Winter 2011

INSIDE THIS ISSUE2 Coming soon your new look Points West E-magazine 3-7 Greening Housing in the South West 8 Update on CLG Localism Bill 9 CIH SW Student Winners 10 Women’s Networking Seminar

11 Area News Round-up 12 Torquay Housing Event,April 2011

Greening your organisation, your office, your residents,your staff and your homes

Welcome to the winter 2011 edition of PointsWest.

In this issue we focus on greening the South West.Weshowcase sustainable developments in the region, greenresident involvement initiatives, the green office and discuss the pros and cons of retrofitting.

This is a fitting theme for our final issue of Points West inthis format. In June we will be launching the all new PointsWest e-zine, so we are going green ourselves! No morepaper and printing. But don’t worry you won’t miss out on Points West all members will be emailed with the new Points West e-zine. Full details can be found below.

I would like to congratulate our CIH SW student winners

editorial2who are featured on page 9.As members of the CIH oneof our key roles is to support and encourage those whowish to gain CIH accredited qualifications.These prizesare not awarded lightly, they have done exceptionally wellin their studies.

The CIH Event Committee is now busy finalising arrangements for our biggest event of the year, the annualCIH South West Conference which is being held at ThePalace Hotel in Torquay from 6 – 8 April. Despite the economic situation we are pleased to report that theExhibition is sold out and there are only a few eventplaces left.This is a tribute to the dedicated and hardworking team that makes the event so popular in theregion.

Brian Miller, Editor

Points West Media and PR GroupChristian Blackbeard, Paul Duffy, Norman Emberson,Alan Fox, Brian Miller and Debby Wheatley

Welcome to POINTS WEST Autumn Edit ion

Front cover photo: Flourish Homes new office at Wells artists impression showing the brise solais at the rear of the building.www.cih.org your work is our business

This green issue of Points West gives us the ideal platformto announce that we at CIH SW are going green too.Thisis the final edition of Points West in its current printedformat

In future all members of CIH SW will be receiving aPoints West e-magazine by email, making it a greener andcheaper publication.

The first issue of our new e-magazine will be published in spring 2011 and will carry a full reporton the Housing Event at Torquay in April 2011.

We are also working on a new CIH SW website whichwe are planning to launch at the Torquay Housing Event inApril.This will contain all the information our membersneed to know about the activities of CIH SW - areaevents, committee members, policy debates, seminars,conferences and much, much more.

COMING SOON - A New E-Magazine for allCIH SW Members

CIH South West - Awardfor the most ImprovedHousing ServiceEntries for the CIH South West award to recognisethe most improved housing service in our regionhave now closed.The Committee will be looking atthese entries and announcing the winners at theTorquay Housing Event in April.

The winning organisation will receive a plaquerecognising their success to be held for a year aswell as £1,500 to be spent on the cost of study for astudent on the CIH recognised course in theirorganisation, or tickets to the CIH PresidentialDinner or Regional Conference at Torquay.

“The idea is to identify the most improved service(not, necessarily, the best). Our Committee wantsto reward the effort that colleagues have made inmaking services better for the customers we serve.”Stuart Davies, Chair CIH SW.

POINTSWEST Greener Housing 3

“Energy efficiency is a no-brainer.”Chris Huhne, Secretary of State forEnergy and Climate Change.Last November CIH SW hosted a major conference ongreening homes in the South West. Over 50 delegates attended to learn more about options for greening existinghousing stock in the South West.This is important informationfor housing providers as the future holds a tightening set ofregulations that govern greenhouse gas emissions from newbuildings.The allowable amount of predicted emissions fromheating and electricity use is set to drop to a 44% decrease in2013, and from 2016, all homes will have to be ‘zero carbon’.

Many local planning authorities are enforcing certain levels ofthe Code for Sustainable Homes as part of planning policy.The Code has 6 levels, each with its own mandatory energyperformance, with extra points available for exceeding thisminimum. Code 3 is the most common at the moment, and itsenergy requirement is a 25% improvement over the 2006baseline used in the building regulations. Code 4 requires a44% improvement, Code 5 requires a 100% improvement forheating, lighting and ventilation, and Code 6 requires a truezero carbon home.

Greening Your Organisation A Practice Brief from the Chartered Institute of Housing(CIH) gives housing organisations a starting point for reducingtheir environmental impact.

The guide, supported by Matrix Housing Partnership showshow organisations can gain the commitment of employees toculture change and can engage with residents. Checklists andpractical examples show how to implement quick-win solutions in areas from purchasing office supplies to managingstaff travel and how they can then embed change in everythingthey do.

The practice brief covers a wide range of approaches that youcan adopt to green your organisation, including:

• Buildings - can they be made more energy efficient?

• The ways buildings are used - can we consume fewer resources?

