Hi everyone

Here is the presentation i used at the conference:

Full slides un Green Paper 30 Oct

Here are the summary notes from the flip-charts which you all worked on – you need to read the notes slides underneath the slides with questions on in this presentation:

30.10 Green Paper unedited flip charts V2

The response has of course been tidied and sent on- from the 50 delegates at the unconference – brilliant ideas and all common sense – so proud to know you all 😉

Two academics conducted similar research commissioned by the government in 2008, found that one in five home let at the top 20% of rents do not meet the Decent Homes Standard.

Another one in three let at the bottom 20% fail the standard, which is the level of condition required of council and housing association-owned homes.

Authors Dr Julie Rugg and David Rhodes of the University of York warned that welfare reforms are creating a “slum tenure” in the cheapest private rented housing.

Here is their report:

The_Evolving_Private_Rented_Sector

Here is one of the better summaries of the proceeding from a housing perspective from our friends at the CIH:

What you need to know about Budget 2018

The Smith Institute has produced a research report for the Northern Housing Consortium whihc suggests almost a million Northern homeowners are living in poor-quality housing.

Here is the report:

The-Hidden-Costs-of-Poor-Quality-Housing-in-the-North

Here are the comments on the Smith Institute Website

“Sub-standard private housing is a major problem in the North, yet the issue is overlooked and rarely discussed. The problem affects all three regions and is a particularly urgent concern for many older homeowners. Nearly 1m owner-occupied homes in the North now fail to meet the decent homes standard in addition to 354,000 private rented homes. This is also a national problem, but worse in the North where there are concentrations of pre-war, low value properties.

There have been improvements in housing conditions across the North, notably for social housing (only 9% of social housing is now non-decent), but more and more private homes are falling into disrepair. Nearly half of all non-decent homes in the North have at least one person with a long-term illness or disability or over 60 – well above the England average. Poor condition housing harms people’s health and well-being. It also carries considerable costs for the NHS and social care system, as well as negative economic, welfare and environmental impacts.

The problem is largely hidden and has been made worse by the economic downturn and a national policy bias towards new build in high demand (mainly Southern) areas. Making all homes in the North decent would be a significant cost, though there is strong evidence that this intervention would be offset against reduced care and health costs. The government could start to address this challenge through increased home improvement grants under a new Decent Private Homes programme and new devolution housing deals, part funded by the savings gained from housing improvements and a creative approach to help people to stay in improved homes or be given the choice to move to a property they are confident better suits their needs.

Opening up the debate on the costs and benefits of poor condition homes in the North is an important first step in developing such an agenda for change.”

NICE were pleased to attend the recent September CfPS national health scrutiny and assurance conference, where they ran a workshop focused on how to use our evidence-based guidelines and quality standards in public scrutiny.

NICE are keen to hear from local areas that have had experience of using our guidelines or quality standards to support scrutiny.

Office for Civil Society (OCS) updates:

1.A connected society: a strategy for tackling loneliness 
2.How will you support the upcoming #iwillWeek 2018?
3.Upcoming opportunities with Commissioning Academy
4.Big Lottery Fund – Board roles
5.EU exit update – technical notices
6.NESTA launches Amplified Fund
7.Hosting an event to Commemorate Armistice in November? Add it to our map
8.Implementation of the Civil Society Strategy
9.Updates from Claire Dove, VCSE Crown Representative

1.A connected society: a strategy for tackling loneliness 
A connected society: a strategy for tackling loneliness – laying the foundations for change’, published on 15 October 2018, is the first strategy for tackling loneliness in England.
It marks a shift in the way we see and act on loneliness, both within government and across society. It builds on years of work by many individuals and organisations, and acts as government’s first major contribution to the national conversation on loneliness and the importance of social connections.
This strategy is an important first step, but government is also committed to long-lasting action to tackle the problem of loneliness.

2.How will you support the upcoming #iwillWeek 2018?
This 12-16 November, the #iwill campaign are calling on organisations to empower and celebrate the stories of young people. You can show your support during the week by enabling young people to articulate the impact their social action is having on the communities and causes they care so much about.

