Conference 2007 Programme
Information about the specialist sessions is shown after the programme outline.
- Tuesday 13 March programme details
- Wednesday 14 March programme details
- Thursday 15 March programme details
Tuesday 13 March 2007:
Best Practice and Personal Development
0900 - Registration, refreshments and Exhibition viewing
1000 - Welcome to the conference - Ashley Hook, CIH South East Regional Chair
Keynote address - Engineering your goals - Stephen Grant, Annephen Ltd
Stephen is a highly regarded stand stand-up comedian and radio presenter who came into the world of media from his previous career in engineering. Relentlessly optimistic, Stephen found that you could achieve significant success in a notoriously difficult industry through a positive determination that anyone can use to challenge and overcome the forces of negativity. Funny, engaging, and quite cheeky, Stephen's philosophy is easy to understand and adopt; and is focussed all around setting achievable goals.
1115 - Refreshment break and Exhibition viewing
1145 - Specialist sessions
- Supporting People: Service users - can they do a better job than staff?
Rachel Sellwood, Deputy Chief Executive and Dave Webster, Service User Development Co-ordinator, East Kent Cyrenians - Ecohomes XB
Alison Mathias, Policy Advisor, Housing Corporation and Clare Wilson, Sustainability Co-ordinator, Sustainable Homes, Hastoe Housing Association - Work/life balance - how to make it happen
Angela Sims, Managing Director, Red Tulip Solutions
From 1245 - Lunch and Exhibition viewing
Chartered Institute of Housing South East Annual Meeting 2007 - All CIH members were invited to the Annual Meeting.
1430 - Specialist sessions
- Mergers - who benefits?
Keith Exford, Chief Executive, Affinity Sutton and Vicky Bonner, Assistant Director of Tenancy & Customer Services, Broomleigh Housing Association - Integrating homelessness into other policy agendas
Caroline Davey, Deputy Director (Policy & Research), Communications, Policy & Campaigns, Shelter and Bob Lawrence, Housing Strategy & Support Directorate, Department for Communities and Local Government. - Striving for excellence
Steve Benson, Managing Director, Testway Housing Limited and Frank Czarnowski, Finance Director, West Kent Housing Association
From 1530 - Refreshment break and Exhibition viewing
1615 - Keynote address, Housing Law Update - you heard it here first - Jan Luba QC
The British legal system is rightly held in high regard, domestically and internationally. In our "world class" region, the expectation will be that housing workers will be right on top of the latest legal developments. Jan once again offered delegates his unique and up-to-date annual review of policies, best practice, legislation and caselaw in the housing field.
1700 - Conference close
1930 - Comedy / Karaoke
The entertainment was sponsored by Croudace Homes in Partnership
The food / welcome drink was sponsored by PPCR Associates
Half the proceeds went to The Elliott Scally Trust
Wednesday 14 March 2007:
The Changing Regional Agenda
0900 - Registration, refreshments and Exhibition viewing
1000 - Welcome to the conference
Keynote address - I did it my way - Wayne Hemingway, Hemingway Design and Chairman of Building for Life
Wayne talked about his experience since setting up Hemingway Design and the lessons learned along the way.
1115 - Refreshment break and Exhibition viewing
1145 - Specialist sessions
- Occasionally Good, Usually Bad and Often Ugly
Wayne Hemingway, Hemingway Design - Future Direction for the Older Generation
Chris Woolf, Housing Team Leader, Government Office South East and Martin Van Tol, Managing Director, East Living - Housing as competitive advantage: a review of housing supply and demand in the South East
Peter Williams, Consultant and Executive Director of the Intermediary Mortgage Lenders Association - Future investment in the region
Fiona Cruickshank, South East Director and Karin Stockerl, Innovation & Development Manager, Housing Corporation
From 1245 - Lunch and Exhibition viewing
With wine reception sponsored by Airey Miller Partnership
(Programme change - previously advertised as taking place on
Thursday)
1415 - Specialist sessions
- Planning for affordable housing
Kelvin MacDonald, Director of Policy & Research at the Royal Town Planning Institute - Understanding your housing market
Richard Dixon, Associate Director, Adams Integra and Catherine Stubbings, Housing Policy Advisor, South East Regional Assembly - Urban Design: are we being dense? - Innovative ways to meet the demand for new homes while creating wider community benefits
Andrew Beharrell, Director, Pollard Thomas Edwards architects (Speaker change from original programme)
Chair: Eamon O'Malley, Director, Mulalley & Co Ltd
Location: Beta Hall 1 - Visionary leadership in housing - a new future for local housing strategy
(this is a panel Q&A session)- Merron Simpson, Head of Policy, Chartered Institute of Housing
- Richard Capie, Head of Policy, Housing Corporation
- Terrie Alafat, Housing Strategy & Support Directorate, Department for Communities & Local Government
- Paddy Mooney, Head of Housing, South Region, Audit Commission
- Chris Woolf, Housing Team Leader, Government Office South East
- Lesley Roberts, Interim Chief Executive, People 1st (Slough) and Director of Housing, Hounslow Homes
1515 - Refreshment break and Exhibition viewing
1615 - Keynote address - Social Landlord or Neighbourhood Investor - what is our core business?
