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Assignment: Housing Settelment

The document outlines factors to consider when evaluating a housing design project. It lists 4 main themes: 1) Leadership and corporate working, 2) Service user focus and resident engagement, 3) Achieving effective and sustainable outcomes, and 4) People, performance, and resource management. Under each theme, it lists strengths and issues to consider for evaluating the design quality from factors such as decision making processes, understanding community needs, partnership working, performance management, and resource allocation.

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Anupam Sarkar
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73 views9 pages

Assignment: Housing Settelment

The document outlines factors to consider when evaluating a housing design project. It lists 4 main themes: 1) Leadership and corporate working, 2) Service user focus and resident engagement, 3) Achieving effective and sustainable outcomes, and 4) People, performance, and resource management. Under each theme, it lists strengths and issues to consider for evaluating the design quality from factors such as decision making processes, understanding community needs, partnership working, performance management, and resource allocation.

Uploaded by

Anupam Sarkar
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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assignment

Housing settelment
QUESTION You have been engaged as a peer
reviewer for a group housing design project.
Enlist all the factors and aspects (parameters)
that you will consider for evaluating the design
quality.

ANUPAM SARKAR
BARC/1022/07
SEM
The aspects I would consider are:

Theme 1 Leadership and Corporate Working


Develop a clear, shared vision for strategic housing through a
process that engages all stakeholders and secures their
commitment
Strengthen the leadership role of the council in local and sub-
regional partnerships to ensure that they are contributing to the
delivery of the council’s strategies
Take steps to reduce the number of call-ins by ensuring that all
members receive the appropriate information, have opportunities
to scrutinise and can take part in, and influence, the decision-
making processes
Ensure that improvements in service areas, such as Community
Housing, are driven by Strategic Housing and are consistent with
strategies
Re-establish the “frank discussions” between housing and
planning to agree joint/coordinated working and the
development of planning as part of the delivery function for
housing
Develop a robust, corporate approach to working with
Renaissance so that sufficient influence can be exerted to ensure
the council’s priorities are being met

Theme 2 Service User Focus and Resident Engagement


Further develop approaches to information and data sharing
with partners to enhance the council’s understanding of the
community
Improve understanding of all communities through the use of
approaches such as ‘Knowing your Communities’ self-assessments
Develop and implement further consultation and engagement
activities to ensure all stakeholders are involved from an early
stage of decision making
Identify opportunities to work with partners and use their
existing mechanisms to inform consult and engage residents
Adopt a more proactive approach to informing residents and
dealing with the media in order to counteract negative
perceptions and publicity
Ensure that service re-design and development, such as
Choice Based Lettings, are undertaken with a focus on service
users, and that changes are communicated effectively

Theme 3 Achieving Effective and Sustainable Outcomes


Ensure that the new Housing Strategy is fully aligned with the
findings of the
Strategic Housing Market Assessment (SHMA), the revised Housing
Needs Survey (HNS) and Government guidance before it is signed
off
Improve the council understands of the private sector through
working with partners and learning from best practice elsewhere.

Develop a more systematic approach to delivering new housing


that includes a longer term appraisal of opportunities
Ensure there is clear agreement on affordable housing targets
and the processes for delivering them across the council and
partner organisations
Use the SHMA, the HNS and work with the District Valuer to
support a more proactive, directive approach to dealings with
developers and RSLs in order to deliver affordable housing
Consider the use of a Supplementary Planning Document,
alongside the S106 strategy that is being developed, to assist in
the delivery of affordable housing
Develop the partnership with Renaissance in relation to the
delivery of affordable housing by sending clear, consistent
messages about what the council wants to achieve, establishing
closer working with Strategic Housing, and brokering links between
Renaissance and RSLs.
Encourage greater member engagement in partnerships,
including sub regional partnerships by, for example, providing
information, awareness raising activities and support
Improve partnership working with RSLs and private sector
landlords so that they have a better understanding of the
council’s strategy, their role in delivering it and how the council will
support them
Theme 4 People, Performance and resource Management
Develop a more strategic approach to performance
management by deploying resources where targets are not being
met, for example use
Savings secured through service improvements to finance
increased capacity to tackle the needs in affordable housing and
empty homes
Develop a clear, pipeline approach to S106 funding rather
than relying on a windfall approach
Identify and provide any required support to ensure South Essex
Homes is rated 2 star in the next inspection and associated
funding for Decent Homes is secured
Implement consistent project management and ensure there
are mechanisms in place to establish links between projects and
share learning from them.

