We need investment to support Northern regeneration

We’re only a few days into the news of the snap general election and already ennui appears to be setting in, with ‘Brenda from Bristol’ seeming to sum up the feelings of many with her “not another one?” outcry.

It has been dubbed the Brexit election, and it looks inevitable that the issue of who can strike the best deal for Britain as we leave the EU will dominate arguments on all sides, leaving limited bandwidth even for other likely campaigning priorities such as the economy, health and education.

So where does this leave housing?

Even before the announcement of the election, parliamentarians and civil servants had warned that the volume of work connected with Brexit would use the vast majority of parliamentary time and capacity for the next two years, leaving little opportunity to focus on other areas.

We must not forget, however, even against this backdrop, that improving access to good housing remains of absolutely critical importance to communities across the country – it could and should be one of the key political battlegrounds.

So what is our message and what are we looking for from the incoming government?

Over the past 18 months, the Northern Housing Consortium (NHC) has been working with its Commission for Housing in the North to develop three practical recommendations to improve housing supply across the North of England.

Two of these recommendations, the need to increase programme flexibility and to boost capacity, were front and centre of the White Paper.

The recognition by the government of the issues underlying this, that local challenges and local opportunities need local solutions, has been particularly welcomed by places working with the very diverse markets across the North.

We are now looking for those standing in the election, especially in the North, to champion the commission’s third key recommendation – that we need to develop a new narrative and new investment streams to support the regeneration of areas of market weakness or inappropriate supply.

The recent discussion around estate regeneration has, to an extent, reignited interest in the importance of this work but it has also been frustratingly narrow in its outlook.

“Low-value or low-quality private housing stock… is a major contributor to these communities’ detachment from the economic mainstream.”

At a time of such unmet housing demand and growing pressure on green belt, it is essential that we make the best use of existing stock, ensure brownfield sites are made viable, and generally create attractive places where people choose to live.

There are too many places across the North, including neighbourhoods within our major cities, where this simply isn’t the case. In these areas, low-value or low-quality private housing stock, often at the bottom end of the rental market, is a major contributor to these communities’ detachment from the economic mainstream.

We know from many powerful examples, such as Hulme, what an economic and social difference housing-focused regeneration can make. We also know this needs strong leadership, new forms of long-term investment and a degree of commitment that has not been possible at scale for a number of years now.

So, as MPs hit the campaign trail this week and eager young politicos frantically bash out party manifestos, we at the NHC we will be engaging with our members to promote the case for a new wave of Northern regeneration that will help rebalance the economies of the country, drive growth, reduce dependency and reconnect fractured communities.

We think this should be a priority any party should be finding room for in their manifesto.

Tracy Harrison, deputy chief executive, Northern Housing Consortium