There is a mood in government, for example, that housing associations and those that regulate them have taken the money but have been slow to innovate and cooperate. It’s unfair to tar every registered social landlord with the same brush, but the sector still suffers from the Thatcherite dog-eat-dog mentality. Partly as a consequence of this, Prescott is now metaphorically banging heads together – and is bringing the likes of the regional development agencies and English Partnerships into the frame to make sure housing and regeneration go hand in hand. Encouraging prefabrication and targeting development funding at the larger organisations are also part of the step change Prescott wants.
It’s still early days on moves to rebrand the sector, but clearly those leading the exercise feel it’s time to promote a more holistic approach. At the conference, branding guru Wally Olins will today unveil ideas to accentuate the role of housing associations as essential providers of neighbourhood services to everyone, not just tenants (see page 9). As a marketing exercise, this makes good sense, since many housing associations are already providing training, leisure and care facilities, and other services that once upon a time might have been more widely provided for by municipal authorities, churches or even political parties.
The sector still suffers from a Thatcherite dog-eat-dog mentality
Source
Housing Today
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