From the Chief Executive: Why housing (and the country) needs a new Lord Beaverbrook
After work last Friday, I went to the Pier Head Tavern. Upon arrival I ordered two pints in the style of Jack and Victor from Still Game. That’s because there were only two of us in the, normally bustling, bar. Why was it so quiet? Yet again the ferries to Arran were off. Waiting for […]
‘It’s easy to see housing as a merry-go-round of policy’
As Janis Bright calls it a day as HQN’s lead researcher, she reflects on some of the key housing moments over the past 40 years and the lessons that can be learned. At the end of riotous film Burn After Reading a nonplussed CIA director asks: “What did we learn?” Of course, […]
The last word
Social media is in decline – it’s time for HAs to step up in the digital sphere By Hannah Fearn, freelance journalist specialising in social affairs Have you stopped using social media? People everywhere are breaking up with their smartphones and falling out of love with social networks. From apps that block access […]
Housing in Practice: Viewing social housing from a different angle
In the latest in our Housing in Practice series, Neil Merrick reports on a local authority that places design at the heart of its housebuilding programme. The tenant’s story When Glenda moved into her new council home about two years ago, she vowed that she would stay there for the rest of her life. […]
Ombudsman Corner
By Richard Blakeway, the Housing Ombudsman Compensation is an emotive topic. It’s also a cultural issue. When times are hard and budgets tight this can drive the wrong behaviours. It can result in residents expecting unrealistic redress for failings. Or organisations being reluctant to compensate. Compensation can also be hard to […]
A life in 15 questions
Lewis Kinch Housing Engagement Lead, HQN 1 What do you do for fun? Are you implying that working in housing isn’t fun in itself? I love cycling, and have done since I was 11. I used to do a lot of mountain biking until I broke my collarbone and shoulder blade in […]
A life in 15 questions
Donna Cezair Chief Executive, Worthing Homes 1 What do you do for fun? Socialising with friends, travel, theatre, concerts and regular kitchen discos! 2 You have the power to change one thing about social housing: what would it be? Find a way to make sure every home has cheap and effective heating […]
Stock transfers – what to expect in 2026 and beyond
By Charlotte Sawyer and Elad Yasdi, partners in the Real Estate and Projects Team at Devonshires A ‘perfect storm’ of economic and compliance challenges for the social housing sector has resulted in a high volume of stock rationalisation activity and registered providers (RPs) are continuing to rebalance portfolios. Yet from this […]
The work the sector needs is too important for resolutions
By Rob Gershon, Associate, HQN Fresh from my ad-hoc, alphabetical Social Housing Advent Calendar and its critical friendship and quiet annoyance about Christmas at the end of last year, I find myself stood on the cusp of yet another ‘New’ Year. I’m not making any resolutions. It’s 2026 and I’m still […]
Housing in Practice extra: Building for the future: How one council is reshaping its housing delivery
Fay Yeomans looks at how East Riding of Yorkshire Council is overcoming political and economic obstacles to ramp up the delivery of new homes. Over the past seven years, East Riding of Yorkshire Council has been rethinking how it delivers affordable homes across one of England’s largest unitary authorities. Covering around 950 square miles, […]