Recent catch-up calls with Chief Executives of BMELL member organizations have highlighted several shared concerns and priorities across our social housing sector. Here’s a summary of the key issues raised:
- Regulatory Pressures: Many executives expressed concern about the increasing regulatory burden, particularly for smaller organisations. The volume and frequency of new regulations are stretching resources thin. John Delahunty from Innisfree suggested a priority for BMELL is to lobby against the amount of regulation for organisations with less than 1000 homes.
- Financial Constraints: Rising costs, especially in maintenance and repairs, are putting pressure on budgets. All organisations are facing challenges with funding for property improvements and meeting new standards. Bashir Uddin from Bangla HA specifically asked the collaboration group to explore ways to reconcile this challenge collectively?
- Staffing and Skills: Recruiting and retaining skilled staff is becoming prohibitively expensive, with management costs rising significantly. There’s a need for both internal and external skill development. Jonathan Gregory from IDS challenged the collaboration to explore how this area could be addressed more effectively?
- Asset Management: Bringing housing stock up to standard is a top priority. Damp and mould issues, along with general repairs and maintenance, are demanding increased attention and resources. Leslie Laniyan at Shian HA organised The BMELL asset management managers group to meet to look at collaborative solutions.
- Resident Engagement: Improving meaningful resident engagement is a focus area. Initiatives like scrutiny panels, estate visits, and innovative engagement methods are being explored. Chief Execs advocated using the best examples of tenant scrutiny/resident engagement across the collaboration and the BMELL Tenants Forum to improve our resident engagement? Shian HA, NLM, Karibu, Arhag HA have standout examples of work in this area.
- Consumer Standards: There’s a shift toward prioritising consumer standards, with emphasis on understanding tenant experiences and improving service delivery. Aziz Rahim from NLM gave feedback to say he has shaped his operational working model to focus consumer feedback in relation to response times, communication and performance.
- Collaboration Opportunities: Members are keen to share knowledge and resources in areas such as IT systems, procurement, and specialized services.
- Development Challenges: While some organisations are interested in development, current grant levels and financial constraints make this challenging for many. IDS, Karibu Community Homes and Gida Housing Co-op are members that have current development programmes.
