Broadland Housing Association

Homes, community & support since 1963

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    Key milestone reached in Canary Quay development

    'Topping out' ceremony - Broadland Housing, R G Carter and Ingleton Wood staff at Canary Quay phase 4, October 2022

    Key milestone reached in Canary Quay development

    A traditional ‘topping out‘ ceremony marked an important milestone in the creation of 323 new homes on Norwich’s riverside in October. Ale from local brewer Woodfordes was poured over the roof of the fourth and final building of our Canary Quay development as part of the celebration.

    Broadland Housing’s chair Chris Ewbank and Executive Development Director Andrew Savage were joined by Alex Mackay and Paul Cushing of constructors R G Carter to perform the ceremony. The topping out marked the completion of the structure and roof of the final building, which will deliver 101 new homes – 46 for shared ownership and 55 to be sold on the open market.

    Built on Geoffrey Watling Way on land formerly owned by Norwich City Football Club, Canary Quay offers a mixture of social housing, affordable homes and open market properties.  Broadland Housing acquired the land in 2010, and the first residents moved in in 2019, with the first apartments made available for affordable rent.

    The final building will also provide a second ‘podium’ for the development, a raised garden and open space for residents overlooking the river Wensum.

    Louise Archer (Executive Operations Director), Chris Ewbank (Chair) and Andrew Savage (Executive Development Director) of Broadland Housing
    Kitchen interior, phase 4, Canary Quay

    Chris Ewbank, chair of Broadland Housing, said:

    One of our priorities is to provide much-needed affordable homes for the people living in the city.  Canary Quay is an important part of the solution.

    This has been an ambitious project which has taken a very strong partnership to deliver.  What we have created here is a vibrant new community for the city, as well as over 300 much-needed new homes, many of them made available for affordable rent and for shared ownership to allow local people to get on the housing ladder in an affordable way.

    Chris Ewbank, Chair, Broadland Housing

    Paul Cushing, Preconstruction Director at R G Carter, said:

    We are excited to reach this important and final milestone at the Canary Quay development.  It’s been a real pleasure to work with the Broadland Housing Association team and support their vision for regeneration and transformation in Norwich.

    We want to thank everyone who has played a role in getting us to this moment in the project and look forward to handing over the development in the coming months.

    ?? R G Carter

    Chris Stammers, Director and Architect at Ingleton Wood, which is providing architectural services for the Canary Quay project, said:

    We are delighted to continue our engagement in the Canary Quay development with the topping out of the final project phase. 

    The completion of this block of 101 homes represents the final piece in the jigsaw of the wider masterplan. We are excited to see the completed street scene and, most importantly, the completion of this riverside community.

    Chris Stammers, Director and Architect, Ingleton Wood

    The apartments in phase 4 of Canary Quay will be marketed shortly, with residents expected to move in in spring 2023.

    Real Living Wage -“makes a real difference”

    Jesse Manning, Cleaning Coordinator, Broadland Housing Association, talking at the launch of Making Norwich a Living Wage City

    Real Living Wage -“makes a real difference”

    At the launch of the Making Norwich a Living Wage City campaign in October, Broadland employee Jesse Manning (below, left) spoke powerfully about the dramatic impact of the Real Living Wage on his life.

    Jesse Manning, Broadland Housing employee, speaking at the launch of Making Norwich a Living Wage City
    Michael Newey, Chief Executive of Broadland Housing,, speaking at the launch of Making Norwich a Living Wage City

    I first started work for Broadland in 2018.  When I got the chance to work for Broadland full time, it was the first time I had ever received the Real Living Wage.

    I was living in shared accommodation with a family with a small child.  It was hard having to share a bathroom and kitchen with them, as I was outside their family unit.  When I moved to other shared accommodation with single people, I encountered different issues. 

    Being paid the Real Living Wage by Broadland made a real difference to my life.  With the increase in wages I could actually start looking for a home of my own. My goal was to get my own flat and be more independent. 

    I was lucky to get a social rented flat. The Real Living Wage helped me secure this tenancy because I could afford the rent, but also it was also finally somewhere I could call home, where I could feel safe and secure. 

    Having a stable home and a stable relationship gave my life and mental health a real boost.  I will be forever grateful as this has really helped my life move on positively. 

