The housing sector has long been characterised by change - never more so than now with a fragile economy, a new regulatory body, and housing benefit reform. One man with a rare and valuable overview of the changing face of social housing is Steve Cook. From his early days as Trainee Housing Manager in local government to his role as Chief Executive of Havebury Housing, Steve shares his 43-year perspective on the developing sector with Catalyst Editor Lesley Griffiths.

What inspired your career in housing?

‘Cathy Come Home’ is the simple answer. In 1966 I sat down to watch Ken Loach’s film and I realised my aim in life - it was people and communities. That film was seminal, without it we wouldn’t have the homelessness legislation we have today.

What was your early experience of the housing sector?

I worked for mostly rural councils before joining St Edmundsbury at Haverhill - here was quite a different mix of social housing issues. Haverhill was a first generation Expanded Town and in the 60s, with heavy industry moving out of London, convoys of people came with the promise of “new town, new home, new job”. But, by 1977 the economic tide was turning and 75% of properties were council-owned, creating a massive imbalance in demography and tenure. Employment was a big issue with most jobs unskilled or semi-skilled. After the Cotswolds, where it could take 10 years to get a house, I could now house an engaged couple on the estate of their choice, in the road of their choice and probably even the house of their choice 6 weeks before the wedding! Expanded Towns provided new leisure facilities and schools but there were no jobs to hold people there.

What impact did this move have on your developing leadership?

Tackling such a wide range of issues really embedded me into management and my next role, Chief Housing Officer at Bury St Edmunds, changed the dynamics of my thinking even further. Once I became Director of Environmental Health and Housing I had a whole new context to consider and I was able to make the fundamental link between the housing and health agendas.

How did Havebury come into being?

In the '90s there was a funding gap which the council couldn’t fill simply by the sale of assets. Something needed to be done that was in the best interests of the tenants. We explored stock transfer options and in 2002 Havebury came into being. This new organisation with totally different dynamics required careful management of the complex relationships with tenants, agencies, and external consultants for a seamless transition. Without political posturing, the Board could make rapid decisions and totally focus on housing, housing services and communities.

Over the years, which sector changes do you consider the most significant?

I’ve been lucky enough to work on the Chartered Institute of Housing’s National Council and I gained a broad perspective on changing social housing dynamics, structure, government policy, funding and so on. Right to Buy was a key moment in people’s perception of social housing. Aspirations change when people own their property as opposed to renting. Moving away from monolithic council estates enriched the tenure automatically. It was predicated that the capital receipts would be used to build more housing, but it didn’t happen at the promised rate and that has contributed to difficulties over the years - for rural communities in particular where the loss of affordable housing has  resulted in migration from villages to towns. The social outcomes were not thought through.

In the mid-80s things changed again with the introduction of mixed funding and changes in housing finance. That kicked off Stock Transfers with the result that there is now more stock with housing associations than with councils.

Has the rate of change altered over the years and through recession?

Over the past few years the demand has risen well beyond our ability to provide new housing, whilst incomes have failed to rise at the same pace, so it’s been about delivery, delivery, delivery. Then the dynamic of the credit crunch crashes in, creating a very delicate balancing act for Government in trying to stimulate the housing market and create the homes people desperately need. There are also issues that recur, albeit rebadged and rebranded; Shared Ownership is coming around again, for instance - it’s never going to be a panacea because demand will always outstrip supply, but the challenge is always to make the best of it for your tenants and the organisation.

Has regulation become increasingly burdensome?

We are, to an extent, public funded so quite rightly there’s a regulatory regime. As a sector, I feel we’ve done a reasonable job over the years, but we’re in an interregnum at the moment as the Tenants Services Authority gets to grips with what regulation might look like in the future. Hopefully that system will have the right checks and balances to ensure housing associations are well governed, financially viable, and, most importantly, deliver for the tenants. There is a danger of them being over-prescriptive, but it’s about managing the relationship with the regulator.

How will customer expectations change over the next five years or so?

Expectations have risen considerably over the last twenty years and tenants have higher aspirations now in terms of amenities in their homes and neighbourhoods. We’re getting better at delivering choice but we need to do some smart thinking about the changes we need for the future - for instance, how much consideration do we need to give to environmental solutions?

How far does customer expectation reflect wider community issues?

It is growing as people engage with us. If we’re smart we bring in those wider issues - health, employment, skills etc. It’s a broader agenda now and we can add capacity and value. We want to provide life opportunities, facilitate things that help build people’s confidence and skills.

What are the potential pitfalls for housing leaders currently?

Some leaders may want to take short term advantage of the housing market, but there is quite a strong risk of making bad investments. We need to be alert, be aware of our operating environment and listen to our tenants

What is your best leadership advice?

Listen. Of all the features we have on our face we tend to use our ears the least! Be flexible and ready to seize opportunities - they are always around, even in the current negative environment. Someone once told me to ‘think outside the box’ - my immediate response was, ‘what box?’ The Housing sector tends to be introverted - we don’t learn from others as well as we could. We’re just picking up on customer profiling and market intelligence, learning more about who our customers  are and what they need so that we can deliver the right service.

© Caret, 2010. All Rights Reserved

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