Strong roots. future growth. Annual Report 2017
Contents 03
Improving lives
04
Home
08
Service
10
People
12
Community
14
Resources
15
How we work
16
Contact
Greenfields is ten years old in November 2017. This report shows how, as we complete our first decade, we’ve developed into an established housing and community business with plenty of energy and capacity to keep on growing.
At a glance - Greenfields
8,390
263 staff
homes owned and managed
195 full-time, 68 part-time
ÂŁ43 million
ÂŁ13.4 million
turnover 2016/17
operating surplus 2016/17
We invest all of our surplus into new and improved homes, local services and community support.
02
Greenfields Community Housing annual report 2017
Improving lives The upcoming tenth anniversary of Greenfields’ launch is a good time to take stock of how far we’ve come, and to prepare for an ambitious future. We’re proud to reflect on a decade improving lives. Our ethos and work is about much more than providing homes; it’s about offering local communities the resources, opportunities and support to enable residents to lead happy and healthy lives. The timeline that runs through this report picks out some notable highlights from the past ten years. 2017 sees us nearly at the mid-point of our Good to Great plan for business up to 2020, with success and high standards reflected in top ‘G1/ V1’ regulatory ratings for governance and viability, reaccreditation with Investors in People Gold status and us being ranked number 11 in the Sunday Times Best Not-for-Profit Companies to Work For list. We were also shortlisted for the UK Housing Awards Outstanding Landlord of the Year. These achievements don’t make us complacent about the challenges that still lie ahead, especially in light of current political uncertainty
and continuing economic austerity. So we remain committed to our community gateway principles, realised through four key strategies: Home, Service, People and Community. Partnership and value for money are two vital ingredients in our approach. We work with an array of residents, community groups, public services, private firms and voluntary agencies, and have saved £8.5 million in operating costs since 2015. All this is underpinned by our vision to work together to provide the best homes and services for people in our communities, and our values of being a can do organisation that works as one team to put customers first with respect and integrity. Our congratulations and thanks to everyone who has been part of the Greenfields story so far, in particular our outgoing board Chairman, Chris Doré. You’ve given us strong roots, from which we will continue to grow and do even more to improve lives.
Dale Butcher, Chairman
Phil Adams, Chief Executive
2007
Greenfields created by the transfer of homes from Braintree District Council Strong roots, future growth
03
Home Boosting the supply of new, affordable homes to meet local need is one of our key priorities. And investing in the safety, condition and value of our residents’ existing homes is also crucial to our long-term plans. In the year to 31 March 2017, we invested £10.8m in our homes, building 64 new homes, including 26 for shared ownership. We’re on track to reach our target of providing 9,000 homes by 2020, and 10,000 homes by 2025.
With housing standards and safety now at the forefront of everyone’s attention, our residents have the security of knowing that all Greenfields’ homes meet the Decent Homes Standard and comply with all regulations for gas, oil, water and fire.
We have now remodelled or improved all 17 of our housing schemes for older people, and last year carried out £7 million of heating, insulation and other improvements to existing homes. The Asset Investment Model (AIM) we’ve created helps us make the right long-term decisions about the future of each home. This led to a decision to sell three homes at open market value during 2016/17.
The positive impact of regular ‘Property MOT’ inspections is showing in the increased proportions of planned repairs we do compared to reactive work, and of repairs done right first time. We’ve also cut the time it takes to re-let empty homes. As part of the PlaceShapers group of communitybased organisations, we’re playing our part in the ‘We Build’ commitment to tackling the housing crisis. This involves delivery of 88,000 new homes by 2020.
“My new home is absolutely great; the area is so pleasant and quiet. When I got cancer and my circumstances drastically changed, I moved here alone. It’s worked out perfectly – literally a fresh start!” Thirty-two-year-old Ian Finch rents a new one-bedroom flat at The Spinney in Witham.
04
Greenfields Community Housing annual report 2017
At a glance - our homes
7,853
71
466
Social and Affordable Rent tenancies
Shared ownership
Leasehold
8,390 Total homes
2008
£278.2 million Total cost of housing assets (2015/16: £258.3 million)
Start of £85 million programme to bring all our homes up to the Government’s Decent Homes Standard Strong roots, future growth
05
Working smarter By improving the way we procure contracts and through using standard house types, we’ve seen savings of around ten per cent on new development. This means the average cost of building a new Greenfields home in 2016/17 was £134,687. Our future plans include building homes for outright sale, the profits from which will go into providing more affordable homes for rent and shared ownership.
Before
We’re also continuing to improve the energy efficiency of existing homes. For 80 houses at Humber Road in Witham, we replaced the original tiles on the front walls with a modern, insulated finish, which should save each household around £80 per year in fuel bills. This change makes the homes look better and feel warmer.
