About Us The Northern Housing Consortium represents the views of housing organisations in the North of England. With over 30 years expertise and influence; strong relationships with local and national government; and unrivalled respect and credibility within the housing sector, we are the North’s leading membership body. Our range of services includes: • Policy & Strategy • Performance & Practice • Procurement • Conference & Events The Northern Housing Consortium is a not for distributed profit making membership organisation. Full membership is drawn from Local Authorities, Arms Length Management Organisations (ALMO’s), Registered Providers (RP’s) and other stakeholder organisations involved in housing from across the three Northern Government Office regions of the North East, North West and Yorkshire & Humberside. Our primary role is to support and represent our Members, who, between them are responsible for two thirds of social housing in the North. We do this through the provision of a range of products and services aimed at ensuring that the interest of the North are fully consulted, represented and served at sub- regional, regional and national level. Our position of independence; relationships with local and national government; support from our Member organisations, and over 30 years of expertise & influence, has enabled the Northern Housing Consortium to develop unrivalled respect and credibility within the housing sector, and thus we believe we can legitimately claim our role as ‘the Voice of the North’.
Our Membership We offer different types of membership to meet the needs of our customers. Our Membership categories are:
Full Members Members in this category are within the defined Northern region of England and have housing stock and/or a strategic housing responsibility.
Affiliate Members Organisations that wish to access Northern Housing Consortium services outside the defined Northern England region. Organisations will have housing stock and/or a strategic housing responsibility.
Subscriber Members Organisations that support the work of the NHC and that have an interest in the social housing market place. Organisations that do not have housing stock.
Partner Members Organisations that the Northern Housing Consortium has jointly developed solutions with and are offered by Consortium Procurement.
At present we have
394
Members of the Northern Housing Consortium.
Full Members:
177
Affiliate Members:
136
Subscriber Members:
43
Partner Members:
38
Governance The Northern Housing Consortium is governed by a Board of Management, which is elected from our Full Members in the North: Local Authorities Housing Associations ALMOs Five Directors are elected from each of the three regions we cover; North East; North West; Yorkshire & Humberside. The Board meets on a quarterly basis to discuss governance issues, the business and performance of the organisation, and to ensure Members needs are met.
Our Board Chair:
John Craggs, Deputy Chief Executive, Gentoo
Vice Chairs North West: Yorkshire & Humberside:
Ian Ankers, Director of Housing Services, Bolton at Home Kevin Dodd, Chief Executive, Wakefield & District Housing
Representatives for the North East Cath Purdy, Group Chief Executive, Vela Homes Chris Smith, Managing Director, Erimus Housing Geraldine Wilcox, Chief Executive, Derwentside Homes Glyn Hall, Head of Housing, Durham County Council John Craggs Deputy Chief Executive, Gentoo Representatives for the North West Bob Taylor, Chief Executive, Knowsley Housing Trust Bob Livermore, Executive Manager, West Lancashire Borough Council Ian Ankers, Director of Housing Services, Bolton at Home Nick Atkin, Chief Executive, Halton Housing Trust Rob Young, Chief Executive, Helena Partnerships Representatives for Yorkshire & Humberside Colin Dales, Assistant Director Communities, Richmondshire District Council Geraldine Howley, Group Chief Executive, Incommunities Harry Dodgeon, Contract Manager, East Riding of Yorkshire Council Kevin Dodd, Chief Executive, Wakefield & District Housing Trust Tom Miskell, Chief Executive, Trans-Pennine Housing Non Executive Director David Procter, Independent Consultant
Our People Executive Management Team Jo Boaden Andrew Carlin Charlotte Harrison Ian Wright
Chief Executive Commercial Director Director of Policy & Strategy Director of Performance & Practice
Corporate Services Michelle Punshon Tracy Harrison Louise Coulter Lynda Redshaw Kay Fairley Maureen Hanley Yvonne Shipley Yvonne Leonard Rachel Mersh Trish Sleep
Company Secretary Marketing Manager Marketing Officer Exhibition Development Officer Corporate Support Officer (Human Resources) Finance Officer Finance Officer Corporate Support Assistant Administrative Assistant Corporate Support Officer (Events & Office Management)