The activities I would undertake are:


Review of the council’s documentation
One to one meetings with key elected members and officers
Focus groups with frontline staff and managers
Meetings with residents and tenants
Meetings with representatives of regional bodies
Meetings with local and sub-regional partners
Theme 1 Leadership and Corporate Working

Decision-making and scrutiny

Strengths
• Excellent examples of scrutiny working well
• Effective delegation of decision-making to the service
• Services are making great efforts to brief and support members

Issues to consider:
• Scheduling and managing meetings so that they can be more
effective
• The number of call-ins needs to be reduced
• Engage and inform others at an early stage in decision-making.

Corporate and strategic working

Strengths
• There is a lot more strategic thinking going on
• The “wider” management team meetings have been effective if
fostering corporate working
• Restructuring is leading to more integration within the service
• There is some closer working between Housing and Planning

Issues to consider;
• Members need to be aware of what is working well, so do others
• Think about how partnership can help deliver your strategies
Theme Two - Service User Focus and Resident Engagement

Understanding the community

Strengths
All the required demographic data is there
A housing needs survey has been undertaken and the SHMA is
due in May
South Essex Homes have a high level resident profile and have
carried out an aspiration survey

Issues to consider
The perceptions need to be dealt with
Learn more from your partners e.g. private sector landlords
Do you know all your communities equally well?

Service user focus

Strengths
The need to improve customer satisfaction overall, and with
services, has been recognised
Structures were designed to improve customer focus
More satisfaction surveys are being developed and
implemented

Issues to consider
Allocations could be more “user friendly”
Think about how changes are presented e.g. CBL
Avoid letting the pace of change prevent a focus on
customers
Theme Three - Achieving Effective and Sustainable Outcomes

Understanding the housing market

Strengths
The sub-regional SHMA is on schedule
The housing strategies being developed are comprehensive
Work to identify the regeneration needs of social housing is
underway

Issues to consider
The implications of housing market information need to be fully
understood
A systematic approach to delivering new housing is needed
A better understanding of the private sector, HMOs, empty
homes is needed

Partnership working
Strengths
There are some very good examples of partnership working
e.g. on domestic violence, homelessness and South Essex Homes
A housing sub-group is being set up in the LSP and will include
RSLs
The Landlords’ Forum is being re-established and is very much
welcomed

Issues to consider
There is potential for the council to take a greater leadership
role in partnerships e.g. LSP and the sub-region
Developing the partnership with Renaissance
More member engagement in partnerships and sub-regionally

Delivering strategic housing functions

Strengths
Housing and regeneration have risen up the political agenda
There is evidence of service improvements on the ground,
Funding is being secured and savings being made

Issues to consider
The focus has been on “quick wins” rather than a longer-term
appraisal of opportunities
Broader agreement on affordable housing targets is needed,
and how to achieve them
Need to learn from best practice elsewhere e.g. town centre
housing

Theme Four - People, Performance and Resource Management

Resource management

Strengths
External funding has been successfully levered in
Resources are being used in creative ways
Skilled and experienced staff are being recruited

Issues to consider
Using savings to finance capacity to tackle the needs in
affordable housing and empty homes
Is there any more you can do to ensure the ALMO is 2 star and
decent homes funding is secured?
Beware of staff burn-out

Performance management

Strengths
Performance has improved in a number of areas
A performance management framework is in place with
regular monitoring and reporting
A range of local indicators has been developed

Issues to consider
Not on target to achieve affordable housing numbers
Some indicators remain below the threshold
LAA targets will need to be monitored
Programme and project management

Strengths
A project management tool is in use and there are project
boards for larger projects
Improvement processes are project managed e.g. supporting
People

Issues to consider
ProMaf is not embedded corporately
Make sure projects are linked and learning from them is shared

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