{"id":39150,"date":"2018-03-06T12:38:07","date_gmt":"2018-03-06T12:38:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pbctoday.co.uk\/news\/?p=39150"},"modified":"2018-03-06T12:43:19","modified_gmt":"2018-03-06T12:43:19","slug":"great-places-commission-launched-by-nhf","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pbctoday.co.uk\/news\/planning-construction-news\/great-places-commission-launched-by-nhf\/39150\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Great Places\u2019 Commission launched by the National Housing Federation"},"content":{"rendered":"

The NHF has launched an investigation\u00a0that will delve into what makes a \u2018great place\u2019 and\u00a0how housing associations can play a key role in regenerating areas in economic decline<\/h2>\n

Over at least the next 18 months the programme will build tangible recommendations looking at how residents, government, local authorities, private companies and not for profit organisations can, together create, or rebuild, great places to live across the country.<\/p>\n

The programme aims to address the fact that the housing crisis<\/a> is playing out differently across the country.<\/p>\n

In some areas, like parts of the North and Midlands enough housing stock exists but isn\u2019t suitable. Often it\u2019s in need of renovation, or located in areas of economic decline, lacking in transport links or with few jobs. The work will address this issue, and in the first instance focus on challenging urban areas in the Midlands and the North of England.<\/p>\n

Ruth Davison, executive director of public impact, said:\u00a0\u201cHousing associations<\/a> have rightly been focused on driving up housing delivery, but lots of houses don\u2019t a great place make.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are loads of places that we own and manage already and towns that we\u2019re invested in and we need to focus on those too. This is exactly what the Commission plans to do.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Commission will visit places from across the county with an enquiring, open mind. I\u2019m from Hartlepool and people might walk around the places that I love in that town and think that they are a bit crummy, truthfully, and ostensibly they might be. But they have value to me. And only people who live in communities understand the kind of value that\u2019s there already, the assets that are there already \u2013 historical, cultural or whatever.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Commission is the first stage of the great place programme and will comprise of leaders across the sector with direct experience of regeneration in the region.<\/p>\n

They will visit great and struggling places in each region across the Midlands and North, where they will engage with residents, mayors, councillors and academics amongst others. They will then use this insight to build an evidence-based understanding of what makes a place better, and in turn use this to develop tangible recommendations.<\/p>\n

The Commission\u2019s first visit will be to Liverpool on the 26th and 27th March.<\/p>\n

The full list of Commission members includes:<\/p>\n