• Operations - can they be run more efficiently, for exampleby making staff travel more efficiently?

• Tenants and residents - how can they contribute?

Find out more at www.cih .org

Speakers at the event included:

Emma Bulmer from the Department of Energy & ClimateChange spoke on the Government’s Green deal which is dueto be launched in Autumn 2012. Emma spoke in broad termsabout the Green Deal and the opportunities social housingproviders will have to get involved and make a real differencein reducing carbon emissions in the UK. She told delegates:

“We need a step jump to meet our carbon targets; howeverthere is no one size fits all solution.” Emma Bulmer.

Other speakers included Abigail Davies, Head of Policy, at theChartered Institute of Housing who told delegated that ashousing accounts for 25% of the UK’s housing emissions,housing matters in tackling climate change.

Andrew Eagles, Head of Sustainable Homes at Hastoe HA andnational social housing sustainability champion for 2010 discussed the pros and cons of retrofitting homes in the UKand the need to engage social housing residents in theprocess.

"We must engage with our residents, asking their opinion andeducating them on the advantages of energy efficient homes -energy efficiency is a decency and quality issue which willimprove the quality of people’s lives.”

Advice on Greening your Organisation from CIH

www.cih.org your work is our business

South West - Greening Our Existing Housing

POINTSWEST The Green Office4

www.cih.org your work is our business

New Sustainable HQ for Flourish HomesThe use of brise solais, a reinforced concrete structure,ground source heat pumps, a rainwater harvesting systemand a green travel plan ensure that Flourish Home’s newoffices at Wells have been designed with sustainability inmind.

The new sustainable HQ of Flourish Homes is dueto be completed in March 2011.

The green factor started with the very initial design of thebuilding - particularly its orientation and shape.The building is oriented on an east-west axis and the whole ofthe south-facing elevation is glazed to enable maximumnatural lighting. Direct sunlight is controlled by the use ofbrise solais.This is designed to minimise direct sunlightdazzling people, thus reducing the need to use the blindsand hence use the lights!

Also, the long and thin shape of the building maximisesthe opportunity for natural ventilation. High and low levelwindows, in conjunction with the building managementsystem, will enable night time purges of the building, thatis the removal of all the accumulated hot air in the summer so that the offices are cool and fresh when staffarrive in the morning.

Alongside this, the building is constructed from a reinforced concrete structure which gives the building areally good thermal mass to keep the building cool insummer and warm in winter.And it has high levels of insulation to help with reducing the heating demands.

Heating for the building will primarily be provided byground source heat pumps, with a back up gas boiler forpeak loads in winter and hot water is provided via solarhot water panels on the roof.There is also a rainwaterharvesting system in the toilets.

The final key element is the introduction of a green travelplan, which aims to reduce single person car journeys byencouraging car sharing, use of public transport andcycling/walking.

'GREEN OFFICEAWARD' for GREENSQUAREGreenSquare has won a top award at the 2010Corporate Green Awards, run by Wiltshire Wildlife Trustfor the housing group’s new HQ at Swindon. BarburyHouse was selected as a winner for its numerous sustainable initiatives.The building was chosen partly forits proximity to public transport and flexible workingallows staff to choose bus times that suit them.

Other initiatives include:

• Green electricity to power the building - PIR is installed throughout and low energy bulbs are fitted wherever possible.

• Offices equipped with second hand furniture and fittings.

• Waste reduction achieved by removing individuals' binsand providing communal bins for paper, plastics, cans,cardboard, and glass to be recycled.

• All reference books, publications, and toys for the customer play area were sourced second hand via charity shops and Amazon.

• Office cleaning undertaken by local provider Ecoclean -whose staff walk to the office.

• Provision of cycle storage to encourage reduction in work mileage by car.

• Incentives for staff travelling to work by bike and car share.

• Reduced business travel by the introduction of video conferencing between other Group offices.

• Recycling of toner cartridges via the group scheme.

"We are making serious efforts to minimise our impact on theenvironment and we are proud of how much we did toachieve exactly that when opening our Swindon headquarterslast year.”David Ashmore, Greensquare Group chief executive

And the financial benefits of the green office……In terms of financial benefits the use of second-hand furniture, and the minimal building modifications savedaround £146,000.The video conferencing is on target tosave 30,000 business miles and £26,000 per year.Theequipment costs for depreciation and maintenance are£10,700 per year; therefore the net cost saved is £17, 000.The mileage saved is equivalent to 8.6 tonnes of CO2 per year.

POINTSWEST Greener Homes 5

www.cih.org your work is our business

Retrofit - Too Expensive or the Way Forward to Reduce CO2 Emissions?More than a quarter of all the UK’s carbon dioxide emissions come from homes and the government plans to cut carbon emissions by 80 per cent by 2050.

