Quarterly progress report: 2016-19 Corporate Plan July-September 2018 Welcome. Our Mission.
This is the second progress report for this If you have any questions on the information financial year. in this progress report, please don’t hesitate to • To positively influence get in touch. Welsh Government policy. Inside this report you’ll find an update on the areas of work you told us were important In the meantime we will continue to influence, to you. With this year being the final year of connect, support and inform our current Corporate Plan, we are keen to – so you can continue to • To support and promote continue to make progress and demonstrate invest in communities the work of our members. how we are supporting you. and improve lives.
A full media report which shows how we’ve been influencing the media agenda so far this • To speak with one voice. year is also included.
One of our main and most important focuses • To put members at the this year is supporting the delivery of a heart of everything we do. review of housing policy in Wales. After consulting with over 200 staff and board members from Housing Associations, we published our response to the Independent • To work as one team Review of Affordable Housing Supply in to deliver our mission. Wales’ Call for Evidence. Thank you to all who participated, and we look forward to continue working with our members on this important piece of work which will inform the future provision of housing in the country.
We were also delighted to receive the results of our Member Satisfaction Survey, undertaken by David Hedges of Cyngor Da. The findings were positive but there are a number of clear areas where we can and will improve on. We will use the feedback to inform our next Corporate Plan for 2019-2022. Stuart Ropke Chief Executive Our Mission. Our Aim. July-September 2018 at a glance: • To positively influence By 2019 we will be regarded by members as • Consulting with over 200 staff and board members from Housing an invaluable and highly effective umbrella Associations we have now published our response to the Welsh Government policy. body. We will continue to promote the Independent Review of Affordable Housing Supply in Wales’ Call diversity of our membership and will have for Evidence. helped shape the external environment to • To support and promote enable them to prosper. • We submitted our response, as we submitted our response to the the work of our members. Welsh Government’s consultation on the National Development We will be the go-to organisation on Framework (preferred option) in July. housing issues in Wales, the partner of • To speak with one voice. choice for stakeholders, and recognised and • We have been working closely with DWP in Wales and London to valued by Welsh Government as a sector urge operational improvements to Universal Credit, including the that delivers. Landlord Portal and improvements to Universal Support. • To put members at the heart of everything we do. Our work between 2016-2019 falls • Our Finance Conference in the Metropole Hotel was well under four strategic themes. attended, beginning with a talk from Linda Davidson, who delegates quickly recognised as Mary the Punk from EastEnders! Supporting members to • To work as one team • We ran our UK wide ‘Five Asks’ campaign with the National to deliver our mission. be resilient businesses. Housing Federation, the Scottish Federation of Housing Associations and the Northern Irish Federation, calling on the UK Enabling the delivery of more Government to urgently change the “fundamental flaws” with quality and truly affordable homes. Universal Credit. Supporting members to build sustainable • We welcomed Catrin Harries our Media and Communications communities where people want to live. Officer who is a Welsh speaker, and undertook a recruitment campaign to appoint a Chair and additional Board Members to Running a great member organisation. complement our existing board of eight. • We received results of our Member Satisfaction survey which showed a high level of satisfaction among members. Themes: Themes:
Affordable Planning Housing Review
The Review of Affordable Housing Supply has ramped up over the last quarter, Our work in planning has continued this last quarter, as we submitted with the independent panel issuing a call for evidence from the sector. We our response to the Welsh Government’s consultation on the National worked quickly to establish three Reference Groups to develop our response Development Framework (preferred option) in July. to the consultation. Over the eight week consultation period, we held eleven events right across Wales, engaging with over 200 staff and board members Also in July, the Welsh Government launched a new consultation looking from Housing Associations, and submitted a comprehensive response to the at ways to improve the delivery of Local Development Plan (LDP) housing consultation, which you can read here. requirements. It was announced that the Welsh Government will go ahead with the proposal to temporarily disapply paragraph 6.2 of Technical Advice Following the submission to the Review, Welsh Government’s work stream Note (TAN) 1; this was despite representations made by CHC and others in the meetings have now begun. The sector is represented by 21 sector volunteers sector, and we are supporting members with the impact of this change. – and we will continue to work with them to influence the work of the Review over the coming months. In September we held a Planning Seminar, sponsored by Clarke Willmott Solicitors and Asbri Planning, to explore the key questions in the LDP consultation and share ideas and solutions around the impact of the (TAN) 1 decision. We will submit our response to the LDP consultation in October.
