New Year Honour for Northern Housing Consortium’s Chief Executive

Jo Boaden, Chief Executive of the Northern Housing Consortium (NHC) and Chair of Your Homes Newcastle, has been awarded a CBE in Her Majesty the Queen’s New Years’ Honours 2018. The award was made in recognition of services to housing providers in the North during a long career in housing.

“I was very surprised but I am incredibly proud and honoured to receive this award” said Jo. “I think it underlines the significance of housing and the increasingly influential role of the Northern Housing Consortium.”

Jo became Chief Executive of the NHC in 2010, following a number of senior roles across the North, and recently took up the position of Chair of Your Homes Newcastle.

Tom Miskell, Chair of the NHC, commented, “We are delighted that Jo has been awarded a CBE, reflecting her passion for, and commitment to, improving the lives of people in the North through housing. This award is a great achievement and we are proud of her and the recognition that this gives to housing issues.”

NHC responds to HCA’s Value for Money Consultation

In September the Homes and Communities Agency published a consultation on a revised Value for Money (VfM) Standard. The consultation proposed to revise the VfM Standard and publish a new associated Code of Practice to help registered providers understand how compliance with the new Standard might be achieved.

The proposed Standard aims to move the focus of the regulatory approach away from the primarily narrative self-assessment to more outcome-based reporting from registered providers on targets, including a suite of metrics to be defined, from time to time, by the regulator.

In response to the consultation, and in order to gather the views of its members, the NHC arranged and facilitated three meetings around the North East, North West and Yorkshire and Humber regions. The key points in discussions held at those meetings have informed a response to the consultation.

We look forward to the publication of the final standard. The NHC will reconvene groups of members following the issue of the standard to discuss implementation, timescales and any other regulatory issues.

The NHC response to the consultation which includes member’s views of how the VfM Standard and the associated Code of Practice are developed and implemented can be accessed here.

Closure of the gateway to new Universal Credit live service claims

The 2017 Autumn Statement announced that the Universal Credit live service will cease to take new claims from 1st January 2018. This is part of the transition to a full digital service and continues the Government’s focus on work, independence and reducing reliance on welfare.

The Department for Work and Pensions has published a bulletin filled with important information for claimants and local authorities. You can read it in full below or download it here.


ISSN 2054-2844 (Online)

HB U4/2017

14 December 2017

Closure of the gateway to new Universal Credit live service claims

  1. The 2017 Autumn Statement announced that Universal Credit live service will cease to take new claims from 1 January 2018. This change supports the smooth transition to a full digital service and continues the focus on work, independence and reducing reliance on welfare. It is not value for taxpayers’ money to continue to invest in a system that is due to be closed and replaced by the Universal Credit full service.
  2. Existing Universal Credit live service claimants will continue unaffected and we will maintain the existing caseload. This includes:
  • transition to Full Service, where a site is transitioning from live service to full service
  • changes of address. This will be classed as a change in circumstances within Universal Credit
  • partner joining an existing Universal Credit claim. This will be classed as a change in circumstances
  • partnership separation. This will be classed as a change in circumstances and both claimants will remain on Universal Credit (if still appropriate)
  • where a claimant has been working and their earnings have exceeded the maximum amount, their entitlement will be reduced to nil due to their earnings. Their claim will stay open for up to 6 months within the six month re-award period.
  1. Someone making a claim in a Universal Credit live service area after the 31 December 2017 will be directed to claim one of the following benefits:
  • Employment and Support Allowance
  • Jobseeker’s Allowance
  • Income Support; and/or
  • Housing Benefit (HB) as appropriate to their circumstances. HB can be taken as part of the data gather for the above benefits through the benefit systems. Where this is not appropriate the claimant needs to be signposted to their local authority (LA) to make a claim
  • Child Tax Credits and/or Working Tax Credits with HM Revenue & Customs.
  1. LAs will need to ask the claimants about any previous Universal Credit claims and see if the claimants are within the 6 month re-award period. There are a number of ways that the LA can find this information:
  • speaking to the claimant
  • checking the Customer Information System to see if the Universal Credit claim is still in payment
  • Universal Credit termination notification for Local Council Tax Reduction
  • a copy of the termination notification that the claimant receives.
  1. Where a claimant terminates their Universal Credit live service claim by choice they will be able to make a new claim to HB straight away. Claimants in full service areas will not be allowed to terminate their claim and make a claim for HB.
  2. There will be no backdating of the UC claim.  If the claimant makes a claim from 1 January 2018 but needs to have their claim looked at from an earlier date then this will have to be requested from the LA as part of the HB claim.
  3. LAs will be able to recover any HB overpayments from the new HB claim. These will not be referred through the Payment Deduction Project system and will revert to business as usual processes.
  4. Universal Credit full service will continue to accept new claims and is not impacted by the change.
  5. The Universal Credit Live Service L&D pack is being updated and will be available via Glasscubes and DWP Partnership Managers from 15 December 2017.

