Ineffective, unhelpful and poor value for money – that’s what many in the sector think of the National Housing Federation’s In Business for Neighbourhoods rebranding exercise, according to a Housing Today survey
just over half say they know what it’s for; just 27% think it has raised the profile of housing associations; only 41% have noticed the registered social landlords they work for, or with, doing anything differently.
The National Housing Federation is not going to like what 143 social housing professionals had to tell us about In Business for Neighbourhoods, the NHF’s year-old campaign to “rebrand” associations as neighbourhood services rather than just housing providers.
Admittedly, the task embarked on by NHF chief executive Jim Coulter and his colleagues to overhaul the sector’s image was never going to succeed overnight. However, when the majority of organisations with which RSLs work most closely feel nothing has changed in that time, something must be going badly wrong.
The comments returned as part of our anonymous survey bear this out. “I’ve only heard of this initiative in passing [and have] certainly seen no real change in the way housing associations do business in this city,” said one respondent from either an arm’s-length management organisation, council or other non-RSL body.
“I cannot see how this trendy fad has impacted on people’s perceptions of the RSL sector, either those within the sector or subject to its operations,” said another.
While it is the perceptions of respondents from councils, ALMOs and other bodies that will rankle most with the NHF, the responses from RSL workers make grave reading, too.
Just 28% of these people felt that In Business had raised the profile of housing associations, while a quarter said their RSL had not started doing anything differently during the past 12 months. Even fewer said that they felt the exercise – during which the NHF spent £1m of its members’ money on branding and publicity – had represented value for money so far. Only 23% said In Business had been money well spent.
However, Jim Coulter, chief executive of the National Housing Federation, was upbeat about the results of the poll.
“This survey shows that we are more than beginning to make inroads into the way we work, with more than half of those surveyed saying they believe their organisation has started working differently and 28% saying that In Business has raised the profile of housing associations, which is one of our clear aims,” he said.
Coulter added that the federation would launch an update on In Business at its annual conference in Birmingham next week.
“The One Year On document will be looking at how to take In Business forward and will be tackling some of the issues about value for money and support for members,” he said.
And he warned housing associations that, next year, the 418 that are signed up to the programme will have to raise their game in terms of promoting themselves to councils and other local organisations.
“Our focus this year has been on our members, but now that we have a significant amount of stock signed up to In Business, we will be looking to do more promotion of In Business outside the housing association sector and to our stakeholders and partners,” he said.
“Our members have a job to do to talk to their stakeholders about the work they do in communities and neighbourhoods.”
And judging by the results of our survey, this is not before time.
Housing associations
YES 67.0%
NO 21.2%
DON'T KNOW 11.8%
YES 40.0%
NO 28.2%
DON'T KNOW 31.8%
differently as a result of In Business?
YES 51.8%
NO 25.9%
DON'T KNOW 22.3%
housing associations?
YES 28.2%
NO 42.4%
DON'T KNOW 29.4%
YES 22.4%
NO 23.5%
DON'T KNOW 54.1%
Councils, almos and others
YES 31.7%
NO 50.8%
DON'T KNOW 17.5%
YES 22.2%
NO 58.7%
DON'T KNOW 19.1%
In Business?
YES 9.5%
NO 52.4%
DON'T KNOW 38.1%
housing associations?
YES 22.2%
no 49.2%
DON'T KNOW 28.6%
YES 12.7%
NO 39.7%
DON'T KNOW 47.6%
Methodology
The survey was conducted via the website www.housing-today.co.uk during the four weeks to 3 September 2004. Subscribers to the website were given the option of taking part and 143 chose to do so. They represented a cross-section of the sector as follows: housing association employees, 56%; council staff, 21%; arm’s-length management organisations, 4%; others, 19%. The results were analysed by Housing Today staff.
What you said
The survey also gave respondents a chance to make their own, anonymous, comments on In Business. Here’s what they had to say:
“We’ve started using the In Business for Neighbourhoods branding. I think, though, that it needs to continue with high-level publicity for a little longer before we can see real effect. Anything that gets us away from the blandness and stigma of ‘social’ and ‘affordable’ and talks about neighbourhoods and communities, regardless of income or tenure differentiation, has to be good.”
“My organisation has been carrying the In Business logo for a year. None of the staff were told what it meant and there have been no visible changes to our services and policies as a result.”
“I am sceptical about its value as a rebranding exercise. This is a very expensive basket in which to hold all your eggs. I’m beginning to think there would have been better value in teaming up with housing providers across the sectors to address the stigma around social housing and to join up the profession with other service agencies.”
“In Business has been successful so far in promoting, internally in the sector, the need for excellence and what this means for neighbourhood agendas. It has also brought many organisations together. There is, though, still work to be done in engaging external stakeholders and tenants more fully with the change programme.”
“Two problems: first, the publicity needs to be sustained on what In Business means and what difference it makes (not all housing associations are clear on this, never mind others); second, a number of housing associations have carried on as before and don’t seem to understand the need to raise their game and do things differently. Should there be some objective, external tests to determine which housing associations should be eligible to describe themselves as being ‘In Business’?”
“The In Business project perfectly matches the work we had already started.”
“Why not open up In Business to people who work with housing associations?”
“Housing associations should not forget the needs of homeless people, which is the main aim of social housing, while doing their business.”
“The message is rather confused, talking about efficiency in the same breath as neighbourhoods. I think you need to stick with one key message to ram it home.”
Source
Housing Today
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