Rachel Smith
Corporate Support Officer (IT& Events)
Consortium Procurement Nicola Hellewell Gill Jackson Jennifer Stevenson Elaine Abrol Thomas Barrett Martin Hankins
Procurement & Contracts Manager Business Development Officer Business Development Officer Business Development Officer Business Development Officer Contracts Officer
Policy &Strategy Satty Rai Sarah Taylor Brian Robson Jacqui Grimes
Policy Services Manager Policy Development Manager Policy & Strategy Manager Policy Officer
Performance & Practice Anna Milner Barry Turnbull Kate Ritchie Nigel Johnston Rachel Collings Stephanie Tebay Jeremy Brock
Performance &Practice Manager Performance & Practice Officer Performance & Practice Manager Performance & Practice Manager Performance & Practice Manager JobMoves Officer Housing Training & Events Manager
How do we work? We work within four strategic themes: Investment & Resources Ensuring the North secures the resources required to achieve our ambitions, and supporting housing organisations to make the most of their assets.
Quality of Life
Delivering joined up, community focused initiatives with positive outcomes that enhance peoples' lives and wellbeing.
Quality of Place
Focusing on providing the knowledge base and tools to ensure housing policy is at the heart of transformational change in the North.
Performance Improvement
Working with members to deliver cost effective solutions; transfer skills, and build capacity to ensure housing organisations optimise their efficiency and effectiveness.
How do we deliver our work?
We deliver our work within the four strategic themes by offering Members access to the services provided and work undertaken by; Policy & Strategy Performance & Practice Consortium Procurement This document will provide further information and examples of how we deliver our work to Members.
Policy & Strategy Policy & Strategy is the radar of the organisation, ensuring that we are aware of, and responding to proposed changes in the sector and ensuring that we have input on new policies which will affect our Members. We work closely with government agencies such as the Communities and Local Government (CLG) to ensure the views of our Northern Members are represented. We have 6 clearly defined objectives which shape the outcomes of our work; Health Housing & Social Care Investing in Homes & Communities Environment
Regulation
Economy, Enterprise & Employment
Social Exclusion
Examples of recent publications:
Age Friendly Communities The ageing population is being described as one of the most significant issues of the 21st century and probably the single greatest challenge facing Housing, Planning, Social Care and Health organisations over the next generation. The Northern Housing Consortium (NHC) has just completed an ambitious project to explore what an ‘age friendly’ community might look like in the year 2020 and beyond. The aim of the project was to provide support services and practical steps for Members to take in response to this dynamic policy agenda. Recent briefing papers: Comprehensive Spending Review 2010 Regional Growth Funding Enterprise Zones New Homes Bonus Consultation Empty Homes Energy Bill 2011 , The Green Deal Localism Bulletin Health System Reforms Healthy Lives Brief Benefit Reform Briefing Paper Mental Health Strategy Welfare Reform Bill
Performance & Practice Performance & Practice act as the conduit between government and our Members, disseminating information and providing advice and guidance for practical policy implementation.
Professional Practice Networks Understanding that people learn from and with people, our ever developing range of networks provide unrivalled opportunities for our members to debate key policy agendas, shape future strategic developments and share best practice. The support networks are inter-linked to ensure that the services you provide are truly joined up. Knowledge and capacity building within the network forums will embed cross-organisational working, resulting in more effective service delivery with fewer resources. These efficiency savings can then be ploughed back into frontline services. The professional practice networks currently offered include: LETTINGSnet INCOMEnet SCRUTINYnet
INSIGHTnet CONTACTnet
Performance Improvement Interventions
We provide a range of services aimed at helping our Members to improve their organisational performance and prepare for inspection. Our approach is different to other consultants as we focus on helping Members to build their own capacity to continually evaluate and improve. Interventions may include; peer review; service analysis and systems thinking.
