LOCARLA

Monthly UK Social Housing Update – Jan. 2025

Well, that backfired spectacularly! We thought that getting a guest editor in for the last Monthly Briefing of the year would be a good idea, in retrospect, it wasn’t. Rest assured; we won’t be doing that again.

Due to the odious slandering, you might have been given the impression that we did not fully support the new president of the United States. Nothing could be further from the truth. Our donation of £23.50 to Trumps inauguration fund should ally any fears and, for the record, we fully support Americas purchase of the Channel Islands and Eastbourne.

In other news we will no longer be fact checking any of the data on www.locarla.com.

As is tradition, I cancelled Christmas for the staff to allow us to crack on and get some work done without clients bothering us. We have updated the Housing, Finance & TSM data in the Housing section, moved some stuff and removed other stuff. More about that below.

Happy New Year everyone, we certainly hope it’s a good one, but if it isn’t, rejoice in the fact that you’re not David. Whilst eating Christmas dinner David was shown a mobile photo of his daughter. Being slightly miffed that she had cancelled with two hour’s notice, David made a disparaging comment about her hair.
“Hello Dad” she said, on the video call.

Let’s all try and be nice.

Note to my team. My door is always open, the lock has broken. Please don’t come in.

‘Blue links‘ for all & ‘green links‘ for our beautiful clients, including…

All hail the new map!

A reminder that we have added full Profiles, Property Data & Contract Data to the Locarla Map

It’s all News to me!

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The Wrekin Housing Group and Housing Plus Group have merged, forming one of the largest social housing providers in the West Midlands, with 33,000 homes across Shropshire, Staffordshire, and Telford & Wrekin. Source: Housing Plus Group. Abri has partnered with Octavia Housing, which will operate as a separate entity under Abri until fully transitioning in 2025. Source: Abri. Coastal Housing and RHA Wales have merged to form Beacon Cymru, enhancing their community impact and innovation. Source: Beacon Cymru. Metropolitan Thames Valley Housing (MTVH) has restructured, making the Metropolitan Housing Trust the parent company and Thames Valley Housing Association a subsidiary. Source: S&P Global

Eastlight Community Homes, a resident-led housing association, has acquired 128 homes in Essex from L&Q. Source: Eastlight Community Homes. Meanwhile, Bristol City Council has proposed a mass council house sell-off, with plans to sell over 1,200 homes and withdraw from two deals with its housing company. Source: Bristol Live

Wheatley Homes Glasgow will invest £156m over three years to upgrade properties and transform neighbourhoods citywide. Source: Glasgow Times. Social housing provider Thirteen Group has obtained £30m from NatWest to support a major project across its North East property portfolio. Source: Business Live. bLEND Funding Plc has facilitated a 20-year, £20m bond financing for Acis Group at a competitive rate through The Housing Finance Corporation. Source: THFC

Notting Hill Genesis plans to expand its tier one repair contractors to eight firms, marking a strategic shift in delivery. Source: Construction Enquirer. Lewisham Council has signalled plans to procure a contractor-developer for a decade-long partnership to deliver a pipeline of schemes, with formal tendering expected in February. Source: Construction News. Fortem and Equans are competing to retain their roles in a £3bn maintenance deal for Birmingham City Council housing stock. Source: Construction Enquirer

Vistry and Citizen are set to deliver 608 homes in Coventry’s Eastern Green, with half provided through a joint venture. Source: Vistry Group. Lambeth Council is seeking a partner to build 450 new affordable homes. Source: Lambeth London Borough. Lastly, Places for People has partnered with Rother DC Housing Company to deliver 130 affordable homes in Battle as part of a 200-home project. Source: Sussex World

As of November 2024, 4,998 residential buildings 11 meters or taller with unsafe cladding are under remediation, a rise of 164 since October. Source: GOV.UK. While construction contract awards fell for the second month in November, data centers are expected to drive sector growth in 2025. Source: Construction Enquirer. However, project starts and main contract awards showed strong gains compared to the preceding three months and last year. Source: Construction News. Deliveries of construction materials like bricks and blocks increased significantly in November 2024, with bricks up 28.4% and blocks up 13.7% year-on-year. Source: GOV.UK

