GENuS
Welsh Housing Quarterly: March 2006
GENuS is a consortium of four housing associations based in South East Wales who have come together to bring efficiencies to their maintenance and new home building programmes. Gwerin Housing, Eastern Valley Housing, Newport Housing Trust and Seren Group have a great deal of experience of working together and GENuS builds on these successful relationships.
The partners will retain their independence and continue to provide a wide range of housing services to their own customers. Collaboration will improve quality and efficiency, of benefit to all service users.
The GENuS partners share a belief that local development and management of affordable homes is the best way of meeting the needs of regional communities.
Local authority partners, namely Blaenau Gwent, Caerphilly, Monmouthshire, Newport, Powys and Torfaen, have been instrumental in giving clear strategic direction to the objectives of the consortium, and have ensured that a regional focus and high levels of collaboration have been maintained, whilst at the same time increasing partnership at the local level.
Achievements since November 2004
GENuS is one of only 4 consortia to be granted Provisional Development Partner status by the Welsh Assembly Government.
The GENuS new home development programme for 2005/06 in South East Wales is 30% higher than the previous year.
GENuS has responded to the lead of local authorities, working with them to develop a cohesive regional strategic view. The South East Wales local authorities and GENuS have adopted a shared vision on collaboration 'Committed to partnership – determined to deliver'.
These authorities and GENuS partners have streamlined communication.
GENuS has developed an Efficiency Improvement Plan which sets out clear objectives for efficiencies in the partners' activities. Working together, we will be more efficient, reduce costs and deliver. Some examples of our early collaboration:
- specification – standardising specifications and contract arrangements will lead to guaranteed programmes of work and reduced costs
- maintenance – standardising components will secure better quality and price through volume procurement programmes
- finance – collectively procuring private finance, reducing costs
GENuS, working with local authorities, training agencies, and national training funders, will add value benefits to regional community sustainability through employment and training initiatives.
Future GENuS Activitiy
GENuS has set tough targets for delivering real benefits in the short term. The consortium will expand the areas of collaboration, maintaining independence, while delivering improvements in quality.
In the medium term GENuS expects to:
- strengthen local control and accountability in the development and management of affordable homes with local authorities exercising choice
- deliver increased investment in the South East Wales Region
- facilitate cross boundary working to deliver regional housing objectives
- collaborate with existing and develop new local suppliers and contractors
- deliver savings on both new home and planned maintenance contracting by sequential contracting and volume supply
- actively contribute to sustaining regional economic activities
- press the Welsh Assembly Government to continue to bring forward efficiency proposals which will help the consortium and local authorities to bring stability to the development process
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