Looking to the future: an interview with Mary Taylor

Ms Taylor’s career in housing began when she saw a management traineeship advertised by the Scottish Special Housing Association (SSHA), Scotland’s former national social landlord. After a couple of traineeship years and two more in SSHA management, she became director of Elderpark, a young housing association in Govan, Glasgow, where she remained for six years before taking a maternity break. When she resumed work it was at the University of Stirling, where she taught housing studies and later gained her research PhD.

Combining practical experience in the “real world” of housing with academia gave her a perspective into the world of social housing, as a “pracademic” with an insight into the importance of learning and housing education. It led to secondment opportunities. The one she values most was in 2000, as special adviser to the nascent Scottish Parliament. It drew on the research for her doctorate into stock transfer in Scotland.

“It was fascinating to be privy to one of the first inquiries of the parliament, whose report came up with 62 recommendations for the Scottish Executive to change its practice amid some controversy.”

Ms Taylor’s research revealed that many councils and tenants were unhappy about aspects of transfer being termed ‘voluntary’. And she raised concerns about key assumptions, for instance, “that rent increases would be built in indefinitely, based on inflation plus”. She recalls warning MSPs that this would impact, not only on the housing benefit bill, but on tenants on low pay who were not entitled to benefits.

Providing a lifeline

Her stance was apolitical and she feels that her academic perspective helped get her views across to the new MSPs. “I was trying to ensure they got a complete picture of the evidence as seen from various perspectives... to equip them with an understanding of the deeper structures affecting policy.”

“Unintended consequences [in UK housing policymaking] grow like bacteria in a petri dish.”

From 2007 to 2010 Ms Taylor served on the board of the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH). Taking the helm of the Scottish Federation of Housing Associations (SFHA) as chief executive in 2010, she says she found an organisation in need of help. She famously wore a life jacket to her first SFHA AGM, to outline her strategy for navigating the federation through choppy waters. That navigation has left the organisation in good shape, thanks to the analytical skills and constructive approach to criticism that have been hallmarks of her career.

Ms Taylor oversaw a reorganisation of the SFHA that brought back member associations which were drifting away. She proved a highly effective ambassador for the whole housing sector in her dealings with the Scottish Government.

One of the highlights of her time at the federation was the successful campaign to persuade the Scottish Government to set a 50,000 target for affordable homes. She worked alongside colleagues in the CIH and Shelter, providing key evidence needed to convince the government to commit to a funding subsidy for social housing. Her advocacy, and a robust housing needs assessment, are credited as major contributions to its eventual success. She led the SFHA campaign calling for an increase in the grant rate for social housing.

Ms Taylor was, and remains, critical of aspects of UK housing policymaking. “Unintended consequences grow like bacteria in a petri dish,” she says. She is scathing about changes to benefits, particularly the financial repercussions of the housing benefit cap on vulnerable people in supported accommodation.

A broader approach

Ms Taylor is disturbed that policy changes can be made without prior consultation, and wonders if some policymakers might be recklessly using disruption as a shake-up technique. “Let’s throw a hand grenade into the system and see what happens,” she says.

She argues that there are inadequate channels for considering the potential impact of policy between governments. “People in London... don’t pay attention to what goes on outside London, whether it’s Tyneside, Scotland, Wales or wherever, which sets up all sorts of misunderstandings,” she claims.

But politicians don’t operate in a vacuum; often they reflect society’s values back to itself. Ms Taylor suggests confusion is at the heart of our attitude to what housing is actually for, saying the media welcomes price rises for people who see housing as an investment, yet condemns them for preventing the young and poor from finding a home.

Meanwhile, buy-to-let has become a popular investment vehicle for older people, nervous about pensions and future income. “Many of us know people who are now private landlords. They expect to earn an income and profit from rising prices on re-sale,” she explains.

Ms Taylor wants governments to take a broader approach to housing policy: “Housing, regardless of tenure, is essentially a long-term asset, like very few other things in our world. Decision-making about it needs to recognise the consequences are long term, too. Short-term thinking is almost certain to produce the wrong answer.”

She believes that decision-makers in the Scottish Government are alert to this and hopes pressure for change will grow as generation rent finds its voice. “The recent general election suggests there’s a shift, but we’re not yet clear what caused that shift or how it relates to housing.”