21/07/06       Media Contact: Naomi Evans 020 7393 2118  ref: 71/06

Supervision success stories highlighted in new Housing Corporation report

A new report highlighting the success of supervision by the Housing Corporation, has been published today (Friday 21 July).  With the best of intentions, is the third volume of the Housing Corporation’s Learning from problem cases series and has been written by James Tickell and Nigel Phethean.

Primarily aimed at housing associations, the report is based on careful analysis of files held by the Housing Corporation and illustrates supervision success stories - where Housing Corporation intervention has helped housing associations work more effectively.  The publication sets out 19 examples of how things went awry within each association, setting out a timeline and highlighting lessons learnt.

The report stresses:
• the effectiveness of regulation and the success of supervision;

• the Housing Corporation’s key regulatory objectives of protecting the public and private investment in the sector and the interests of tenants;

• that statutory appointees have been very successful in bringing about change in failing organisations;

• that the loss of independence that often follows supervision can actually bring positive benefits to the organisation and its tenants;

• that emphasis should be on how best to prevent problems in the first place, but problems can be resolved once they do occur;

• the Corporation can use a range of tools, including its investment role, to help achieve turn-around.

Jon Rouse, Chief Executive of the Housing Corporation, said,  “Each one of these cautionary tales is ultimately about failure of governance.  They show how easy it is for well-intentioned Boards to make errors of judgement, and then carry on compounding them, until Housing Corporation supervision becomes inevitable.  The lessons for Boards in a nutshell – focus on the fundamentals, always beware complacency, challenge poor performance and be ready to take tough decisions.

“However, whatever grumbles the sector may have about the burden of routine regulation, once supervision looms, as the report illustrates, the Corporation delivers.”

James Tickell said,  “These nineteen series of unfortunate events all have at least reasonable happy endings, with the interests of tenants, lenders and the public purse protected.  Housing Corporation supervision is the real sharp end of regulation and here we see the regulator at its best.  However regulation changes in the future, effective enforcement needs to be at the heart of the system.”

With the best of intentions is available on the Housing Corporation website – www.housingcorp.gov.uk
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Notes to Editors:
1) For further information, please contact Naomi Evans at the Housing Corporation on 020 7393 2118.

2) Learning from problems cases I and II were written by Julian Ashby.  The Learning from problem cases series was last published in 2003.

With the best of intentions is the third volume of the Housing Corporation’s Learning from problem cases series.  The format from previous editions has been reworked, bringing out the lessons from the cases more strongly, and in a way that may be more accessible to Board members.  The report is based on analysis of the files held by the Housing Corporation.

3) The publication was written for the Housing Corporation by James Tickell and Nigel Phethean of Campbell Tickell.  Campbell Tickell is an independent consultancy partnership, formed in June 2004 by Greg Campbell and James Tickell.  James Tickell has come from the National Housing Federation, where he served as Deputy Chief Executive for 10 years.

4) The Housing Corporation is the Government agency responsible for investing in new affordable homes and regulating over 1,500 housing associations across England. Its biggest ever investment programme of £3.9 billion for 2006-08 will fund 84,000 homes;  49,000 of these will be for affordable rent, and 35,000 will be for affordable sale through the Government's new HomeBuy initiative, helping people to get a foot on the property ladder.