CHIC CHAT

HOMES UK

There is still space left to exhibit in the CHIC Community

22-23 November 2023, ExCel London

We are looking forward to welcoming our members, partners and other exhibitors to the CHIC Community at this year’s HOMES UK event. We already have some great supply chain partners showcasing their services and products and there is still time to book your space.

Our Exhibitors

The community

We have upgraded our pavilion to allow for optimal engagement, keeping the space open and to encourage a steady flow of visitors. This year we have two different space options, providing flexibility as to the marketing assets you can bring along with you. You will also be provided with a table and chairs.

One of our primary goals this year is to encourage more personal connections and engagement with delegates. In our pavilion meeting area we will be setting up a cafe, offering complimentary coffee and refreshments. As with last year, we expect this to attract constant visitors, providing you with valuable networking opportunities.

What you get

 2m x 2m Exhibition Space with minimal setup

 Listed as a CHIC Partner

 Pre and post event promotion

 To utilise our Cafe area with free refreshments for exhibitors and delegates

 Profile on the HOMES UK site

 Profile in the digital event guide, free to all attending the event

 10 exhibitor passes

 Unlimited free guest invites for your clients and key stakeholders to the event

TAKE A LOOK AT THE FLOOR PLAN

Spaces are limited and we operate on a first come, first served basis. This opportunity is exclusively available to CHIC supply chain partner organisations, so be sure to act swiftly to secure your space.

If you have any questions or require further information, please contact Curtis Coulson at marketing@chicltd.co.uk.

Optimised Retrofit Wales

Back in March, CHIC hosted a roundtable event to bring together social landlords and supply chain partners, to consider how we can create effective delivery of the ORP in Wales. We wanted to ensure that our partners have the right tools and solutions in place, with added social value.

The event was held on 23rd March 2023 at the Village Hotel in Cardiff and attended by 42 stakeholders. Updates on progress so far were provided by Chris Jofeh (Chair of Independent Implementation Group on the Decarbonisation of Existing Homes) and on behalf of Welsh Government. These provided an overview of the background to ORP, progress to date and the next steps for the sector.

The event was very successful and there was a definite enthusiasm to repeat the event, recognising the value of meeting, learning and sharing. Read the feedback paper

Join us on 15th November for Part 2

CHIC will be hosting the second roundtable in the series on 15th November 2023 in Cardiff.

We aim to extend invitations both to returning participants from the initial event and to new members and supply chain partners in Wales. We will host discussions on further progress and how this aligns with Welsh Government expectations. We hope to hear from sector experts, seeking their valuable insights into the Optimised Retrofit Programme.

Feedback has been carefully considered and we are currently developing the agenda for the event. Key discussion points will encompass the progress in programme delivery, significant challenges encountered by social landlords, an exploration of ORP 3 Y2 and a deeper focus on conducting surveys and harnessing data.

If you would like to register your place, please click the link below. We are also providing the opportunity for early registering delegates to influence the agenda, so please let us know your thoughts.

Please note you don’t need to have attended the first roundtable to join us in November. All CHIC members are welcome to attend for free.

If you have any questions, please email Jackie Leonard, Head of Member Services (Wales) at jleonard@chicltd.co.uk

If you would like to become one of our corporate sponsors for the event, please email Curtis Coulson, Marketing Manager at ccoulson@chicltd.co.uk

Searchflow

CHIC Members save up to 37% on the cost of conveyancing searches and gain greater portfolio visibility with intelligent data insights and analysis.SearchFlow’s Conveyancing Search Framework benefits all CHIC Members by reducing the disbursement fees for conveyancing searches by up to 37%.

The Conveyancing Framework enables CHIC members and their legal teams to access all elements of conveyancing search data with enhanced PII cover of up to £20m and backed up by SearchFlow’s multi award winning customer service.

CHIC members can benefit from these cost savings by either accessing SearchFlow’s services directly or by instructing one of the law firms on the CHIC Legal Framework.

Why partner with SearchFlow?SearchFlow informs and empowers social housing providers when it comes to:• Portfolio visibility• New build targets• Decarbonisation• Retrofit• Net zero and climate change• EPC Data and environmental risk analysis

Working with SearchFlow gives you access to a wealth of geospatial data to effectively manage your assets and streamline the way you work. SearchFlow enables their customers to understand and analyse risk across your entire property portfolios with summarised and granular data at your fingertips.

As part of Landmark Information Group, SearchFlow has access to an extensive wealth of data that is used across the property industry, every day, by developers, property lawyers, environmental consultants, estate agents, surveyors, architects and planners to help with confident decision making and property transactions.

