Accreditation newsletter May 2022
Hello and a very warm welcome to the relaunch of our accreditation newsletter, which will be released quarterly. Our aim is to do more to promote the work of our accredited organisations – and to share best practice more widely across the sector and between the disciplines. Each of our newsletters will feature a case study/example of the work of an accreditee – and we’ll be focusing on different themes and topics which you will hopefully find really interesting and helpful. We’re all eagerly awaiting more detail about the way in which the new inspection regime will work – but one of the benefits of the old system was the ability to access detailed reports about the way others work. We’re hoping the HQN accreditation newsletters will pre-empt these new reports, and help you all to prepare in advance for the new regulatory approach by sharing practical ideas, innovative projects and approaches, and just generally the experience of others (good and bad!). We operate schemes that assess a range of disciplines including: • Income management • Asset management, repairs and maintenance and gas • Lettings • Leasehold management This means the content won’t always reflect the topic you may be most interested in. But please, do keep reading. Because if there’s one thing we’ve realised over the years, it’s that there is always something new to learn (even if you might apply it in a slightly different way). We are lucky that we get to see some of the really good work that happens within accredited organisations – and it’s really nice to have the opportunity to start to share it. Gill Stead, HQN Accreditation Lead Recent client feedback “We’ve gone through the annual accreditation process for several years now. It’s a great chance to celebrate and get recognition for what you’re doing, and to pick up expert recommendations on how you can keep improving. The assessment day itself is relaxed and informal, and Tony Newman is always an absolute pro. Really important to get staff at all levels involved, and give them the freedom to express how they feel about the service – that’s how you get the best out of the process.” Tim Thwaites, Head of Income, Optivo
Accreditation newsletter – May 2022
Talking about Net Zero with Paul Butterworth, Executive Director of Assets at Wythenshawe Community Housing Group Q1: Does WCHG have a vision for achieving carbon neutrality by a certain date (2035/2040/2050?). Do you feel this is achievable/financially viable for WCHG? WCHG launched its new Corporate Plan in 2020 setting out a commitment to carbon reduction across operations and our stock. We have previously aligned with the Greater Manchester Housing providers pledge which supports Manchester City Council with their aim to be net zero by 2038. We fully recognise this is aspirational and we have purposely set ourselves challenging annual carbon reduction targets since 2019. We have been measuring and reporting carbon reduction each year which has helped us understand the scale of the transition and challenges that lie ahead. We also accept there are many unknowns about achieving net zero across our housing stock so whether we adopt 2038, 2040 or 2050, our key focus remains on strategy development and intervention actions that maximize impact from our limited resources. In terms of viability, we know the current costs of net zero for all our assets are well outside the capacity of our 30-year business plan.
We are therefore focusing our resources on strengthening our data, modelling our options, and developing priorities. The current unknowns on future funding and technology changes will no doubt reduce that gap in the coming years but rather than wait for this clarity, we have decided as a business to start developing and delivering what we can within the resources we currently have. This means making the ‘fabric first principle’ part of our routine activity.
Q2: Why is it important to WCHG to prioritise these environmental measures? WCHG has a purpose to deliver quality homes and to develop safe, healthier communities. This is not just a statement but guides our
decision making and resource allocation. We, like many in the sector, face considerable competing demands on our resources but the Board recognised that a healthier Wythenshawe community is a key priority for us. We have therefore started to develop and accelerate our commitment to act. Our initial aim is to ensure we commence with practical interventions as part of routine activity, for example, our void standard now includes minimum relet at SAP C which has raised the EPC bands on 200 homes during 2021 from Ds/Es to Cs. These are small steps but coupled with actions such as removal of gas cooker supplies, minimum 300mm loft insulation and a range of void standard thermal improvements, they will all contribute to tackling fuel poverty for customers and
Accreditation newsletter – May 2022
raising the performance of assets for future alternatives to gas. It’s important we make these improvements part of our routine activity rather than part of additional major
programmes that disrupt customers during their busy lives. Of course, this will be unavoidable in the coming years for many homes but we are taking opportunities wherever possible.
Q3: Has WCHG developed a clear strategy for getting all of its properties to EPC band C by 2030, or are they aiming for an earlier date? Do you have any advice for other HQN accredited organisations regarding planning for this? WCHG baked the costs of achieving SAP C into its Business Plan during the business planning process for 2020/21. We have a fully funded plan to achieve SAP C by 2028. This commitment is what has driven us to make improvements as part of our routine void and
repair work. Alongside these commitments, we have also enhanced specifications for planned works such as roof renewals and inclusion of thermal improvements. This will mean our challenge to raise the SAP of 3,000 homes will automatically reduce to 1,500. Between years 2023 and 2028 the 1,500 occupied homes will then receive targeted improvements. Again, some of these will be addressed under our net zero pilot projects, our SHDF wave 1 submission with Greater Manchester providers and perhaps in future waves of funding. We are also very aware that for a small number of homes, they may not suit further improvements and have a limited future life and interventions/ proposals for this small number of homes currently below SAP C will be developed during 2022. Most RPs are taking similar steps and developing these improvement programmes, particularly since the wave 1 bidding release and broader understanding of the need for accurate data and clear plans. Any RP yet to commence this planning journey should consider the three-pronged attack, ie embed into routine activity, adjust existing programmes and specifications to take opportunities, and finally develop a programme for occupied residual homes to receive targeted SAP improvement work.
