Wwh business plan 2015 to 2019

The Business Plan 2015 to 2019

Our vision is:

“to achieve strong

sustainable growth to make a

difference to people’s lives,

homes and communities.”

Our business plan has the same theme as the one we had in 1965.

We now have a few more themes, in fact six altogether. Six ways in

which we will continue to grow sustainably to make a difference to

people’s lives, homes and communities.

More – homes for people to rent and buy

Invest – making our housing warm and affordable to livein

Grow – generating real opportunities for work for residents

Technology – staff and residents making the most ofnew technology

Care – becoming an excellent care and support provider

Lives – supporting residents to make the best of theirtenancies

Wales & West Housing | The Business Plan 2015 to 2019 | 1

Just as acorns grow into mighty oak trees, when we

started in 1965 our plan was to provide housing that

local people could afford. From this ‘acorn’ of an idea,

we now own and manage over 9,500 homes across

Wales.

1 – The Mayor of Wrexham, Councillor David Bithell, visiting our new Hightown development on

Kingsmills Road

2 – Children in Barracksfield, Wrexham, tending their raised beds

3 – Residents at Nant y Môr take great pleasure in their open spaces

4 – Chris Ruane MP officially opens the new communal garden at Buxton Court in Rhyl, Denbighshire

5 - Carl Sargeant AM, former Minister for Housing and Regeneration, visiting Llys Jasmine, Flintshire’s

state-of-the-art extra care / dementia care development

6 - Tharniya Sivakumar, Mia Coates and Sujan Sivakumar at the Festival of Nations at Hightown

Community Resource Centre, Wrexham

“From our small beginnings in Cardiff, like an acorn we havegrown. In my time on the Board of Wales & West Housing Ihave watched this organisation flourish and expand. Likethe mighty oak, its strength comes from being well rooted inlocal communities and an organisation on which people candepend. Our plan is about the many ways we will make adifference to the lives of our residents. At Wales & WestHousing we do what we say we will do. We care about whatwe do and that’s why we achieve the results we do.”

Kathy Smart, WWH Chair

2 | The Business Plan 2015 to 2019 | Wales & West Housing

From our small beginnings…

L-R: Huw Lewis, Assembly Member for Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney, Kathy Smart, WWH Chair,

resident Pauline Protheroe in her new home at Vulcan Court in Merthyr Tydfil, and, Councillor

Brendan Toomey, leader of Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council


Doing the right thing has become a mantra for us and this plan forthe next five years outlines what we will do to make sure we carry onmaking a difference to as many people as we can.

Our ambition is for everyone to have a home they can be proud of, ina place they want to live.

A home is so much more than just bricks and mortar – a home iswhere we feel safe, secure and part of a community. It is where webelong, a place from which we can grow and mature. Quite simply ahome is the foundation from which we all build our lives.

We are a social business that listens to our residents so we can deliver what matters to them. We are a responsible business thatdoes the right thing in how we treat our residents, our staff and ourpartners. Our strength comes from being a ‘social’ and ‘responsible’business.

We are confident about the future and want that to be shared byour residents. The actions in this plan will help achieve that.

Anne, Shayne, Steve and Tony

If you would like to discuss any aspect of this plan please give us aring on 02920 415335 or email us at [email protected]

Confident about the future…


L-R: Shayne Hembrow, Deputy Chief Executive/Commercial Director, Anne Hinchey, Chief Executive, Steve Porter, Operations Director,

and Tony Wilson, Finance Director.


6More

Invest

Grow

Technology

Care

Lives


themes

Carl Sargeant AM, former Minister for Housing and Regeneration

officially opens our award winning new Extra Care/Dementia Care

development, Llys Jasmine, in Mold, Flintshire

Our




Our plan over the next five years is to build more than 1,000 new

affordable homes. These include:

- 870 new high quality affordable family homes

- 38 state of the art specialist properties for vulnerable people

so they can live better, fuller and more independent lives

- 92 well designed apartments for older people to own or

to rent

- 100 homes for people who want to own their our home

We also plan to:

- Purchase the freehold of 400 units where we are the current

leaseholder

- Launch our pattern book of well designed, cost effective

energy efficient homes to buy and rent

MOREWe want to continue to build as many new homes as we

can afford. By making ourselves more efficient and

getting better value for money we have been able to

invest £54m in new housing in the past 3 years.

