Wales & West Housing Business Plan 2015 to 2019

The Business Plan 2015 to 2019

Wales & West Housing 3 Alexandra Gate, Ffordd Pengam, Tremorfa, Cardi CF24 2UD. and Unit 2, Acorn Business Park, Aber Road, Flint CH6 5YN. Telephone on 0800 052 2526 Email: contactus@wwha.co.uk Website: www.wwha.co.uk @wwha wwhahomesforwales

Published September 2014

Wales & West Housing | The Business Plan 2015 to 2019 | 1

Our vision is: “to achieve strong sustainable growth to make a difference to people’s lives, homes and communities.”

Just as acorns grow into mighty oak trees, when we started in 1965 our plan was to provide housing that local people could afford. From this ‘acorn’ of an idea, we now own and manage over 9,500 homes across Wales.

Our business plan has the same theme as the one we had in 1965.

We now have a few more themes, in fact six altogether. Six ways in which we will continue to grow sustainably to make a difference to people’s lives, homes and communities.

More – homes for people to rent and buy Invest – making our housing warm and affordable to live in Grow – generating real opportunities for work for residents Technology – staff and residents making the most of new technology Care – becoming an excellent care and support provider Lives – supporting residents to make the best of their tenancies

1 – The Mayor of Wrexham, Councillor David Bithell, visiting our new Hightown development on Kingsmills Road 2 – Children in Barracksfield, Wrexham, tending their raised beds 3 – Residents at Nant y Môr take great pleasure in their open spaces 4 – Chris Ruane MP officially opens the new communal garden at Buxton Court in Rhyl, Denbighshire 5 - Carl Sargeant AM, former Minister for Housing and Regeneration, visiting Llys Jasmine, Flintshire’s state-of-the-art extra care / dementia care development 6 - Tharniya Sivakumar, Mia Coates and Sujan Sivakumar at the Festival of Nations at Hightown Community Resource Centre, Wrexham

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From our small beginnings…

“From our small beginnings in Cardiff, like an acorn we have grown. In my time on the Board of Wales & West Housing I have watched this organisation flourish and expand. Like the mighty oak, its strength comes from being well rooted in local communities and an organisation on which people can depend. Our plan is about the many ways we will make a difference to the lives of our residents. At Wales & West Housing we do what we say we will do. We care about what we do and that’s why we achieve the results we do.”

Kathy Smart, WWH Chair L-R: Huw Lewis, Assembly Member for Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney, Kathy Smart, WWH Chair, resident Pauline Protheroe in her new home at Vulcan Court in Merthyr Tydfil, and, Councillor Brendan Toomey, leader of Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council

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Confident about the future…

Doing the right thing has become a mantra for us and this plan for the next five years outlines what we will do to make sure we carry on making a difference to as many people as we can.

Our ambition is for everyone to have a home they can be proud of, in a place they want to live.

A home is so much more than just bricks and mortar – a home is where we feel safe, secure and part of a community. It is where we belong, a place from which we can grow and mature. Quite simply a home is the foundation from which we all build our lives.

We are a social business that listens to our residents so we can deliver what matters to them. We are a responsible business that does the right thing in how we treat our residents, our staff and our partners. Our strength comes from being a ‘social’ and ‘responsible’ business.

We are confident about the future and want that to be shared by our residents. The actions in this plan will help achieve that.

Anne, Shayne, Steve and Tony If you would like to discuss any aspect of this plan please give us a ring on 02920 415335 or email us at business.plan@wwha.co.uk

L-R: Shayne Hembrow, Deputy Chief Executive/Commercial Director, Anne Hinchey, Chief Executive, Steve Porter, Operations Director, and Tony Wilson, Finance Director.

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6 Our

themes

Carl Sargeant AM, former Minister for Housing and Regeneration oďŹƒcially opens our award winning new Extra Care/Dementia Care development, Llys Jasmine, in Mold, Flintshire

More Invest Grow Technology Care Lives

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MORE

We want to continue to build as many new homes as we can afford. By making ourselves more efficient and getting better value for money we have been able to invest £54m in new housing in the past 3 years.

Our plan over the next five years is to build more than 1,000 new affordable homes. These include: -

870 new high quality affordable family homes

-

38 state of the art specialist properties for vulnerable people so they can live better, fuller and more independent lives

-

92 well designed apartments for older people to own or to rent

-

100 homes for people who want to own their our home

We also plan to: -

Purchase the freehold of 400 units where we are the current leaseholder

-

Launch our pattern book of well designed, cost effective energy efficient homes to buy and rent

Symone Davies, her son, Ethan, and daughter, Ffion, looking forward to moving into their new home in Town Mill Road in Cowbridge, Vale of Glamorgan

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INVEST

We feel strongly that no-one should be unable to afford to heat their home and our plan is to do all we can to eliminate fuel poverty. We want to make our housing some of the warmest and most affordable to run in Wales. We will: -

Design bespoke retrofit energy efficiency packages for all our homes where we reasonably can

-

Further develop our investment plans to:

-

-

Create community gardens and vegetable plots

-

Remodel older housing to better meet residents needs

Sustain the Welsh Housing Quality Standard for all our homes

Resident Daisy Jones with her beautiful floral displays at Buxton Court in Rhyl, Denbighshire

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G.R.O.W.

