Our Chief Executive, Kevin Rodgers, is part of the NHF’s Great Places Commission

The Great Places programme is an initiative set up by the National Housing Federation (NHF) in March 2018.

It seeks to understand what makes a place great and consider how housing associations can work with the government and other partners to create thriving and successful places.

The work was led by the Great Places Commission, a group of 12 leaders from across the sector, including our Chief Executive, Kevin Rodgers.

The Commission have now produced a final report which includes a number of case studies from their visits around the Midlands and the North, and gives their ten recommendations on how to create great places.

These visits included a visit to our regeneration work at Spirit Quarters and our forthcoming plans for Spon End in Coventry.

Our Chief Executive, Kevin Rodgers, says: “As Citizen, we will continue to have an ambitious development programme so that we can help more people who need a good-quality new home.

“It’s really important that as well as new developments we keep our 30,000 homes and tens of thousands of residents who deserve a good home, forefront of mind.

“This is why I joined the NHF’s Great Places Commission.

“For too long, regeneration hasn’t been given the attention that it deserves. But now, we’re seeing a change – there is a growing cross-party consensus that something has to be done.

 “I’m proud to be part of the commission and our site visits across the North and the Midlands were fantastic examples of successful regeneration projects with proud people and vibrant communities.

“There were also places that felt left behind or that missed out when government priorities and the economy changed. Creating great places requires significant investment, bold leadership and a long-term vision.

“That is what we are trying to achieve with our regeneration ambitions at Citizen. We have to be prepared to throw ourselves headfirst into investing in projects from which we will see no return, simply because it is the right thing to do.”

Some of the recommendations set out in the NHF’s Great Places Commission report includes:

• £10bn of government investment in regeneration over the next decade
• Mandatory good design standards for all new development, including homes and wider placemaking
• A mandatory national private landlord register, which will help local councils to tackle rogue landlords and drive up standards where necessary
• Housing associations and other anchor institutions should commit to asset-based community development, using their local clout to work with communities and support local people
• Housing associations should review their policies on property sales and transfers to ensure the best outcomes for communities
• Housing associations should support community benefits through their procurement, spending their money in ways which support local businesses and communities

You can find out more about the NHF’s Great Places Commission and access their final report here.

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