What LAs need to do before 31 December 2017

  1. All LAs within Universal Credit live service areas will need to open their gateway to HB claims and ensure that their websites and leaflets, etc., are up to date and available as from 1 January 2018 to allow HB claims to be made. All staff will need to be aware of the change to avoid signposting the claimant back to Universal Credit.
  2. We will be communicating information regarding new burdens funding to LAs once the live service closure changes have been finalised and we have made the necessary evaluation.
  3. Provided below is some questions and answers (Q&A) to support all staff to respond to queries from claimants regarding the closure of Universal Credit live service claimant new claims gateway from 1 January 2018.

Q&A

Q1. Why is Universal Credit closing the live service gateway for new claims?

A1. By the time Universal Credit is fully rolled out, Universal Credit full service will have replaced Universal Credit live service in every Jobcentre/local authority area. It would not represent value for money for taxpayers to continue to invest in a system that is due to be closed and replaced by Universal Credit full service.

This will not affect anyone already in receipt of Universal Credit in a live service postcode area.

 

Q2. Does this change apply to all Universal Credit claims?

A2. No, if you live in a Universal Credit full service postcode area you will still be able to make a new claim to Universal Credit full service unless you are a family with 3 or more children. Then you may make a claim to one of the following:

  • Employment and Support Allowance
  • Jobseeker’s Allowance
  • Income Support; and/or
  • Housing Benefit (HB)
  • Child Tax Credits and/or Working Tax Credits with HM Revenue & Customs.

 

Q3. I have been onto the GOV.UK website and it says I cannot claim Universal Credit in my area, why is this?

A3. Universal Credit live service in your postcode area is no longer taking new claims until the full service is rolled out. Details of when the Universal Credit full service will be rolled out in your area can be found on www.gov.uk

If you have not made a Universal Credit live service claim with us before then you may make a claim to one of the following:

  • Employment and Support Allowance
  • Jobseeker’s Allowance
  • Income Support; and/or
  • Housing Benefit
  • Child Tax Credits and/or Working Tax Credits with HM Revenue & Customs.

Claimants already in receipt of Universal Credit will remain on Universal Credit providing other circumstances relating to their claim are unchanged.

Claimants will remain on Universal Credit live service if they are within the 6 month re-award period on Universal Credit live service. In these circumstances claimants will be able to report a change of circumstances which may result in entitlement to a revised Universal Credit live service award.

 

Q4. I have just separated from my partner can I continue to claim Universal Credit?

A4. When you report your separation from your partner your joint claim will end.  However, you will both remain on Universal Credit (if still appropriate).

 

Q5. I think I should be entitled to Universal Credit from a date prior to 1 January 2018 and want to ask for my claim to be backdated.

A5. If you have not claimed Universal Credit in a live service area prior to 1 January 2018 you will need to claim one of the following and request backdating:

  • Employment and Support Allowance
  • Jobseeker’s Allowance
  • Income Support; and/or
  • Housing Benefit.