Northern developers Placefirst and Strata have launched a joint venture to build hundreds of family homes using modern construction methods. Source: Business Live

Insolvencies in the construction sector have topped 4,000 for the year, marking a continuing trend of financial distress in the industry, with more insolvencies than any other sector. Source: Construction News. Construction company administrations halved in December, dropping to 15 from 30 in November, signalling a softer end to 2024, per Creditsafe data. Source: Construction News. Modular housebuilder Connect Modular has entered administration, leading to the loss of dozens of jobs. Source: Scottish Construction Now. Additionally, residential developer Sheen Lane Developments is also heading for administration. Source: Construction Enquirer

The government has scrapped plans to ban gas boilers by 2035 under the ‘Future Homes Standard.’ Source: The Guardian. Additionally, BSRIA reports 20% of UK homes are poorly insulated. Source: Specification Online. The UK government has introduced new council powers to accelerate housebuilding and infrastructure. Source: GOV.UK. A 10-year rent settlement could generate £72bn for social landlords over 30 years, compared to £37bn under the proposed five-year plan. Source: Housing Today

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Housing Table Data Updates

Build Table Update

Data updated (mainly Housing Stock and Construction) ‐ 67 fields
New fields added ‐ 46
Fields Removed ‐ 8
Total fields in Build Table ‐ 330

Show me the money!

A PDF guide to contract management on Locarla.

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The UK social housing sector is currently witnessing several significant tender opportunities aimed at improving housing stock, energy efficiency, and maintenance services. Birmingham City Council leads with a massive £2.98bn contract for Responsive Repairs and Maintenance Services over a 10-year period. Additionally, Fusion21 is offering a £1.5bn Decarbonisation Framework to reduce carbon emissions across residential and public buildings, split into two lots focusing on whole-house decarbonisation and upgrades to public and educational facilities. Notting Hill Genesis is procuring a £1.5bn framework to deliver essential Repairs and Maintenance Services across Greater London. Similarly, Procure Plus Holdings Ltd is introducing a £614.4m for Planned Installation and Repair Works DPS in the Midlands, primarily for social housing Sector. Procurement for Housing (PfH) is focusing on sustainability with a £500m Retrofit Works & Delivery Framework to improve energy efficiency through heating upgrades, insulation, and electrical works.

In the realm of new builds, Plus Dane Housing is establishing a £475m Contractors Framework for constructing affordable housing across its JV North members. Meanwhile, Dacorum Borough Council seeks a service provider for a £395.4m contract covering Responsive Repairs, Cyclical Maintenance, and General Build Services. Riverside Group is launching a £50m framework for Fire Safety and Remedial Works across its properties to meet compliance standards. Other notable tenders include Camden Council’s £34.3m contract for Grounds Maintenance and Play Services and Swindon Borough Council’s £28.5m Framework for Ad-Hoc Repair Works across its 10,500 properties. The Highland Council is focusing on Energy Efficiency Framework with a £25m to enhance building performance through upgrades in heating, ventilation, and renewable energy solutions. VIVID is procuring an £11.8m contract for Responsive Roofing Repairs, covering various roof types and structures. Finally, North Ayrshire Council is introducing an £11.1m Measured Term Contract to Upgrade Central Heating and Electrical Systems in domestic properties, ensuring compliance with Scottish Housing Quality Standards.

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The Other League Tables

Along with our main monthly league tables, ❲see below❳, we also produce tables based on the following trades: Retrofit, Asbestos Survey, Fire Risk Assessment, Water/Legionella & Stock Condition Survey. ❲Clients, click here for the PDF❳

Top of the league in each table are ….

Retrofit: Wates Living Space
Asbestos Survey: Acorn Analytical Services (UK)
Fire Risk Assessment: Pennington Choices
Stock Condition Surveys: Savills (UK)
Water / Legionella: Aquatrust Water & Ventilation

December League Tables

All Trades

The trades we cover; Responsive Repair, Planned Works (Kitchen/Bathrooms, Doors/Windows), Gas Servicing/Central Heating, Voids, Fire Safety & Roofing.