Public Affairs Manager Policy Officer Aaron Hill Sarah Scotcher [email protected] [email protected] 029 2067 4820 029 2067 4802 | 07469 147485 @AaronCHC @Sarah_CHC Themes: Themes:
Universal Supporting Housing Credit and Supporting People
This quarter saw the roll out of the Universal Credit Full Service in Blaenau The UK Government announced in August that they have scrapped their Gwent, Caerphilly and Pembrokeshire; the remaining areas due to be rolled plans to localise housing costs for supported accommodation. The rent for out by the end of December. We have been working closely with DWP in supported accommodation, which includes Sheltered Housing and extra care, Wales and London to urge operational improvements to UC, including the will therefore continue to be funded through Housing Benefit. Landlord Portal and improvements to Universal Support. We are in the process of holding elections for our sector representatives July saw the launch of the Four Feds ‘Five Asks’ campaign, bringing together on the Regional Collaborative Committees (RCCs). RCCs bring together the housing association trade bodies from all four UK nations to campaign on stakeholders at a regional level to produce a Regional Commissioning Plan for a single set of asks to improve Universal Credit. You can read more about the Supporting People services based on regional needs so it’s vital for the sector campaign here. to have a presence.
This summer also saw the first joint meeting of the CHC Welfare and We are delighted Cabinet Secretary for Finance Mark Drakeford AM has now Regeneration Strategic Delivery Groups. This meeting provided the confirmed as part of the Welsh Government’s draft budget for 2019/20 that opportunity to discuss cross cutting issues including financial inclusion, funding for homelessness and Supporting People will be ringfenced until the money advice and tenancy support. end of this Assembly term.
Policy & Programmes Manager Policy Officer Will Atkinson Joe Frampton [email protected] [email protected] 029 2067 4815 | 07557 650386 029 2067 4806 | 07855 712833 @WillA_CHC @JoeFramptonCF Themes: Themes:
Renting Fire Safety Homes Act
While the commencement date of the Renting Homes Act is not yet clear, the The safety of tenants, staff and buildings continued as a top priority throughout model contracts will be consulted on in the next few months. A sub-group to this quarter, with the findings of the Hackitt Review and ongoing Grenfell review prescribed forms and notices will be set up in the next few months. In Inquiry further influencing policy in Wales. We retained our position on the addition a communications sub-group to help develop a Communications Welsh Government Fire Safety Advisory Group, assisting Government in issuing Strategy for the Act is currently being set up. The training sub-group is guidance around developing issues including the safety of fire doors. looking for any examples of training or information on the Renting Homes Wales Act which people might currently be using to inform on the Act once June saw a successful Safety Summit, covering the full range of safety issues, implemented. Please forward me any information which you might have to from the Hackitt Review to health and safety of home workers. Health and safety me on [email protected]. assurance to housing association boards also proved popular, with increased scrutiny from Welsh Government in this area.
Following the Hackitt Review, we called on Welsh Government to ban the use of combustible materials on the external walls of high rise buildings. This quarter, a consultation was published outlining Government plans, to which we responded.
Our Fire Safety Delivery Group continues to provide expert advice on fire safety matters and provides an opportunity for members to share best practice on fire safety.
Policy Officer Selina Moyo Policy & Programmes Manager Will Atkinson [email protected] [email protected] 029 2067 4807 | 07341 730404 029 2067 4815 | 07557 650386 @Selina_CHC @WillA_CHC
Policy & Programmes Manager Will Atkinson Themes: A Big Thank You! A big thank you from our business development team to every delegate, speaker, sponsor and exhibitor, without whom the conferences would not be the success they are. Conference Update & Upcoming Conferences
In July, we hosted the CHC Finance Conference in the Metropole Hotel. 11/12th October 2018 – The ever popular One Big Housing Conference and The conference began with a talk from Linda Davidson, who delegates Development Zone will be returning to the Metropole Hotel, Llandrindod Wells. quickly recognised as Mary the Punk from EastEnders! Linda explained how The theme this year is ‘growth and diversification with a social purpose’, and the technology can transform businesses, and the impact it has on organisations. two days will provide relevant insights on subjects including an update from DWP on the rollout of Universal Credit and the launch of our latest Opinion Research A popular after lunch speaker was Sean Holley, Rugby pundit and ex-coach Services research on the impact of Universal Credit on Welsh housing associations. of Ospreys and Bristol RFC. Sean told some really interesting coaching stories The conference will also offer advice on preparing for new programmes and and explained how he created successful, high performing teams. The day legislation such as Renting Homes, and is an opportunity to learn from those also included sessions from Lloyds and Positif focusing on the economic and spearheading products including Rent to Own and Shared Ownership. political climate ahead of Brexit and the leadership races within the Welsh With delegate places still available, please go here to book, or email Assembly. [email protected].