 

Q6. If I want to claim Universal Credit how can I appeal your decision?

A6. You cannot appeal against the decision not to accept a new Universal Credit claim in a live service area as from 1 January 2018. This is because of changes in the law for Universal Credit as a result of government policy.

Guestblog: IamYiam – If your body is a temple, how can you worship it every day? 

IamYiam

IamYiam is a health platform that creates personalised health and fitness activities and nutrition plans based on science, genetics and history. The company has written the following piece as an introduction to NHC members.


If your body is a temple, how can you worship it every day? 

It’s a good question, and one that probably enters our thoughts at various moments throughout our lives, especially at times when we are feeling run down or have an illness that interferes, or worse, inhibits our normal everyday lifestyle.

How we see our bodies is an interesting topic. Most of us desire to look good, some like to feel good too and others see our bodies as something to be respected; worshipped almost. Ultimately it is a matter of choice. Then there are those who see themselves from a different perspective. Those that seem to expect our bodies to be this robust, throw-anything-at-it machine, that will continue forever at peak performance, regardless of what nourishment we give it or what maintenance we provide. Our temples absorb this wear and tear and abuse, until they start to show signs of breakage. Only then we cry out for help.

This appreciation of our bodies, or more accurately general lack of appreciation, highlights a huge challenge in the way we think about our own health and the lifestyles we lead.

There is no doubt that currently we live in society that has a challenged curative healthcare system that costs us globally $8 trillion, with preventable diseases now making up for 75% ($6.1 trillion) of the global healthcare costs. This see’s the UK healthcare and wellbeing market with costs as high as £180bn with the UK’s NHS already overstretched.

One translation of these statistics could reflect that, as individuals, our approach to health seems to be that we choose to either hope for the best or ‘put it off till later’. We more or less act as if we are happy to treat our bodies to a life of disregard, and in turn ignore the inevitable health problems that will contribute to the trillions of pounds required to fix our bodies in the future.

Let’s imagine this challenge in another way. You are gearing up to set off on a lifelong voyage, similar to one’s lifelong health journey you might say.

First, you choose your destination, and then look to your mode of transport, your vehicle, your body in health terms. Interestingly, not all of us can have the body of a strong powerful 4×4, with some of us born to be more of a fast, streamlined sports car.

Next, as an intelligent individual that cares for our other passengers, likely you would prepare your chosen mode of transport for this adventure, safely checking it had enough fuel, understanding the correct tyre-pressure, glad you had recently undertaken the engine and brake service, all now maintained with refreshed engine oil, and maybe even a shiny body polish. Full of pride and confidence you press the start button, and purr into life.

Now imagine how enjoyable this journey would be as you smoothly travel to your destination, your body performing perfectly; capable of handling the twists and turns of the road ahead. And maybe one day becoming a timeless classic.

The alternative…jump into your car, your fingers crossed while you try to remember the last time you ever had your car serviced, wondering if the tyres have enough air or even tread for the road ahead. Your engine struggles into life, spluttering and coughing, as you limp off down the track, not looking forward to the journey and unsure as to whether you and you passengers will ever make it safely to your destination.

It seems therefore, that as we decide on our health journey we do have a choice, and that the challenge of caring for our bodies is not just a matter of simply sticking our heads in the sand. What else could be the cause for such alarming industry numbers?

The good news is that recent data shows us that personalised preventative health is the growth industry of the next decade, with consumers looking for factual guidance and better support in helping them to stay fit, healthy and happy in the long term. The choice of direction we take is changing from that of waiting to be fixed when things go wrong, to choosing a lifestyle that adds to the quality of one’s health and helps prevent the illness and poor performance of the past.

This choice however means consumers need trusted information on health and wellbeing and finding this information can be difficult, with the core questions of what will work for me and where do I start often forming the initial challenge.

It seems this new attitude to healthier bodies could help in the business world in other ways too.