Take a look at how our Geodata Team improved the management and insight of Wakefield District Housing’s portfolio here.

Meet The TeamThe SearchFlow Team will be exhibiting at the CHIC Conference and Exhibition on 24th May at Telford International Centre. We will be on Stand 8 so please feel free to come and have a chat with us.

Contact usIf you’d like any further information, or to speak with one of our team, you can contact us on 0800 977 8818 or email our team.

CHIP Roundtable

Help shape CHIP’s objectives as it progresses into its second year at this ‘one year on’ roundtable event.

Taking place on Wednesday 4th October 2023 at Aico in Oswestry.

We are welcoming CHIC members, contractors and suppliers to come and join us to review the impact we are starting to have in delivering CHIC and CHIP’s Social Value Strategy.

Join us for our second roundtable event where we will share our first social value annual report and look at what more we can do as a consortium. There will be three guest speakers joining us from St Basils, Bell Group and Aico to share their individual social value journey, to help inform our discussions.

Agenda

09.30 – 10.00 | Arrivals and Coffee

10.00 – 10.30 | CHIP’s Progress

10.30 – 11.00 | Guest Speakers

11.00 – 11.10 | Roundtable Discussions – Briefing

11.10 – 11.30 | Coffee Break

11.30 – 12.20 | Roundtable Discussions

12.30 – 12.50 | Feedback from Discussions

12.50 – 13.00 | Conclusions

13.00 – 14.00 | Lunch and Networking

14.00 | Event close

4 Oct | 09.30 - 14.00 | Aico, Oswestry, SY10 8NR

This event reviews progress since our inaugural social value roundtable event, launching CHIP in September 2022.

Communities and Housing Investment in People (CHIP) is a charity funded by CHIC to work with Local Employment Groups to support people distant from the workplace into employment and to support CHIC’s members communities through grants and other social value initiatives.

FIND OUT MORE

Healthy Homes

Revolutionising the Housing Sector: Healthy Homes Framework

Sustainability and energy efficiency are at the forefront of societal and organisational agendas. With a large proportion of carbon emissions coming from housing, innovative approaches are necessary to transform the way we retrofit and refurbish our homes.

The CHIC Healthy Homes Framework

Designed to tackle energy inefficiency and improve overall living conditions, this framework is key for social housing landlords to ensure that their retrofitting and property safety works are sustainable, cost effective and socially responsible.

This comprehensive framework encompasses a wide range of solutions aimed at enhancing residential properties and the lives of tenants. It will allow landlords to deliver retrofit energy efficiency solutions and property safety refurbishment works, providing access to a range of CHIC supply chain partners to deliver various retrofit and building safety solutions such as:

Consultancy Services: Expert consultancy services, providing advice on the most effective energy efficiency measures and safety enhancements.

Fabric First Measures: Promoting "fabric first" solutions, which focus on enhancing the building's thermal performance through insulation, airtightness and efficient windows and doors.

Ventilation Systems: Proper ventilation is essential for maintaining indoor air quality and preventing issues like damp and mould. The framework will include options for advanced ventilation systems that help ensure a healthy living environment.

Renewable Energy and Heat Systems: To reduce carbon emissions and reliance on fossil fuels, the framework will provide access to renewable energy solutions like solar panels and heat pumps.

Whole House Refurbishment: For those looking to comprehensively upgrade their homes, the framework will offer whole house refurbishment options. This involves a holistic approach to renovation, addressing structural, energy efficiency and safety improvements.

Damp and Mould Treatments: A significant issue within the affordable housing sector, this framework gives you access to approved suppliers that can ensure your homes are healthy and safe, both for the present and future.

Digital Measuring Tools and Platforms: To assess the effectiveness of installed measures, the framework will allow you to leverage digital tools and platforms. These technologies enable homeowners to monitor energy usage, indoor air quality and other vital parameters, allowing for data driven decision making.

This framework will be released to market at the end of this month.

Luke Hurd, Chief Operating Officer said “This new framework is highly sought after by our members, therefore we have taken great steps to ensure that it is all encompassing and meets our members requirements. We look forward to its release and are confident that this will help create a more sustainable future, improving the lives of many UK residents”

To register your interest in becoming an approved supplier or to find out more please get in touch at tenders@chicltd.co.uk

Newbuild BLOG

CHIC’s Newbuild Framework

In this Blog CHIC’s Head of Development, Sarah Davey, explains why the newbuild framework that CHIC is currently procuring is going to be a game changer and why our members should consider using it.

It is important to understand our journey so far.

