November 2018.
Social housing green paper launched
A ‘new deal’ for social housing residents has been launched by the Government, aiming to “rebalance the relationship between tenants and landlords, tackle stigma and ensure that social housing can be both a safety net and a springboard into home ownership.”
The social housing green paper is based around five core principles: “A safe and decent home, swift and effective resolution, empowering residents to get their voices heard, tackling stigma and celebrating thriving communities, and building the social homes necessary.” Proposals hope to “empower residents to hold their landlords to account, and give them the support they need to seek redress when things go wrong”. The Government added: “A tougher regulator could help drive up standards and ensure social homes are well-managed, quality places to live”. As well as this, new reforms have been proposed to make it easier for tenants to progress into home ownership, such as allowing them to purchase as little as 1 per cent of their property each year through the Government’s Shared Ownership programme. Also proposed are “sharper teeth’ for the Regulator of Social Housing to intervene where needed, allowing councils to continue to have choice over their use of fixed-term tenancies, and the introduction of performance indicators and new league tables in order to “rebalance the landlord/tenant relationship.” Communities Secretary James Brokenshire commented: “Our green paper offers a landmark opportunity for major reform to improve fairness, quality and safety for residents living in social housing across the country. Regardless of whether you own your
London Development Panel is launched to accelerate delivery on public sites
A new London Development Panel (LDP) has been announced by The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan. Made up of developers, housing associations, and contractors, the intention is that the panel will work with public bodies to accelerate housing delivery on sites that they own. According to City Hall, through the LDP,
Transport for London (TfL) will soon bring forward three car park sites in the London Borough of Harrow (Canons Park, Rayners Lane and Stanmore), and will deliver 100 per cent affordable housing within these developments.
City Hall also announced the purchase of
a large part of the site of St Ann’s Hospital in Haringey from the NHS. Plans for the site are being developed with the local council and community, and the site is expected to be brought to the LDP for residential development. In addition, Enfield Council is
reportedly bringing forward the Meridian One scheme through the new LDP. The site is next to the forthcoming Meridian Water station, and will deliver up to 725 homes along with 25,000 ft2
85 per cent would recommend a career in construction, but skills crisis remains
Although most respondents to a recent Considerate Constructors Scheme (CCS) survey would recommend a career in construction, the skills crisis is still a pressing issue for the industry. Called ‘Spotlight on…the next generation,’ the CCS’ campaign revealed that although 85 per cent of its respondents would recommend a career in construction, 84 per cent feel the ongoing perception of construction as being ‘manual work’ is the main reason it remains an unpopular career choice.
of commercial
space and leisure facilities. James Murray, deputy mayor for Housing & Residential Development, commented on the announcement: “Public land has a vital role to play in tackling the housing crisis, and the new London Development Panel offers public land owners a quicker and more efficient way to bring their sites forward. We want to see it playing an impor- tant role in building the homes Londoners so desperately need.”
The survey also uncovered that 77 per cent view the skills shortage as the most pressing issue facing the construction industry, 72 per cent cite the challenging nature of the work as the main benefit of a construction career, and 53 per cent know young people who are, or could be, interested in a construction career. On the subject of what the industry could do to attract the next generation, 37 per cent mentioned changing perception/promoting benefits, 26 per cent suggested engaging schools and colleges, and 15 per cent mentioned apprenticeships and training. With over a quarter of respondents seeing engagement with schools as important in addressing the shortage of workers, the scheme reports that 91 per cent said their site or company engages with schools or youth groups, and 66 per cent have personally visited schools or youth groups to discuss their career. Considerate Constructors Scheme chief executive Edward Hardy said: “The shortage of new entrants in to the workforce is one of the most pressing issues facing the construction industry. With over 400,000 new recruits needed each year to deliver construction projects, we must all take steps to attract the next generation.” The CCS survey of the construction industry in the UK and Ireland received around 800 responses. The campaign contains a range of practical case studies on what organisations have done to help attract more people into the industry.
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