Martin Collett, Chief Executive
Reflecting on the past year, English Rural has witnessed a period of significant growth and investment. We successfully scaled up the delivery of our agreed Business Strategy through the merger of TCCHS into our Group and by unlocking some challenging development opportunities that had been stalled for a while. In addition to this, we undertook our largest investment in existing homes and services to date, replacing property components, improving energy performance, and ensuring that our homes remain safe and quality environments for our residents.
This year also saw a transfer agreement embarked on with Gloucestershire Rural Housing Association (GRHA), consolidating our position across rural Gloucestershire and enabling increased efficiencies of scale. As the level of change was substantial, we undertook a thorough review of our staffing capacity and roles to ensure our highly skilled and motivated team is up to the task of our strategic ambitions.
Despite a robust financial position, the deteriorating economic, political, and operational circumstances have posed challenges for us and the wider housing association sector.
However, we have navigated these obstacles with care, managing risks to safeguard our underlying financial strength.
As the cost of living continued to rise, we took proactive measures to support residents most vulnerable to these pressures. In recognising this challenge, we set aside our largest ever budget allocation to aid households most at risk.
Looking ahead, our focus for the coming year is on sustainable growth and consolidation. We want to ensure that the changes implemented during 2022/23 are fully embedded across our business. This includes reviewing how we listen to our residents, progressing co-creation of service improvements, and updating customer and asset data. A key goal is to utilise software changes and new ways of working enabled by the IT transformation project, which has just concluded its second year.
Value for money remains pivotal for us. Last year, we published a separate Value for Money Statement to inform a more effective and efficient business. This year, we aim to learn from this, striving even harder to secure improvements that deliver beneficial outcomes. This statement is now published on our website, demonstrating our commitment to transparency.
Our advocacy and influence set us apart from peers of comparable size. One of our highlights was the launch of impactful research into rural homelessness, undertaken in collaboration with Kent and Southampton Universities.
This research has been instrumental in promoting the growing scale of rural homelessness and the need for increased investment in affordable rural homes.
In line with governance best practices, we adopted the updated NHF Code of Governance during the year. In adherence to the new Code, we have begun transitioning towards a maximum of two terms of three years for Board Members, a transition which we plan to achieve during 2023.
This past year's achievements and challenges are only a brief overview of all that English Rural, its Board and staff team, have done. As we look to the future, we will continue to learn, adapt, and work towards fulfilling our strategic ambitions, with our ultimate goal being to continue providing affordable housing for local people in rural villages in England, while advocating for affordable rural housing.
Our Seven Strategic Ambitions >>
