Executive Summary

This is the Association’s second Asset Management Plan (AMP).  It updates and replaces the first plan which was agreed in September 2010 and continues to draw together information taken from the Association’s existing strategic and key operational documents.  It covers the period April 2011 to March 2016 and demonstrates that the Association:

·         Has a strong asset base with the right type of properties to continue to meet existing and future demand

·         Has housing assets that already fully meet the requirements of the SHQS five years in advance of the 2015 deadline – in many instances we exceeded the minimum requirements

·         Is able to protect the significant investment already made via tenants’ rents and grant funding in order to ensure that our asset base retains its value

·         Will procure contracts and services in a way that not only shows openness and accountability, but also achieves a value for money approach for all capital and major works projects to ensure high quality outputs

·         Has secured finance (from loans and reserves) to progress the development and improvement works which will sustain the Association’s stock in the long-term and continue to help meet the needs and aspirations of our tenants

·         Continues to seek new techniques and activities aimed at making the ongoing integrity of asset management more assured

·         Acknowledges the need to be ready to revise the AMP to reflect any additional stock acquired, especially in relation to any transfer of stock from West Dunbartonshire Council.

The plan also highlights ten Key Action Points:

1)     agree a programme of stock condition survey inspections to be carried out by the Maintenance Officer using the hand-held tablet.  These will allow the current stock condition survey information to be updated

2)     Ensure that the Asbestos Management Plan is updated as required to include any stock that may be acquired from WDC

3)     Carry out an assessment of compliance in relation to the new Social Housing Charter within a year of it becoming effective from April 2012

4)     Establish a database containing details of the all adaptations carried out.  This should include ongoing maintenance and replacement arrangements

5)     In tandem with compiling the adaptations database, the Association will review the present policy on adaptations and highlight any resultant amendments to the allocations policy for Committee consideration

6)     Consider developing an Affordable Warmth Strategy

7)     Continue monitoring re-let times within the current stock as Dalquhurn continues to come off site to ensure that Dalquhurn does not begin to have an adverse impact on the lettability of the remainder of the stock

8)     Consider ways of gathering more robust demand/demographic information on our area of operation and the adjoining areas

9)     Develop and implement a Tenancy Sustainment Strategy.  As a minimum, it will help eliminate the number of people abandoning or leaving their tenancies.  Our approach has, however, evolved to incorporate assisting tenants with every aspect of their tenancy, including specific help for those who may be vulnerable in this regard

10)  Ensure that the AMP continues to be proactive to any developments regarding the possible stock transfer from WDC

Principles of Asset Management

1.1          Last year, the Association developed its first Asset Management Plan (AMP).  The phrase “asset management” is still relatively new within the registered social landlord (RSL) sector, with most RSLs starting to assemble their first plans from mid-2009.  However, the elements of what makes a good asset management plan (AMP) had been well established within the vast majority of RSLs: what was new was bringing them together under the umbrella of asset management.  The Scottish Housing Regulator (SHR) describes asset management as follows:

Asset management is about planning to have houses of the right kind in the right place that meet the needs and standards required now and in the future. It is integral to effective business planning and good financial performance, and is important in maintaining the value of the asset for future borrowing. It provides the context for investment decisions. Asset management should also incorporate or complement development, procurement and neighbourhood management strategies. And, in all of this, it is about remembering that these assets are also tenants’ homes and that the views and involvement of tenants are essential components of effective asset management.

Shaping Up for Improvement, s5.1 (SHR, July 2009)

1.2        There is no specific legal context for asset management per se (although elements such as gas safety do have clear legal contexts) nor have there been any specific pieces of regulatory advice or good practice guidance – initially, it was hoped that the SHR or SFHA would offer further guidance but this has yet to be addressed.  The Association therefore referred to AMPs developed by RSLs in England as well as some of the evolving plans being introduced in Scotland in 2009 and 2010.  We have also taken account of good practice guidance issued by the Quality & Efficiency Forum earlier in 2009. 

1.2          Whilst there has been no specific guidance from the SHR, there are some Performance Standards which are linked to good asset management.  For example:

·         Section GS1.1 on Planning and Performance which states that RSLs should “have a robust planning process and realistic strategies and plans for achieving their goals and ………. monitor and control their performance and assess the outcome of their activities”

·         Section GS1.5 on Procurement which states that RSLs should “have a systematic and accountable approach to finding the most efficient and cost-effective way of securing the quality of assets and services they need”

·         Section AS3.2 on Stock Management which states that RSLs should “follow sound stock-management strategies to ensure their houses are in demand, maintained, modernised and adapted as people’s needs change”

·         Section AS1.5 on Void Management which includes the statement that RSLs should “make sure our properties are of an appropriate lettable standard”

There are also clear links to other Performance Standards, such as GS2.2 on Tenant Participation, GS4.4 on Risk Management and GS4.6 on Financial Viability.