3.Upcoming opportunities with Commissioning Academy
Applications are now open for the Regional Transformation Academies, starting in the autumn. To request a prospectus giving the nature and structure of the programme in each region, please e-mail Paul. Get a flavour by having a look at our East of England Transformation Academy currently underway.

4.Big Lottery Fund – Board roles
The Big Lottery Fund have advertised for two Board Member roles and for a new Chair of the England Committee on the Big Lottery Fund Board. The recruitment is regulated by the Commissioner of Public Appointments, and follows a fair and open process. We hope to attract a strong and diverse field for these roles, and I would encourage you to draw it to the attention of potential candidates and actively publicise the positions across your networks. The competition closes for applications on 15 October 2018 and further information about the roles is at the following links, links

5. EU exit update – technical notices
Government continues to publish technical notices on how individuals and organisations should prepare in the scenario that the UK leaves the EU with no deal. Numerous technical notices apply to civil society organisations as well as their employees and beneficiaries. For example, there are multiple notices on how organisations who apply and receive EU funding should prepare. Please follow the weblink for further details.

6. NESTA launches Amplified Fund
NESTA have launched their new Amplified Fund with a Call for Ideas. They’re inviting all creative and cultural organisations – games, film, design, museums, galleries, theatres – to come up with digital ideas that generate a positive social impact. If you have a digital idea that could change our world for the better, apply today and get funding and support to amplify your social impact. @nesta_uk #AmplifiedFund. See further details link 

7. Hosting an event to Commemorate Armistice in November? Add it to our map
2018 marks the end of the four year Commemorations marking the Centenary of the First World War. If you’re holding a commemorative event marking the Centenary you can add it to our interactive map. See further details at link

8.Implementation of the Civil Society Strategy
Over the summer, we informed you that the Civil Society Strategy was published on 9th August 2018. It sets out a vision for how government will work with and support civil society in the years to come, so that together we can build a country that works for everyone.
The publication of the Strategy signalled the beginning of an ambitious, evolving work programme to help build a strong society. A key role of government will be to bring together the resources, policies and people who, between them, can make a real difference to communities across the country.

OCS is now working on detailed implementation plans for the Strategy which will enable partners across government and civil society to feed in and support its vision and aims. We are kicking off this work with a series of conversations with key civil society stakeholders in the autumn. This will determine the best ways of bringing different views into policy development and the wider implementation of the Strategy. We will soon share implementation and communications plans to keep everyone updated with progress.

9.Updates from Claire Dove, VCSE Crown Representative

On 28/09 Claire hosted the first VCSE Crown Representative Advisory Panel meeting attended by civil society representatives. This formative meeting focussed on discussing the Civil Society Strategy and how to effectively work with the VCSE sector.

Are you a national or local VCSE organisation with innovative approaches or ideas for employment support? Join Claire on 25/10/18 14:30-15:00 for a webinar to learn more about the DWP Test and Learn Dynamic Purchasing System. Link to come on Claire’s twitter: @VCSECrownRep

Make sure to check out her next blog on the DCMS blog website link this week for a full update and more news.
Follow Claire on twitter @VCSECrownRep and bookmark Open For Business link

Watch this space for more information as we add commentary on the budget – here are the highlights

• Philip Hammond has announced plans to pump more money into Universal Credit.Help to Buy equity loan scheme extended to 2023 for first time buyers: The scheme will be extended two years to 2023 for first time buyers only, with new price caps set for each English region.
• Scrapping council borrowing cap will deliver only 9,000 new homes over the next five years.
• Builders of large sites must accept more diversity of tenure: Builders should be required to accept suggested levels of affordable housing for large sites in
  order to receive government support, including Help to Buy, a major review of house building has concluded.
• Nine housing associations have signed new strategic partnerships with the government to deliver over 13,000 homes, Philip Hammond has announced.
• Stamp duty scrapped for buyers of shared ownership homes worth up to £500,000: Stamp duty will be scrapped for first-time buyers of homes for shared ownership