To achieve this, many organisations are looking at retrofittinghouses to lower carbon. To meet the targets of a 31% reduction in CO2 by 2020 and 80% by 2050, 25 million existing homes will need to be refurbished to low carbon levels.

Solar Photo Voltaic (PV) TechnologySolar PV technology is particularly well suited to a large scaleroll out by local authorities and housing associations becausethey have access to a large housing stock and low cost finance.They are likely to be able to benefit from the feed-in tariff forits full 25 year life, unlike most homeowners who will moveduring this time. Landlords will be able to secure an additionalincome stream through the generation and export tariffs,whilst occupants will benefit from smaller energy bills or evenfree green electricity.

Plans to retrofit over 25,000 homes in the SW with PV Technology

Advantage South West LLP (ASW), an award winning centralpurchasing body is planning to install PV technology into25,000 social housing homes across the South West of Englandby March 2012.This contract is being awarded in March 2011and is a leading example of a retrofit project in our region.

ASW’s Members recognise that the majority of the housingstock benefits from its location in the South West of England,where the highest levels of output from PV modules providean enhanced opportunity for the applicants to maximise theirreturn.

Advantage South West LLP (Advantage SW) is a limited liability partnership owned by four Registered Providers. It has formed a “central purchasing body” which arranges contracts that Registered Providers and local authorities can access. Seventeen organisations are currently members of Advantage SW.

Retrofitting Homes inNorth DevonNorth Devon Homes (NDH) has retrofitted two universal Pre-Reinforced Concrete properties (PRC) withpoor thermal properties and inadequate heating with agrant from the Energy Action Trust for innovative solutions to energy reduction.

The scheme was designed to PassivHaus standards whichrequired a 10-fold reduction in space heating and considerable reduction in lighting, cooking, hot water andappliance demands for energy and air tightness.

“We used difficult projects so we could accurately assess problems and review the obstacles that needed to be overcome to achieve the PassivHaus standard.This projectacted as a springboard to inform our general replacement programmes and to review costs.”Ed Kennedy, North Devon Homes

Heating and InsulationTraditional models tend to look at replacement cycles tosimilar standards driven by cost constraints.When welooked at this approach it became clear that it was alsoabout sequence of works - if you replace the heatingbefore the insulation you restrict both the type of systemyou can use and also may have to specify a higher performance system to cope with heat loss. If you insulatefirst the opposite is true, the existing heating will also becheaper to run due to the increased insulation.This is awin, win situation as the tenant gets much smaller heatingbills, carbon is reduced and fuel poverty is addressed.

This of course is only part of the picture; better specification of windows, air tightness, control of airchanges and passive system further reduce energy usageat minimal additional cost to the landlord and reducedenergy costs to the resident.The cumulative effects cancome close to PassivHaus standards, just maybe not inone go.

And the results?As a result of this project, NDH have specified substantialupgrades to other PRC properties.This refurbishmentprogramme of 25 units commences in March 2011.Thecosts are well within the predicted costs even with theincreased specification

Property upgrades include:

• increased insulation • high efficiency heating• increased air tightness• high performance windows• controlled ventilation• low energy lighting • photovoltaic panels where suitable• new bathrooms and kitchens with water saving

features, including showers etc.

POINTSWEST Sustainable Development6

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Showcasing Sustainable Development in the South West

New Eco-homes for residents of Exeter CityCouncilIn December 2010 new residents moved into three new eco-homes in Exeter.These are first new council homes for20 years in Exeter. Managed by Exeter City Council, the flatswill be for people over the age of 55 paying social rent, withpriority for those downsizing from larger homes.A further 18homes are due to be completed in May 2011.

The homes achieve level 4 of the Code forSustainable Homes and meet the PassivHaus standard.

Lifetime Homes with Green CredentialsPartly funded by a grant of £195,000 from the Homes andCommunity Agency, all the new homes have been designedand built to meet the stringent PassivHaus standard, so theyare super insulated, air-tight buildings with a mechanical ventilation system with heat recovery.They are draught freeand the incoming air is pre-heated by exchanging the heatfrom the outgoing air.The excellent insulation allows thehomes to be heated by the energy emitted by householdappliances and the people inside, reducing heating bills to aslow as £50 per year.They also feature solar hot water panelson the roof, so residents will also benefit from reduced hotwater bills.

The schemes meet the Lifetime Homes Standard, which supports the growing demand for choice, flexibility and independence among disabled people of all ages; provides highquality and thoughtful housing design for the general population and supports the changing needs of individuals andfamilies at different stages of life.

Advantages of PassivHaus buildings• Homes adopt an inclusive, adaptable design which requires

little to no energy for heating or cooling.

• The health benefit for using PassivHaus is also remarkable since ventilation is provided by quiet mechanical ventilation systems which allow a high quality of fresh air to circulate without opening windows.

