Corporate Plan 2012/13 – 2014/15

Contents

Corporate planpages 3-10

Key Taskspages 11-13

Map of operationsAppendix A (page 14)

Three year financial projectionsAppendix B (pages 15-18)

Members of Board and SMTAppendix C (pages 19-21)

Organisational ChartAppendix D (page 22)

Cynon Taf Community Housing Group

Corporate Plan 2012/13 – 2014/15

Introduction

Cynon Taf Community Housing (2007) Limited was formed in January 2008 from the amalgamation of Cynon-Tâf and Pontypridd and District Housing Associations. The Association works throughout the east (CynonValley) and south (Taff Ely) of the County of Rhondda Cynon Taff. At 31st March 2012, the Group has 1,850 homes in management.

A map showing the stock holding can be found at Appendix A

The Association’s stock holding is roughly 50% of older rehabilitated terraced housing, and 50% of new houses, either built by the Association under Social Housing Grant, or acquired from the private sector, (direct from builders, or ‘second hand’ from owner occupiers). Overall, 309 homes are designated as older persons housing (195 in six sheltered housing schemes with community facilities) and 29 are homes with tenancy support provided for vulnerable people.

The RCT Care and Repair Agency is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Cynon Taf Community Housing (2007) Limited, and together they trade as the Cynon Taf Community Housing Group. The Group’s Board of Management is the accountable body for the Agency, but has established a Strategy, Performance and Evaluation Committee of key local stakeholders to set the strategy, monitor the performance and evaluate the benefits of this key community service organisation.

For the year ending 31st March 2011 the Group’s annual turnover was £7,759,772, it had 68 employees (full time equivalents) and net assets of £11,248,261

Time Period

This corporate plan is for the three year period from 1st April 2012 to 31st March 2015 This period reflects the time scale required by Care and Repair Cymru and Welsh Government for the Care and Repair Agency’s business plan; the aspiration for a three year rolling investment programme for social housing grant; and the three year spending plans of the Welsh Government itself.

The financial information in this plan is supported by the 30 year spending assessments shown in the BRIXX plan, submitted annually in July to the Welsh Government.

Environment

This Corporate plan has been prepared in a climate of significant national and local challenge.

The UK financial climate is extremely difficult, and Wales is not immune from contraction of public spending, with the Social Housing Grant programme experiencing cuts of 27%. This has impacted on our development plans, although in terms of staffing, the Group has a small development team that is involved in other aspects of asset management and can be fully utilised during a period of low new build activity. In addition, the team is involved in looking at non-grant supported capital projects (leasing from private landlords and forms of low cost home ownership).

In addition, there is no doubt that the need for banks to increase their liquidity has reduced the appetite of some to increase lending to the housing sector, at least temporarily.

The proposals for welfare benefit reform will have a significant impact on the ability of tenants to meet their rental commitments, and further restrict our ability to recover debt once incurred. We are watching the results from those piloting direct payments with considerable interest.

For those who are the poorest in our communities, the combined effect of a contracting employment market and restrictions on welfare benefit payments will undoubtedly increase the demand on local debt counselling and budgeting advice services, as well as the other support services that are funded through the Supporting People Programme. This increase in demand comes at a time when local authorities’ own budgets are seriously threatened, and we will need to work collaboratively and imaginatively with Rhondda Cynon Taff County Borough Council to ensure that essential support is protected.

The May elections in Wales produced a minority, but one party government. We have a new Minister, Huw Lewis, with a revised portfolio that brings together Housing, Regeneration and Heritage. This combination presents opportunities for our work in traditional terraced housing communities, where a sense of place is a key component of successful regeneration. In addition, the new Minister has a valley’s constituency and therefore understands the particular issues that face the communities of the south wales valleys.

As a consequence, we are hopeful that the rent setting proposals issued before the election will be amended to mitigate the adverse effect that unamended introduction would have on our ability to continue to play an active role in the improvement in the lives of those who live in the communities in which we work.

Strategic Priorities

During 2011/12, we completed extensive tenants’ and stakeholders’ surveys. The results of both were very gratifying, and summaries are available from the Group on request.