‘Generating real opportunities for work’ for our residents through our own resources as well as through our network of partners is our fourth theme. We want our residents to make the best use of the skills and opportunities available to them. In the coming years we will: -

Make full use of Cambria Maintenance Services and Castell Ventures to generate employment and training opportunities, starting with Castell Catering

-

Work with residents to help them get the training they need either from WWH or partners

-

Use our social enterprise and employment team to offer tailored packages of support to help get people into work or volunteering

(Above) Cambria Maintenance Services fitting out the new premises of Cardiff Foodbank Flynn (left) is looking foward to flexing his green fingers in Ton Pentre Infants School, Rhondda, thanks to our donation of gardening equipment

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TECHNOLOGY Love it or hate it, technology is here to stay and will continue to transform the way we work and live. We love it and want everyone who works for us and lives in our homes to get the most from what is available. We have lots of plans and these include: -

Continuing to roll-out free WiFi to residents

-

Assessing the scope to expand telecare and other assistive technology services offered by Connect 24

-

Expanding the range of equipment and apps available for staff so they can do more for residents when out and about

-

Improving the skills of both staff and residents to make full use of the internet

-

Creating a network of digital champions to promote the benefits of being online to residents

(Above) Student Jacob Durbin and resident Anne Halliday get to grips with Facebook and Twitter at Oldwell Court retirement scheme, Cardiff (Right) Student Luke Moore helps resident Fred Austin find his way around the internet

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CARE

We are seeing an ever increasing demand from our residents and others in the community for help with care and support services. We want to expand both the range and scale of our services and therefore we will: -

Improve the skills of all of our staff to better support a wider range of vulnerable people

-

Improve access, signage and the design of all our stock to make them truly dementia, sight and disability friendly

-

Increase the number and range of supported housing schemes for people with complex needs

(Above) Resident Norma Thomas enjoys a gentle exercise class, while Jaclyn Bolton enjoys some pampering by hairdresser Denise at Nant y Môr Extra Care scheme in Prestatyn, Denbighshire (Left) Residents Idwal Roberts and Walter McCleod relaxing at Llys Jasmine Extra Care Scheme, Mold, Flintshire

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LIVES

Supporting our residents to make the best of their tenancy and enabling them to stay living in our properties for as long as they wish is really important to us. We know some of our residents need a little extra help to make their house their home. In the next few years we will: -

Continue to help residents earn more, budget better and stay out of debt

-

Explore other areas of support that people may need when they start their tenancy, such as accessing the best fuel taris, furniture and white goods for themselves.

(Above) Resident Viv Ellis enjoying lunch with Catering Manager Christine Wolstenholme at Llys Jasmine Extra Care scheme, Mold, Flintshire (right) Carl Sargeant AM, former Minister for Housing and Regeneration chats to residents Brian and Joyce Bibb about their renewable heating system in Howey, Powys

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How we run WWH

Where we operate

How we run the business has a big impact on our residents, our staff, the environment and our partners. Being socially responsible is very important to us and is, quite simply, the right thing to do.

General Needs

249 Re!rement

-

204

We will live our values and be fair, open, responsible, supportive and efficient

General Needs

We will use our operating principles to ensure residents are at the heart of what we do and our services deliver what matters to them

-

Conwy We will invest wisely, ethically and run our business to achieve the best value776 possible Denbighshire 233 for residents 394 Wrexham 800 We will try to minimise our impact on the environment

32

Total on site now

Flintshire

58

34

576

Supported

In development

24

49

Total Stock

In development

632 1

88

Home Ownership

9,623

Powys

12

In development

64

Re!rement

245

Re!rement

149

Home Ownership

2

471

65

Caerphilly

Cardiff

1,301

3,168 Vale of Glamorgan

312

Home Ownership

31

Swansea

Re!rement

Caerphilly

Home Ownership

423

Supported

26

In development

40

33

Re!rement

305

57

166

247

Re!rement

128

47

31

2,103

627

In development

Home Ownership

General Needs

Home Ownership

General Needs Home Ownership

106

In development

Vale of Glamorgan

988

General Needs

92

Cardiff General Needs

243

5

Rhondda Cynon Taf Bridgend

General Needs

General Needs

Supported

dfil r Ty rthy Me

64

Bridgend

23

Total Stock

Merthyr Tydfil

96

Home Ownership Re!rement

General Needs

Rhondda Cynon Taf

774

38

104

158

Home Ownership

Swansea

General Needs

General Needs

9,256

461

63

Supported

Re!rement Supported

19

Extra Care Wrexham

North Wales Housing Officer Cath Marland out and about visiting her residents

137

137

Denbighshire

In development

Re!rement

In development

Flintshire

71

Powys

1

Extra Care

Conwy

If you would like to find out more about how we run WWH, including details of our Board, please go to www.wwha.co.uk

