Strategy
According to their annual report 2013-14, One Housing says they:fund the construction of our new homes by selling on the open market. We do this independently and through joint venture partnerships. In 2013/14 we sold 90 private sale and 113 shared ownership properties and plan to complete a further 330 private sale and 49 shared ownership homes during 2014/15.In their current five-year plan, they say they aim to create 800 new homes for the elderly and 230 homes will including on site care. £74m will be spent on maintenance of their existing housing stock. In 2014 they engaged 17 firms to build 900 homes at a contractual value of £900m.
We think we have a win-win approach to building homes. We increase supply for those wanting to buy their home and at the same time use the profits to house those on lower incomes.Five Year Plan 2014-19
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Official criticism of governance
In its 2013 audit, the Social Housing Regulator stated that One Housing Group need to improve its governance and oversight:the board needs to enhance its oversight and scrutiny of the group’s activities to maintain compliance with regulatory requirements. The group is in the process of implementing a suite of recommendations arising from a governance review which will better align governance arrangements with the corporate plan.In 2015, they noted that governance had improved. They noted that the main risks were now financial, with a plan that is highly dependent on sales receipts from house building.
… Whilst the group has recently been successful in delivering planned outcomes and its financial position has improved, the regulator needs further assurance that the level of oversight by the board is of the standard necessary to ensure this continues. The board also needs to strengthen its capacity to carry out this scrutiny role and to hold the executive to account. Reporting to the board has not been sufficiently frequent and detailed enough for the board to be clear about current performance and issues arising across all of the group’s business.HCA Regulatory Judgement on One Housing Group Limited – LH0171
March 2013
"The key exposure arises from the extent of the group’s reliance within its business plan on sales receipts, from both shared ownership and, more significantly, market sales activity. Over the plan’s first five years, total sales receipts of £513m are forecast, of which £404m are assumed from market sales. In each of the plan’s first two years, total forecast sales surpluses exceed those of the group as a whole, with market sales margins representing 80% and 83% of the total surplus respectively. OHG does have a recent track record of successful sales programmes however, given the significant future cash flows involved in this area of activity alongside limited headroom on the main gearing covenant, risks relating to liquidity management and covenant compliance will need to continue to be effectively monitored and controlled."
Controversy
Isle of Dogs and Island Homes
One Housing Group run a number of formerResidents had used the consultation process to negotiate Island Homes being a resident-led organisation … "Island Homes’ Board of 15 would include eight residents – one tenant and one leaseholder from each of the four estates. The individual estates were to determine their nominees. Toynbee specifically promised that governance arrangement in its Offer Document to tenants, and there is little doubt it played a massive part in securing its majority in the ballot."However, despite the promises made, no contractual provision was made during the stock transfer. In 2008, after the merger of the Toynbee and Community Housing Trusts, the new One Housing Group suspended the Island Homes Board and appointed new trustees, citing management problems. Around a third of TIH homes failed to meet the Decent Homes Standard used by the Housing Corporation in 2007, the regulator at the time. In 2012, One Housing abolished the separate management structure after a consultation with residents, bringing the stock directly under its control. Some local residents objected, in part because of the promises made at the time of the stock transfer, and wrote to the housing minister asking him to block the changes saying "OHG has, in effect stolen the right of Island Homes to govern themselves… We ask you to intervene and suspend the merger process."
Project Stone
According to ''The Wharf'', the total stock of former Toynbee Island Homes 2,000 homes could be replaced by 9,000 newly built properties by the group, under Project Stone. Most would be sold on the open market, "with “high earning financial sector workers” named as potential buyers."Crisis of confidence over Isle of Dogs’ One Housing GroupIslington and Kingston communes
A group of 18 tenants facing eviction from four joined Victorian terraces in Islington Park Street took their complaints to Twitter and local media in 2015. The Crescent Road Community also face eviction from their communal property in Coombe Hill, Kingston.'A pillar of Kingston': historic commune being forced out of Coombe Hill homePay cuts and union disputes
Unite the Union, Unite members held a four-day strike in 2014 after the suspension of their steward Bryan Kennedy. He had led a campaign against pay cuts in 2013, and was suspended immediately prior to a further round of negotiations on new pay reductions. One Housing Group denied any connection between the suspension and the negotiations. A Unite spokesperson accused One Housing of being "an incredibly bad employer", which had cut wages of employees while increasing the salary of their CEO.King's Cross Central
A 2012 investigation byChief Executive Salary Survey 2020
According to Inside Housing, the Chief Executive Officer Richard Hill had £211,364 total salary (salary £205,964 + bonus £0 + car allowance £5,400) for the fiscal year 2019/2020. This is a reduction of 6.9% compared to the previous fiscal year with a total salary of £226,936.Proposed partnership with Riverside Group
On 24 June 2021 One Housing Group and Riverside Group announced their plan to form a new partnership. If confirmed, then One Housing Group would join Riverside Group as a subsidiary for two years only. This will allow One Housing Group to run as a separate entity, continuing the current business model while already consulting the parent Riverside Group on major decisions and slowly aligning and integrating the day to day running of One Housing Group to the needs and culture of Riverside Group. At the end of the twe year transition period, One Housing Group will then simply be dissolved. Housing stock will then belong to Riverside Group who will also manage the newly integrated properties.Riverside Group and One Housing, a complementary partnership https://onehousing.co.uk/about-us/riverside-and-one-housing-groups-in-partnership-talks/a-complementary-partnershipReferences
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