The comments in the stakeholders’ survey demonstrated a tension between those stakeholders who felt that the Group should be wary of straying from its core landlord business, and expectations that the Group should/could do more to engage in wider community work. This tension was discussed by the Group’s Board of Management, and it concluded that we must re-emphasise that any engagement in non-core activities should be able to demonstrate a real benefit to our tenants and our properties.

Therefore, we will address the suggestions of stakeholders for additional operations only as they help us to address the top priorities identified in the tenants’ surveys:

  • The highest priority for tenants was to keep on improving the energy efficiency of homes. The Group does and will continue to work with the Local Authority to ensure that the investment in properties wherever possible acts as a lever for wider community improvement, for example through use of programmes such as ARBED, and by using its targeted training and recruitment to ensure jobs are created as part of its procurement of this energy efficiency work.
  • Stakeholders have expressed a desire to work more closely with the Group in tackling the slide into dependency, and investing in primary health care and prevention. The Group will seek to weave this into meeting the priority expressed in the tenants’ survey for more focus on the needs of older and/or disabled tenants.

In more detail, many of the challenges of last year remain, but these have been reviewed and added to in the light of our developing self-assessment tool that is fit for purpose, providing an honest summary of the Group’s performance, and supporting the culture of continuous improvement:

  • Refurbishment, improvement and renewal of its housing, in particular of the older terraced housing,
  • the increasingly important task of reducing carbon emissions, making our homes and offices more energy efficient and thus tackling fuel poverty,
  • the need to deliver tailored housing management services that focus on sustaining communities and tenancies whilst ensuring fair access to housing
  • in response to the demographics of our valleys, and the significant aging of the local population, developing appropriate housing services for older people – and ensuring that the Group makes best use of the experiences and expertise of the Care and Repair Agency to enhance services to older tenants
  • and ensuring that our rent management service ensures that we maximise our income in the face of significant changes to welfare benefits that will adversely impact on our ability to do so in a supportive way

– the tasks in this corporate plan are designed to meet these challenges.

Progress during 2011/12

The two previous financial years were ones of considerable progress on a number of key issues, and saw the completion of several key tasks, including:

  • Review and development of the governance role of the Board of Management, including the successful succession of a new Chair of the Board following the AGM in September 2011;
  • Reaccreditation of Investors in People status;
  • Reassessment of Customer Service Excellence and a reduction in the number of partial compliances;
  • Expansion of our trained tenant assessor team;
  • Success at TPAS awards for TAT (Empowering People and Communication)
  • Substantial progress on tenant profiling;
  • Completion of the OCN Accredited construction training Scheme at Penrhiwceiber
  • Complete review of the management of vacant properties;
  • Partnership working with Rhondda Cynon Taff County Borough Council to maximise efficiencies over the procurement of works of physical adaptation;
  • Review of the charges for supported housing;
  • The start of our project to obtain accreditation for our sheltered housing service;
  • Undertaking a comprehensive Tenant Survey, with excellent results
  • The further development of the staff forum;
  • The completion of a comprehensive risk register, and the establishment of a robust risk management process;
  • The adoption of a comprehensive asset management strategy;
  • Improvements in the way in which we order from and pay suppliers;
  • Significant progress in implementing component accounting principles throughout the organisation;
  • The successful completion of phase one of the eco terrace refurbishment project at Penrhiwceiber, the engagement of the Local Authority in planning a comprehensive approach for Ty’r Felin Street, and the start of phase two of work on our properties;
  • Through the new bidding process with the Local Authority the successful securing of Social Housing Grant for the new Women’s Aid Refuge in Pontypridd and the development of Gospel Hall Terrace Phase III, Gadlys, Aberdare;
  • Completion of our second development to level 4 of the Code for Sustainable Homes;
  • A major review and continued improvement of our small repairs in-house service;
  • The completion of refurbished and extended offices for the Care and Repair Agency in Ferndale, and the adoption of the first phase of changes under the Forte review of C&R reporting arrangements Wales’ wide;
  • Substantial progress in delivering our affordable warmth and energy efficiency strategy;
  • Development and implementation of new IT systems, including CRM and Lifespan
  • Implementation of payment to suppliers by BACS Purchase Order Processing.

Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.

Strengths

  • Cynon Taf Community Housing Group is a community based organisation that is adaptable and flexible. The results of the tenants’ survey show a substantial level of satisfaction that is higher than the average for comparable housing associations. With enhanced data collection substantially completed as part of the Tenant Profiling exercise, we now have the ability to further develop services that our tenants need and want:
  • The Association has committed and loyal members of staff who enjoy good terms and conditions of employment. This commitment to service delivery is well appreciated by our tenants and service users;
  • We have and enjoy good working relationships with the Local Authority, housing associations operating in our area, and other stakeholders, and we are recognised for our commitment to partnership working. The results of our stakeholders’ survey show that others recognise and appreciate our sense of purpose;
  • The Board is committed to developing its skills and expertise, and continues to engage with the new Regulatory and Governance agenda;
  • The Group is in a robust financial position.

Weaknesses

  • Some stock is in areas which show signs of decline and/or unsustainability, and dealing with the symptoms (e.g. high turnover, lack of demand, rent arrears and repair costs) is challenging, as is the need to ensure that we harness the full support of the Local Authority. Overall, the results of our stakeholders’ survey suggest that we are willing to embrace this challenge, although in these times of contracting public expenditure, regeneration of these areas is very difficult;
  • The energy efficiency of this stock is often poor, hampering our ability to reduce carbon emissions and reduce fuel poverty
  • There is a need to clarify the purpose of our community activity, in the light of the comments in the stakeholders’ survey which suggest that expectations of the level of this activity amongst some are unrealistic;
  • Our commitments to providing homes which meet our tenants’ aspirations are financially challenging.

Opportunities

  • The Group has engaged well with the regulatory regime at the Welsh Government. The centrality of self-assessment to that regime, though challenging, provides an opportunity for Board, the Executive and all staff to evaluate their performance and assess the added value that the work of the Group brings to the communities of RCT;
  • We have the opportunity to continue to review our housing assets, and to engage with the Local Authority in reaching decisions on the retention, investment or disposal;
  • By careful consideration of the results of the tenants’ and stakeholders’ surveys, we can review and clarify the Group’s priorities;
  • We can build on our relationships with the Local Authority and other stakeholders to maintain our position as the preferred partner of choice for new initiatives;
  • Through the strategic planning of IT systems we can run our business effectively;
  • With forward planning, we have the opportunity to make the best use of our financial and staffing resources

Threats

  • The revisions in the zoning arrangements for associations, the establishment of the stock transfer association (with its unique relationship with the Council), and the new Social Housing Programme procedures mean that we need to continue to invest in our working relationships with the Local Authority;
  • Our ability to invest in front line service delivery is restrained by financial circumstances beyond our control, such as increases in interest rates, lack of social housing grant, and funding of the pensions’ deficit.
  • The welfare benefit changes already announced and those that are to follow will impact significantly on our tenants’ income and hence on their ability to pay their rent. We will need to create the right balance between supporting our tenants with debt advice, budgeting help and welfare maximisation whilst remembering that significant rental loss will undermine our financial stability. We will need also to engage actively in welfare to work programmes in order to help tenants sustain their tenancies.
  • Although still not clear, the proposals to implement a new rent setting structure has the potential to seriously undermine the Group’s financial plans for future stock improvement and development of additional housing related services.

Key Objectives

This is a period of external and internal change for Cynon Taf Community Housing Group, and in reviewing the Corporate Plan, the Board of Management wishes to ensure that providing good services to tenants (future and present) remains its key objective. In this, good governance arrangements and robust financial viability and management are essential supports.

The Board has decided that the Delivery Outcomes of the Welsh Government’s Regulatory Framework adequately encompass the corporate and service delivery aspirations of the Group, and therefore has adopted these in their entirety.

