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Westminster launches new partnership with 11 registered providers to improve housing in borough
Westminster City Council has launched a new partnership with 11 registered providers across the borough to improve housing provision through a joined-up approach to working.
At an event at Westminster town hall on Tuesday morning, council leader Adam Hug launched the ‘housing compact’ alongside Liza Begum, cabinet member of housing services, and Ian Wardle, chief executive of A2Dominion.
“The housing compact represents a new partnership between the council and resident providers across the bar to tackle the housing crisis and drive real outcomes for our residents together,” Ms Begum said.
The compact is a manifesto commitment of the local Labour Party, which took control of the council in 2022.
Its aims, Ms Begum said, are to build a “strong and effective partnership” to increase the supply of affordable housing, deliver high-quality and place-based services to residents, and improve housing safety and quality.
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“The Westminster housing compact is more than a commitment to work together, it is a call to action,” Ms Begum added.
“Through this compact, we are setting a new standard for how we work together in Westminster. We are proud to take this step forward together with our partners to ensure every resident has access to a quality, safe and welcoming home.”
The 11 providers partnering on the compact are:
- L&Q
- Notting Hill Genesis
- SNG
- Peabody
- A2Dominion
- Sanctuary
- Octavia Housing
- Soho Housing
- Westminster Community Homes
- Walterton and Elgin Community Homes
- Dolphin Living
Mr Hug said the compact is more vital than ever, given the “enormously challenging” financial and regulatory environment for social housing.
“The challenges that both our sectors share are immense,” he said. “That’s why we have to be honest about the challenges that we’re facing. We have to try and work together solutions.”
A2Dominion’s Mr Wardle echoed the sentiment, saying that partnership working is key if housing associations are to tackle the challenges of supply chain issues, building safety and decent homes regulations, technological advancement and efforts to decarbonise.
“I think sometimes we’re too singular in our endeavours, and actually sometimes we need to ask a partner for help and just be honest that actually we’re struggling with some things and be a little bit less defensive about what maybe is going wrong and be a bit more open, in order that we can get a shared outcome,” he explained.
A strategic leadership group, chaired by Ms Begum, will oversee the work’s themes, priorities and long-term goals, while a compact taskforce led by Heather Clarke, director of housing needs at Westminster Council, will implement and deliver the action.
Particularly in Westminster, where so many providers manage homes in such a small geography, partners have said this compact will be crucial to simplify cross-borough working for the benefit of residents.