In the UK, research shows that employees who suffer poor health, or have a lack of focus on wellbeing or display low social engagement have a direct impact on business, not just in lost productivity, but in generating a £29 billion annual bill for sickness absence. Yet despite the clear cost of getting it wrong, less than one in ten UK businesses adopt an approach to wellbeing that is linked to their business objectives. Most businesses know it pays to invest in the wellbeing of their people, but don’t know where to start.

This seems to reflect a more operational challenge, which is to provide employers immediate access to proven programs, providing meaningful performance focused results for their staff. Workplaces are ultimately where people, for better or worse, spend much of the working day, and combined with the need from business for better tracking and evaluation, the improvement in employees’ wellbeing to drive business performance is a clear route to growth.

Moving forward, we live in a world of information, connection and innovation, yet with too much choice and confusion. With so many heath conditions preventable and lifestyle-related, we anticipate consumers more engaged than ever in their healthcare, fitness and wellness future.

Whether it’s about helping employers in supporting employees manage their everyday health, through bespoke nutrition and fitness plans, or ensuring individuals are able to take control of their own health goals and receive clear advice. Or being able to track your progress through smart online assistants, whatever the solution, fortunately there are companies such as iamYiam that see this challenge and are there to help guide you on the path to wellness and improvement, with performance based results.

Deciding on your health journey, your destination and how you get there, is still a matter of choice, reflecting how you see yourself today and more importantly, tomorrow. Perhaps the real question should be “is your temple seen as a relic from the past, or to be enjoyed into the future as a timeless classic”?

The choice is yours.

www.iamyiam.com


For further information, please contact Alan Gordon, Chief Marketing Officer, iamYiam alan.gordon@iamyiam.com

7th Annual National Tenant Panels Conference round-up

tenant advisor

 

 

 

 

In November 2017, the Northern Housing Consortium (NHC) welcomed more than 100 delegates to our 7th Annual National Tenant Panels Conference Focusing on the voice of our customers — Innovation, efficiency and effectiveness in partnership with Yvonne Davies at Tenant Advisor. The event was chaired by Tom Miskell, Chair of the NHC and Pendleton Together. Among lots of discussion and debate we heard speakers discussing a range of themes including:  scrutiny, health and safety, tenant voice, digital engagement, strategy and youth aspiration.

Delegates were involved in an interactive session focusing on Health and Safety matters asking the questions:

  1. How can you help your landlord to make tenants feel safe(r)?
  2. How can you support your landlord to communicate expectations of tenants on safety?
  3. What information do you need from your landlord about safety in your home/estate/neighbourhood?
  4. What are your top tips on sharing your concerns, ideas and solutions with your landlord?

Various themes emerged from this session. Delegates discussed taking more of a strategic approach to tenant engagement by having closer links with Fire and Safety Officers and being involved in risk assessments. There was a focus on observation, including knowing how to report hazards and providing training for resident representatives. Delegates suggested landlords provide communication in formats which are easier to digest, utilising digital channels and participating in more campaigns such as gas safety. Concerns were raised about hoarding and how to identify and help people involved. There was also a real focus on tailoring actions around where people live and the issues present in their community.

The event closed with a session titled Health and Safety Matters — Supporting Tenant Assurance where speakers from Liverpool Mutual Homes, Northwards and the Centre for Public Scrutiny shared their experiences and answered questions from the floor.

For further information on what was discussed in the interactive sessions you can see the notes on the Tenant Advisor website.

A Christmas message from the Chief Executive

As 2017 draws to a close, I am sure we can all agree this has been a very turbulent year for the housing sector; a year with many positives including more recognition of the importance of housing, but with the awful tragedy of Grenfell never far from our thoughts.

We saw the Government focus on housing in last month’s Budget, including high profile measures designed to help fix the broken housing market and to stimulate the building of more homes across England.