Northern Silver Screen
We provide many opportunities to celebrate success and share good practice. The concept behind the Northern Silver Screen is to use film as a succinct & engaging media for sharing information within the Consortium's membership. We have now hosted our successful Northern Silver Screen initiative three times.
Conferences & Exhibitions
From small workshops to national conferences, our programme of events covers the range of issues within our four themed work areas. The content is uniquely designed to benefit housing organisations and the people within them. Our conferences and seminars attract speakers including government ministers, senior civil servants and leading practitioners, offering delegates the chance to debate national issues within their home region.
Member Dinners We believe we are unique in our ability to bring together full members and senior government officials for these small, informal dinners, with the opportunity to have full and frank discussions.
Operating on a national level, Consortium Procurement is the collaborative purchasing arm of the Northern Housing Consortium, responsible for the development and delivery of business solutions to meet the needs of its membership. These solutions are compliant with European procurement directives and accessible by any current or future Consortium Member organisation.
Consortium Procurement work with our supply partners to deliver the services we have procured on behalf of our Members. Approved supply partners of Consortium Procurement may use this logo to promote their company.
Current Frameworks The Consortium Procurement team will provide support and guidance through every stage of interaction with the procurement frameworks we offer to ensure a well- organised and structured call-off process. We do this by; facilitating further competitions, providing legal documentation as well as supporting documentation such as procurement reports. But it doesn’t end there – we also offer ongoing contract performance management to suit the needs of your individual contract. The current frameworks we offer include; Tenants Contents Insurance
Bill Payments
Gas Servicing
Grounds Maintenance
Fire Safety
Choice Based Lettings
Digital Aerial Upgrade
Community Alarm Maintenance
Adaptations
Framework Development The Northern Housing Consortium is committed to providing compliant, innovative and relevant procurement solutions to benefit both our Members and their customers. In order to do this it is important that we consult at every stage of our solution development process. This is particularly critical in the formative stages, where we look to our Members to guide us in the identification and prioritisation of new solutions.
Influencing Future Framework Development All of our solutions are mandated by our membership, and we value the support and interaction of our Members very highly. If you wish to find out if Consortium Procurement can develop a new solution to meet your needs, please contact solutions@consortiumprocurement.org.uk.
New Frameworks in Development for 2011/12 The following list has been compiled with assistance from our membership: Assisted Living Grounds Maintenance (refresh) Digital Aerial Maintenance Asbestos Door entry and CCTV Retrofit Energy and the environment Lift services Sheltered housing reviews Repairs and maintenance Fixed wire testing
In 2010/11 our procurement frameworks saved Members over
ÂŁ9.5 million
Communicating with Members Website Our website provides full details of the work we are currently undertaking to represent our members. Use the site to keep up to date with the latest housing news; view details of our forthcoming events and book a place online; review current job vacancies, and view key information on our member organisations.
Ezine Our email newsletter, Ezine, is a subscription publication available to all of our members on a fortnightly basis. Our Ezine contains the latest information on our own work, along with updates and commentary on developments within the sector.
Northern Vision Newsletter We produce a twice yearly hard copy newsletter, Northern Vision, providing you with a forward look at the major initiatives we’ll be working on over the next 6 months, and helping to familiarise you with the team that are here to support you.
Twitter We use twitter to provide short, timely updates on our activity. Northern Housing Consortium: @NHConsortium Consortium Procurement:
@ConsortiumProcure
Getting in contact with us northern-consortium.org.uk
T: 0191 566 1000
F: 0191 566 1001
@
enquiries@northern-consortium.org.uk
Northern Housing Consortium Webster’s Ropery Ropery Road Deptford Terrace Sunderland SR4 6DJ