PowerHousing Australia IHP London and Glasgow report

 

UK London Pre tour and Glasgow IHP Meeting – Sept/Oct 2023 – (Valued Member Exchange)

PowerHousing CEOs are invited to join us in Glasgow, Scotland, in October for the 16th Annual Leadership Exchange of the International Housing Partnership, the Housing Partnership Networks’ collaboration with housing networks in the UK, Canada, and Australia. Last year’s exchange—our first in-person meeting in three years—took place in Toronto and brought together 60 leaders from IHP member organizations.

With a successful New York/Toronto Member Exchange in 2022, the four country International Housing Partnership’s Annual Leadership Exchange taking place October 2-5, 2023 in Glasgow Scotland.

The IHP London pre-tour commenced on the afternoon of Wednesday 27th September 2023 and will conclude on Friday 29thSeptember 2023 with a packed agenda including 3-5 meetings across London locations on both Thursday and Friday mornings and site immersions with the largest Housing Associations in the UK.

PowerHousing and our UK partners engage and work closely with all organisations listed, with sharing of best practice and learnings of housing programs, investment structures and opportunities for Australian CHPs to be explored. These discussions will further advance the relationships, awareness and ESG learnings to support the Australian social and affordable housing ecosystem.

Pre tour meetings were held with:

In the afternoons we went out to see UKs largest Housing Associations to have a deep dive into their operations, and the challenges of scale delivery of social and affordable housing.

  • The iconic Battersea Power Station Lift 109 panoramic experience was part of this tour to see dwellings managed by Southern Housing with an evening Dinner for Australian CHP CEO delegate peers.
  • Peer to Peer UK best practice site visits of London and Quadrant (107,000 homes) and also Metropolitan Thames Valley (55,000 Home Housing Association).
  • For the London and Quadrant site visits scheduled for the Thursday we are planning to visit one of the largest housing developments of the 24,000 home Barking Riverside project development with a Thames clipper river trip back,

Key issues considered from the pre-tour will include:

  • Investment roadshow
  • ESG investment and operational frameworks in Housing Associations
  • Scale delivery of social and affordable housing and the challenges of the largest housing associations
  • For Profit provision of social and affordable housing
  • Mergers and Acquisitions
  • Emerging issues for the sector
  • Networking and peer exchange with some of the largest international providers and partners of social and affordable housing

Evening Dinner on Thursday 28 September with Australian CHP CEO and meeting hosts (venue to be confirmed will be either Embankment/Charing Cross area, or south Bank).

 

International Housing Partnership’s 16th Annual Leadership Exchange – Glasgow

2 – 5 Oct 2023

International Housing Partnership was launched in 2003 and is administered by HPN and brings together HPN’s affordable housing networks from the UK, Ireland, Canada, and Australia. Together we represent 200 organizations and one million affordable homes housing two and a half million people. Glasgow marked our 16th Annual Leadership Exchange.

Local Host: The Wheatley Group

Known as the Glasgow Housing Association 20 years ago when government transferred 80,000 units of council housing (20,000 replaced over the 10 years) the Wheatley Group is Scotland’s largest landlord, encompassing four housing affiliates; repairs, maintenance services, and resident support companies; and a charitable foundation. It owns and operates nearly 100,000 homes serving more than 210,000 residents and employing more than 4,500 people. Wheatley is a leader and innovator on energy efficiency and carbon reduction projects. In partnership with the City of Glasgow and the Scottish government, they are leading the largest regeneration project in the UK outside London.

Themes and Discussion Topics:

  • Policy, Business Environment, and Capital – We discussed the policy environment to address housing and homelessness in Glasgow and Scotland, the UK, Ireland, as well as Australia, Canada, and the US. And we explored scale and its impact on business operations, strategies to address the rapidly rising operating costs across the sector in all IHP countries, as well as innovations in capital raising.
  • Workforce, Workplace, and Culture – The pandemic years have transformed the workforce and the workplace in ways we had never imagined. With hybrid models now a growing norm and the competition for hiring and retaining talent greater than ever, how do we best structure work to deliver our services, ensure equity, grow leaders, keep staff engaged, and avoid burn out?
  • Sustainability, Carbon Reduction, and ESG – As climate disruption rampages on, we will discuss efforts being undertaken throughout IHP countries on carbon reduction, sustainability, risk mitigation, and ESG metrics. One of our off-sites included a visit to the Queens Quay Heat Pump scheme, which is the largest of its kind in the UK and take heat from the River Clyde to use it to heat local homes and business.
  • Regeneration – We toured and had a discussion on approaches to regeneration at the £250million Sighthill Transformational Regeneration Area, which is creating a new neighbourhood near Glasgow city with 1,000 new homes, a new school, a new pedestrian and cyclist bridge over the M8 motorway, a road-bridge over the Glasgow-Edinburgh railway line, a new public square, shops, and commercial space.
  • Health and Safety – Health inequalities, including increased drug and alcohol abuse and other mental health issues, have been exacerbated by the pandemic throughout IHP countries and in Scotland. This has resulted in increased anti-social behaviour, crime, and threats to residents and staff. We considered how this is impacting our work and how are we addressing it?
  • Resident Services – All IHP country networks have a focus on resident services – including wealth building, homeownership approaches, and creating opportunities for youth. We shared successful models and initiatives.
  • Scottish Parliament – We arranged a visit to the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh.

PowerHousingLondon and Glasgow Roadshow and IHP report Oct 2023