
Making estate regeneration work
February 6, 2024by Paul Hutchinson Simpson
Estate Regeneration is complex at the best of times – I should know as I have just finished an 8-and-a-half-year tour of duty trying to make it work in South London. And these are not the best of times. The inflationary shocks of Brexit, COVID and Ukraine, combined with knocks in business confidence and the increase in borrowing costs caused by the Truss/Kwarteng budget, have holed many once-viable schemes below the waterline.
But, for those considering regenerating their estate, here are my four tips to make that easier.
1: Keep it simple: Few people get excited about governance. This is a pity, as processes that require overlapping sign-offs add cost, slow progress, and create points of conflict without adding anything. Too little, and projects proceed without the risks and consequences of being understood. As a result, easily understood governance processes with clearly defined gateways and information requirements are an essential foundation. Regeneration and local government are littered with examples of where this balance wasn’t right.
Also, while it may sound overly simplistic, having an agreed set of definitions alongside your governance processes is also essential. The amount of time lost and confusion caused by terms such as ‘genuinely affordable’, ‘council level’ or ‘social rent’, for example, will floor you. Getting these terms agreed upon at the start will make all the difference in clearly communicating the facts in reports, presentations, and conversations.
2: Keep it clear: There must be a clear vision of your estate regeneration programme’s goal. Is it to provide better homes for current residents? Is it to build additional social rent homes? Is it to generate a surplus? These and other objectives may be possible; some could even be combined. However, it is unlikely that all of them can be achieved in a single project.
Also, as projects develop, there will be compromises that have to be made. Without a clear vision, those at the coal face of projects could make the wrong calls on what to move on and stand firm on, causing expensive and time-consuming reworking. Having a clear vision backed by a clear set of targets means everyone will know what they are aiming for and signing up for.
3: Keep it open: No one in social housing will have missed the step change in how residents must be involved in running their estates and homes. Whether it is the Tenant Satisfaction Measures or the focus on repairs, damp and mould and cases of maladministration, it is clear the pendulum is swung back towards the mantra of ‘nothing about me without me’ when it comes to residents. All of this impacts how residents will (rightly) be expected to be involved in the future of their estates.
Also, those working in London will already be used to the need to build coalitions with residents ahead of ballots. Even without this, if you are going to end up with a new estate and homes that meet residents’ needs and you are going to keep local authorities willing to proceed, you will need to involve residents from the outset in discussions about the future of their homes and estates. When structuring these conversations, it is essential that they are based on an open and honest dialogue about what is and is not up for debate, what the parameters are and how decisions will be made by whom, on what basis and when. Setting these in a clear, regularly updated timeline will help build certainty and confidence.
4: Keep it together: To succeed, different parts of the council, contractors, wholly-owned companies, and private sector partners must all work together and understand each other’s role. And their loyalties will need to be with the scheme, programme and its goals.
Structures such as task forces, programme boards, and so on are crucial, but so is culture. All the different teams need to understand and respect each other’s roles and contributions. And to get through those challenging moments, there needs to be the social glue that only comes from working with and engaging people face-to-face. Online tools allow work to happen when face-to-face isn’t possible, but Teams can’t be built on Teams.
Much more is required to ensure success in estate regeneration. Still, without paying attention to these four tips, you will only make things harder for yourself and, more importantly, residents.
About the author
Based in Lambeth, Paul uses engagement, communications, digital channels, and stakeholder management to explain complex issues to enable change to happen. He has worked for Homes for Lambeth (Lambeth Council’s wholly-owned housing company and registered social housing provider), Lambeth Council, several digital communications and public affairs agencies and the Labour Party.