One million milestone reached for housing transfers
Housing Corporation News Release
One million milestone reached for housing transfers
30 October 2006 Media Contact: Naomi Evans 020 7393 2118 Ref: 110/06
Over one million homes will have transferred to housing association management from local authority landlords by the end of today, Monday 30th October 2006.
Stock Transfer is the process through which a local authority transfers ownership of its housing stock to a not-for-profit housing association, who then undertakes major programmes of repairs and improvements. The transfer can only take place if the majority of tenants voting in a ballot support the move.
The first stock transfer took place in Chiltern Hundreds in 1988. Today, 18 years later, Stock Transfer remains a cornerstone of Government policy as it passes the historic one million homes mark.
The initiative has brought major, measurable improvements to people’s homes, neighbourhoods and quality of life, as housing associations are able to make substantial investments in areas where they take place.
Overall, £9 billion has been invested in new homes and facilities as well as improvements such as new kitchens, bathrooms, central heating, major landscaping works and security for over two million people. Since 2004 alone, stock transfer associations have brought over 12,000 homes every year out of sub-standard conditions to meet modern requirements for decent homes.
Jon Rouse, Chief Executive of the Housing Corporation, says,
“This milestone is an opportunity to celebrate a programme which has transformed literally millions of lives.
“Housing associations are not for profit organisations, committed to putting resident wellbeing at the heart of their programmes, and able to draw on the investment, support and regulation from the Housing Corporation to back this up.
“When homes transfer to a housing association they can access the major investment needed to regenerate some of the most deprived areas in the country. As a result, places which have often been locked into a downward spiral can be turned into thriving communities where people choose to live and bring up their children.”
Ends.
Notes to editors:
• When final contracts are signed for any one of three housing transfers due to be completed today, Monday 30th October, the milestone of over 1 million homes transferred form local authorities to housing associations will have been passed. The transfers are in the following local authority areas: Sefton, North East: Pendle; North West and West Wythenshawe, Manchester.
• Housing associations are not-for-profit, independent social businesses, regulated by the government agency for affordable homes, the Housing Corporation
• Stock transfer has brought £9 billion of additional investment into neighbourhoods since 1988 (source: Department of Communities and Local Government).
• This investment has transformed security, resident support and environmental regeneration in some of the most deprived areas in the country. Walsall Housing Group, for instance, has renewed and upgraded wiring in 2,405 homes, installed insulation and central-heating in 5,056 homes and added new bathroom sand kitchens in 4771 homes since transferring from Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council in March 2003.
• In 80% of ballots tenants voted 'yes' to transfer (Sourced: Department of Communities and Local Government)
• 82% of tenants who had transferred to a housing association were satisfied with their landlord - 13% higher than those still in council homes (Source: Status Surveys 2005 - Local Authority and Housing Association tenants)
• The first transfer was Chiltern District Council on 15 December 1988 to Chiltern Hundreds Housing Association, now part of the Paradigm Housing Group, when 85% of tenants voted yes to transfer. There have been 231 transfers to date.
• 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.