Corporate Objectives

Governance and Finance

GF1 We strive to place the people who want to use our services at the heart of our work – putting the citizen first.

GF2 We strive to live public sector values, by conducting our affairs with honesty and integrity, and hope to demonstrate good governance through our behaviour

GF3 We try to make sure our purpose is clear and we achieve what we set out to do – knowing who does what and why.

GF4 We are a financially sound and viable business

GF5 We strive to engage with others to enhance and maximise outcomes for our service users and the community.

Landlord Services

LS1 We build and renovate homes to a good quality

LS2 We let homes in a fair, transparent and effective way

LS3 We strive to manage our homes effectively

LS4 We strive to repair and maintain homes in an efficient, timely and cost effective way

LS5 (where appropriate) We try to provide fair and efficient services to owners (right-to buy/right to acquire and leaseholders/shared ownership)

Key Tasks

The next section deals with those key tasks that the Group has set as priorities for the period covered by this plan in order to achieve the Corporate Objectives. The key tasks identified for the coming three year period reflect the outcomes of the work to date on our self-assessment, work that has included Board, staff and tenants. Identification (through self-assessment) of areas for improvement has helped specify where and what we need to do better.

Cynon Taf Community Housing Group

Corporate Plan 2012/13 – 2014/15

Page 1 of 22

Corporate Plan Key Tasks April 2012 - March 2015
Detail of task / Timescale / Lead Team / Corporate Objective/Delivery Outcome reference / Lead Officer
1 / Analyse tenant, applicant and census information to ensure we understand our current and potential service users and the communities that we serve and respond accordingly / March 2014 / Service Delivery
Department / GF1, GF2, / Service Improvement Manager
2 / Continue to evaluate our services both internally and externally by a range of methods, including independent surveys / March 2015 / SMT / GF1, GF5 / SMT
3 / Refine and develop services to address the particular needs of our tenants / April 2012 / Service Delivery Department / GF1, LS2 / Director of Service Delivery
4 / Deliver the Affordable Warmth Action Plan / March 2015 / Service Delivery Department / GF2, LS4 / Director of Service Delivery
5 / Review the delivery of the reactive maintenance function, including internal contractor arrangements / March 2013 / Technical Services / LS4 / Director of Service Delivery
6 / Implementation of the new Common Allocations Scheme / April 2013 / Housing / GF1,GF5, LS2, LS3 / Housing Manager
7 / To engage with all stakeholders to take forward the regeneration of Tyrfelin Street, Penrhiwceiber / March 2015 / Development / GF5, LS1, LS3 / Chief Executive
8 / To review the delivery of new and renovated homes that are supplied to meet the long term housing needs in the areas in which we operate / March 2014 / Development / LS1, LS2 / Development Manager
9 / The implementation of an effective Asset Management Strategy that reflects the pressures and opportunities faced by the Group / March 2014 / All teams / GF4,LS1, LS2, LS3, LS4 / Director of Service Delivery
10 / The implementation of the Procurement Plan / 2012 -2015 / All Teams / GF2, GF3, GF4 / Director of Finance and Resources
11 / The implementation of the ICT Strategy Action Plan / 2012 -2015 / Resources / GF3 / Resources Manager
12 / Implement the Welsh Language Scheme Action Plan / April 2012 – March 2015 / All teams / GF2 / Director of Finance and Resources
13 / Implement the Human Resources Action Plan / April 2012 – March 2015 / Resources / GF3 / Director of Finance and Resources
14 / Maximise the potential of the Annual General Meeting / September 2012 / All teams / GF4, GF5 / Chief Executive
15 / Greater engagement with the Operational Management Team to enhance their financial skills leading to improved revenue and capital expenditure plans, budget monitoring and management / March 2013 / Finance / GF3, GF4 / Finance Managers
16 / Implement SORP for Component Accounting and International Financial Reporting Standards / April 2012 – March 2015 / Finance / GF4 / Finance Managers
17 / Take forward the action plan arising from the Stakeholders survey / March 2014 / SMT / GF2, GF3, GF5 / Chief Executive

Cynon Taf Community Housing Group