The NHC shares the Government’s ambition to create a housing market that works for everyone. To help achieve this, during the year we have made progress on the recommendations made by last year’s Report of the Commission for Housing in the North. We want to make a real and lasting difference and our evidence underlines the importance of improving the quality of existing homes and places, alongside the need for new supply in place-based strategies.

The Commission report continues to guide our work and crucially, regeneration is back on the agenda. We will now be working on how we gain traction for regeneration within a framework that suits the needs and resources for the North in the current environment.

We want to raise the profile and importance of regeneration activity in a positive way – too often the term is used as a shorthand for unsuccessful market intervention. We have found this picture does not reflect the reality of what is happening on the ground in the North. We need to reclaim the term ‘regeneration’ to reflect the positive impact it can have on people and places across our regions. 

We know that when done well, in the right places and with the engagement of the local community, housing-led regeneration delivers substantial benefits. It increases the scope for new development on brownfield land and widens housing choices and economic opportunity. In the next year, we will be talking to politicians, decision makers at local and regional level and other key influencers to take forward this message. 

I am looking forward to building on this work in 2018 and working to ensure we can be in the best place to support you, our members, in achieving your aspirations. The Consortium exists solely for its members and, whatever the year ahead holds in store, we will be working hard to support you in every way.

In the coming year we hope to provide more opportunities to support you with innovative products and services, to remain a valuable asset to the housing sector and for a strong Northern voice to be heard by politicians and other key stakeholders.

On behalf of everyone at the NHC I wish you a very Happy Christmas and best wishes for 2018.

 

Jo Boaden
Chief Executive

 

Tackling and Preventing Homelessness: The Role of the Housing Sector

 

 

 

 

We welcomed close to 70 delegates to Leeds for Tackling and Preventing Homelessness: The Role of the Housing Sector, delivered in partnership with Locata. With a mix of local authorities and housing providers in attendance and a great range of speakers, this event proved to be informative and insightful with lots of debate and discussion.

We opened with a welcome from Chair, Mike Wright, Strategic Lead for Homelessness at Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) who set the scene. He was followed by Anna Whalen from the DCLG on the Homelessness Reduction Act (HRACT). From her session it was clear that the HRACT (due to be implemented in April 2018) is a big game changer. Highlighting the importance of sharing innovation, she said the DCLG want an open dialogue with the sector. Key themes emerged including a greater emphasis on early intervention and prevention, partnership working, rapid intervention to ensure that a homelessness crisis is brief and doesn’t occur again and support for more people to get out of homelessness and into permanent accommodation.

 “We need to move from being investigators to facilitators” she said.

Homelessness DCLG

(The focus of Government on homelessness: £1 billion by 2020 to achieve these aims)

Next we heard from Chris Hancock, Head of Housing at Crisis who talked us through the history of crisis, the existing homelessness legislation and the steps taken to get to where we are now with the new HRACT. Speaking with passion he shared the opportunities and challenges for the sector. Taking us through the implications of the new ‘duty to refer’, he asked the questions:

“Where is your homelessness frontline?” “Where are your transition points?”

“Where does your local housing association sit with their allocations policies”

Chris also shared: Turned away – a report to examine the quality of help available to single homeless people. The report highlighted some alarming statistics and experiences from their ‘mystery shoppers’ on the homelessness frontline:

  • 50 out of 87 LA visits across England were given no support.
  • Gatekeeping at 29 visits prevented mystery shoppers from having an interview with a Housing Advisor.
  • Interviews with Housing Advisors for non-priority need mystery shoppers were often brief – and characterised by a lack of privacy and empathy.
  • The opportunity to make a homelessness application was mentioned in just eight visits, and in only three were people notified about the outcome of their application.

He touched on some outstanding problems around people with complex needs, issues within the code and training and support requirements for LA’s. The session also looked at how non-LA agencies will take forward their ‘duty to refer’. To finish Chris highlighted the learnings from the Liverpool City Region Housing First Feasibility study.

