Martin Collett, Chief Executive
Reflecting on a busy and demanding year, I am proud of how the team has continued to deliver against our Business Strategy 2024-29, even as costs, regulation and expectations have all continued to rise. We stayed focused on the things that matter most: good services for residents, more affordable homes, and being a strong national voice for rural housing.
ResidentsResident experience has been at the centre of our work this year. Tenant satisfaction increased to 78%, and we strengthened resident scrutiny while welcoming resident representation onto the Board for the first time. We listened and acted, agreeing a £50,000 improvement fund for communal areas alongside enhanced contract arrangements.
We also made real progress on resident needs data and how we use this to enhance services outcomes. We also grew the level of building stock condition knowledge, with more than 84% of our homes being recently surveyed.
HomesWe completed 27 new affordable homes and maintained a pipeline of over 100 more, supported by £3.9 million of grant funding from Homes England. We progressed schemes originated through previous mergers, including at Longstock and Copythorne, and were proud to secure a design award for our development at Avening. Viability remains challenging in small rural sites, but careful appraisal has kept our programme moving.
FinancesDespite economic headwinds, our financial position remained stable, with turnover of £11.6 million and an operating surplus of £3.2 million. We comfortably met all covenants, secured a new £20 million revolving credit facility, and renegotiated our EBITDA covenants with lenders to give us greater flexibility to invest in existing homes.
PeopleOur team makes everything possible. We completed a review of our staff structure and created new senior roles, including a Deputy Chief Executive and two Assistant Directors, to strengthen leadership and resilience. Staff engagement stayed high, with 96% recommending English Rural as a good place to work, and we progressed our equality, diversity and inclusion work alongside a new internal training framework.
Advocacy and Sector LeadershipWe continued to play a leading role in making the case for affordable rural housing, using research, policy engagement and sector partnerships to keep rural communities visible in national debate.
This included supporting new research on devolution and the cost of managing rural housing, contributing to wider work on a National Rural Housing Innovation Hub, and continuing to press for long-term funding for the Rural Housing Enabler network.
We also renewed our Royal Patronage for a further three years and approved a new Communications Strategy to strengthen our reach and influence.
SustainabilityWe made steady progress on our environmental commitments, completing the first year of our Warm Homes Project and delivering all new homes to EPC B or above. We also adopted a new five-year Sustainability Strategy, giving us a clear framework for reducing our environmental impact and improving the energy performance of our homes over the years ahead.
Looking aheadThe operating environment remains uncertain, but our foundations are strong. I want to thank our Board, our hardworking staff team, our partners, and above all our residents, whose support continues to drive us forward as we build thriving rural communities.
This has been a year of steady delivery in a demanding environment. We completed more affordable homes, listened and responded to our residents, and strengthened our team and our finances for the future. I am genuinely proud of what our staff, partners and residents have achieved together.
