Housing 2025’s Post

Enjoying the first day post-conference after a really busy week at Housing 2024 in #Manchester Tons of activity, great to meet lots of existing and new contacts, and attend some great events - with some surprisingly good weather! From the conversations we've been having, the sector is already very well aware of what is needed to support providers and unlock delivery - whether it is #alongtermplanforhousing by National Housing Federation, a new rent settlement, #planning reforms, reforming #righttobuy, delivery of more #socialhousing and #shelteredaccommodation, more funding for #brownfieldland to support "Brownfield First", #decarbonisation funding, greater #devolution for combined authorities, support for #cladding #buildingsafetyact and #retrofit. Needless to say the next 5+ years have the potential to be really transformational - and the sector is keen to deliver. Have a great weekend everyone! #housing #publicsector #regeneration

In NSW, on Wednesday PIA Sue Weatherley, David Reynolds, Chief Executive Jane Partridge, Strategy Manager (Local Government NSW) ,  John Engeler, Chief Executive Officer (Shelter NSW), Michael Carnuccio, Manager, Policy (Community Housing Industry Association NSW) and Jeremy Gill, (Committee for Sydney) meet with the Kiersten Fishburn Secretary and Tom Loomes Executive Director, Strategic Planning and Policy from the Department of Planning Housing and Infrastructure to discuss Affordable Rental Housing (AFR). Together, we acknowledged the positive work of the Department to introduce an Affordable Rental Housing Levy as part of the TODs. However, we made further submissions that the housing should be in perpetuity and the ownership of a CHP, that the 2% levy, based on comparable international standards and the needs of the our communities is simply too low and the SEPP should have a escalating scale to show how the contribution will increase in time. In addition, there is an immediate need for clarity and further detail about how the affordable housing provisions in the TOD SEPP will work. The Department is now working with Local Governments to support them in the development of their own Affordable Housing Policies and are confident that many councils will development local schemes to meet the needs of their community. #affordablehousing #affordablerental #housingpolicies #TODSEPP #collaboration #jointadvocacy

Much needed leadership from @JustinWelby and @NationwideFdtn calling for a cross government vision and strategy for housing. #HomesForAll Launched today, Homes For All is a vision to transform England’s housing system, to ensure there are safe, secure, affordable, quality #HomesForAll.      Alongside a strong coalition of organisations and experts across the housing sector, through Homes for All, we are calling for all political parties to commit to:  ✅ A cross-party strategy on housing    ✅ Long-term and system-wide policymaking    ✅ A Housing Strategy Committee        Decades of short-term policy making from decision makers has deepened the housing crisis.    Find out more about the vision: homesforall.org.uk

Could this be part of the ‘new dawn’ of planning? Clearly however planning does not only equal housing. Housing is of course important but more important is: 1) the national and regional infrastructure to generate and distribute enough power to where it is needed; 2) data centres to deliver the the fibre and processing capacity our daily lives require; and 3) clean water to drink and then not pollute our watercourses. Sir Starmer, Angela and Ed have started to unravel the current planning ‘Pickle’ and I hear that the draft revisions to the NPPF will be with us later THIS month. So it looks like our holiday reading may be how the ‘new dawn’ is facilitated in updated planning policy. Perhaps it’s time for a quick ice cream now before things ‘hot’ up? #planning #nppf #datacentres #datacenters #economicdevelopment #rtpi #infrastructure #spatialplanning #regionalplanning #strategicplanning #icecream #logistics #holidayreading #fun

This week, the housing sector got together under one roof for the first ever joint #HousingCommunitySummit with National Housing Federation and Chartered Institute of Housing. 3,000+ housing professionals, 300+ speakers, two days - wow! Our chief exec Nick Atkin sat on a panel alongside Steve Rotherham - Liverpool mayor, Elizabeth Hunter - West Yorkshire Combined Authority, and Charlie Norman (She/her) - Mosscare St Vincent’s, to talk about the rise of #devolution and how it can help unite local authorities and housing associations. Here are a few of the highlights from the conversation: 1. Devolution has enabled the creation of several housing partnerships that are able to push the agenda for quality. 2. It’s important for housing to set out clearly its offer to metro mayors and meeting them early means you can tweak your offer to what the mayor wants to achieve. 3. Asking the government to reclassify housing investment as infrastructure spending to help deliver more certainty in funding and flexibility for new homes. Read the highlights from Housing Digital: https://ow.ly/mpuf50Tl0Gx