“We will not get it right first time.” Mike Wright

We were delighted to hear from our chair, Mike Wright, who talked about the impact the HRACT will have on the sector and in particular, the impact to the North. He also took us through the approach Manchester (GMCA) has taken and provided insight into how LA’s can start preparing.

“Is the Homelessness Reduction act a game changer? It is if you apply the act in the spirit and not the letter.”

Delegates were advised to look at their lettings and allocations policies separately. “The first year will be very much a learning curve” Mike suggested “we will not get it right first time.” He emphasised the need to start mapping and profiling demand and to start understanding housing markets. From a Northern perspective he suggested we need to be dealing with demand issues, asylum placements and more detailed interventions — an increased burden for some. Another key point was around the importance of the relationship between LAs and Registered Providers (RPs) suggesting we need to work with  RP’s for the Housing First approach and the ‘duty to refer’. He finished by emphasising the need to embed homelessness prevention across all teams and partners. This was a nice introduction into our professional practice sessions which followed the morning break.

Our Professional Practice Sessions are an opportunity for delegates to hear from other colleagues about best practice and challenges facing the sector. Delegates could choose between youth homelessness and the Accommodation Intensive Mentoring Support (AIMS) project, which shared the positive outcomes to date in tenancy sustainment and employment. We also heard from our supporter – Locata, jointly with Derbyshire Dales DC who shared their experience of implementing the new system and how this has worked for them and their residents. Finally, Threshold, part of New Charter Housing Group talked through their Housing First initiatives. The Housing First approach is based on the principles of housing as a right not a privilege, and to provide a stable, independent home and intensive personalised support to individuals.

The Professional Practice Sessions after lunch included Newcastle City Council’s approach to Housing First and the partnership approach between Thirteen Housing Group and Middlesbrough City Council in tackling and preventing homelessness. Gateshead Council also shared their approach to Health and Needs Assessment and the impact of homelessness.

“We need to address our culture of blame.” Fay Selvan

In a people focussed session, Fay Selvan, Chief Executive at the Big Life Group suggested “we’re having the same conversations over and over again, we know what the issues are but we’re not doing enough to address these”.

“What choices are we making around our homelessness population” she asked, “design your scheme at the coal face”. She went on to provide an insight into The Harvey Project, providing 24-hour harm reduction supported accommodation to drug and alcohol users based in North Liverpool.

From practical approaches to youth homelessness earlier in the day we went on to hear from DCLG’s Steve McKinlay from the Homelessness Advice and Support Team. Here he went through the Positive Pathway approach among other initiatives tackling youth homelessness including:

  • youth homelessness advisers – free resource to support and advise local authorities on developing local ‘pathways’ for young people.
  • Fair Chance Fund – Social Impact Bond pilot focussing on young people most at risk of long term poor life outcomes.
  • National Youth Reference Group – young people with lived experience of homelessness as the experts.

To close the day we heard from Ward Hadaway’s John Murray who provided a legal update summarising the changes with the new HRACT and emphasising the further duties to intervene at earlier stages to prevent homelessness. John also provided an overview of the latest homelessness decisions and Appeal Court reviews of allocation schemes.

Satty Rai, Member Engagement Manager at the NHC said:

“We could see that homelessness and preparation for the HRACT was important for our members coming out of our earlier engagement activity. We felt it was vital to bring together a mix of experts in homelessness policy alongside the practical experiences of LAs and RPs working together on a range of initiatives — one of which includes the Housing first approach. We were delighted with the level of discussion and contributions from the sector. This is clearly an area we want to continue engaging with our members and sharing good practice.”

Following the conference the NHC responded to the consultation on the Homelessness Code of Guidance. You can see our response here.

In terms of next steps the NHC are organising a member roundtable alongside Crisis – Improving Access to Social Housing for Single Homeless People, looking at single homeless people and the role of the sector in addressing a lack of access to social housing. We are also looking to run a homelessness working group which will bring members together to share learning, experiences and best practice and different approaches. Look out for another Homelessness conference next year too.