Professor Richard Scase
Professor Richard Scase is one of the world's leading business forecasters - able to speak and write authoritatively on the broadest global trends while leaving even the most specialised audience with relevant, useful and inspirational advice. As an academic, his research interests range from organisational change to the impact of internet technologies and the restructuring of work and employment worldwide.
He spoke about building on the regional futures and recent case studies he has been working on and explored the role housing providers can and should play in investing in neighbourhoods and developing social capital. Also, in line with the reviews of the role of social housing, Professor Scase explored the benefits of being engaged in providing non-core services and the impact this can have on efficiency targets.
1700 - Conference close
1930 - The Conference Dinner, Sponsored by Downland Housing Association, with music from The Sound Creation
Thursday 15 March 2007:
The International Dimension
0900 - Registration, refreshments and Exhibition viewing
1000 - Chair's introduction
Keynote address - From Shanghai to Brighton in forty-five minutes - Peter Head, Arup
Peter heads up the newly integrated business of Planning and Integrated Urbanism within the Consulting firm, Arup. Their motto is 'We shape a better world'. In his presentation he talked about the more local projects Arup are involved in such as Circus Street in Brighton. He then set the international scene for the day by talking about one of Arup's most challenging tests of their ability to shape better 'megacities' - the Dongtan Eco-City within the boom city of Shanghai.
1115 - Refreshment break and Exhibition viewing
1130 - Keynote address - Housing in the United States - Bill Povalla, Assistant Housing Commissioner for the City of Chicago and Rick Gentry, Vice-President of the National Equities Fund
Bill and Rick gave a general overview of housing in the United States and what the situation is with the current housing market. Identifying a particular housing scheme they have both been involved in, they talked about the national policy background and local strategy and how the financial package was put together. They also discussed other issues such as sustainability, affordability, what consultation is undertaken with residents and how far they may be able to influence outcomes. Rick also outlined the programme of home ownership assistance in forty-seven states and the leverage this has provided in obtaining other funding. Bill and Rick also highlighted issues of concern to housing planners for the future.
1230 - Lunch and Exhibition viewing
1330 - Specialist sessions
- Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs), Unit Trusts and other on shore and off shore investment vehicles for affordable housing providers.
Derek Joseph, Director, Tribal Treasury Services, accompanied by Bill Povalla, Assistant Housing Commissioner for the City of Chicago and Rick Gentry, Vice-President of the National Equities Fund - Working with tenants in France
Emmanuel Bouclon, Engineer/Project Manager and representative from the eb4U team for the joint Intereg Project, Lille
THIS SESSION WAS CANCELLED - The Japanese perspective
Paul Allen, Neighbourhood Manager, eb4U - 18. Maintaining affordable housing in Singapore
Thia Lee Yong Gary, Head (Housing Maintenance Projects Unit), Housing Administration Department, Housing & Development Board, Singapore - Community Gateway and Tenants' Democracy - daring Danes go all the way
Claus Bech-Hansen, Assistant Housing Manager, AAB, Copenhagen, Denmark - REX - The Research and Exchange Transnational Group
Tony Cotter, Chief Executive, Gallions Housing Association, Dr Erwin Bel, Managing Director, KWH and Arnoud L M Vlak, Director, Stichting Corporatie Vastgoedindex, Aedex & Aedex Databank Vastgoedtaxaties BV, Holland
From 1500 - Refreshment break and Exhibition viewing
1600 - Exhibition close
1700 Conference close
Specialist sessions: further information
Please note that all specialist sessions may last between one hour and an hour and a half, depending on the requirements of the speaker and participants.
Tuesday 13 March 2007
Morning
- Supporting People: Service users - can they do a better job than staff?
Service user involvement is the issue of the moment - it's good practice, it's the right thing to do, it will get us through our inspection, but what about the end result? Where are we going with this? We may say that service users' views are important, that they can contribute to our service / organisation - so maybe they can do a better job than the staff? Maybe we should be employing service users and getting rid of all the professionals?! East Kent Cyrenians has started a comprehensive accredited training programme for their users of supported housing to equip them with the skills and knowledge to become fully involved in the services provided and empower them to take an active role in shaping the future structure and delivery of services.
Come along to this session and join Rachel and Dave to discuss the rollercoaster ride that is service user involvement. Discuss the positives, the pitfalls and the practicalities within supported housing. Try out some of the training for yourself (participation is compulsory). - Ecohomes XB
In 2000, the Housing Corporation launched Ecohomes - a tool to help landlords work out how green their new homes are. Now older stock is receiving the same treatment with the launch of Ecohomes XB, an environmental assessment package for existing homes. In this session Alison and Clare will explain exactly what XB is and how it works. Is it a welcome contribution to helping us maintain housing for a world class region? - Work/life balance - how to make it happen
Angela will use real situations to determine work/life balance and stress management, with the aid of chocolates and sweets to entice her audience! She will also advise on how to work with the positive rather than negative words in business.
Afternoon
- Mergers - who benefits?