    The cost-of-living crisis has really bought into focus the importance of employers giving employees the Real Living Wage.  Today, I am now able to afford to live in shared ownership property with my partner.  I would never have been able to do this without receiving the Real Living Wage. 

    As part of my role at Broadland, I am part of the team that reviews and award new contracts.  A requirement of each new contract is that the company must pay the Real Living Wage.  For me this so important, as it has made such a difference to my life. I like to think that it will help others in the same way as it has helped me. 

    I am proud that Broadland are a Living Wage Employer, but also for the fact that it makes sure that its contractors pay the Real Living Wage too. 

    Jesse Manning, Cleaning Coordinator, Broadland Housing

    Making Norwich a Living Wage City

    Broadland Housing has been a Living Wage Employer since 2015 and we are a proud member of the Norwich Living Wage Action Group.

    Councillor Alan Waters, Leader of Norwich City Council and Chair of the Action Group and Daniel Childerhouse, CEO of Future Projects also spoke at the campaign launch event at Norwich Forum. They illustrated the value of paying the Real Living Wage for employees, employers, and for the city and wider region as a whole.

    After the personal testimonies from employees, Broadland Housing Chief Executive Michael Newey (pictured above, right) joined representatives from Aviva and Norfolk Community Law Service to answer Q&As about the journey to real Living Wage accreditation.

    The Norwich Living Wage Action Group members are:

    • Norwich City Council
    • Aviva
    • Broadland Housing Association
    • City College Norwich
    • Future Projects
    • Norfolk Community Law Service
    • Norwich Consolidated Charities
    • Phoenix Events (East) Ltd Unison
    • GMB Union                             

    Annual General Meeting, September 2022

    Annual General Meeting, September 2022

    At our 2022 AGM in Norwich in September we launched the new Corporate Strategy 2022-2026, incorporating 12 key objectives.

    Michael Newey, Chief Executive, addressed Broadland members and outlined the significant challenges that the social housing sector faces in the coming years.

    With rising costs and a probable rent cap in prospect, Michael said that Broadland Housing would focus on the immediate priorities for tenants. Some longer-term ambitions may have to be scaled back in the short term – something he called “incredibly frustrating”.

    However, Michael said that launching our new 5-year Corporate Strategy was a sign of our ability to maintain a long-term perspective and demonstrated our resilience.

    Delivering homes, catching up on repairs

    Despite the challenges of the continuing Covid pandemic during 2021/2022, Broadland Housing delivered 136 new homes during the year, including 111 for affordable rent and a further 25 for shared ownership.  We allocated 482 homes during the year, including homes for 163 homeless households.

    After the lockdown period, we focused on catching up with non-urgent repairs, carrying out 17,761 repairs during the year.

    Nevertheless, Michael acknowledged at the meeting that the immediate future would present particular challenges for the social housing sector. 

    After two years operating in a pandemic, we all hoped that the coming year would see a more benign operating environment, but the truth is that we are presented with some very tough economic conditions.  Costs continue to rise, affecting our budgets, and particularly the cost of maintenance materials.

    At the same time, our tenants are also facing a really challenging economic period, with soaring energy prices and high inflation.

    It seems likely that the government will implement a rent cap at a level below inflation for social housing.  That is a good idea, in that it recognises the financial challenges our tenants face.  However, we can only spend each pound once, so we will have to find a way to live within the cap and deal with our rising costs.

    That means we must focus on the immediate priorities of supporting our tenants, and unfortunately that will entail scaling back some of our short-term ambitions, especially in terms of new development and planned improvement works. 

    That is incredibly frustrating, but I am confident that we are a very resilient organisation which can maintain a longer-term perspective, and our new Corporate Strategy will help us to achieve that.

    Michael Newey, Chief Executive

    New 5-year Corporate Strategy

    Broadland’s new Corporate Strategy outlines 12 key objectives for the period 2022-2026:

    • Providing high-quality housing management services that meet the needs of existing and potential new tenants
    • Providing high-quality repair services
    • Supporting tenants at risk of losing their homes by working with them to minimise the number of failed tenancies
    • Investing in tenants’ homes to improve quality and energy efficiency
    • Involving tenants in shaping services, and being accountable to them on how services are delivered and money is spent
    • Working to reduce homelessness locally, and lobbying for policy change nationally
    • Maximising the number of new affordable homes built each year, without compromising services to existing tenants or threatening the organisation’s long-term stability
    • Using financial resources responsibly and effectively to deliver strategic aims
    • Managing financial resources sensibly
    • Ensuring good governance at board, committee and leadership team levels
    • Reducing the carbon footprint of Broadland’s homes and activities
    • Ensuring Broadland is a good employer

    Thanking staff, tenants, Board members and partners for their support during the year, Michael promised that we would remain focused on our core mission during the coming year.

