Aldwyck and Broadland housing associations could face financial trouble
Two housing associations have slipped from meeting the Tenant Services Authority’s finance performance standards to being ‘vulnerable to deterioration’.
In a series of regulatory judgements, published on Friday, the regulator said Broadland Housing Association and Aldwyck Housing Group were meeting expectations on so-called ‘financial viability’ but were ‘vulnerable to deterioration’.
This meant that although not currently in financial problems there was an increased chance they could be, which the regulator decided was in part because of the ‘wider economic downturn’.
The TSA also challenged the new senior management team at Aldwyck to ‘push the organisation on in terms of both growth and improved performance and satisfaction levels’.
It said changes to the structure of the organisation and an overhaul in senior staff should place the group in a better position to face its own challenges and targets.
The regulator said Broadland’s operating margin was low, which meant its underlying financial profile was weak. Although the regulator praised the board at Broadland, which it said had strengthened its governance arrangements.
The judgement said: ‘The TSA’s sensitivity testing shows the association would make deficits under a deflationary environment; this would increase indebtedness and put further pressure on covenant compliance.
‘In contrast BHA’s base business plan assumptions for inflation and interest rates are more optimistic. Therefore these look vulnerable once tested against more robust assumptions.’
A spokeswoman for Broadland Housing Association said: ‘We are fully aware of the Tenant Services Authority’s judgement report and would like to reassure tenants and staff that Broadland Housing Association is a well managed and financially secure organisation, as is confirmed by the TSA in its report.’
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Readers' comments (7)
Anonymous | 02/06/2010 5:56 pm
Well I am glad that racism doesn't pay and even the appointment of a BME CEO can't hide that fact! Was it a knee jerk appointment to apease the politicians? Also let us not forget the last CEO at Aldwyck presided over an appalling regime that tried to get away with Racism and left when the going got rough.
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Anonymous | 03/06/2010 10:47 am
Wasn't the CEO of Aldwyck HA the previous finance director of that HA?
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Jane Green | 03/06/2010 12:40 pm
Anonymous, how very racist of you to imply that the CEO got the job based on the fact he is from a BME group! The same person who improved the finances of the company. And the article does state that the overhall of the senior staff should place the group in a better position to face its own challenges and targets. I think we all know who was responsible for the mess that was Aldwyck, that is now in the past, and I am sure the staff and management team who are busily trying to corect the wrongs of others have had enough of people like you going on about it!
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Anonymous | 03/06/2010 6:10 pm
dear ms green with all due respect i think you need to wake up and smell the coffee and you should be careful on whom you call a racist. The tactics employed by aldwyck in employing an asian CEO are common amongst RSL's and i have seen it happen on many occassions to deflect criticism. will change really occur? i bet money on the fact that once things quieten down for aldwyck things will return to normal. we live in 2010 aldwyck serve a very diverse community in luton so the fact they are in the situation they are in is even more appalling and shows the incompetence at work at aldwyck. many staff at aldwyck still suffer racism but they won't say it so how do you intend to deal with that situation? the fact a tribuneral had to highlight the problems at aldwyck on racism sum up the organisation and it has been found guilty so aldwyck is a racist organisation and it needs to get rid of that blemish which will take many years. i on the other hand have never been found guilty of racism however i have seen how racism operates in the UK.
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Anonymous | 04/06/2010 8:19 pm
As a current employee of Aldwyck, I would like to express my concerns on how such allegations can be made against our current CEO only getting the job because he is of BME... Since Mr Sing has taken on his new role, he has bent over backwards to listen to his staff and to address the issues that have recently been published. All staff and Manager's have undergone comprehensive equality & diversity training, and there is now a complete new senior management team in place, making us stronger than ever. Although i appriciate that training alone will not make the recent problems disappear overnight, I can honesty say that with Mr Sign's leadership, it is well and truly underway!! And to say that Mr Sign was the financial director when the TSA report was published does not mean that he was responsible for all the previous financial problems. We all know who's fault that was, and it surely wasn't Mr Sign's. The previous CEO was a dictator!! I stand tall and am very proud to be part of Aldwyck Housing Group and look forward to helping Mr Sign in his plight to make us a competative, financially strong and determind organisation!! You are doing a great job Harj..!!!!
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Anonymous | 04/06/2010 8:24 pm
Sorry for calling you Mr "Sign".... It should read Mr "Sing".........Typo
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Anonymous | 04/06/2010 8:35 pm
The Aldwyck Board must take some responsibility for exercising poor governance - but then as some of the Board Members are employed as senior housing management elesewhere perhaps concern about their abilties should be expressed to their employers, including matters relating to their ability to control bullying and discrimination within their working role as well as their governance role.
The TSA should have the power to look behind the curtain when they discover failure and poor management.
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