11 March 2005
Private developers and other bodies that get the go-ahead to join a £200m social housing programme will automatically be permitted to compete with registered social landlords for larger grants later this year, the Housing Corporation has confirmed.
A total of 171 organisations have expressed interest in the corporation's pilot programme for non-RSLs, which gets under way this month, although the number of potential bidders is likely to be significantly smaller by the time second-round bids are invited in May.
Jon Rouse, the corporation's chief executive, said organisations completing a pre-qualification process for the pilot would also be considered for the 2006/08 approved development programme (ADP) from this autumn.
Housing associations received £3.3bn through the ADP in 2004/06 to build more than 67,000 homes. No figure has been announced for 2006/08, but Rouse said the corporation was looking forward to using 'our widest ever choice of suppliers'.
Developers and other bodies told the corporation they hoped to build about 150,000 homes through the pilot scheme, but it is unlikely that £200m will stretch to more than 4,000 properties. Most expressions of interest were for developments of fewer than 1,000 homes in London, the Southeast and East England.
Although the corporation would prefer non-RSLs to transfer ownership of the homes to a housing association before tenants move in, just 22% of expressions of interest were by partnerships led by an RSL.
Under a new housing management accreditation scheme, developers and other bodies that retain ownership of properties built with public grant will have to demonstrate cost-effectiveness and careful risk management as well as facing regular performance reviews.
But the National Housing Federation remains angry that its members will have to compete with non-RSLs, claiming the pilot should be evaluated before any promises are made about future ADPs.
'We don't feel that non-registered bodies should get an easier ride than registered housing associations,' said NHF policy leader Nick Powell.
More than 200 housing associations, meanwhile, have been told they are of low risk and will face lighter regulation from April.
The reduction in regulation for low and medium-risk RSLs coincides with the cuts in corporation staff as part of the Gershon Review.
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