    We have the resilience and the determination to get through what will undoubtedly be a tough economic period, and we remain dedicated to supporting our tenants, helping to reduce homelessness, and making a positive contribution to communities in Norfolk and north Suffolk.

    Broadland Housing Corporate Strategy 2022-26 Download
    Broadland Housing Annual Review 2022Download

    Local employers launch plan to make Norwich a Living Wage City

    Broadland Housing is part of a coalition of local businesses, charities and public sector organisations who today launched a plan to substantially increase the number of accredited Living Wage Employers in Norwich.

    The ‘Making Norwich a Living Wage City’ Action Group has today been recognised by the Living Wage Foundation. Their plan will see employers encouraged to pay the real Living Wage and become Living Wage Employers, ensuring all employees are paid what they need to get by.  

    The Norwich Living Wage City Action Group, which developed the plan, is an alliance of some of the city’s major businesses and institutions, all of whom are Living Wage Employers, including: Norwich City Council, Aviva, City College Norwich, Future Projects, and Broadland Housing Association.

    50 Real Living Wage employers in Norwich

    There are currently 50 Real Living Wage accredited employers in Norwich, meaning 1,114 workers have already received a pay rise that meets the real Living Wage. The group’s action plan aims to triple the number of employers paying the real Living Wage to 150 by 2025.

    Despite high levels of employment in Norwich, between March 2020 and April 2021 the city saw universal credit claims increase by 112%. This compares with 89.3% across the UK and suggests a disproportionate rise in the number of people facing in-work poverty. The number of people in work, yet not earning enough to live, will inevitably rise as the cost-of-living crisis deepens.

    Norwich is home to many traditionally low-pay sectors, which means more people work in low-pay or insecure occupations. The key sectors that the action group will target to encourage employers to pay the real Living Wage are: care, retail, hospitality, and property and construction.

    Councillor Alan Waters, Leader of Norwich City Council and Chair of the Norwich Living Wage Action Group, said:

    Poverty has been a stubborn fact of life for many Norwich residents, one that has become an acute problem over the past decade.  A Living Wage is one of the means to tackle the blight of poverty in the city. The success of the Living Wage Foundation in advocating for and successfully making the case to a growing number of employers of the benefits of paying the Living Wage, shows that insecure employment and low pay is not inevitable: there is an alternative.

    Norwich is a success story with an active Living Wage movement that has LW accredited employers across all sectors of the city’s economy. But there is more to do, to take things to the next stage. That is why we have collectively worked with the LW Foundation to become a designated ‘Living Wage Place.”

    Allan Waters, Leader of Norwich City Council and Chair of the Norwich Living Wage Action Group

    Daniel Childerhouse, CEO of Future Projects, said:

    We are delighted that Norwich has been officially designated as a Living Wage Place.  This recognition from the Living Wage Foundation signifies a collective commitment from dozens of employers in Norwich to deliver an action plan to drive up the number of accredited organisations and therefore lift thousands more people out of in-work poverty in the coming years.

    The Partnership at the heart of this work includes high profile employers from the public, private and voluntary sectors – all working together to make Norwich a better place to live and work. Norwich is showing real leadership in this area and I am excited to see the impact of our new status on our communities for years to come.”

    2022 Community Improvement Fund Awards

    2022 Community Improvement Fund Awards

    Thank you for all the applications we received to this years Community Improvement Fund. Three Broadland Housing tenants made up the 2022 judging panel.

    After much careful consideration, they awarded funds for the following improvements:

    • Communal outdoor shed for gardening items to be stored at St Katherine’s Court
    • Communal outdoor furniture for tenants to enjoy their garden area at Harriet Court
    • Communal parasols and bases for all of the garden areas at The Cedars
    • Communal raised beds repaired, patio area improved with trellis and planters, and new hard standing area for seating to benefit all tenants at Woodcote.

    The Community Improvement Fund opens for new applications from April 2023 – if you would like more information on how to apply, please call 01603 750113 or email tenantengagement@broadlandgroup.org.

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