Drive for affordable homes and improved rights for tenants steps up a gear

The drive to deliver much needed affordable homes and safeguard higher housing standards for eight million social housing tenants took a massive step forward today as the new Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) and Tenant Services Authority (TSA) were officially launched by Housing Minister Margaret Beckett.

From today the HCA will now be the single delivery body responsible for regenerating communities and delivering affordable homes. The TSA is now also the new watchdog for social tenants.

Top of the agenda for the two agencies will be taking forward the Government's plans to respond to current economic difficulties. The way land is purchased, investment obtained and unsold stock is converted into social housing are just some of the areas being looked at to ensure affordable homes continue to be delivered in these tough times.

Tenants' homes will be protected by the Tenant Services Authority (TSA) which will monitor the viability of Registered Social Landlords that find themselves financially exposed by the economic downturn. The agency is also meeting tenants face to face next year to find out the standards they expect of their homes.

Housing Minister Margaret Beckett said:

"The Home and Communities Agency will be crucial in delivering the new homes and regeneration projects we have pledged.

"It has a vital role to play in supporting communities and industry in the current economic climate, and will bring together land, money and skills to build more homes and regenerate communities into one single body for the first time.

"The Tenant Services Authority will give millions of social tenants more say in the provision of their housing, ensuring they get a fairer deal, and making sure action is taken to improve homes and estates."

The HCA will play a key role in maintaining the delivery of the affordable homes needed and ensure partners are in a position to make the most of new opportunities when an economic upturn comes.

To achieve this, the Government is exploring a number of options with both agencies to ensure delivery stays on track and tenants have greater security, including:

• exploring new types of land purchase. This would include the HCA taking greater stakes in both land and housing developments through equity investments, and joint ventures
• changing the housing mix of developments to include a greater proportion of rent to buy properties. Rent to buy allows people to rent a home at a subsidised rate before deciding whether to purchase the property
• converting unsold housing stock into social housing or rent to buy in return for House Associations continuing work on schemes that have been mothballed
• supporting vulnerable organisations exposed to current economic conditions to protect tenants' homes.

Homes and Communities Chief Executive Sir Bob Kerslake said:

"Now is the time to take strong, decisive action to maintain delivery in housing and regeneration. The creation of the HCA four months ahead of schedule enables us to hit the ground running in response to the challenges presented by the credit crunch.

"We have outlined our approach and enlisted the support of our public and private sector partners. Together we will explore flexible, tailored solutions that will keep the industry on track and bring benefits to people and places in the long term."

Tenant Services Authority Chief Executive Peter Marsh said:

"Housing matters - and access to good quality housing changes lives. The Tenant Services Authority exists to raise the standard of services for all tenants and prospective tenants of affordable housing across the country.

"During this time of economic turmoil, when demand for affordable housing is set to rise, it is even more important that existing tenants and prospective tenants have a modern, consumer-centred watchdog in place with their interests at its heart." 

The TSA will regulate social housing landlords, setting high standards of management for both housing association and local authority social homes.

Notes          

1. The HCA will have responsibility for regeneration programmes from English Partnerships and the provision of new affordable housing funded by social housing grant from the Housing Corporation. It will have operational responsibility for the delivery of major housing and regeneration projects such as the areas of major housing growth (such as Milton Keynes, Ashford and London Stansted Cambridge Peterborough), the Thames Gateway regeneration project, and taking forward the Delivery Plan outlined last November. The Government will retain responsibility for strategic and cross-Whitehall issues on these projects.

The Agency will also take on responsibility for the delivery of social sector decent homes (including Arms Length Management Organisations (ALMOs), Large Scale Voluntary Transfers (LSVT) and Housing Private Finance Initiative (PFI)); PFI for new supply; mixed communities; capital investment on homelessness, hostels and specialist supported housing; the National Land-Use Database of Previously Developed Land; and the Academy for Sustainable Communities.

2. The TSA will place tenants and their needs at the heart of regulation. It will have new, stronger and wider ranging enforcement powers to take action over poor performance.  The new body has all the existing intervention powers of the Housing Corporation, and new ones will be introduced - enforcement notices, monetary penalties and compensation, and the ability to replace social housing managers.

It will benefit high performing housing suppliers, having the authority to reduce red tape and regulation, giving them freedom to continue to improve and innovate. The regulator will be able to commission specific and risk-based inspections of social housing, and will publish performance information for the benefit of tenants.