Denton Confirmed As New Homes England Chief Executive

Housing association boss and former banker to lead ‘reset’ of funding agency. Former banker and housing association chief executive Peter Denton has now been officially confirmed as the new chief executive of Homes England. Peter Denton, chief executive of Hyde Group, will take over at the helm of the agency later this year, with responsibility for administering a new £11.5bn Affordable Homes Programme and a stake of around £14bn in homes acquired through the Help to Buy. Denton will be tasked with leading what housing secretary Robert Jenrick has this week called an “important reset” of the agency’s function, focusing more on regeneration. Read more on the Homes England website.

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/new-phase-for-agency-as-peter-denton-joins-homes-england

NPPF Viability Test Hinders Affordable Homes Provision

72 per cent of councils believe the viability test in the National Planning Policy Framework hinders their ability to provide social and affordable housing. Only 11 per cent of those surveyed for a report on housing need published by the Association for Public Service Excellence (APSE) and the Town and Country Planning Association (TCPA) considered that the test would provide the numbers of homes needed. The survey of council leaders, chief executives, heads of planning, heads of housing and heads of finance said 96 per cent of councils describe their need for affordable housing as “severe” or “moderate”. Only seven per cent thought that the government’s starter homes initiative would help address affordable housing. Read more on the APSE website.

New Interim Chief Executive At The HCA

Chairman of the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA), Kevin Parry, has announced that Mark Hodgkinson, an experienced interim CEO, has been appointed as Interim Chief Executive and Accounting Officer of the Agency. Mark has a strong commercial and financial background with extensive strategic and general management experience, particularly in organisations driving change in a growth environment. Read more on the HCA website.

Chief Executive Leaves HCA

Andy Rose is to leave his post as Chief Executive of the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA), to take up a new role in global infrastructure finance. In April, Andy will become Chief Executive of GIIA, a global advocacy association that represents equity investors in global infrastructure. Mr Rose joined the HCA in April 2013, at a time when the housing development industry was still recovering from the global downturn. He established a new investment function within the HCA, to help unlock stalled sites and increase investment in housing and infrastructure through greater use of equity and loans. He built up the HCA’s role as a central body within government for the disposal of surplus public land. Read more on the HCA website.

ALMO CEO Stands Down In Restructure

The chief executive of Your Homes Newcastle (YHN) is to step down after 10 years at the helm of the city’s housing provider. John Lee will leave at the end of the year after heading up the arms-length management organisation (Almo), owned by Newcastle City Council, since it was set up in 2004. Mr Lee had been seconded as a business expert to the council in August to help it become more commercially focused, but it is understood he has now accepted a voluntary redundancy arrangement. It comes following a YHN board meeting in which a restructure was agreed and amid housing reforms and continuing central government austerity. Also, in a significant change to the management of the city’s housing, “financial and strategic accountability” for the housing revenue account has been passed back to the city council. Read more on the Newcastle Chronicle website.

Housing Affordability Ranked As Most Urgent Issue Affecting Councils

The cost of housing in the UK and its impact on local people is now the main concern for local government, ranking higher than long-held concerns about health and social care services in a survey of council chief executives.  A survey found affordability of housing was the area that most needed improvements according to 61% of local government chief executives, with adult social care (43%) and health care services (39%) coming second and third. Wage levels and cost of living (38%) and job prospects (36%) closely follow. At the opposite end of the list, parking (3%), community relations and antisocial behaviour (both 4%) were deemed the lowest priority. Download a copy of the survey results from the Solace website.

Universal Credit: Housing Chief Slams Direct Payments as 'Daft'

A housing association's chief executive has labelled the Government's plans for direct payments to tenants under Universal Credit as "daft". Matt Cooney, CEO of asra Housing Group, has written to MPs to urge them to pressure the Government into rethinking its plans, claiming that direct payments will be damaging to both social landlords and tenants.  Mr Cooney said: “There is a lot of discussion in the media about the forthcoming bedroom tax which will see asra’s customers lose about £1.2m collectively in housing benefit. Direct payment of benefits is an ideologically driven change to benefits and it will be extremely damaging to housing associations.”   Read more on the asra website.

HCA Names New Chief Executive

The Homes and Communities Agency has appointed its new chief executive.  Andy Rose, a partner at AgFe, a European debt advisor and asset manager, will be taking on the top job at the agency.  He will be responsible for the government’s £1.8 billion affordable homes programme, and oversee 1,000 employees.  Mr Rose will also have a hand on the purse strings of an annual operating budget of £100 million and annual investment budget of £1.5 billion. He will take over from interim boss Richard Hill on 15 April.  Read more on the HCA website.

10 Things Councils Can Learn From Housing Associations and ALMOs

There can't be many happy people working in housing within local government. With demand from desperate residents, savings to be made from the services intended to support them and a government that demonises public services, it's difficult to think how councils can improve matters in 2013.  So, I sought suggestions from professionals working within housing associations and ALMOs. They share an common interest in supporting communities to survive and thrive, can demonstrate the wider benefits they bring to society and are crucial to the success of plans to meet the needs of local people.  So what follows are the combined thoughts of 14 chief executives, managing more 140,000 homes across seven regions.  Read more on the Guardian website.

HCA Appoint Interim Chief Exec

The Homes and Communities Agency have announced that Richard Hill has been appointed as chief executive and accounting officer of the Agency, on an interim basis until such time as the process to recruit a permanent chief executive is completed.  Currently director of programmes and deputy chief executive of the HCA, Mr Hill will take up his new role as of 26 January, following Pat Ritchie’s departure to Newcastle City Council. Richard Hill was formerly director of investment at the Housing Corporation, and before that held senior roles at NHSU and the New Opportunities Fund.  Read more on the HCA website.

Nottingham City Homes Provisionally Recruits New Chief Executive

NCH have provisionally recruited a new Chief Executive, to take over from Chris Langstaff when he retires in October. The offer has been made to Nick Murphy, Executive Director for Housing at Southampton City Council. In his role in Southampton, Nick covered a range of customer facing services including housing and property services, environmental services, leisure and culture, community safety and community involvement. Nick was also part of Southampton's corporate leadership and management team. He successfully delivered key housing and asset management strategies and achieved the Decent Homes standard for a stock of more than 18,000 properties. Nick was also the Director of Housing, Health and Community at Eastbourne Borough Council. He was once seconded to the Senior Civil Service leading on national policy in housing management, homelessness and tenant participation. At Eastbourne he was appointed as the youngest Director for housing in the country.