After
Supporting home ownership We’re keen to help people who want to own their own home. Last year, we sold 37 properties to existing occupiers through the Right to Buy scheme and added to our growing portfolio of flexible part-buy/part-rent homes. Commercial analyst Matthew Keys moved into a new three-bedroomed shared ownership home
in Sudbury with his wife and three children in September 2016. They’re already feeling the benefits. “The whole experience has been really positive. We’ve struggled to get on the housing market for seven years, and it felt like we were in a trap of ever-increasing private rents.”
“Having the opportunity to part own a property is fantastic. Once we made the decision to go ahead, our property was reserved for us; which removed the uncertainty and made the whole process exciting and really positive.” Mattew Keys
06
Greenfields Community Housing annual report 2017
At a glance – looking after our assets
£201,865
100%
/ 0.52%
Satisfaction with new homes (2015/16: 99%)
Value and percentage of rent lost through vacant homes (2015/16: £199,156 / 0.51%)
17,810
£89.63
Total number of responsive repairs completed (2015/16: 20,851)
2009
Average cost per responsive repair (2015/16: £82.55)
Our purpose-built headquarters, Greenfields House, opened for business Strong roots, future growth
07
Service We’re continuing our drive to deliver more online and on-demand services to offer customers quick and simple information whenever they want it. This helps to reduce costs and focus staff time where it’s needed most. More than 600 customers have now registered to use the self-service portal on our website. Online, on-demand services are now the norm in almost every industry and sector, so we’re determined to offer the same sort of anytime/ anywhere convenience that our residents get from supermarkets, banks and gov.uk. Enabling people to use our online services builds the skills and confidence they need for work, study or accessing Universal Credit. We’ve set a target of doubling the number of digital service transactions we do each year until this way of accessing our services becomes the preferred choice for everyone possible. Doing this releases staff and other resources to support people who need extra help, or who cannot use online services for any reason. Our latest innovation is the Live Chat option, which puts customers directly in touch with our customer service centre to ask questions or share feedback.
Smart digi-pals Joy Lee and Abaida Baldwin are two of more than 150 residents who we’ve helped to get online over the past two years. In less than 12 months, they both went from never having used a computer or mobile phone, to becoming digi-pals who now encourage and help others to get to grips with the internet. They started with an eight-week City & Guilds Basic Online Skills course, which covered searching on the web, online shopping, safety and security, working with digital photographs and lots more. “I gradually learnt about getting online; how to search for bargains and save money; how to keep in touch with my friends online and even pay my rent through Greenfields’ self-service portal. Getting online has changed my life for the better.” Abaida Baldwin, Braintree.
“I would highly recommend this course to anyone, young or old, male or female. You’ll make new friends and have fun while learning new skills.” Joy Lee, Witham Joy Lee and Abaida Baldwin
2010 08
Energy efficiency improvements to a home in Halstead cut fuel bills by 80%
Greenfields Community Housing annual report 2017
At a glance – our services for customers
£420,700 [1.05%]
99.85%
99.6%
How much current tenants owe in rent arrears [and as a percentage of total rent collectable] (2015/16: £538,829 [1.35%])
Of rent due from current tenants collected (2015/16: 99.67%)
Responsive repairs completed within target time (2015/16: 99.5%)
97.8%
98.1%
100
Repairs appointments made and kept (2015/16: 96.8%)
Repairs completed right first time (2015/16: 87%)
Complaints received (2015/16: 96)
98%
83.9%
Of complaints resolved within target time (2015/16: 100%)
Of customer enquiries resolved at first contact (2015/16: 86.7%)
2011
All Greenfields homes brought up to the Decent Homes Standard – one year ahead of schedule Strong roots, future growth
09
People Our ambition of improving lives means that we’re firmly and forever in the people business. Residents, staff, board members, partners and suppliers – people are our top priority and greatest asset. Our focus on people comes directly from the community gateway principles, which we started with and maintain. Giving people a real stake in what we do and how we do it, as employees, service users, partners or providers makes us a better business that’s in touch with the communities we serve. We were delighted to be listed at number 11 in the 2017 100 Best Companies non-profit awards and be reaccredited as an Investors in People Gold organisation. But it’s people’s handson, grass-roots local effort and commitment that really counts in transforming lives and neighbourhoods. Staff and residents get stuck into all sorts of neighbourhood projects together through Make A Difference Days, and our social prescribing initiative, Connect Well, which supports positive emotional and physical health by linking people up with local activities. We have 21 trained
Connect Well Champions who help people get involved with things like volunteering, befriending and self-help groups. For some individuals, this sort of support can be life saving. One resident was on the verge of losing her home last year because of her disruptive lifestyle and repeatedly breaching her tenancy agreement. We were able to help her to help herself, so that she now works as a mentor for others facing problems with addiction and mental health. In her words: “Greenfields saved my life and turned it around. If it hadn’t been for you, I would still be addicted to alcohol and drugs and having week-long parties in my flat; with people who were abusing me and dragging me down. I’m now a trained mentor who can help others. I love my life.” Ms B.
