Beyond simple transactions – why relationships are important in housing
Chris Brockwell, Head of Member Services (South) Housing is a complex sector. It operates within an ever changing regulatory environment, has a wide and diverse range of stakeholders and needs to deliver safe, affordable and healthy homes in a changing world. Governments have numerous changing policies as part of their agendas and manifestos, so the sector is often subject to change when government’s change. Building relationships based on trust and a deep understanding of the sector are important to deliver against these persistent challenges. Homes are long lived assets. They provide for current and future generations; they are expected to last decades. This must shape the thinking of people working within and supporting the sector. Given these timescales, optimal solutions should not just be about simple transactions based solely on price; rather, it is about contributing to an activity that has a long lasting and profound effect on so many. Why? Well homes are central to health, well-being and the stability of our communities. As a regulated sector, landlords are required to demonstrate long term planning to allow them to be compliant operators and an attractive investment, with lenders looking for long term plans. They want to understand that their investments are viable and that their capital will be repaid. Long term planning should deliver optimal procurement solutions and value for money. Homes need to be designed and need to adapt to the changing climate we are living with. Addressing the question of decarbonisation needs a long-term view. The solutions employed to adapt or mitigate homes are still emerging. Cost effective asset management requires a long term vision, and it needs people to buy collectively into that vision – both from within the organisation responsible for delivery, and those who support the organisation from the outside. Within housing we want to avoid the same challenges coming back time and time again. We want to move from a cycle of short term fixes to long term solutions that benefit landlord and resident alike. Therefore, the supply chain that supports housing and the professional services that advises them needs to understand the long term nature of the sector and structure themselves and their propositions accordingly. Partnership working requires a real emphasis on relationships. It goes beyond the price of a single transaction into how the support provided can help deliver the long term vision. An aspect of good relationship management is understanding the dynamics of geographical markets. The challenges that we face in the South will be different to those of the North and in Wales and Scotland. It is why local knowledge and local delivery is important. It can connect like minded organisations that can benefit from location, overcome geographical challenges and create economies of scale to deliver bigger impact. Why good housing is important Good housing should contribute to healthier living. If our homes are healthier in design, construction and operation, it will have a positive effect on the health of the residents, which in turn can reduce demand on NHS services. A good standard of housing helps to build stronger communities, allowing people to live within safer and more connected neighbourhoods. This place based approach leads into how we build and create the more sustainable homes we need, ones that operate with lower emissions improving the air quality and lived experience of these communities. Housing provides economic opportunity. The government has a well publicised ambition to build 1.5 million homes over the lifetime of this current parliament (2029). This needs labour, skills and investment. The more houses we build and the more we retrofit then the more jobs are created and the bigger the contribution housing can make to economic growth.
Here at CHIC, we are a membership organisation. We exist to help our members plan investment wisely and to deliver good value procurement. The expertise within CHIC and our members allows us to address the challenges that housing faces together. This long term vision of good quality homes is something that binds us. Therefore, to us it makes sense to build strategic relationships that are rooted in true partnership working. Strategic procurement is about making purchasing decisions that support the long term health and objectives of an organisation, deliver value for money, and generate positive outcomes for residents and communities.
Long term contracts help to drive consistency, quality and innovation across services as well as to enable investment in skills and jobs. The challenges across housing are not going to change quickly. The need to deliver consistently for residents and communities’ remains. Working in partnership, with shared outcomes, helps to lighten that load.
Chris Brockwell | cbrockwell@chicltd.co.uk