Q4: Do you think that you have enough data to plan towards 2030? If no, what is your plan in order to gather this information? If yes, what are the financial implications of these requirements, and the impact on WHCG’s business plan? We have prioritised and strengthened data collection since 2019. We quickly realised that some of our data was quite old and in some cases, not fully complete as the sustainability agenda continues to develop. This was also the case for general property asset and component data as we desire robust reliable information when modelling such large programmes and intervention choices. It’s essential to have this detailed data in order to create programmes that maximise efficiency
Accreditation newsletter – May 2022
of plotting lifecycles to net zero refurbishment. We set ourselves a challenging target to ensure over 95% of our assets have a detailed data set that is less than five years old and we will achieve this by 2023. We will then retain this
robust data set through cyclical stock condition surveys. We have had to work with external partners to achieve this in such a short time period but supported the data review exercise with dedicated internal resources.
Q5: At present, what proportion of your housing stock is below EPC band C? Circa 25%. We decided to produce a visual display of our EPC data to aid communication with stakeholders. Our stock is mainly local authority transferred with an average age of 69 years old. The majority of Decent Homes modernization work was undertaken between 2000 and 2009. We have retrofit 8% of our stock with renewable energy sources but still have 10% of our stock with limited or older data and pending classification. Since 2019, data collection has been a key focus to ensure we can accurately model options and interventions, particularly
with our focus of maximizing impact from every £1 available.
Q6: Has WCHG applied for any of the funding that the government has made available to help local authorities or housing associations to meet the energy efficiency targets? If yes, how have you found the application process and were you successful? Do you have any advice for other organisations regarding applying for this funding? WCHG has a successful history of attracting external funding opportunities from gap funding, ECO funding, RHI, and recently under the Green Homes Grant LAD. We currently have an application under the SHDF Wave 1, targeting some of our poorest performing assets. These are 105 ‘hard to treat’ properties constituting solid wall and mansard roof construction. The total bid value is circa 1.2
Accreditation newsletter – May 2022
million with 2/3 being grant funded. We are awaiting the outcome of the application which was done collectively with GM providers coordinated by ForHousing. The collaboration with GM housing providers was invaluable for us. We were able to share the burden and jointly procure support expertise to develop the bid. The application process was certainly more onerous than previous funding regimes and confirms the need for robust data. It demonstrated to us the importance of recent data collection and confirmed the drive to achieve our 95% target of all homes having data no more than five years old. Some of our RP partners were not able to submit a bid through wave 1 due to their current data position so clear lesson learned for all of us in terms of the need for upfront investment and preparations. We intend to apply our learning to wave 2 and develop to support our pipeline plans for improving the housing stock across Wythenshawe for our customers.
Accreditation round-up Despite a couple of lockdowns, virtual working and much staff illness due to Covid, 2021 and early 2022 still saw a number of organisations achieving accreditation or being awarded reaccreditation for their services. Congratulations to: Homes in Sedgemoor
MIST and Lettings accreditation – January 2021
CHP
DLO reaccreditation – February 2021
Wythenshawe Works
DLO and Gas – March 2021
Stoke-on-Trent City Council
MIST accreditation – July 2021
Lancaster City Council
MIST reaccreditation – October 2021
Bolton at Home
MIST reaccreditation – November 2021
Tamworth Borough Council
MIST reaccreditation – December 2021
Blackpool Coastal Housing
Lettings reaccreditation – February 2022
Nottingham City Homes
MIST reaccreditation – February 2022
ACCRSEDIT: LETTING
ACCREDIT:
DLO / CONTRACTOR
…and hot off the press – congratulations to ForHousing who have just achieved HQN MIST accreditation for the first time – more news on that in the next issue.
An HQN Accreditation mark is a visible sign that your organisation not only meets or exceeds good practice standards but is also proud to offer a best-in-class service to its tenants and residents. HQN Accredit covers the following areas: • Repairs and • Leasehold Maintenance Management • DLO/ Contractor • Estate Management • MIST – Maximising • Lettings Income; Sustaining • Gas Tenancies To find out more... Email: anna.pattison@hqnetwork.co.uk
Visit: hqnetwork.co.uk/accreditation
Accreditation newsletter – May 2022
Tamworth has been awarded the HQN MIST (Maximising Income; Sustaining Tenancies) accreditation for the second time. Gill Stead, HQN Accreditation Lead, said: “The Panel was delighted to be able to accredit the income management service provided by Tamworth BC for a second time. Tamworth was able to demonstrate a great track record of performance (during such a challenging period), an appetite for customer scrutiny and increased involvement, strong partnership working, and a well balanced approach to support and enforcement.” Leanne Lea, Housing Manager (pictured) said: “As a team we are very proud to receive the accreditation and are looking forward to working collectively on the small number of recommendations to ensure services are continually improved. “To receive feedback that Tamworth and its income management service are considered wellled with a clear direction both corporately and operationally, and that the assessor is confident about the service’s shape and direction, is a real achievement. “The past two years have been exceptionally challenging but our dedicated and committed staff continued to provide enhanced, tailored support throughout the pandemic and this has been recognised. “This achievement, once again, is testament to the hard work and dedication of all staff involved and the team will continue to build on this and improve even further.” Lee Birch, Head of Neighbourhood Management, added: “Tamworth Borough Council are immensely proud to again receive this prestigious HQN income management accreditation. “The accreditation demonstrates Tamworth Borough Council’s ongoing commitment to delivering quality tenant focused services and honours the exceptional efforts of the Council’s income team and its very valued ‘Tenants Consultative Group’, particularly during these unprecedented times. “The accreditation also fully supports the Council with its plans for continuous improvement, which is more important than ever given the steep rise in the cost of living and the ongoing impact of the pandemic.”
Want to know more about our accreditation work? Email: anna.pattison@hqnetwork.co.uk Call: 01904 557150 Visit: hqnetwork.co.uk/accreditation
Accreditation newsletter – May 2022