Staff and residents get stuck into all sorts of neighbourhood projects together through Make A Difference Days
2012 10
First housing association in the eastern region to become an Investor in People Champion
Greenfields Community Housing annual report 2017
Real-life change Words and numbers only truly count when they deliver real change for real people – improving lives and creating new opportunities by working together. In November 2016, we teamed up with another housing association working in Essex, Family Mosaic, to run a drop-in jobs fair at Greenfields House. We invited local people to come and meet the team from Family Mosaic and find out about the wide range of local jobs they offer. Fifty-four-year-old Jane Hayward from Silver End was one of the residents who came along, liked what they saw, applied and got a new job as a support worker. Jane had previously been out of work for several years and had begun to doubt if she’d be able to get back into employment. “I was starting to give up hope, but thanks to Greenfields hosting this recruitment event, I’ve got a complete change of direction, which is very rewarding. I support a local woman who has learning difficulties and a man with severe autism. I feel like a contributing member of the community once again – it has boosted my confidence no end.” Jane is also actively involved in Greenfields as Chair of the Community Gateway Group.
Earning and learning 17-year-old James Donald from Halstead is an apprentice carpenter who’s studying for a NVQ level 2 qualification in Carpentry at Colchester College alongside his role in our empty homes team. Mentored by an experienced colleague, Colin Mursell, James is learning all the essential skills of his trade as he helps to get vacant properties ready for new people to move in as speedily as possible.
At a glance – our people and their achievements
39 Apprenticeships since 2007 (13 have gone on to get permanent jobs with Greenfields)
318 People involved in community volunteering during 2016/17
7.93 days Average number of days lost to sickness per employee (2015/16.9 days)
“I love my job because I’m learning so much. Everyone is so supportive, and it would be amazing to get a job with Greenfields at the end of my apprenticeship.”
2013
Greenfields’ first new homes built at Hatfield Peverel Strong roots, future growth
11
Community During 2016/17, we generated £1.4 million worth of social value for the local community and supported a wide range of Braintree district projects with nearly £100,000 of grants from our Community Fund. To measure the impact of and payback from our wider community support, we use the HACT Wellbeing Valuation Model. This converts the time, resources and outcomes committed to Greenfields’ positive engagement and diversionary programmes into a cash value, so we can see exactly how each activity is paying its way and adding value to the community. We run and contribute to an array of projects that enhance residents’ health and wellbeing. These include the Braintree area Foodbank, support for families affected by domestic abuse, a network of Dementia Friends and campaigns to prevent falls and tackle social isolation. We also promote healthy lifestyles through a variety of sports and activities, including the popular chairbased exercise classes. More than 100 people have regularly taken part in these sessions, held in a variety of venues including local doctors’ surgeries and leisure centres.
2014 12
A grant of £150,000 over two years has helped Tendring Reuse and Employment Enterprise (TREE) to provide recycled donated furniture and electrical goods to many local residents. In our tenth anniversary year, we’re supporting a dozen special Make A Difference Days, where staff work alongside residents to give local neighbourhoods something extra. The days include litter clean-up events, community bakeoffs and gardening, a fitness-themed festival and taking part in the nationwide Big Lunch and Great Get Together initiatives. The common thread that links all of these diverse projects is that they boost people’s skills and confidence – helping them into work, education, training, better health, more social contact or whatever they need to improve their lives.
Think Safe Be Safe project launched with Essex Police
Greenfields Community Housing annual report 2017
Football for all Football has featured prominently in our work over the past year – for all sorts of players. Walking football is a fast-growing, slow-paced version of the ‘beautiful game’ that is popular with older people who used to play the sport when they were younger, or those who’ve never played but benefit from some gentle, fun exercise. We teamed up with Fusion Lifestyle and Essex Football Association to run weekly Walking sessions in Witham.
Twenty-year-old Perry Moss, from Halstead, was on the winning side and also takes part in the weekly sessions near his home: “The game gave me the opportunity to play at a semi-professional football ground, which isn’t something I do every day - I really enjoyed it! The weekly sessions keep me busy, fit and healthy, as well as keeping me out of trouble.”