The scale of CHIC’s programme is growing and we wanted to procure a new framework for our members which doesn’t just deliver a compliant route to market via traditional or modern methods of construction, but one that also provides a range of MMC options. We also want to provide a solution for larger regeneration schemes, which might include retrofit and housing for sale elements, creating cross subsidy.

CHIC already offers a choice of Dynamic Purchasing Systems (DPS) and long term contract options for its members as a compliant route to market. Our previous newbuild framework has expired and we wanted to replace it with something that meets all our members needs.

CHIC held a series of roundtable discussions with members, consultants and contractors to identify what exactly these organisations need from a framework.

A summary of what our stakeholders told us is set out below:

> A longer term framework to enable the direct and competitive award of work – newbuild development takes years and a usual four year framework doesn’t give time for a team to learn together and take this learning into follow on projects

> MMC options and support – a lot of members want to explore MMC but don’t fully understand what it entails. They wanted options for full turnkey and supply only MMC solutions – and fully modular and frame and panel

> Consultancy services – the framework should provide consultancy services used for newbuild (with MMC and BIM expertise)

> A solution for larger, more complex regeneration projects, mixing newbuild with other property investment works and where cross subsidy from housing for sale is needed

> To include options to use a range of standard contracts – avoid “reinventing the wheel”

> BIM – an essential for most newbuild schemes, to focus thinking on construction quality and ease of future maintenance

> Standard KPI’s – these are to be relevant and necessary rather than impractical and antiquated

> Collaborative – to have a chance to share information to learn from mistakes and incorporate successes in future developments

> Social value – to be accounted for and delivered in every development scheme

From these findings, CHIC set out to procure a new framework that incorporated these aspirations.

The framework is divided into three Lots with national coverage. These Lots are:

Lot 1 – Consultancy Services

Lot 2 – Contractors and Manufacturers

Lot 3 – Development and Regeneration

The Lots are then divided into workstreams (WS) which are:

Lot 1 Consultancy

WS 1 – Project Management Services

WS 2 – Architectural Services

WS 3 – Structural and Civil Engineering Services

WS 4 – Principal Designer Services

Lot 2 Contractor

WS 1 – Traditional & Main Contractor for MMC

WS 2 – Fully Modular – supply only

WS 3 – Frame and Panel supply only

WS 4 – Contractor/Manufacturer Turnkey

Lot 3 Regeneration

WS 1 – Development & Regeneration

So, the above summarises how the newbuild framework is structured and how it will work, but why is it a game changer?

There are several reasons we think.

Firstly members can access via mini tender or direct award and the coverage is national by region. It will offer solutions for both development and regeneration schemes of all types and sizes and it is the first newbuild framework that CHIC has procured that incorporates the Government's recommendations for Constructing the Gold Standard. It has an eight year duration and adopts a framework alliance contract (FAC-1) which offers a range of call off contract options.

It is intended that a Framework Core Group will be established that will share learning and promote standardisation and collaboration. All appointments from the framework will be arranged and managed by CHIC through our e-sourcing portal.

The framework is currently in the procurement process stage and it will be formally launched in early 2024.

For more information on any of the above please contact:

Sarah Davey

Head of Development

sdavey@chicltd.co.uk | 07748 375181

Constructing Excellence

Led by chief executive Andrew Carpenter, Constructing Excellence Midlands is a progressive membership organisation committed to improving business performance in the construction industry by driving innovation and best practice across the Midlands. It is a cross-sector, cross-supply chain, member-led organisation operating for the betterment of the industry and its stakeholders - encouraging professionals to drive change and improvements. Members to CE Midlands have access to a range of knowledge-sharing and best practice events and forums, as well as local clubs and four theme groups - which champion thought leadership discussions across future skills, smart construction, climate crisis and building safety. The organisation also publishes best practice guides on a diverse number of topics, from procurement to mediation. Members have access to training, technical support and opportunities to promote projects where business objectives have demonstrably benefitted from the application of best practice methods and innovative construction technology. For CHIC members in other geographical regions there are other CE regional groups available – for details click here https://constructingexcellence.org.uk/regions/. For younger professionals in construction, CE Midlands runs the incredibly successful G4C Midlands group. G4C provides a dedicated forum and series of events for young professionals to come together to share knowledge, experience and opinions to collectively broaden their understanding of the construction landscape and develop their network. CE Midlands also offers a Diploma in Collaboration in Construction, in which course tutors from leading construction firms across the Midlands deliver experience-led educational insights on topics including the Value Toolkit, designing for the environment and collaborative forms of contract. The CE Midlands Awards celebrates best practice across the Midlands built environment. Tickets are available for the West Midlands awards dinner, taking place on 1 June at Edgbaston Cricket Ground in Birmingham. There is still time to enter the East Midlands Awards, with entries open until 5 May and the awards dinner taking place on 29 June at the Crowne Plaza hotel in Nottingham. Entries are welcomed from developers, clients, contractors, specialist and sub-contractors, engineers, of all disciplines, members of the design team and other consultants.

