Housing association leaders from across West Yorkshire met with the Mayor of West Yorkshire, Tracy Brabin, today as the West Yorkshire Housing Partnership (WYHP) published their annual report.
The partnership, which owns and manages around 250,000 homes across West Yorkshire was formed to work with the Mayor, the West Yorkshire Combined Authority (WYCA) and local authorities in 2020.
The Mayor and the WYHP discussed the provision of affordable homes, tackling climate change, the cost-of-living crisis and housing support for people with additional needs.
159,516 households in Yorkshire and Humberside are on housing waiting lists, the third highest behind only London and the North East. Despite challenges caused by inflation, interest rate increases and a downturn in the new homes market the partnership built 797 new affordable homes last year and are working with WYCA and the Mayor to build more. They have plans to deliver a further 1,000 new homes this year.
Tackling climate change is a key focus of the partnership, particularly as homes in West Yorkshire are amongst the least energy efficient in England. West Yorkshire is aiming to reach net-zero by 2038 and housing associations are taking a leading role in scaling up investment in energy efficiency and low carbon heating to help hit that target.
This growing area of work has been supported by a successful joint bid between the combined authority, the WYHP and local authorities to the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund. They were awarded £5.2m to improve the energy efficiency of 1,316 West Yorkshire homes, saving around 400 tonnes of CO2 each year and helping to make homes healthier, warmer and more comfortable for people to live in.
The partnership recently joined the Mayor’s Green Jobs Taskforce, set up to create 1,000 green jobs across the region. Housing associations are well placed to support people into employment, and it is hoped by working together hundreds of people could be equipped with the skills to make homes more energy efficient.
Alongside housing provision and climate change, housing leaders and the Mayor also discussed the partnership working to help people through the cost-of-living crisis. Across West Yorkshire the number of households in fuel poverty is increasing and is expected to get worse when the energy price guarantee goes up by 20% in April.
In October the Mayor launched a package of measures to support households and businesses hardest hit by the cost-of-living crisis, so she was particularly interested to discuss issues such as the impact of pre-payment meters and how our region may join national calls for action on this.
The Mayor heard how members of WYHP have joined the warm spaces network opening community centres and offices; increased investment in money advice and support, helping to secure millions of pounds worth of grants and unclaimed entitlements for tenants alongside creating partnerships with local authorities, charities, and credit unions to create networks of support.
As part of the meeting the Mayor also visited safe and secure accommodation that is provided by one of the partnership members for women and children who have experienced domestic abuse. The safety of women and girls is a priority for the Mayor and the cost-of-living crisis is having a significant impact on people suffering domestic abuse.
Research by Women’s Aid has revealed that 96% of victims have said that the crisis is making their abuse worse, and 73% said the crisis had prevented them from leaving an abusive home.
Helen Lennon, Chair of the West Yorkshire Housing Partnership said: “We’ve seen so many changes in the last year and we still face a number of challenges so it’s more important than ever that we work together to improve the lives of people living in West Yorkshire.
“Despite a difficult twelve months the partnership has continued to go from strength to strength, delivering almost 800 new affordable homes.
“The cost of energy emphasises just how important the energy efficiency of our homes is. A focus for the year ahead will be on how we can make the best use of green technology to make more of our homes as affordable to run as possible and develop the workforce skills to make this happen. “We firmly believe that good quality, affordable housing is vital to the strength and growth of West Yorkshire. Regardless of what’s happening around us, we won’t be distracted from our core aims, and we’ll maintain the momentum throughout the year ahead.”
Tracy Brabin, Mayor of West Yorkshire said: “I am determined to do everything in my power to improve the safety of women and girls in West Yorkshire.
“By working with partners, I want to ensure victims and survivors of domestic abuse have safe and secure places that they can call home. It’s vital that women have somewhere to go when they’re most vulnerable.
“Today I saw the incredible work being undertaken by the region’s housing providers, from providing places of sanctuary, to supporting women in times of crisis. I look forward to continuing to work together to help our communities.”
The full report can be read here.
*The West Yorkshire Partnership is made up of 14 members, including Yorkshire Housing.*