We also used the conference as an opportunity to publish our Global 15/16th November 2018 – Our Annual Conference is the most important event Accounts finance report which demonstrates a robust housing sector in in Welsh housing and this year promises to be our best yet with exciting and Wales. inspiring speakers such as Isabel Hardman, Political Journalist and the Assistant Editor of The Spectator, Minister for Housing and Regeneration, Rebecca Evans What did our delegates say? AM, Darren “Loki” McGarvey, Scottish Rapper and author of award winning book ‘Poverty Safari’. There is also an opportunity on day two for delegates to delve • “An excellent conference” further into the Affordable Housing Review. Book on here, or email [email protected]. • “I’m new to the sector so it was good to increase my knowledge and meet people”
• “Very useful for a number of reasons as an update to what is happening in the next couple of years, a good networking opportunity and very helpful sessions”
• View presentations from this conference; https://chcymru.org.uk/en/events/conferences/past- conferences/2018-finance-conference/ Events and Business Officer Rhian Robinson [email protected] 029 2067 4814 @CHCEvents Themes: Themes:
Training Member With the focus now on subject areas that are high on the priority list for our members, our training programme is now running successfully with all courses Information Updates running at capacity. Over the past few months we have run courses at CHC Thanks to all of you who have responded to our Member Survey – so far including: Service charges, Introduction to Housing Associations, Search Engine Optimisation, Introduction to Universal Credit and Promoting Positive Mental we have over 1000 members who have updated their preferences and let Health and Wellbeing. us know if they wish to receive general communication from us. With our updated CRM system, we will be running a campaign every month for all We have also worked with a number of our members to deliver tailored courses those who have been newly added to the database, to ensure we are always at their premises including Sexual Harassment for Merthyr Tydfil Housing bringing you the most relevant information for your specific role. If you have a Association and Hoarding and Clutter awareness at Taff Housing Association. colleague, who you think may be interested in joining our mailing lists for any of the Strategic Delivery Groups or our Weekly Round-up, please contact me Online Training on [email protected]. Many of our members such as, Cartrefi Cymunedol Gwynedd, Trivallis, Catrefi Conwy, Clwyd Alyn, Coastal, Cadwyn, Newydd/Cadarn are now experiencing the benefits of CHC’s online training offer. To date the most popular topics are Anti- Social Behaviour, GDPR and Safeguarding, however we have recently released three new subjects: Current Social Housing Matters, Welfare Reform and Work Act 2016, and Social Housing: who do we think we are? We expect these to be popular within our membership over the coming months. All information on CHC’s online training can be found by clicking here. We have exciting times ahead over the next few months running a number of new courses requested by our members, including; HHSRS, Governance of Health and Safety Compliance, Chairing Skills, Cultural Diversity Awareness, Carbon Literacy, Introduction to Housing Associations and Service Charges. For more information on these courses or to book please click here. For further information on CHC’s Learning and Development offer please contact Lesley Smith, Learning and Development Officer on [email protected].
