Sir Bob Kerslake: HCA has delivered in all key areas » Housing » 24dash.com

In its first year of operation, the Homes and Communities Agency has met its key targets, including delivery of over 53,000 new and affordable homes and the investment of £3.9bn through its Programmes, despite operating within severely depressed financial and housing markets.

The Agency’s Annual Report and Financial Statements for 2008-09, published today, set out the key achievements for the HCA and its predecessor bodies over the 12 month reporting period ending March 31 2009.

These include:

• Completion of 53,843 new and affordable homes for rent or sale (30,820 during the first four months of HCA operation).
• Starts on site with 44,472 new and affordable homes for rent or sale (30,837 during the first four months of HCA operation).
• Reclamation of 327 hectares of brownfield land.
• Creation of 450,487 square metres of employment floorspace.
• Attracted £1.035bn of private sector investment.

Well over half the HCA’s outputs across all categories were achieved during the first four months of operation, including 58% of affordable housing completions and 69% of affordable housing starts on site.

HCA Chief Executive, Sir Bob Kerslake, said: “Overall this has been a year of considerable achievement and despite tough operating conditions, this Report shows that the HCA has delivered in all of its key areas during its first months of operation.

“This year and next will be equally challenging but we will continue to deliver against our targets, identify new funding streams and new ways of working, and maximise the impact of every pound of public money we invest.”

The Agency’s net expenditure for the year was £4.3bn, reflecting the level of investment made in order to maintain programme momentum and the supply of new homes.

Highlights across its national Programmes included:

• £2.6bn social housing grant through the NAHP.
• Over £330m Growth funding including £23 million via the new Community Infrastructure Fund.
• Over £650m on renewal, via HMR and the Property & Regeneration Programme inherited from English Partnerships.

As a result of economic conditions beyond the HCA’s control, the Agency saw the value of its development assets fall by £1.1bn resulting in an impairment charge of £542m, while proceeds from land sales also fell from £333m to £51m.

However, despite the economic downturn the Agency also took significant steps to mitigate against its effects in order to support its developer and RSL partners.

These included:

• The national clearing house – investing £350m to bring 9,600 unsold developer homes into use as affordable housing.
• HomeBuy Direct – allocating £400m, projected to help 10,000 people into home ownership in a sustainable way.
• Offered tailored packages of support, including flexible grant rates, to help Investment Partners maintain their development activities.
• Mortgage Rescue – committing £285m to help those struggling with mortgage repayments and who may be at risk of repossessions.

The Annual Report and Financial Statements can be downloaded from the HCA website.