Keith will set the scene by explaining why it was important for Affinity to merge with William Sutton. He will talk about a CIH report called 'The Bigger Picture - the costs and benefits of groups, mergers and partnerships' and another CIH report looking at why rationalisation of housing association stock is important and how it might be achieved within a local context. Vicky will give an account of what the merger means from the point of view of the operating company. - Integrating homelessness into other policy agendas
Caroline and Bob will discuss the issue of homelessness and look to the future in terms of how the prevention agenda may develop and integrate more closely with other policy areas. - Striving for Excellence
West Kent Housing Association (WKHA) were the first RSL to be awarded three stars and excellent prospects for improvement by the Audit Commission, while Testway Housing Limited / Aster Group won the Social Landlord of the Year award. Inspection is still very topical - those who have not been inspected want to do better next time and those who have not want to know what is expected of them in order to do well. Steve and Frank will talk about the challenges they faced and the issues that needed to be covered in order to make them forerunners for the region.
Wednesday 14 March 2007
Morning
- Occasionally Good, Usually Bad and Often Ugly
Wayne will talk about how with a bit of persuasion housebuilders could do better. He will use the Wimpey Development in Gateshead as an example, discussing what stops them from doing better and what arguments can be made to persuade them - from masterplanning stage to build. By using this and other examples Wayne will cover everything from design to sustainability and commmunity / environmental issues. - Future Direction for the Older Generation
Chris and Martin will discuss the recent Help the Aged Report and the work on sustainability, type and size of the properties being built, from an older person's perspective. - Housing as competitive advantage: a review of housing supply and demand in the South East
This presentation will argue for the importance of efficient and effective housing provision in the South East and how that might be improved to help sustain the region's economic vitality. - Future investment in the region
Fiona will discuss the Housing Corporation's policy on future investment in the region, including grants to developers. How much is the Housing Corporation investing in good design? Karin will demonstrate with visual aids.
Afternoon
- Planning for affordable housing
If the South East is to remain a world class region then it needs adequate, decent and affordable housing for all those who contribute to its economic vibrancy. But how is this to be provided when so much of the South East is protected environmentally, when politicians resist growth and house builders build up their land banks? This workshop will discuss solutions. - Understanding your housing market
Richard and Catherine have teamed up to discuss Local Authorities and their understanding of housing markets and the development of Housing Market Assessments. They will look at the evidence that needs to be prepared, offer advice on understanding the market in the wider sense (including HMAs) and outline the lessons learnt from the four sub-regional pilot schemes supported by the Regional Housing Board in terms of development viability and affordable housing provision. - Urban design - are we being dense? - Innovative ways to meet the demand for new homes while creating wider community benefits
Housing providers are under pressure to meet the massive demand for homes in London and the South East. Consequently, typical urban housing densities have more than doubled in the last ten years, and we are beginning to see a similar scale and intensity of development in our suburbs and market towns. 'Selfish' development can place a damaging burden on existing social, environmental and transport infrastructure - but there is another way.
Andrew will talk about the implications of higher density developments for the neighbourhoods in which they are set. He will describe innovative ways in which housing development can trigger and fund benefits for the whole community, including new public parks, schools, local shops and managed workspace. - Visionary leadership in housing - a new future for local housing strategy
During September 2006, a series of seminars took place nationally, highlighting the work that the Chartered Institute of Housing, Department for Communities and Local Government, Housing Corporation, Audit Commission and practitioners engaged in delivering local strategy are undertaking. Find out what the outcome of the South East seminar was and what has and is being done to move this forward, linked to proposals in the Local Government White Paper. This will be a panel session and delegates are welcome to submit questions in advance (see booking form for details).
Thursday 15 March 2007
Afternoon
- Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs), Unit Trusts and other on shore and off shore investment vehicles for affordable housing providers.
Derek will discuss Real Estate Investment Trusts and the commercial approach to the provision of additional affordable housing. He will be accompanied by Bill Povalla and Rick Gentry, to compare how we deal with these issues in the UK with the approach in Chicago and the rest of the United States. - Working with tenants in France
THIS SESSION IS NOW CANCELLED - The Japanese perspective
Paul will talk about how the Japanese experience similar community challenges to those in the UK. The Local Government White Paper provides all councils with a target to devolve decision making and much of this challenge will apply to housing departments and ALMOs. - Maintaining affordable housing in Singapore
Thia Lee Yong Gary will talk about how Singapore keeps its public housing affordable and well maintained throughout the years. He will also discuss how in Singapore the Housing Corporation does everything, including the development and the letting and is very much a state run process, which is obviously very different from here in England. - Community Gateway and Tenants' Democracy - daring Danes go all the way
Claus, a regular attendee at our Annual Conference, will explain how the housing associations he works with give the tenants full control. They run and manage their own estates and get paid for it. Thought provoking - come along and learn more. - REX - the Research and Exchange Transnational Group
Tony Cotter, together with colleagues from Holland, will explain why this group was established several years ago and the importance of the research and exchange that it enables. The presentations will focus on quality and self-regulation models that have been developed in Holland as a response to Government questions about the future role, purpose and value of social housing. The speakers will also examine the parallels and potential for similar responses in this country.