Symone Davies, her son, Ethan, and daughter, Ffion, looking forward to moving into their new home

in Town Mill Road in Cowbridge, Vale of Glamorgan



- Design bespoke retrofit energy efficiency packages for all our

homes where we reasonably can

- Further develop our investment plans to:

- Create community gardens and vegetable plots

- Remodel older housing to better meet residents

needs

- Sustain the Welsh Housing Quality Standard for all our homes

INVESTWe feel strongly that no-one should be unable to afford

to heat their home and our plan is to do all we can to

eliminate fuel poverty. We want to make our housing

some of the warmest and most affordable to run in

Wales. We will:

Resident Daisy Jones with her beautiful floral displays at Buxton Court in Rhyl, Denbighshire



- Make full use of Cambria Maintenance Services and Castell

Ventures to generate employment and training opportunities,

starting with Castell Catering

- Work with residents to help them get the training they need

either from WWH or partners

- Use our social enterprise and employment team to offer

tailored packages of support to help get people into work or

volunteering

G.R.O.W.‘Generating real opportunities for work’ for our

residents through our own resources as well as through

our network of partners is our fourth theme. We want

our residents to make the best use of the skills and

opportunities available to them. In the coming years

we will:

(Above) Cambria Maintenance Services fitting out the new premises of Cardiff Foodbank

Flynn (left) is looking foward to flexing his green fingers in Ton Pentre Infants School, Rhondda,

thanks to our donation of gardening equipment

Love it or hate it, technology is here to stay and will

continue to transform the way we work and live. We love

it and want everyone who works for us and lives in our

homes to get the most from what is available. We have

lots of plans and these include:


- Continuing to roll-out free WiFi to residents

- Assessing the scope to expand telecare and other assistive

technology services offered by Connect 24

- Expanding the range of equipment and apps available for

staff so they can do more for residents when out and about

- Improving the skills of both staff and residents to make full use

of the internet

- Creating a network of digital champions to promote the

benefits of being online to residents

TECHNOLOGY

(Above) Student Jacob Durbin and resident Anne Halliday get to grips with Facebook and Twitter at

Oldwell Court retirement scheme, Cardiff

(Right) Student Luke Moore helps resident Fred Austin find his way around the internet




- Improve the skills of all of our staff to better support a wider

range of vulnerable people

- Improve access, signage and the design of all our stock to

make them truly dementia, sight and disability friendly

- Increase the number and range of supported housing schemes

for people with complex needs

CAREWe are seeing an ever increasing demand from our

residents and others in the community for help with care

and support services. We want to expand both the range

and scale of our services and therefore we will:

(Above) Resident Norma Thomas enjoys a gentle exercise class, while Jaclyn Bolton enjoys

some pampering by hairdresser Denise at Nant y Môr Extra Care scheme in Prestatyn,

Denbighshire

(Left) Residents Idwal Roberts and Walter McCleod relaxing at Llys Jasmine Extra Care

Scheme, Mold, Flintshire

LIVESSupporting our residents to make the best of their

tenancy and enabling them to stay living in our properties

for as long as they wish is really important to us. We know

some of our residents need a little extra help to make

their house their home. In the next few years we will:


- Continue to help residents earn more, budget better and stay

out of debt

- Explore other areas of support that people may need when

they start their tenancy, such as accessing the best fuel tariffs,

furniture and white goods for themselves.

(Above) Resident Viv Ellis enjoying lunch with Catering Manager Christine Wolstenholme at Llys

Jasmine Extra Care scheme, Mold, Flintshire

(right) Carl Sargeant AM, former Minister for Housing and Regeneration chats to residents Brian and

Joyce Bibb about their renewable heating system in Howey, Powys


How we run WWHHow we run the business has a big impact on our residents, our staff, the

environment and our partners. Being socially responsible is very important to

us and is, quite simply, the right thing to do.


In delivering our six themes there are some principles which we hold dear

- We will live our values and be fair, open, responsible, supportive and efficient

- We will use our operating principles to ensure residents are at the heart of what we

do and our services deliver what matters to them

- We will invest wisely, ethically and run our business to achieve the best value possible

for residents

- We will try to minimise our impact on the environment

If you would like to find out more about how we run WWH, including details of our

Board, please go to www.wwha.co.uk

North Wales Housing Officer Cath Marland out and about visiting her residents

How we run WWH


Conwy

233 Denbighshire

394

Flintshire

776

Wrexham

800

Powys

821

Swansea

96 Bridgend

1,301Vale of Glamorgan

423

Cardiff

3,168

Rhondda Cynon Taf

312

Caerphilly

461

Merthyr Tydfil

471

Total Stock

9,256Total Stock

9,623

Total on site now

576

General Needs

36

Re!rement

204

General Needs

249

Extra Care

58

Re!rement

58General Needs

606 Re!rement

137

General Needs

774

Re!rement

88

General Needs

632

Re!rement

158Supported

49

Supported

38

HomeOwnership

12

General Needs

65

General Needs

64

Re!rement

245

Re!rement

149

Supported

5 General Needs

92

Re!rement

106

General Needs

2,103

Supported

33

Re!rement

128

Supported

19

Home Ownership

34

General Needs

988

Re!rement

305

HomeOwnership

33Supported

26 General Needs

247HomeOwnership

166

Re!rement

682

HomeOwnership

627

General Needs

243

Conwy

Denbighshire

Flintshire

Wrexham

Powys

SwanseaBridgend

Vale of Glamorgan

Cardiff

Rhondda Cynon

TafCaerphilly

HomeOwnership

31

HomeOwnership

31

HomeOwnership

1

Merthyr Tydfil

HomeOwnership

2

Supported

12

Home Ownership

23

In development

47

In development

40

In development

57

In development

64

In development

71

In development

32In

development

137

In development

104

In development

24

Extra Care

63

HomeOwnership

1

Where we operate

Figures as at August 2014


Financially strongOur financial strength enables us to do the right thing at the right