Purpose of the Asset Management Plan

1.4        This is Cordale’s second Asset Management Plan.  It builds on the first Plan and has the following purposes:

·         To assess and secure the long-term financial viability of the Association

·         To ensure that the Association’s priorities fit with those outlined in the Council’s Strategic Housing Investment Plan (SHIP); and that Cordale influences the SHIP in a way that allows it to reflect the Association’s own priorities

·         To ensure that the Association develops its new housing in a way that meets the future needs and aspirations of current and future residents

·         To inform how the Association’s approach to procurement may evolve

·         To ensure that the Association continues to comply with statutory, regulatory and best practice requirements

And, in doing all of this...............

·         To ensure that the Association protects and makes best use of its assets, taking all reasonable steps to ensure that they remain “fit for purpose” and that any corrective action can be identified and taken timeously.  Here, the term “asset” is used in its broadest sense and includes, for example, housing stock, staff and Committee, and financial resources.

1.5        To help ensure that any required action is clearly identified and taken, “Key Action Point” boxes are shown within the document.  In some cases, action is already being addressed (for example, in the activity plans attached to the corporate workplan), but highlighting these actions will help ensure that nothing is overlooked and will clarify the interface between the AMP and other strategic and/or operational documents and other plans.

Stakeholder Involvement

1.6        It is also critical that we allow the views of our many stakeholders to influence the AMP.  To date, we have gathered views from staff and Committee in addition to our principal stakeholder group – current tenants – and, during the first year of this Plan, we will extend this consultation to other key groups such as all local residents, housing list applicants, partner agencies (such as WDC) and funders so that any appropriate revisions can be made in time for the April 2012 review.  We will also have discussions with tenants of any stock acquired as part of the transfer from West Dunbartonshire Council.

1.7        During November and December 2009, the Tenant Participation Advisory Service (TPAS) spoke directly to 57 (or 15%) of the Association’s current tenants from throughout the stock.  The views expressed in this independent survey have been taken into account in devising this Plan and will be revisited during 2011/12.

1.8        A draft Plan was presented to the Asset Management sub-Committee at its meeting on 19 April 2011 and comments made by members were incorporated into the final draft.  This was then presented to the Management Committee at its meeting on 26 April 2011 when the document was approved. 

Plan Period

1.9        The Plan period is five-years with annual updates.  This means that we can make good use of the five-year maintenance plans and financial projections cycles in use.  The Plan was finalised by the Committee on 26 April 2011 and covers the period 1 April 2011 to 31 March 2016.

Need and Aspiration

1.10      We wish to emphasise that the Association’s ethos has always been to aim to meet people’s aspirations in addition to meeting their basic or underlying needs.  The primary task is, of course, to meet housing need and we continue to achieve this by providing good quality rented housing at affordable rents to those demonstrating the highest levels of need (including those who are homeless).  But we believe that we need to do more than just meet basic housing need in order to build a sustainable community where people choose to live and where they enjoy living.  This has been a central plank of our ethos since our inception in 1993, when the first Committee said “we won’t build a better standard of housing for people to enjoy their poverty in”. 

1.11      To help achieve this, we have promoted a number of successful non-housing projects aimed at the overall regeneration of the area, and have begun to regenerate the village centre with improved shopping (including the previously under threat Post Office) and the building of the integrated medical centre.  In the same vein, we also wish to broaden our thinking to include taking account of people’s aspirations, where possible, and not just their basic needs.

1.12      It would be premature and inappropriate for the Association to provide a prescriptive list of what it believes tenants’ aspirations will be during the coming years.  However, it important to state that Cordale views meeting need as the minimum we ought to be aiming to do for our tenants (and applicants) and, where possible, we will therefore also be considering how we can meet aspirations.  This could include, for example, considering small changes to the allocations process or, in the case of major repairs and/or development, taking account of people’s wishes as well as their basic needs.

1.13      Our commitment to aspiration and not just basic need should be borne in mind when reading this Plan.  Meeting needs will always be our priority; in the context of the asset management plan, this means ensuring that we do what is required to ensure that the physical assets (the properties) are maintained to appropriate standards now and in the future.  So long as we do not lose sight of this basic objective, we will strive to continue to give tenants “a lot more”.  We have developed into a “can do” organisation, and pride ourselves in the fact that we always try to “say yes” – applied to the physical quality of the properties, this approach will help maintain the desirability of our stock and contribute to the “now and in the future” requirement highlighted by the SHR.