Eighty-five-year-old Sheila Hide from Braintree is a regular walking football player. “It gives me the chance to get some exercise and fresh air and to meet new people. I enjoy being in the company of others as otherwise I don’t see many people every day.” In May, as part of our regular football programmes run in partnership with Fusion Lifestyle and 2nd Witham Boy’s Brigade, we held our first Greenfields staff v residents football match at Halstead Football Club. The residents were convincing winners in a 5-2 thriller.
At a glance – investing in local communities
£10.4 million Spent with local suppliers from Braintree, Chelmsford and Colchester in 2016/17 [including VAT] (2015/16: £12.8 million)
2015
2,675 hours
£94,000
/ £34,000 Amount and value of voluntary work created – equivalent to more than 70 weeks’ full time work
Given in local grants in 2016/17
Five-year From Good To Great plan launched Strong roots, future growth
13
Resources Strong business and the ability to grow depend on healthy and prudent finances. We have £61 million of accumulated reserves and £65 million of new finance to fund homebuilding and improvements. We’ve continued to adapt to the tighter financial environment created by the Government’s fouryear programme of one per cent annual rent cuts. In 2016/17, improved performance, efficiency and streamlined procurement helped us to reach a total of £8.5 million of savings in operating
costs. This contributed to a big drop in the cost of providing each social home; down from £3,545 in 2015/16 to £2,974 last year. This strength and stability meant we were able to invest £30 million in building and improving homes during 2016/17.
At a glance – how every penny was spent
48p
13p
13p
10p
9p
Developing new homes
Managing homes
Maintaining homes
Improving homes
Interest on loans
4p
2p
1p
Community projects
Support and services
Community empowerment
£1.21
Of housing investment generated for every £1 of income we receive
For full details of our income and spending, please see our Financial Statements for 2016/17, available on our website.
How we compare Benchmarking our costs, performance and value for money with the wider housing sector and a peer group of similar organisations helps make sure we continue to offer customers and communities a good deal. We set ourselves a simple target of delivering above average performance at below average cost. And we monitor our progress towards and
2016 14
success in this through the housing sector’s leading comparison service, HouseMark. The latest comparative data available (for 2015/16) shows that Greenfields is in the good performance quartiles for all eight key service areas. We are continuing to work to reduce our costs, particularly of those services that remain above average.
First shared ownership homes built in Thaxted
Greenfields Community Housing annual report 2017
Source: HouseMark
Key:
Poor performance High cost
1 Responsive repairs and work to re-let
Good performance High cost
Cost
2 Rent collection and arrears 3 Tackling anti-social behaviour 4 Cyclical maintenance and major repairs 5 Letting homes 6 Managing tenancies 7 Involving residents 8 Estate services
7 6
4
empty homes
2 1 Poor performance Low cost
Good performance Low cost
3
5
8
Performance
How we work We remain committed to the community gateway principles that led to our launch ten years ago, but understand that we must continue to adapt. To respond to tighter financial times, we’ve reshaped our business and our governance to be more efficient and effective.
The Greenfields board has slimmed down from 15 to eight members, with a fresh focus on making sure we have the right non-executive skills, knowledge and experience. We’ve also trimmed the number of committees and given the Community Gateway Group of residents direct responsibility for scrutiny of our services and performance levels. These changes also mean that we comply with the National Housing Federation’s code of governance. Greenfields intends to stay independent and distinctive, with an undiminished resolve to work as and be a true community gateway organisation.
At a glance – our board and executive team Board Dale Butcher (Chairman), Paul Benjamin, Flip Hornby, Emma Keegan, Helen Routledge, Cathy Turland, Stuart Ward, Suzanne Wicks Our thanks to the following board members who retired or left us during the past year: Cllr Michael Banthorpe, Cllr Lynette Bowers-Flint, Sheridan Chumbley, Susan Green, Cllr David Mann, Cllr Lady Patricia Newton, Cllr Moia Thorogood Executive directors Phil Adams (Chief Executive), Daniel Allen (Property Services Director), Sandra Crosby (Housing Director), David Hall (Finance & Resources Director and Company Secretary)
2017
Shortlisted for Outstanding Landlord of the Year in the UK Housing Awards Strong roots, future growth
15
Contact us To find out more about Greenfields or to discuss working with us, please get in touch. Web: GreenfieldsCH.org.uk Email: csc@GreenfieldsCH.org.uk Telephone: 01376 535 400 Text: 07860 024 511 Greenfields House, Charter Way, Braintree, Essex, CM77 8FG
@Greenfieldsch
Greenfieldsch
To get this document in large print, Braille, audio or an alternative language, please call 01376 535400. Greenfields Community Housing Limited is a charitable housing association registered with the Financial Conduct Authority in England and Wales as a Registered Society under the Co-operative and Community Benefit Societies Act 2014 (registration number 30124R). Registered office: Greenfields House, Charter Way, Braintree, Essex, CM77 8FG