Transcript Slide 1

Thriving communities, affordable homes
Homes & Communities Agency
and Planning
Trevor Beattie
Director Strategy Policy Performance Research
National Planning Forum 16th March
Thriving communities, affordable homes
Our Vision
To create opportunity:
 For people to live in
homes they can afford
in places they want to
live
 For local authorities and
communities to deliver
the ambition they have
for their own areas
A national agency that works locally
Thriving communities, affordable homes
Our Tasks
 Support the delivery of new homes
 Secure the delivery of affordable homes
 Accelerate regeneration of under-performing towns and
cities
 Improve the quality of existing stock and transform
deprived neighbourhoods
 Ensure delivery is economically, socially and
environmentally sustainable with good design
Homes and Communities
Thriving communities, affordable homes
National Affordable
Housing Programme,
Property
£8.4
billion and
Regeneration
£1.7bn
HCA Funding –
Significant
Investment
Decent
Homes
£2.6bn
National
Affordable
Housing
Programme
£8.4bn
Total Funding
£17.3 billion
(2008-11)
HMR Funding,
£1.0 billion
Gypsies and Travellers £0.1bn
Hostels, £0.1 billion
PFI (credits),
£1.9 billion
Thames Gateway £0.4bn
Gypsies and Travellers
Thriving communities, affordable
homes
£0.1
billion
Growth funding £1.1bn
The New World
 New organisation with increased flexibility
 New challenges– both short and long term
 New partnerships
 New approaches:
– New business process (the single
conversation)
– New business products (the HCA toolkit)
 New relationship with Government – the
voice of delivery
Thriving communities, affordable homes
How the Single Conversation looks
Thriving communities, affordable homes
Housing market downturn:
Direct impact on the economy
 Construction sector: approx 6% GDP
 New build housing: approx 1% of GDP in 2007
 Housing starts fell by 37% last year
 Housing completions fell by 19% last year
Construction
 40% increase in insolvencies during 2008
(almost 8 firms per day by Q4)
 52% of Federation of Master Builder members
reported job cuts in Q42008 and over half
expect cuts next year
 … but small increase in construction purchasing
activity in January
Thriving communities, affordable homes
The downturn:
Impact on regeneration
Stalled projects
 Impact on town and city
centres
 Impact on communities
Does our old model for
regeneration still work?
 Falling demand across
housing, retail, office
 Significant upfront costs
Thriving communities, affordable homes
New models?
 Public sector infrastructure
 Multiple developers
Responding to the Market Downturn:
Not losing sight of the our priorities
 The downturn hits places at very
different stages in their
regeneration journey
 It is essential to hold on to the long
term vision
 Realism and adaptability in the
short term is essential, but the
commitment to quality must not be
lost
 Where development cannot be
progressed, there is good
preparatory work to be done
 The HCA will provide active
support and constructive challenge
Thriving communities, affordable homes
Responding to the Market
Downturn: What has Already
Been Agreed
 £1.2bn brought forward to invest in housing
and regeneration
 Introduction of Clearing House Scheme
 Homebuy Direct
 Mortgage rescue
 Work with RDAs on priority regeneration
projects
 Tailored programmes for individual housing
associations
Thriving communities, affordable homes
Responding to the Market
Downturn: What the Agency is
exploring
 The potential for local
authorities to come forward
with their own development
packages
 The funding of infrastructure
and upfront costs on an equity
basis
 Changing the mix of tenures
 The case for land purchase
 The potential to access new
sources of finance
Thriving communities, affordable homes
The Role of Spatial Planning
 A central element of single conversation
 Refocus from programme to comprehensive
place making
 Developing shared visions at all spatial levels
 Informing, supporting and influencing local
strategies and delivery
 Enabling all to deliver their ambitions
Thriving communities, affordable homes
Quality Places
 Building on a strong inheritance
 Good design and sustainable
development are indivisible
 High core standards and monitoring
across all HCA activities
 Address the ongoing management
of projects
 Promote market improvements and
exemplar initiatives
 Encourage innovation and efficiency
 Build capacity both internally and
externally
 Work in partnership with other
national, regional and local agencies
 Embedded in to new delivery tools
Thriving communities, affordable homes
ATLAS
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Advisory Team for Large Applications
Funded by CLG
Hosted and delivered by HCA
Free service provided to Local Authorities,
…. but for the benefit of all project partners
 Impartial & independent
Mission Statement
“To secure the timely delivery of high quality
sustainable development through effective
planning processes, collaborative working
and the promotion of good practice”
Thriving communities, affordable homes
ATLAS Key Objectives
 Help unblock the issues holding up major
applications
 Improve quality of outcomes;
 Act as a partner to local authorities and
independent reviewer of major applications and
issues
 Increase the knowledge and expertise within local
authorities; and
 Disseminate best practice
Thriving communities, affordable homes
Spatial Planning
Quality Places
Locally
Distinctive
Infrastructure
Sustainable
Communities
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Development Management
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Proactive not reactive
End to End Process
Enabling Delivery
Collaborative Approach
Focus on Quality Outcomes
ie A Great Place
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Conclusion
 HCA is a new agency, with new
approaches and new methods of
working
 First objective is to deliver
existing commitments
 Increasingly will offer increased
flexibility
 The single conversation will be
our most important business
process
 The key goal is to make a
difference on the ground
 We are responding to the
downturn
 We are preparing for the new
world
Thriving communities, affordable homes
Thriving communities, affordable homes