• Doors, windows, boilers and other equipment used in PassivHaus will soon be manufactured by UK companies which will make installations cost effective.

Rowan House was designed by ‘green’ architects Gale &Snowden, who have designed only low energy buildings and havewon many awards for their designs.ISG Pearce was the main building contractor.

New Homes on St Agnes

The Solar Shed

Unique Sustainable Homes for the Isles of ScillyCornwall Rural Housing Association has recently completed 5 new sustainable homes on Bryher and St Agnes in the Isles of Scilly.These new homes have been built on land leased from the Duchy of Cornwall and have been designed to fit in with the unique environment of their location.Two new homes have also been built on St Martins.

“The development of these homes is significant in that they are thefirst ever affordable/social housing built on the off-islands of the Islesof Scilly.” Peter Moore, Director, Cornwall Rural Housing Association.

The homes built to Code 3 feature a high level of insulation, solar thermal panels, wood burning stoves with back boilers and rainwater harvesting systems, an important feature as there is a shortage of freshwater on the Isles of Scilly.

The homes on Bryher also feature ‘solar sheds’; this is an innovative solution to solve the problem of not being able to put the solar panels onthe roof.The panels have been placed on a south facing frame in the backgarden with a shed built around them to provide additional external storage for residents.

Osprey Quay, Portland,WeymouthMagna Housing Group based in Dorchester is building 19 new affordablehomes at Osprey Quay on Portland in Weymouth.This is a mixed tenuredevelopment of 2 and 3 bedroom houses and flats built to Code 4.

The homes have been designed by ZeroC Holdings based in Dorchester.The distinctive sustainable feature of this development is a communal biomass district heating system fuelled with wood pellet.The communalsystem will operate by using three central power plants where heat can be distributed around a number of homes.

This was selected as it would reduce carbon emissions and have whole lifebenefits to the residents as it is easy to use and low maintenance. Insteadof filling hoppers each day, residents merely take heat from a district heatmain, and a management company arranges deliveries of fuel into a centralstore.

“Emerging regulations on reducing Co2 from homes means biomassdistrict heating systems will become much more common in the coming years. ZeroC is pleased to spearhead this exciting technology At Osprey Quay.” Kim Slowe, Managing Director ZeroC

POINTSWEST Green Initiatives 7

www.cih.org your work is our business

Green Enterprise in North DevonGrow@Jigsaw is a Big Lottery funded project which isbeing managed by Westcountry Housing.

This ambitious horticultural project has taken six years of hardwork and perseverance to come to fruition. It now has a manager and two full-time members of staff who work at thegreenhouses and outdoor growing areas in Bideford andBarnstaple growing a wide variety of produce for the local community.

The vision of this horticulture project is to support people ontheir journey back to work and social integration. It is now making a great contribution to the individual lives of all whobenefit from it as well as achieving many wider benefits for thewhole community.Around 15 people are helped by the projecteach week, of those approximately 7 are long term volunteersand the rest on shorter term placements.

The vegetables and plants are for sale from the greenhouses inVictoria Park in Bideford, Devon.Veggie bags can also beordered and local businesses such as Café du Parc are regularcustomers. Grow@Jigsaw also has occasional stalls at Bidefordand Barnstaple pannier markets.They also plan to join FarmersMarkets on Bideford Quay this summer.

Cleaner, Greener, SaferAward for WestleaNeighbourhood InitiativeWestlea Housing Association has received a Cleaner,Greener, Safer award from Keep Britain Tidy for itswork in the Hill Rise Area of Chippenham to make it abetter place to live.

Residents are the key decision makers for making improvementsin the area. Using Neighbourhood Action plans, residents meetings and surveys, the residents of the Hill Rise Area nowhave a better perception of where they live and have made manypositive changes to their area making it a better place to live.The more satisfied people are with their neighbourhoods, thebetter equipped they are todeal with other issues likeisolation and finances.Theresidents have also beenworking on sustainable environmental projects likethe recently planted wildlifegarden created on the siteof a fly tipping area.

Westlea residents and staff show off their Keep

Britain Tidy award.

Green ResidentInvolvement Initiatives

A Year in the GardenSynergy Housing has just launched a new resident initiative - A Year in the Garden.This is in response torequests from community groups, children’s centres andthe extended schools service to develop the skills baseand promote community cohesion in areas of recognised need in Purbeck, Dorset.

The project will be based at Lady St Mary First School inWareham engaging between 20 and 30 residents on a regularbasis in the garden, kitchen and computer studio where they canacquire many new life skills that can be used in everyday life andpassed on to generations to come.

Parents working with their children will be learning how togrow fresh vegetables and prepare them using healthy recipeswith the help of local cookery tutor,Tony Gibbons.

