David Curtis

1. David Curtis HCA Executive Director – North East, Yorkshire and The Humber Spring Conference, Barnsley 2012

2. ACES National Spring Conference 10 May 2012 David Curtis Executive Director, North East, Yorkshire and the Humber

3. Overview • HCA purpose • Our role in delivering the Housing Strategy • Working with partners and communities • Key messages

4. HCA’s purpose “The purpose of the HCA is to contribute to economic growth by helping communities to realise their aspirations for prosperity and to deliver quality housing that people can afford” • Contribute to economic growth • Help to deliver the Government’s ambitions to build up to 170,000 new affordable homes, upgrade existing homes, and assist first time buyers • Work with partners, effectively targeting our investment and support at their identified priorities • Use our enabling expertise to add value to our investment when meeting local needs • Make the best use of public assets to benefit communities

5. Current delivery context • Limited public funding • Localism • Focus on growth • Housing Strategy: Laying the Foundations • Government city deals

6. The HCA role We are the people who help get things done… • Working with people and places to enable them to deliver homes, economic growth and jobs • Delivering programmes ofinvestment • Making best use of our land and that of government/ other public bodies • Undertaking robust economicregulationof social housing providers HCA Purpose: to contribute to economic growth by helping communities to realise their aspirations for prosperity and to deliver quality housing that people can afford

7. Delivering the Housing Strategy • Get Britain Building - managing new fund of £570m to unlock stalled sites • Allocation of £2.2bn through the AHP; 170,000 new affordable homes through all HCA investment • Funding and expertise to help communities deliver the homes they need - Guidance for community-led developments to access AHP • FirstBuy - helping nearly 10,500 first time buyers to own their own home • Accelerating disposal of our land assets and help to other Government departments to do the same • Identifying two sites where local authorities will be invited to participate in Land Auction pilots • Supporting custom build projects • £150m to bring empty homes back into use • Making sites available for private rent

8. Our investment role:Affordable Homes Programme 2011-15 • £4.5bn (£2.3bn existing commitments) • Meeting locally identified needs • FirstBuy support for c.10,000 FTBs access affordable home ownership “Helping deliver the Government’s ambition to build up to 170,000 new high quality affordable homes by 2015”

9. Affordable Homes – supported housing 2011-15 • Travellers’ Pitches • £47m allocated nationally 2012-15 • In the North: 209 new pitches and 109 refurbished pitches/amenity blocks • £13m for additional allocations nationally • Homelessness Change • £10.8m (407 bedspaces) • Mortgage Rescue • Product is demand led based on LA priority need basis

10. Our investment role:Decent Homes and Existing Stock • HCA managing £2.1bn programme of investment in Decent Homes • HCA managing approval process for PFI projects in procurement (new build, DH and estate regeneration) • HCA enabling support for councils to achieve quick and cost-effective delivery • Empty homes • £100m national funding over 2011/15 including £10-30m managed by external organisation for community groups • Bringing around 5,600 empty homes back into productive use • PLUS £50m to tackle clusters of empty homes • HMR Transition Funding November 2011

11. Get Britain Building • Total funding £570m (includes £150m announced by Prime Minister 19 March) • Aim to deliver over 15,000 new homes on previously stalled sites • Mix of equity and loan support • Initial 18 ‘Commissioned’ schemes: anticipate 1,300 new homes • 224 schemes shortlisted via ‘Competition’ stage subject to due diligence

12. Putting communities in charge • HCA supporting community-led responses to • Housing need e.g. Lyvennet Community Trust • Economic development e.g. High Bickington Community Property Trust • Estate regeneration e.g. Byker Community Trust • AHP: simplified processes and procedures for community-led projects and access to AHP funding • Enabling and sign-posting: • Improving access to information and expertise • HCA community-led champions • Working with LAs and RPs to explore community-led opportunities and share best-practice

13. Our investment role:Land and regeneration • HCA land development and disposal plan will deliver 11,000 new homes by 2015 • Accelerated disposal • Pioneering “Build Now, Pay Later” approach of deferred payment • Making best use of HCA and other public land • Existing P&R commitments • Technical support to government departments • Significant major regeneration commitments/coalfields legacy to complete • Economic Assets Programme working with LAs to secure local economic development “We play a key role in Governments ambition to make the best use of public land to benefit communities”

14. Economic Assets • Over 300 sites transferred on 19 September 2011 – value of £300m • Nationally important sites – Enterprise Zones • Aim to rebalance the economies of the North through support for the government’s economic & housing growth agenda • Use assets to maximise commercial return & economic outputs & outcomes • Achieve alignment of Local Enterprise Partnerships with focus on Enterprise Zones to maximise opportunities for economic growth • Completion of existing projects • Achieve financially balanced business plans • Through stewardship groupings broadly on old RDA geographies: robust challenge mechanism & partnership working

15. Our regulation role • Responsibility for the regulation of social housing providers in England • Regulatory activity discharged through independent Regulation Committee and new regulatory Framework • Our focus will be on governance, financial viability and value for money as the basis of robust economic regulation of Private Registered Providers “We will be robust and transparent in our regulation, maintaining lender confidence and protecting taxpayers”

16. HCA engagement with LEPs • HCA is working with LEPs that identify housing, land and regeneration as growth priorities and is: • Supporting local partners bidding for the £2.4bn Regional Growth Funding (now in round 3) • Supporting local partners in delivering Enterprise Zones • Advising local partners on the use of revolving investment funds to maximise benefits from Growing Places Fund infrastructure investment (inc’d to £730m for England in Budget 2012) • Aligning EAP assets with local development strategies – jobs, enterprise, skills and technology development as well as RGF, EZs, GPF etc • Working with Core Cities (not always equating with LEPs) in finalising housing and regeneration aspects of their City Deals Guidance note published January 2012

17. LEPs and EZs map The LEP Network: www.lepnetwork.co.uk LEP Start-up fund £5 million in 2011-12 one-off start-up fund (BIS) LEP Capacity fund £4 million over four years to build capacity (BIS)

18. HCA engagement with Core Cities HCA has been: • Ensuring continued and strengthened Director level engagement with each City and LEP – to help meet local ambitions and opportunities with the City Deal • Continuing to provide the technical support needed to drive delivery • Exploring where existing tools can reflect individual aspirations and ‘asks and offers’ • Working to develop ‘asks and offers’ and developing a forum for joint discussions – to build on areas of common interest

19. Conclusions • HCA’s work with local partners key to delivering Government’s objectives on localism, growth and regulation • Significant current opportunities • Affordable homes • Public land disposal • Economic assets • Enterprise Zones • … to use public assets and investment to attract private investment in housing and infrastructure • HCA can help local authorities to deliver their communities’ local priorities

20. homesandcommunities.co.uk

21. David Curtis HCA Executive Director – North East, Yorkshire and The Humber Spring Conference, Barnsley 2012