After delegates descended on Manchester Central to hear sector leaders give their take on the current state of UK housing the conference is over for another year and everyone is back to their day jobs!
After a packed agenda of events across the three days, there were some interesting takeaways which will have an impact on the sector over the next twelve months.
Our key takeaways:
Housing will continue to be near the top of the Government’s agenda
This was highlighted by the attendance of the then Housing and Planning Minister, Stuart Andrew MP. While he didn’t give much away during his keynote speech on day 2 of the conference, the Minister did say that we can expect an announcement soon on how the Government intend to help local authorities to build more social and affordable homes. When questioned he reiterated that he hopes to “say a lot more in the very near future.”
We must realise the economic benefits associated with the net zero agenda and retrofitting
In an interesting panel discussion on what the Levelling Up agenda means for housing, Steve Coffey, Group CEO at Torus spoke about how he believes that in order to achieve successful levelling up across the country we must harness the necessary spending associated with the net zero targets. The spend must targeted to ensure it upskills the workforce, creates jobs, and meets the Government’s net zero targets.
There is a firm focus on the quality of housing
This was a theme that ran throughout the conference and was referenced by the Housing Minister in his keynote speech. We can see from the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill, which is currently making its way through Parliament, that the Government has a clear focus on placemaking and the quality of housing and are not solely focused on the numbers. This means housing providers must ensure that investment is directed towards their current stock to ensure it meets future targets and quality measures while also developing new flagship schemes.
At BECG, we will be working with our clients to help navigate these considerations. To find out more on how BECG can assist you in navigating the politics of property and development, please visit here.