Families will be shown how to grow fresh vegetables at homeeven without a garden, re-cycling used tyres, plastic buckets andother items that usually end up in landfill.Also, through workingon the vegetable plot, they will gain an understanding of composting, re-cycling and water conservation, all skills becoming increasingly necessary as our natural resources runout.

Both children and adults will keep a diary of their activities and write a recipe book, improving writing andcommunication skills. Illustrated by the children as partof their art room activities, the diary/recipe book will bepublished at the end of the project.

POINTSWEST Social Housing Reform8

www.cih.org your work is our business

Key areas of the Localism BillRelating to Councils:• Giving councils a general power of competence.• Allowing councils to choose to return to the committee system

of governance and allowing for referendums for elected mayors in certain authorities.

• Abolishing the Standards Board regime and the model code of conduct, and introducing local accountability and a criminal offence of deliberate failure to declare a personal interest in a matter.

• Giving residents the power to instigate local referendums on any local issue and the power to veto excessive council tax increases.

• Allowing councils more discretion over business rate relief.• Providing new powers to help save local facilities and services

threatened with closure, and giving voluntary and community groups the right to challenge local authorities over their services.

Relating to Housing:• Abolish the requirement to have a Home Improvement

Pack.• Reform the Housing Revenue Account system.• Provide for a new form of flexible tenure for social

housing tenants.• Allow local authorities to discharge their duties to home

less people by using private rented accommodation.• Give local authorities the power to limit who can apply

for social housing within their areas.• Abolish the Tenant Services Authority and provide for a

transfer of functions to the Homes and Communities Agency.

• Amend the way in which a social tenant can make a complaint about their landlord

• Improve the ability of social tenants to move to different areas.

Relating to Planning and Regeneration:• Abolish Regional Spatial Strategies.• Abolish the Infrastructure Planning Commission and

return to a position where the Secretary of State takes the final decision on major infrastructure proposals of national importance.

• Amend the Community Infrastructure Levy, which allows councils to charge developers to pay for infrastructure.Some of the revenue will be available for the local community.

• Provide for neighbourhood plans, which would be approved if they received 50% of the votes cast in a referendum.

• Provide for neighbourhood development orders to allow communities to approve development without requiring normal planning consent.

• Give new housing and regeneration powers to the Greater London Authority, while abolishing the London Development Agency.

To keep up-to-date on the Bill’s progress, go to:http://services.parliament.uk/bills/2010-11/localism.html

LOCALISM - PROPOSALS TO REFORM SOCIAL HOUSING

“In November last year the Government announced significant proposals for social housing reform. These,together with the Comprehensive Spending Review(which included the radical changes to housing benefitcovered in an article by Maggie Fitzsimons in the last edition of Points West), have the potential to affect oursector and millions of households for years to come”.Debby Wheatley, CIH SW Media Officer.

The proposals concern the introduction of:• Flexible Tenure with a minimum two year fixed term and tenancy

reviews.• The requirement for a Tenure Policy, with the content prescribed

by Government.• The introduction of Affordable Rents to help finance new homes.• Greater flexibility in terms of access to the housing register and

allocating Social Housing.• Improvements to inter-tenure Mobility, with all social landlords

required to subscribe to a mutual exchange service.• Homelessness Reform aimed at solving current problems caused

by the use of temporary accommodation.• A redefinition of Overcrowding to allow more flexible standards,

together with the abolition of existing powers.

The CIH has published its response to these proposals and, on 25 January, presented evidence to the Government’s Localism BillCommittee. Our response represents a wide range of views frompeople in the housing profession and from all across England.

‘The CIH is open to the idea of reform and would like to see the socialhousing system working better, allowing wider groups of people to accessthe sector. However, in order for reform to work, it must be thoughtthrough, modelled and tested to see that it will work in practice.’

The CIH response:• Supports a flexible approach to tenure, including appropriate fixed

term tenancies, but is concerned that a two year minimum fixed term is too short. Proposals for flexible tenancies do not deal withthe need to create a greater choice of affordable housing options,nor the fact that social housing should not be used as part of a welfare system which people must leave when their lives change.

• Supports a requirement for a tenure policy but would like to see this integrated into wider strategic documents.

• Does not believe the introduction of affordable rents is the right approach to funding new social homes, preferring to see funding for sub-market housing provided by capital rather than revenue subsidy and investment models that work for all areas (since affordable rents are more likely to support development in high value areas like London and the South East).

• Challenges the government’s assertion that restricting access to Housing Registers will improve access to social housing or create more housing options

• Supports the objective to improve tenants’ mobility.• Welcomes homelessness reform but warns that there is unlikely

to be sufficient private sector housing to meet homelessness duties.

• Would like to see overcrowding tackled at regional or sub-regionallevel with local authorities co-ordinating their strategies to deal with it.