821

606 Home Ownership

Home Ownership

36

In development

-

-

12

Re!rement

In delivering our six themes there are some principles which we hold dear

General Needs

58

Supported

Re!rement

682

Supported

33

Figures as at August 2014

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Financially strong Our financial strength enables us to do the right thing at the right time for our residents and our properties and absorb the knocks that Welfare Reform brings. We expect the continuation of healthy surpluses which we will reinvest in our existing housing stock, ensuring they meet the Welsh Housing Quality Standard at all times. We are also able to borrow for long periods at low interest rates and access grant funding, which we anticipate will enable us to grow our housing stock by a further 12% by 2019. Our total spend over the next five years of more than £300 million will also provide a substantial economic stimulus in the communities in which our residents live.

Lesley Griffiths AM officially opens Hightown Community Resource Centre along with Wales & West Housing Chief Executive Anne Hinchey, The Mayor Cllr David Bithell, Ian Lucas MP and pupils from Ysgol Bodhyfryd and St Giles Primary School

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24 | The Business Plan 2015 to 2019 | Wales & West Housing INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT for years ending 31 December 2015 £m Income 44.9 Operating costs (33.2) Operating surplus 11.7 Interest payable (6.0) Net surplus 5.7 BALANCE SHEET as at 31 December Gross property cost Housing grant Depreciation Net cost of property Borrowings Other net assets Net assets & reserves

2016 £m 48.0 (36.2) 11.8 (6.5) 5.3

2017 £m 50.3 (37.6) 12.7 (7.4) 5.3

2018 2019 £m £m 52.9 55.1 (39.1) (40.1) 13.8 15.0 (8.0) (8.9) 5.8 6.1

2015 2016 2017 2018 £m £m £m £m 529.1 549.0 571.7 602.5 (281.9) (285.8) (294.4) (303.8) (48.6) (54.8) (61.1) (68.0) 198.6 208.4 216.2 230.7 (162.6) (170.1) (172.2) (178.3) 20.3 23.4 22.9 20.3 56.3 61.7 66.9 72.7

2015 2019 £m 251.2 (186.2) 65.0 (36.8) 28.2

2019 £m 640.1 (314.2) (75.2) 250.7 (191.7) 19.9 78.9

CASHFLOWS for years ending 31 December Net cash flow from operations Net interest payments Replacement capital expenditure Replacement components Free cash inflow Development expenditure Grants Net cash outflow before financing Loan principal drawdown known facility - additional facility requirement Loan principal repayments Net increase/(decrease) in cash ASSUMPTIONS for years ending 31 December

2015 £m 17.6 (5.8) (3.5) (8.3) 0.0 (29.8) 6.1

2016 £m 18.4 (6.5) (0.6) (7.2) 4.1 (12.7) 4.4

2017 2018 2019 2015 £m £m £m 2019 £m 19.8 21.3 23.0 100.1 (7.4) (8.3) (9.0) (37.0) (0.6) (0.6) (0.7) (6.0) (6.0) (4.8) (6.8) (33.1) 5.8 7.6 6.5 24.0 (16.9) (25.9) (30.8) (116.1) 9.0 9.8 10.9 40.2

(23.7)

(4.2)

(2.1)

(8.5) (13.4)

(51.9)

5.0 20.0 (2.0) (0.7)

5.5 4.2 (2.2) 3.3

0.0 0.0 0.0 4.9 23.9 16.2 (2.8) (17.8) (2.8) 0.0 (2.4) 0.0

10.5 69.2 (27.6) 0.2

2015 Plan

2016 Plan

2017 Plan

2018 Plan

2019 Plan

3.50% 3.25% 3.50% 2.00%

3.50% 3.25% 3.50% 2.00%

3.50% 3.25% 3.50% 2.00%

3.50% 3.25% 3.50% 2.00%

3.00% 3.25% 3.50% 2.00%

New borrowings rate

4.82%

5.14%

5.54%

5.84%

6.04%

(Below) Our new development at Hightown, Wrexham

Grant rate

58%

(Right) Mark Drakeford, Minister for Health and Social Services at Llys Jasmine Extra Care scheme.

Housing completions

Gearing Ratio (net worth) Gearing Ratio (gross property cost)

48.1% 30.7%

49.0% 47.6% 31.0% 30.1%

47.4% 48.8% 29.6% 29.9%

Inflation Rent Salaries Maintenance costs CPI Funding

278

58% 183

58% 130

58% 160

58% 240