Our identity must not be restricted to bricks and mortar

Quite simply, the homes that we build and manage are much more than physical structures. They do not exist in isolation. We all know that a safe, secure and comfortable home plays a crucial role in determining quality of life. Yet it is not the only factor. The health, financial stability and social opportunities of individuals and families are just some of the other components critical to living life well. As organisations and individuals who care passionately about the people we serve, we must not lose sight of these often life-changing areas.  

For example, so much is done in our sector to provide the tailored care and support services so desperately needed by our most vulnerable residents. Meanwhile, at MTVH, my own organisation, through hundreds of conversations since April with residents requiring debt advice, we helped secure financial gains for them of more than £500,000 by the end of September.

In short, our collective work goes way beyond property. Rather, it gives individuals and families the chance to flourish.

Furthermore, our organisations often touch so many households that, inevitably, we are significant institutions within the communities we serve. We have the reach to bring people together, to connect neighbours to one another. It is a rare privilege. As such, we also have a responsibility to enrich these communities, to give them the opportunity to thrive and to turn them into crucibles of opportunity.

In other words, we are well placed to help give communities a better tomorrow.

For many housing associations and other social housing institutions, this type of broader, purpose-driven thinking characterises almost everything we do. New housing projects are planned with communal spaces and green areas at their heart. The upcoming Day of Hope is a wonderful example of this ethos of community impact at work. The Hope Collective incorporates a range of partners, including housing associations, all dedicated to giving young people in our communities a more hopeful future.

While this is the type of values-rich activity that characterises our sector, too often it is not front and centre. Now is the time to make it so, when the wider debate and perception of social housing revolves almost solely around the provision and quality of housing. While this remains core to our mission, our identity should not be restricted to bricks and mortar. We do so much more.

Fundamentally, we are all trying to improve lives, not just properties.

To this end, I am encouraged by the early noises coming from the new government department. The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities by its very name indicates that housing is viewed by those in Westminster as a key component of community building and the government’s levelling-up agenda. Hopefully such an outlook will help to place housing in a much-needed wider context in the court of public opinion.

The key issues which have permeated public debate, such as building safety, will continue to be the focus of the media and beyond. That is as it should be. Such issues are too important to be ignored. However, they must not be allowed to overshadow so much other work taking place.

If we want our sector to be acknowledged for its full value, then we must all shout louder about the work we do to boost communities and shape lives.

Geeta Nanda, chief executive, Metropolitan Thames Valley and chair, G15