Go to: www.cih.org/socialhousingreform/ for the latest housing news:• Consultation response• Summary of the response• On-line survey• CIH press article on Social Housing Reform• CIH briefing on Social Housing Reform

CIH South WestStudent Winners2010- 2011Emma CookeUWE MA Housingand CommunityHousing Renewal,Achievement Award

"I took my first post inHousing in 2008, working asHousing Policy Officer forNorth Somerset Council. Mymanager supported me toapply for the PostgraduateDiploma in Housing at UWEto broaden my knowledge ofthe housing sector. I studied forthe qualification whilst workingfull-time.This was a challenge,but I was supported by myemployers to ensure that I could get the most out of the course.

The course helped me to gain a wide-ranging knowledge of housing issues, allowing me to expand the range of projects I amable to work on at the Council.The knowledge I gained on thecourse has enabled me to take a lead role in the development andproduction of the North Somerset Housing Strategy, work on thedevelopment of an Older People's Strategy for the North SomersetPartnership, and work as Project Co-ordinator on a local regeneration project. I took the option to defer tackling the dissertation year of the course. Having the flexibility to do this hasallowed me to focus on my professional development in the workplace."

Susan TaylorDistance Learning Level 3Certificate, best regionalstudent

“I currently work as a RetirementHousing Manager for Hanover HousingAssociation but started in 2002 as anEstate Manager following 15 yearswith the DWP. I wanted to do theLevel 3 Certificate in Housing to consolidate my knowledge gainedfrom experience and to see if I couldget back into the study habit again,with a view to progressing onto furtherstudy over the next few years. I really enjoyed the course and found distance learning and the support provided very good.”

POINTSWEST Student Winners 2010- 2011 9

www.cih.org your work is our business

Laura YoungUWE Undergraduate Housing Degree,Outstanding Achievement Award

“I have been working in housing for a little under 10 years, five ofwhich have been spent working towards my degree. My time inhousing has varied from inputting housing applications to projectmanaging a countywide CBL system in Wiltshire. Having been supported through my studies by Wiltshire Council I have sincemoved on to work for Abritas, working with local authorities andimplementing IT systems for social housing providers.

I am particularly proud of this achievement as I had my baby girlduring the last year of my studies but continued with my final year;writing my dissertation and undertaking my exams with manysleepless nights, it goes to show that hard work does pay off! “

Laura receiving herdegree certificate

POINTSWEST Women’s Networking10

www.cih.org your work is our business

“Such a relevant and enjoyable day - do it again!”

‘‘It was great to network and share new ideas.”

“An excellent and thoughtful day.”

“This should be an annual event.”These comments from delegates sum up the success ofthe first CIH SW Women’s Networking event held at theWessex Hotel in Bournemouth on January 26. Organisedby Kathie Pearce, Jitinder Takhar and Wendy Murphy theevent attracted over 60 women working in housingacross the South West.

The aim of this unique and innovative event was to

• Refresh and update key professional skills and competencies.

• Inspire and motivate delegates on their career path.

• Provide a first class networking opportunity.

• Enable delegates to hear from high achieving women housing professionals in the South West.

The message for the day to all delegates was“Be confident, reactive and proactive at alltimes… don’t wait for it to happen – MAKEIT HAPPEN!”

Speakers included Anne Elliot, Managing Director of EMSConsulting Ltd,Ann Santry, Chief Executive of theSovereign Housing Group, Jo Savage Director ofCustomer Services at Synergy Housing and JitinderTakhar, Lead Director, Signpost Homes Ltd.

Discussion topics and workshops were wide ranging andincluded recruitment, confidence building, becoming selfemployed, dressing for the occasion, mentoring, speednetworking, taking control of your future career, positiveleadership and the comprehensive spending review.

There was a Question & Answer session in the afternoonfeaturing some of the key speakers, some of the SouthWest’s inspiring and talented senior professionals.Delegates were invited to question the panel about workissues and career progression.

“This was a unique event in the region for women and I amso delighted that we received such positive feedback.TheEvent and Programme overall were rated 100% good/ verygood by delegates. I would like to thank everybody involved inorganising this event. In the future we hope to be able to rollout similar events throughout the CIH regions.”Kathie Pearce, Event organising team

Presentations for this event can be found at:http://www.cih.org/events/seminars/SW-WomensNetworking/presentations

Over 60 delegates attendedfrom across the region.

CIH SW Women’sNetworking event – abig hit with delegates

Event organisers from l to r Wendy Murphy, Kathie Pearce

and Jitinder Takhar.

Gill Marias, stylist/image consultant from Debenhams gives handy tips on dressing for the workplace,

interviews and that meeting!

POINTSWEST At a local level 11

www.cih.org your work is our business

Future EventsCornwall Group24 March - the AGM takes place at Devon & CornwallHousing in Truro with bowling afterwards.

