In House - Rochdale Boroughwide Housing bridges the divide

Published by Hannah Wooderson for 24dash.com in Housing and also in Local Government

Gareth Swarbrick is the recently appointed Chief Executive at Rochdale Boroughwide Housing (RBH). He was acting boss during the much publicised tensions with the Council last year and he tells us how those issues were not only resolved but have actually resulted in an enhanced relationship.

“In March 2008 RBH had a very public falling out with the Council when we were unable to agree on the appointment of a new Chief Executive. This resulted in an Audit Commission investigation which I must admit was not great at the time – but in hindsight was actually the catalyst for some very positive changes.

“The Audit Commission Report picked up on the fact that the ‘problems’ between RBH and the Council were more about trust and confidence rather than anything operational. That key comment helped us both to recognise that our relationship needed to move forward.

“Ironically, going through the ‘bad patch’ has meant that we’ve both actually come through the other end stronger. The moving forward framework recommended by the Audit Commission has resulted in a new and better way of working with a great deal of confidence and trust on both sides.

“ALMOs have a complicated relationship with their councils because of the way we are set up and run and sometimes ALMO decisions may have a negative impact on a Council’s budget. However, I really believe that once an ALMO has been established it’s important that the council let us get on with the job in hand.

“Ultimately, both organisations are established to serve their local communities in the most cost effective and efficient way possible. Everything we do is about customer satisfaction and value for money and so providing an ALMO can demonstrate these outcomes, the Council should have confidence in its ability.

“Today almost a year on I firmly believe this is exactly what’s happened in Rochdale where senior members of the RBH team are being asked to sit on a variety of boards as company representatives in our own right – and not just an extension of the council.”

“My membership of the Local Strategic Partnership Board is quite unusual for an ALMO Chief Executive. This appointment was supported by the council and is an indication of our new relationship.

“I am also a member of the council’s extended Leadership Team which puts RBH in a much better position to influence corporate strategy. All of this demonstrates that RBH is seen as an independent business.

“I think it is generally recognised that well managed ALMOs are very strong on tenant involvement. With national developments, such as the advent of the Tenant Services Authority, I think the best ALMOs have a lot to teach the rest of the housing sector in this area.

“At all levels of the organisation tenants are shaping what we do and how we do it. RBH is close to its customers and that means we have a great deal of trust from the local community in Rochdale – something we are very proud of.

“One of the biggest threats to the future of ALMOs is funding, so I’ll be reading the government HRA review with great interest. There is no one-size-fits-all solution for ALMOs - we all operate under different circumstances and any new way of funding must take this into account.

“With over 20 years experience in social housing, I’m firmly convinced that the ALMO way is the best way in social housing and our team have been steadily working towards building RBH’s first new homes for Rochdale. This 22-home development recently got the green light from the council’s cabinet.

“We’re also working closely with the council and other partners on plans for modern Joint Service centres to deal with face-to-face enquiries. We’ve already started to invest in technology to mobilise data so that employees can access IT systems whilst they are on estates.

“My personal ambition is to head up a company that is recognised locally, regionally and nationally as an excellent organisation and a leader in the housing and regeneration sector.

“I want to develop the organisation so that it is the key regeneration partner for Rochdale Council and my overriding mission is to place RBH in a position where it both influences the council’s regeneration priorities and then delivers regeneration plans and programmes.

“RBH and Rochdale Borough Council are now working to support each other which is good news for local people. Ultimately both organisations are in business for the people of Rochdale and they remain at the heart of everything we do.