News from the Supply Chain

Performance without compromise: Methven’s commitment to water conservation and decarbonisation

In line with consistent increases in energy bills and the fact that 22% of the country’s carbon emissions come from our homes – including heating, lighting, and appliances, conserving energy where possible, is a major concern for tenants and homeowners across the UK. Water heating contributes to 14.5% of energy consumption in EU households.

Heated water usage attributed to the bathroom tap, bath, shower, and kitchen tap accounts for 99 litres per day, while shower usage accounts for 60 litres of water per day. Based on this, the average amount of carbon emissions produced from heating water is 441.18 kgs, with 264.7kgs coming from the shower.

At Methven, their focus on performance without compromise means they are committed to delivering premium shower solutions that conserve water without sacrificing quality.

They constantly strive to innovate with water efficient products and educate their customers on how they can save water.

Their efforts are reflected across their product range and the variety of tools offered to support individuals and businesses to understand how they can reduce their water consumption.

Methven believe a simple way tenants and homeowners can reduce their water consumption is to replace their existing shower handset. Switching to a Methven shower head could reduce household carbon emissions by 3.5% to 5.5%, a small but significant change which, when paired with other energy saving methods in the home, is effective in reducing energy bills and a household’s total emissions.

The key with the switch is to ensure the new handset is optimised for water saving – as Methven hold three of six worldwide patents for showering technology, this is where their water saving experience comes into its own.

Methven is a proud owner of the patented Satinjet® technology, which uses unique twin-jet technology to create optimum water droplet size and pressure, with over 300,000 droplets per second while helping the user to effortlessly save on water and money.

This powerful technology is built into some of their most popular handsets, including Kiri which is offered as an 8 litre per minute version, or you can opt for the Kiri Low Flow, which is optimised at 5.5 litres per minute to save water without any loss of performance.

Their aim to assist tenants and homeowners in water conservation is further illustrated by the recent introduction of the handy Water Savings Calculator. This tool, easily accessed online, provides an energy usage and cost calculation based on a households total consumption, as well as how both can be reduced.

This is a useful tool for looking at different ways to reduce household consumption and bills.

Further to their commitment to the planet and preserving its resources, Methven have dedicated themselves to offsetting the carbon output of their operations. As a result of this dedication, they have recently achieved THG Eco Carbon Neutral status.

This means they have offset their Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions for the financial year of 2022, by working with THG Eco to support the installation of wind turbines in India, while 101 trees have been planted in their name through the THG ‘more:trees’ programme.

As decarbonisation remains an ongoing challenge for the country, Methven are pleased to be taking strides to reduce carbon emissions and look forward to continuing to minimise their impact on the planet as the journey towards Net zero continues.

To find out more, visit their website: https://uk.methven.com/

James Roberts, Regional Specification and Social Housing Manager

james.roberts@uk.methven.com | 07968 531612

CHIC Out and About

CHIC is excited to have been invited to support three events this month:

Ventro – Roundtable Event
D: Thursday 21st September
L: Ibis Birmingham New Street -James Watt Suite, 21 Ladywell Walk, Birmingham, B5 4ST

Sharing industry knowledge and networking with like-minded individuals.
To be attended by Stephen Sharman, Director of Member Services and Mike Harris, Partnerships Manager

Register Here

Harmony Fire - Fire Door Safety Week Event
D: Thursday 28th September
L: Kraft Dalston Bar & Restaurant, 130a Kingsland High Street, Dalston, London, E8 2QL

A space for social housing leaders in the London area to exchange ideas, forge valuable connections and learn more about the importance of fire doors and compliance in fire safety.
To be attended by Stephen Sharman, Director of Member Services and Mike Harris, Partnerships Manager

Register Here

Constructionline – Meet the Buyer
D: Thursday 28th September
L: Hampden park, Glasgow, G42 9BA

An opportunity to meet the construction industry’s biggest buyers face-to-face.
To be attended by Giles Newman, Head of Merchant Services

Register Here

CHIC CHAT

HOMES UK

Optimised Retrofit Wales

Sponsored Steps

Searchflow

CHIP Roundtable

Healthy Homes

Newbuild BLOG

Constructing Excellence

News from the Supply Chain

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