19 May - Extra Care Event, with visits to Miners Court andPassmore Edwards with presentations after each visit.

For further information about Cornwall groupevents please contact Paul Duffy on 01736 334919 or e-mail: p.duffy@penwith.org.uk or Alan Fox

Devon GroupTuesday, 15th March - Devon's AGM takes place from 7.00 pm at the Padbrook Park Hotel, Cullompton.This willbe followed by a buffet and back, by popular demand, a charity horse race in aid of the President's charity.

For further information about Devon group eventsplease contact Tina Fulcher on 0300 123 8080 oremail:Tina.Fulcher@dcha.co.uk

Dorset GroupFor further information on or to make a suggestionfor Dorset group events please contact Brian Milleron 07929 725802 or e-mail:brian@millerfcih.freeserve.co.uk

Somerset and Severnside GroupsFor further information about Somerset andSevernside Group events please contact Phil Sweeton 07789 904 700 or email: phil.sweet@yahoo.co.uk

Wilts & Glos GroupMarch 30th 2011- Wilts and Glos Area Group present theirGrand Designs AGM with a combined visit to ‘The Triangle’one of GreenSquare’s most innovative developments.Thescheme is being developed by Hab Oakus, the sustainableresidential development company spearheaded by KevinMcCloud.This is a joint venture between Kevin McCloud’scompany and GreenSquare Housing Group.(visit www.haboakus.co.uk/triangle for a preview)

For more information on times and venue and to book yourplace contact Angela Wheeler at arwconsulting@lineone.net

For further information about Wilts and Glos groupevents please contact Peter Cooper on 07966 653517 or e-mail:peter.cooper@toucansurf.com

Dorset Group NewsCIH Dorset Area Group MeetingThe CIH Dorset Area meeting was held in Dorchester on 17 February 2011.This was followed by a lively QuestionTime with local Chief Executives.

The annual meeting re-elected Brian Miller and FionaFerenczy as Chair and Secretary respectively and SteveHayes, Chris Meadows, Glyn Perrens, Jitinder Takhar, DebbyWhatmough and Debby Wheatley as the other GroupMembers.

Brian reviewed his year as Chair and reported that TheDorset Housing Quiz, won by Swaythling Housing Societyhad raised £110 for the President’s charity and we had heldtwo very successful events, a seminar on Greening ourHousing and a Women’s Event.

Liz Goodall of North Dorset DC, Nick Harris of Raglan, JoeLogan of Poole Housing Partnership and Graeme Stanley ofSynergy Housing were the Chief Executives who volunteeredto field some extremely topical questions from the audience,ably chaired by Kevin Hodder of East Boro Housing.

The areas debated included the new affordable rent productand how it might work in the South West and whether ornot social housing tenancy should be for life.This provoked avery wide range of opinions from the panel and audiencealike. Other topics included the effect of the Localism Bill onfuture planning decisions, the effect of the economic crisis onhousing and the influence of the banking sector on housingorganisations for the future.

On a more light hearted note, Chief Executives were askedwhat they would do if they were not in Housing and theresponses varied from licensee, cruising around on a Harley,farming, a premier footballer, a teacher, a gardener or a photographer. Guess which was which!

Interestingly they all recommended Housing as a career:Rewarding, interesting, changing, with a real purpose, offeringdiversity, offering a great career of different experiences, apassionate place to be and part of the “total place” concept,providing multi-disciplinary teams with all the services thatpeople need.

Devon Group News

The annual Devon versus Cornwall Ten Pin Bowling eventtook place on 16th November at Trethorne. For the thirdyear running, a member of the Cornwall team took the prize.Devon will need to think up some tactics for this year'sevent. Maybe the ‘winner’ could move to Devon?

Somerset and Severnside group NewsThis local area group has recently been revamped and wouldwelcome new members.

We are pleased to report that the Somerset & SevernsideArea Group has been re-established. Phil Sweet has takenover as Chair, Ian Cory as Vice Chair and Marion Britton asPolicy Officer and Secretary.This revamped group is in theprocess of organising some events to take place during theyear, including a visit to an extra-care housing scheme inApril/May.

