search.noResults

search.searching

dataCollection.invalidEmail
note.createNoteMessage

search.noResults

search.searching

orderForm.title

orderForm.productCode
orderForm.description
orderForm.quantity
orderForm.itemPrice
orderForm.price
orderForm.totalPrice
orderForm.deliveryDetails.billingAddress
orderForm.deliveryDetails.deliveryAddress
orderForm.noItems
Industry News


Housing sector braces itself after Ministerial changes


Prime Minister and its professional body is also to undergo changes at the top. A Social Housing Green Paper had been


T


expected in the Autumn along with a new focus on safety, service quality and greater tenant involvement, but the personnel changes have put all of this in doubt. Instead it appears the new Government’s focus will once again revert to encouraging higher levels of home ownership and building for sale. Shortly after Boris Johnson entered Downing


Street we discovered that the Housing Secretary James Brokenshire and the Housing Minister Kit Malthouse were being replaced by the relatively unknown Robert Jenrick and the much better known Esther McVey. Ms McVey was previously a Secretary of State for


Work and Pensions, where she was in charge of the roll-out of Universal Credit. She becomes the ninth housing minister since 2010 – a turnover rate which


he rented housing sector finds itself facing an uncertain future after a round of Ministerial changes were made by the new


makes it almost impossible for meaningful and trusting relationships to develop. In her first statement after her appointment, Ms


McVey said the new Government would “give millions of young people the chance to own their own homes so we can make the dream of homeownership a reality”. What this means for the housebuilding plans of housing associations and dozens of councils is unclear, but a shift back towards private development is expected. Meanwhile Terrie Alafat has announced she is


retiring in November from her post as chief executive of the Chartered Institute of Housing, where she will be replaced by her current deputy Gavin Smart. The changes come at a pivotal time for the housing sector, with a new financial settlement expected in the Autumn. Over at Homes England, Sir Edward Lister has


stepped down as chair of the board to focus on his new role as chief strategic advisor to the new Prime Minister. Sir Edward previously worked for Boris Johnson when he was Mayor of London. In another high level change, the Clarion


Housing Group announced that David Orr has been appointed to chair the Clarion Housing Association board. Clarion is the country’s largest social landlord with 125,000 homes and 350,000 residents across the country. Orr was previously chief executive of the National Housing Federation for 13 years until his retirement last year.


Regulator proposes 15 per cent increase in fees to fund extra staff


The social housing regulator for England has written to landlords setting out plans to raise fees by 15 per cent next year to pay for extra staff to check on the activities of housing associations. The plans to raise the per-unit fee for registered


providers with 1,000 or more homes were outlined in a letter to all HA chief executives last month. Their views were invited, with a short deadline of 14 August set for responses. Fiona MacGregor, chief executive of the


regulator, said increasing the fees from £4.72 to


£5.47 per unit in April 2020/21, was needed to increase the organisation’s capacity to “effectively regulate the changing risk profile of the sector”. This includes keeping pace with the “increasing market focus among some registered providers” and new funding models such as “commercial for-profit providers”. Ms MacGregor’s letter said more resources are


needed in the regulator’s investigation and enforcement function. However, it remains unclear how many of the new staff will be health and safety


experts or how much of the increased work by the regulator will focus on services to tenants. Some of the increased income will be used for new IT and external legal advice. Fees for small providers with less than 1,000


homes will stay at £300 a year and the initial registration fee will not be increased from the current rate of £2,500. It remains unclear how the role of the regulator


may change in the near future if the Government proceeds with issuing a Social Housing Green Paper in the Autumn. It’s publication has already been delayed several times and it was expected to set out proposals for increasing tenant involvement in setting and monitoring service standards and delivery.


Clarion agrees home improvement contracts worth over £1billion


The country’s biggest housing association has signed long-term contracts with three companies to deliver £1.17bn of improvements to tenants’ homes. Clarion Housing Group selected three


contractors to each deliver a 20 year planned investment programme. Residents of 67,000 properties will benefit from kitchen and bathroom refurbishments, external decoration, boiler replacements and heating system upgrades, electrical testing and re-wiring and renewals of


roofs and lifts. Engie will carry out work in East Anglia,


Birmingham and Coventry; Wates has been appointed to work in North London; while United Living will focus on homes in South London, Kent, the southern home counties and Dorset. Clarion’s Strategic Procurement Board, including


resident representatives from its Property Engagement Group, jointly took the decision to procure long-term contracts for this work to


8 | HMM August/September 2019 | www.housingmmonline.co.uk


strengthen the Group’s partnerships with contractors and maximise benefits for residents and their communities. Peter Nourse, Director of Assets at Clarion, said:


“Each year we invest significantly in maintaining and improving our existing homes. We are really pleased to announce the selection of three preferred bidders to carry out this vital work over a twenty- year period. “Longer term contracts provide security to both


ourselves and our partners, to realise the benefits of collaboration and investment at scale. All three preferred bidders share Clarion’s commitment to quality and social value and our residents and their communities will be the beneficiaries.”


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52