Q&A: How can I attract registered providers to my development? (part 1)

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Q&A: How can I attract registered providers to my development? (part 1)

1/10/10 5:09 pm By Richard Heap

I’m looking to develop land for affordable housing. What do I need to take into account in the planning process to make it attractive to a registered provider of affordable housing?

Mash Halai (left) and Gareth Turner respond:

With the interim publication of Boris Johnson’s London Housing Design Guide last month, the issue of space requirements is very much a hot topic. However, in the short term it will only affect houses built on the London Development Agency’s land.

While this helps to highlight the fact that London has some of the smallest new homes in western Europe, it only covers one of the areas that prospective developers need to bear in mind. In the present economic climate the time and money spent on getting a project through planning is crucial and time after time we are seeing developers who are new to affordable housing making costly mistakes.

All too often developers are taking housing projects through the planning process and upon consent approaching a registered provider for funding. This is usually a case of too little too late, and whilst the project may be approved via the planning process it is often unsuitable for a registered provider and won’t be eligible for grant funding. Unfortunately the only route for developers to then take is a costly one, and developments have to be redesigned and planning consent sought again.

So what can be done?

Our advice is simple: engage with the right consultants (especially architects) and registered provider from the start and have an understanding of their basic requirements to ensure an efficient and speedy development. The creation of new housing is the riskiest part of a registered provider or housing association’s work, and so it is vitally important that everyone including the developers understand the complexity involved in housing investment appraisal.

As a starter for ten we have outlined what you need to know in order to gain planning consent and the design considerations that an registered providerwill want to see included in your designs:

Design & Quality Standards (currently April 2007)

Understanding the standards set out by the Homes and Communities Agency is key as these standards cover the requirements and recommendations for all new homes that wish to receive a social housing grant. They also define the minimum standards that are expected in return for public funding as well as requirements for enhanced standards that will further improve schemes and make them eligible for additional funding through their value for grant comparator tool.

Housing Quality Indicators

The Housing Quality Indicators system is a measurement and assessment tool to evaluate housing schemes on the basis of quality (unit sizes, space standards etc.) rather than just cost. It incorporates the design standards required of affordable housing providers receiving funding through the National Affordable Housing Programme.

Building for Life (part of Design & Quality Standards so essential for Social Housing Grant)

This is the national standard for well-designed homes and neighbourhoods. Schemes are marked against 20 different criteria in order to promote design excellence and reward best practice in the house building industry. New housing developments are scored against the criteria to assess the quality of their design.

National Housing Federation’s Standards and Quality in development

This is a specification and quality process that covers a range of development issues and contains advice on areas such as the amount and layout of furniture, storage and circulation space; and the cost in use of the home, for both the tenant (energy and water use) and landlord (life cycle costing), as well as how developers can achieve Levels 3 and 4 of the Code for Sustainable Homes.

Lifetime Homes

By 2026, older people will occupy 2.4 million more households than today and many of our homes were not originally designed to meet the changing needs of people as they grow older. In order to tackle this issue the concept of Lifetime Homes was developed in the early 1990s by a group of housing experts. Lifetime Homes are everyday houses that incorporate 16 design considerations and include features such as wheelchair access, easy to reach sockets and accessible showers and baths.

While it is true that some planning policies, such as the London Plan, already require the Lifetime Homes standard in new developments, the Government is still deliberating when it will be mandatory in England to build affordable housing to the Lifetime Homes standard. But with an increasingly ageing population it is clear that more needs to be done.

Have a long term view

The above points all focus on a number of similar issues such as size, space, security, storage, maintenance and living costs, whole life costing and the need to have a balanced approach to tenure. This is by no means a finite list, but it helps to show the high level of design consideration that anyone needs to take into account when developing affordable housing.

Fundamentally, registered providers have a much longer term view than that of many developers and any housing stock taken on by them will become a key asset in their property portfolio. As such these design considerations are vital to future proofing homes and making them suitable for rental by a variety of different tenants with far ranging needs.

This may seem like a lot of hard work to some but the benefits go both ways and by undertaking this upfront, developers find that registered providers can provide great support in the planning process as well as much needed funding to help the developments get off their feet.