Housing associations to swap homes

Aug. 23, 2011 - PRLog -- With government changes to housing policy, rents, tenures and welfare benefits as well as the current economic climate, the deal is part of an overall strategy to focus on more localised areas creating more funds for investment in local communities and building new homes.

The associations, which together own more than 40,000 homes, aim to retain the size of their operations but make services more cost-effective.

If the swap goes ahead, Knightstone Housing Association will take on the ownership and management of 641 homes in Somerset from Sovereign South+West. Knightstone is already one of the largest and most dynamic associations in the county.

In return, Sovereign will take the ownership and management of 719 Knightstone homes in Swindon and Wiltshire, where it already has a significant number of homes and a very active development programme.

Nick Horne, chief executive of Knightstone Housing explained how the move was part of Knightstone’s plan to concentrate its services across fewer local authorities.

He said: “These planned property swaps are part of a package of bold changes that will transform what we do, how we do it and where we do it. By acting now and making these changes in a planned way over the next two years we will make sure we’re able to continue building and sustaining strong communities and doing what matters most to our residents.

“We’re both committed to providing an excellent service to our customers and through our local presence in each area we can assure residents from both organisations that they’ll continue to receive great service.

“Our goal is to make a real difference in our communities and invest more in supporting neighbourhoods so they are places where people continue to want to live. This first stock swap will help us achieve just that.”

Heather Bowman, managing director of Sovereign South+West, said: “Knightstone has a strong presence in Somerset, and we are confident that the proposed transfer to Knightstone will lead to a more responsive service.

“Similarly, we can assure Knightstone residents in Swindon and Wiltshire that they will receive a quicker and more local service because we are more embedded in the community here.

“The proposed stock swap and the more local service it provides will result in efficiencies for both businesses, and is a sign of how housing associations are tackling the current funding climate. The savings that are generated by this move will be reinvested into delivering improved services for residents and providing more high-quality affordable homes.”

Knightstone and Sovereign are formally consulting with their residents affected by this potential transfer and are expecting to conclude this by mid-November.