EVIDENCE update The latest research and analysis – in plain English In this issue: 12 Welcome 12 Going Dutch: Agreements to raise performance and legitimacy 13 Free to view resources 14 The UK’s housing expenditure plans
Issue 30 | May 2021
16 Bringing Ireland’s housing stock up to standard 16 Northern Ireland Housing Executive: A two-part future? 17 Inbetweener generation faces stark choices
Welcome The UK is reaching a better place in tackling the pandemic, but how are we faring on housing issues? In this edition we take a look at the UK’s housing expenditure plans. In an excerpt from this year’s UK Housing Review, John Perry says Covid-19 has affected housing investment for years to come. And that’s at a time when the need to decarbonise the stock is becoming ever more urgent. We take a look at housing issues around Europe, too. Sweden’s young people face serious difficulties in accessing any type of independent housing, new research finds. In Ireland there are moves to quantify the need to upgrade the housing stock. That country has some of the newest housing in Europe but that still leaves many homes with dangerous hazards. In the Netherlands, tenant organisations, local
authorities and housing associations have been working jointly on performance agreements. Can tenants take their place at the table to influence what happens in their localities? And finally, there are moves to settle the future of the Northern Ireland Housing Executive. The latest plans involve splitting the current organisation in two. But there will be big challenges in creating the new organisations necessary to both maintain the stock and create new housing. We hope you find this edition of Evidence interesting and thought provoking. We’re always on the lookout for news of housing research projects so do get in touch if you have findings to share. Janis Bright Editor, Evidence
Going Dutch: Agreements to raise performance and legitimacy A new paper examines the development of local performance agreements in social housing in the Netherlands. Legislation from 2015 has required tripartite performance agreements between housing associations, local councils and tenant organisations. The idea was to boost tenant power and develop accountability in the sector toward
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HOUSING QUALITY MAGAZINE MAY 2021
local goals. The performance agreements can last from one to three years and must be renewed very regularly. Under the legislation, housing associations must focus on their primary task of providing affordable housing for people on low incomes, with forprofit organisations providing for higher income groups. In the Netherlands, municipalities (local
