The government’s housing market renewal pathfinders must “raise their game” if they are to create communities that people want to live in, an Audit Commission report has said.

Market Renewal, published yesterday, acknowledged pathfinders’ work in creating strategies to rejuvenate depressed housing markets. But it said they must develop a “stronger, more independent approach if they are to achieve long-term success”.

The report said pathfinders were not communicating their aims for housing clearly enough to residents, were focusing too much on the needs of individual councils rather than the area as a whole and had not developed tools to assess the value for money of their projects.

Roy Irwin, chief inspector for housing at the Audit Commission, said: “Pathfinders have come a long way in a short space of a time, but there is still much to be done in establishing firm foundations.

If they are to succeed in the long term … they must also think beyond traditional regeneration solutions.”

An ODPM spokesman said: “This is a programme that will need to be flexible and evolve, as new challenges and changing housing markets emerge. We will continue to work with the commission to take their recommendations forward.”

Pauline Davis, chief executive of New Heartlands, the Merseyside pathfinder, added: “Work is already under way to strengthen corporate governance, improve risk management and enhance our understanding of the market.”

Source

Housing Today