time for our residents and our properties and absorb the knocks

that Welfare Reform brings. We expect the continuation of healthy

surpluses which we will reinvest in our existing housing stock,

ensuring they meet the Welsh Housing Quality Standard at all

times. We are also able to borrow for long periods at low interest

rates and access grant funding, which we anticipate will enable us

to grow our housing stock by a further 12% by 2019. Our total

spend over the next five years of more than £300 million will also

provide a substantial economic stimulus in the communities in

which our residents live.


Lesley Griffiths AM officially opens Hightown Community Resource Centre along with Wales & West Housing Chief Executive Anne

Hinchey, The Mayor Cllr David Bithell, Ian Lucas MP and pupils from Ysgol Bodhyfryd and St Giles Primary School


(Below) Our new development at Hightown, Wrexham

(Right) Mark Drakeford, Minister for Health and Social Services at Llys Jasmine Extra Care scheme.

INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT

for years ending 31 December 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2015 -

£m £m £m £m £m 2019 £m

Income 44.9 48.0 50.3 52.9 55.1 251.2

Operating costs (33.2) (36.2) (37.6) (39.1) (40.1) (186.2)

Operating surplus 11.7 11.8 12.7 13.8 15.0 65.0

Interest payable (6.0) (6.5) (7.4) (8.0) (8.9) (36.8)

Net surplus 5.7 5.3 5.3 5.8 6.1 28.2

BALANCE SHEET

as at 31 December 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019

£m £m £m £m £m

Gross property cost 529.1 549.0 571.7 602.5 640.1

Housing grant (281.9) (285.8) (294.4) (303.8) (314.2)

Depreciation (48.6) (54.8) (61.1) (68.0) (75.2)

Net cost of property 198.6 208.4 216.2 230.7 250.7

Borrowings (162.6) (170.1) (172.2) (178.3) (191.7)

Other net assets 20.3 23.4 22.9 20.3 19.9

Net assets & reserves 56.3 61.7 66.9 72.7 78.9

Gearing Ratio (net worth) 48.1% 49.0% 47.6% 47.4% 48.8%

Gearing Ratio (gross property cost) 30.7% 31.0% 30.1% 29.6% 29.9%


CASHFLOWS

for years ending 31 December 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2015 -

£m £m £m £m £m 2019 £m

Net cash flow from operations 17.6 18.4 19.8 21.3 23.0 100.1

Net interest payments (5.8) (6.5) (7.4) (8.3) (9.0) (37.0)

Replacement capital expenditure (3.5) (0.6) (0.6) (0.6) (0.7) (6.0)

Replacement components (8.3) (7.2) (6.0) (4.8) (6.8) (33.1)

Free cash inflow 0.0 4.1 5.8 7.6 6.5 24.0

Development expenditure (29.8) (12.7) (16.9) (25.9) (30.8) (116.1)

Grants 6.1 4.4 9.0 9.8 10.9 40.2

Net cash outflow

before financing (23.7) (4.2) (2.1) (8.5) (13.4) (51.9)

Loan principal drawdown -

known facility 5.0 5.5 0.0 0.0 0.0 10.5

- additional facility requirement 20.0 4.2 4.9 23.9 16.2 69.2

Loan principal repayments (2.0) (2.2) (2.8) (17.8) (2.8) (27.6)

Net increase/(decrease) in cash (0.7) 3.3 0.0 (2.4) 0.0 0.2

ASSUMPTIONS

for years ending 31 December 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019

Plan Plan Plan Plan Plan

Inflation

Rent 3.50% 3.50% 3.50% 3.50% 3.00%

Salaries 3.25% 3.25% 3.25% 3.25% 3.25%

Maintenance costs 3.50% 3.50% 3.50% 3.50% 3.50%

CPI 2.00% 2.00% 2.00% 2.00% 2.00%

Funding

New borrowings rate 4.82% 5.14% 5.54% 5.84% 6.04%

Grant rate 58% 58% 58% 58% 58%

Housing completions 278 183 130 160 240

Wales & West Housing

3 Alexandra Gate, Ffordd Pengam, Tremorfa, Cardiff CF24 2UD.

and

Unit 2, Acorn Business Park, Aber Road, Flint CH6 5YN.

Telephone on 0800 052 2526

Email: [email protected] Website: www.wwha.co.uk

@wwha

wwhahomesforwales

Published September 2014

Documents

Wwh business plan 2015 to 2019