And, thank God, certainly not the comprehensive Christmas review.
It's a story. Like most stories it's about people and the things that happen to them. For those who work in housing, it's a story with particular impact: it begins with a homeless family and moves rapidly on to them seeking asylum in Egypt.
We need stories because they bring us back to the human dimension. Most of us got into this sector because of the human dimension: we reckon people matter and seeing that they have somewhere decent to live matters too.
Many years ago a former council housing director told me of an experience one Christmas Eve. Long after office hours, he received a knock on his home's front door. He found a homeless couple on the step. He got them accommodation. He learned to appreciate how the Christmas story related to his work in a deeper way.
Void levels matter because they represent missed opportunities to house those in need. Arrears matter because they reduce the resources available to spend on people's homes. Development programmes exist to allow us to offer more appropriate homes.
A few weeks ago I took part in the launch of Housing Justice, a homelessness charity, in my capacity as chair (HT 5 December, page 9). We heard an excellent sermon from the Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, and even managed a decent photocall involving archbishops, children and cans of spray-paint. But my memories of the day have at their heart two human stories.
Inside the church our staff had managed to get hold of one of the first couples to receive help from the Catholic Housing Aid Society 40 years ago. A small sum of money enabled them to put down a deposit and purchase a property so that they could move out of unsuitable housing. Now happy and fulfilled, they are living witness to the impact that one of our founding organisations has had on people's lives.
Funders need statistical returns to show how many thousands have been assisted by church housing advice centres: I need to see the outcomes in human form.
Outside the church the show was stolen by a completely uninvited but very welcome guest – a rough sleeper called TJ. He was photographed emerging from his blanket to shake hands with Cardinal Cormac Murphy O'Connor, against a backdrop of the comment he had sprayed and signed on the graffiti board.
The words he had written read: "Homes for All". In the depths of committee meetings to come, when budget figures and policy positions make my head spin, I hope I'll remember him. I pray his story has many years to run.
If we don't have stories then we lose sight of what we're here for. We get lost in business processes that are the means – and only the means – to an end.
So let me offer you a little present. Take five minutes today to remember one person or family whose life you have influenced to the good through your involvement in housing. If your manager complains, tell them you are undertaking vital in-service training at my request. When you get back to work, you will take the story with you and be better for it.
If you'd like to send me a present in return, then www.housingjustice.org.uk will let you know how to make donations. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
Source
Housing Today
Postscript
Rt Rev David Walker is the bishop of Dudley and a member of the government policy action team on housing management
No comments yet