Member Services & Business Development Manager Executive Support Office Adele Harries-Nicholas Elinor George [email protected] [email protected] 029 2067 4803 | 07769 550891 029 2067 4805 @HarriesAdele @13Elinor
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Communications Staff Update Update
It’s been a busy quarter for the communications team at CHC. We continued We are pleased to welcome Catrin Harries as our Media and Communications to influence the news agenda during the last three months, both proactively Officer. Catrin is a Welsh speaker and will be managing and maintaining and reactively,and you can view our latest media report here. media relations across all platforms, ensuring we have a positive and proactive approach to PR and good relationships with journalists. She will also be Coverage included a BBC Wales interview with Stuart Ropke on the reputation developing and implementing innovative communication and PR campaigns of social housing tenants, a feature by Georgina Shackell Green in ‘Click on to raise the profile of CHC and the sector. Wales’ – IWA’s magazine on the importance of collaboration, and updates in the Western Mail, Inside Housing, WHQ and 24 Housing on the Affordable To catch up on all staffing changes at CHC, please click here for a who’s who Housing Review progress. We also achieved national coverage for our document with full staff contact details and their key areas of expertise. Universal Credit ‘five asks’ campaign in collaboration with National Housing Federation, the Scottish Federation of Housing Associations and the Northern Board Recruitment Irish Federation. The campaign called on the UK Government to urgently During the summer, we undertook a recruitment campaign to appoint a Chair change the flawed Universal Credit policy further. and additional Board Members to complement our existing board of eight. A Nominations Committee, chaired independently, received nine applications for We are continuing to work with our PR Strategic Delivery Group and the HR four vacant positions (one of which was the Chair’s role). Interviews were held Strategic Delivery Group on the development of some exciting campaigns, with six candidates and a report was prepared and presented to Board for their including changing perceptions of tenants in social housing and recruitment final decision. Members will be asked to approve any new appointments at its into the sector. More information will be shared soon. AGM being held on 15th November at Holland House.
Remember we have regular content going out on our blog . If you’d like to contribute, please let us know. We’re always looking for interesting stories to write about!
Marketing & Communications Manager Director of Resources and Organisational Development Rebecca Goodhand Phillipa Knowles [email protected] [email protected] 029 2067 4804 029 2067 4813 | 07876 240198 @RebeccaG_CHC @philchcymru Themes: Themes:
Member Satisfaction Offer to Boards
Survey Good governance is fundamental to the success of Housing Associations in Wales. A big thank you to those who took part in our recent membership satisfaction survey conducted by David Hedges of Cyngor Da. We had a fantastic response Our members are best placed to achieve their ambitions if they have effective and are encouraged by the findings with good satisfaction levels among our governance structures in place and as a sector, we owe it to those we serve members. to ensure we do. Housing Associations in Wales attract skilled, passionate people, who make their communities better and drive their businesses Overall, the findings are positive but there are a number of clear areas where we forward. The businesses they serve are complex and the pressure on boards can, and will, improve on. We haven’t carried out a survey like this since 2011 has never been greater. and, in those seven years, the organisation has seen many changes and the findings certainly reflect this. We have been speaking to board members to identify the key support that is needed to do their job more effectively and our new offer to board members Your feedback is invaluable and we’ll use it to inform our next Corporate Plan is a result of these conversations. Our offer outlines what board members for 2019-22. can expect for their membership and also supports the recommendations in The Welsh Government’s ‘The Right Stuff: Improving Housing Association The full findings can be viewed here. Governance in Wales’.
You can view our Offer to Board Members here.
Assistant Director of Communications and Member Services Assistant Director of Communications and Member Services Edwina O’Hart Edwina O’Hart edwina-o’[email protected] edwina-o’[email protected] 029 2067 4808 | 07791 898497 029 2067 4808 | 07791 898497 @EdwinaOHart @EdwinaOHart Themes: Until next Corporate plan: our future quarter. priorities; a consultation As you can see, it’s been a busy three months We are in the process of writing our corporate plan for 2019-22. Part of the for the team at CHC. process included discussions with members on the themes of skills, leadership and technology. We are grateful to members who attended these focus groups. We had a total of 95 people from 28 member and 6 commercial member 2019 will see the launch of our new three year organisations attend. Discussions from the groups can be found on Yammer Corporate Plan which we are looking forward and we’ll be using these to inform the priorities in the next Corporate Plan. to sharing with you all. We will continue to
The consultation will run throughout the month of October and there will be keep you updated on the progress we are a number of opportunities to have your say including online and face to face. making on your behalf every quarter. We will be running 3 events in Swansea on the 15th, Newport on the 16th and You can expect our next report in December Gwynedd on the 18th October and have planned a webinar on October 23rd. 2018. Keep an eye on your emails for further information about how to book. In the meantime, if you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact the relevant member of staff at CHC. Get in touch.
Assistant Director of Communications and Member Services Edwina O’Hart edwina-o’[email protected] 029 2067 4808 | 07791 898497 @EdwinaOHart