As we consider leadership, setting clear priorities is essential for sustainable growth and community well-being. If elected, Harrison Roday's focus will center on addressing these pressing challenges: 1️⃣ Affordable Housing: Tackling the rising cost of rent is paramount. Everyone deserves a place to call home in the city they work in. 2️⃣ City Hall Accountability: Initiating audits and performance reviews across city agencies to ensure effectiveness and transparency in governance. 3️⃣ Investing in Education & Public Safety: Strengthening our schools and ensuring a safe environment for all residents is non-negotiable. 4️⃣ Circulating Local Dollars: By creating living opportunities within the city, we can keep our workforce engaged and invested in our community. 5️⃣ Leveraging Growth: Using tax revenue from new developments to reinvest in historically overlooked neighborhoods allows us to create a more equitable city. To thrive, our cities must evolve from commuter-centric models to vibrant communities where individuals can live, work, and play. #UrbanDevelopment #AffordableHousing #CommunityEngagement #RVASmallBusinessShow #RVASmallBusinessNetwork #MeetTheCandidate

Spoiler alert: I listened in on advance preparations for this #HousingCentral conference session, and while I don't use the word "humdinger" lightly, this is a humdinger of a session. Add to your agenda for November 20th for engaging tales of municipal policies, processes and affordable housing.

#Construction industry reacts as Keir Starmer gives first keynote speech as leader ⬇ Speaking at the #Labour Party Conference in Liverpool, Prime Minister Keir Starmer said that his plans will be “tough in the short-term, but in the long-term, it’s the right thing to do for our country”. 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐤𝐞𝐲 𝐩𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐊𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐦𝐞𝐫’𝐬 𝐤𝐞𝐲𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐞 𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐞𝐜𝐡 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐔𝐊 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐲? - More overground pylons to ensure cheaper energy - Reiterating the 1.5m housing targets– with increased housing support for vulnerable populations to decrease homelessness - GB Energy to be based in Aberdeen - New prisons to be built Read industry reactions and more details here: https://bit.ly/3Zx1O9b

This is well worth a read and could provide valuable insight as to the types of changes we could see in the short, medium and long term intended to address the current housing crisis. Dame Kate Barker, Chair of Radix Big Tent has prepared a public memorandum to the new Housing Minister Matthew Pennycook MP, making various recommendations relating to planning funding and implementation. Some highlights - - the need for policies to recognise the important role the rented sector has to play (both institutional and private), to re-dress the perceived importance of home-ownership. - move away from short-term competitive funding models towards a more streamlined approached focussed on longer term needs and recognising the opportunity that exists with the transition towards greater devolution - Enabling public sector land to be used more effectively for housing - Establishing a more effective approach to Strategic Planning by making it a mandatory function, establishing a Strategic Planning team within MHCLG, and a network of spatial planning teams across combined authorities, counties and an amalgamation of unitary authorities - Commission an independent review of the metropolitan Green Belt (this could also help to answer the question as to how grey belt land is to be identified?) - Support SME and community-led developers by amending the NPPF and LURA/NDMP's to allow the Local Plan site allocation process to be by-passed and offering more support to the Permission in Principle process - Rethinking the role of Homes England as a master developer potentially working with Development Corporations - will help to accelerate the delivery of sites, support affordable housing delivery and could boost land supply for SME's Will be interesting to see how these recommendations are received by the Department and how many progress! #housingreform #nppf #strategicplanning #SMEdevelopers #planningpolicy #infrastructurefunding #housingcrisis Justin Cove Mark Vaughan Stuart Sage Nick Thompson Suzanne Asher Josh Plant Jenna Crombie Robert Theaker

Great session this morning, thank you Helen Shaw, Scottish Housing Regulator, Callum Chomczuk, Chartered Institute of Housing, John Wickenden, Housemark and Gavin Smith, Fife Council for your contributions. Big thanks to all of the delegates for joining the discussion with aims to make a difference in the sector. Thanks to Rob Griffiths for chairing today's Leadership Forum. We've discussed: ➡️ The Regulatory Framework and statutory guidance, including tenant participation and notifiable events for social landlords in Scotland, ➡️Scotland’s Housing Emergency and strategies for improvement ➡️ Sector's financial performance ➡️ The need for housing outcomes ➡️ The need to clarify the shared understanding of affordability ➡️ Housing 24 and the increased expectations and ambitions of the Scottish housing sector ➡️ Scottish Budget 2025-26 and the need for funding ➡️ Solutions for positive housing outcomes Join us at the next session on 18 February: https://lnkd.in/eaS2tneW #Scotland #UKhousing #affordablehomes #Scotlandbudget202526