Universal Credit report highlights difficulties for landlords and tenants

A report released today warns of the difficulties social landlords are still facing from the roll-out of Universal Credit (UC).

In light of recent changes to UC in the Autumn Budget, the Northern Housing Consortium (NHC) today launched its report, Impact of Universal Credit – The Frontline Perspective, which summarises the results of a year-long study of UC, highlighting the experiences of 85 of its member organisations and their tenants across the North.

Key concerns that have emerged include the following:

  • 95% of participants reported that their tenants were having difficulty in meeting housing costs. The NHC welcomed the extension of Housing Benefit announced recently which will have a significant positive impact on the level of arrears.
  • There is a significant impact on landlords, with 92% reporting their staff were spending more time supporting people through the UC process than the Housing Benefit process. One participant reported an increase of 90% in calls from customers.
  • Communication problems between participants (and their tenants) and the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) – 89% of responding members experienced this.

Of particular concern was the impact UC is having on tenants. Reported evictions due to rent arrears in UC cases increased from 18% to 27% during the roll-out and by the end of the study all respondents reported they were aware of food bank use – something that a number of other studies have found.

More than half of the participants were aware of an increase in tenant health issues. These included stress and anxiety, depression, and suffering from the effects of cold and damp after being unable to heat their homes, particularly during the wait for the first payment. The announcement of the recent one-week reduction in the waiting time for first payment was positive, but the waiting time for claimants is still significant.

Jo Boaden, Chief Executive, NHC said: “The impact of UC on social landlords and their tenants is deeply concerning. The new system poses real challenges around rent collection and puts severe pressure on landlord resources in already challenging times. Worryingly, the situation could get worse for tenants as some face additional hardship over the Christmas period. Whilst we support the principle of simplifying the benefits system, there is clearly still work to be done to ensure it runs smoothly.  Many of the messages on UC from the Autumn Budget were encouraging, and we urge the Government to continue to listen to housing providers in the sector, who offer security and support to many of society’s most vulnerable people. The NHC and our members have worked closely with the DWP throughout the process and will continue to do this over the coming months.”

You can download the report here and an infographic of statistics here.


Key contacts

Claire Henderson, Communications Manager, Northern Housing Consortium, Claire.henderson@northern-consortium.org.uk  01915661032

David Hetherington, Marketing Officer, Northern Housing Consortium, david.hetherington@northern-consortium.org.uk 0191 5661038

 

Protecting consumers in the letting agent market: call for evidence

On 1st  October 2017, the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, announced proposals to address the imbalance of power in the private rented market by regulating letting and managing agents.

A call for evidence sought views on a new regulatory model and how best to protect and empower tenants and leaseholders.

The Northern Housing Consortium has responded to the Call for Evidence and you can read the response in full here.

The NHC has welcomed an approach to a more professional managing agent market and believe that, if framed correctly, there are benefits for property management agents as well as for tenants and leaseholders. We believe that regulation creates a level playing field, and will help responsible agents to not be undermined by a minority of agents with poor practice and will help improve the reputation of all.

The Government will bring forward detailed proposals early next year, following analysis of the evidence submitted.

Protecting Consumers in the Letting and Managing Agent Market: Call for Evidence

On 1st  October 2017, the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, announced proposals to address the imbalance of power in the private rented market by regulating letting and managing agents.

A call for evidence sought views on a new regulatory model and how best to protect and empower tenants and leaseholders.

The Northern Housing Consortium has responded to the Call for Evidence and you can read the response in full here.

The NHC has welcomed an approach to a more professional managing agent market and believe that, if framed correctly, there are benefits for property management agents as well as for tenants and leaseholders. We believe that regulation creates a level playing field, and will help responsible agents to not be undermined by a minority of agents with poor practice and will help improve the reputation of all.

The Government will bring forward detailed proposals early next year, following analysis of the evidence submitted.