They would warmly welcome any members who live and/orwork in the Somerset and Severnside area to join them.Please contact Phil Sweet on 07789 904 700 oremail:phil.sweet@yahoo.co.uk

POINTSWEST The Housing Event12

www.cih.org your work is our business

THESE ARE THE DETAILS OF THE REGIONALCOMMITTEE OFFICERS

Branch Chair Stuart Davies Independent HousingConsultant - 01380 735303 - s.davies173@btinternet.com

Vice Chair,Treasurer Alan Fox Cornwall Rural HousingAssociation - 01208 892005 - alan@crha.org.uk

Immediate Past Chair, Brian Miller Dorset Area GroupChair, Editor Points West - 07929 725802brian@millercih.freeserve.co.uk

Secretary & Regional Council Member Colin McDonaldSouth Somerset District Council - 01935 462331 -colin.mcdonald@southsomerset.gov.uk

Regional Strategy Stuart Palmer Officer Plymouth CityCouncil - 01752 307090 - stuart.palmer@plymouth.gov.uk

Policy Officer Bernie Brannan Swindon Borough Council -01793 464376 bbrannan@swindon.gov.uk

Membership Officer Brian Mattock Retired Member -01793 522540 - brian.mattock@ntlworld.com

Education Officer Ronny Popat & Training Officer SovereignHousing Association - 0117 3170713 - ronny.popat@sovereign.co.uk Council Member

Media Officer Debby Wheatley Magna Housing Group -01305 216055 - debby.wheatley@magna.org.uk

Student Representative Amy Mackay - 07850 923168 amy.mackay@aster.org.uk

COMMITTEE MEMBERS

Julie Barnett Tamar Housing - 01752 250902julie.barnett@tamarhs.org

Christian Blackbeard Wates Living Space - 07880 78289christian.blackbeard@wates.co.uk

Norman Emberson Retired Member - via 024 7685 1732claire.williamson@cih.org

Amanda Meanwell Merlin Housing Society - 01454 821221amanda.meanwell@merlinhs.co.uk

Kathie Pearce KP Housing and Care ltd - 07917 028418housingandcare@btopenworld.com

Angie Rawlins Wiltshire Council - 01225 776655 extn 268angie.rawlins@wiltshire.gov.uk

Nicole Smith Wiltshire Council - 01225 776655 extn 567nicole.smith@wiltshire.gov.uk

Bryony Stevens University of the West of England01173283077 bryony.stevens@uwe.ac.uk

Jitinder Takhar Spectrum Housing Group - 01425 283660jitinder.takhar@spectrumhousing.co.uk

Cornwall Area Paul Duffy - Penwith Housing AssociationGroup Chair - 01736 334919 - p.duffy@penwithha.org.uk

Devon Area Tina Fulcher - Devon and Cornwall HA GroupChair - 01752 229395 tina.fulcher@dcha.co.uk

Severnside/Somerset Phil Sweet - Raglan Housing,phil.sweet@raglan.org - 0117 9709280 Area Group Chair - wkmurphy@blueyonder.co.uk

Wilts & Glos. Peter Cooper - Consultant - 07966 653517Area Group Chair - peter.cooper@pandatown.co.uk

There is a different and interesting flavour to the Housing Eventthis year - but its subject matter stays topical and informative.

It kicks off as usual on Wednesday afternoon with the WestwardHousing sponsored Golf Competition – in aid of the President’sCharity - entry open to all.The Opening Ceremony is somethingrather more lively than in the past and will be by special invitation.

Back to the real nitty gritty of the Event and we see scheduled adifferent pattern of Workshops over the two days - a wide choiceof subjects which get right to the heart of today’s big issues inhousing including Localism with Andy Crowe, a fascinating insightinto rehab offenders and their housing needs from BobbyCummines of Unlock, and Co-Housing by Dr Martin Field. In allthere is a choice of 18 different Workshops over the two days ofthe Event.

If you wish to attend visit www.swhousingevent.co.uk to view theOptions or book a place, or contact Sadie Tearle by Email onsadie@swhousingevent.co.uk or telephone on 01273 475451

STOP PRESSMichael Portillo to give keynote address on Friday 8 April and Alex Morton from the PolicyExchange who wrote the famous paper - MakingHousing Affordable on Thursday 7 April.

The Shadow Housing Minister Alison Seabeck is centre star of aglittering list of Keynote Speakers, scheduled for the CIH SouthWest Housing Event - as always at the Palace Hotel in Torquay -taking place on the 6/7/8th April 2011.

Outspoken and honest Alison, MP for Plymouth Moor View is achampion of social housing, and a fervent campaigner for tenant’s rights. Her Keynote slot on Friday 8th April has alreadyattracted massive delegate interest, and she is certain to beaddressing a packed house.

This Event in 2010 was an attendance record breaker and,despite current financial constraints, delegate bookings arehigh and the Exhibition is sold out with a waiting list.

“We have over 400 booked in forThursday and close to that for theFriday - so given the past history ofbooking patterns we’re going to getvery close to the 2010 attendance figures. It’s a new look programmewith some great Keynotes and Workshops.We in the South West tryto improve the Event each year to keep it fresh - and we are realvalue for money, which is especially important when we’re all feelingthe pinch.” Sadie Tearle, Event Organiser.

THE HOUSING EVENT APRIL 2011CIH South West’s Flagship Conference -Looking Good