Foundations laid for affordable homes

Published on Monday 11 February 2008 20:59

Scotland's need for more social housing is being addressed by both government and house builders alike

THE Scottish Government's discussion document Firm Foundations: the future of housing in Scotland, launched by Nicola Sturgeon, deputy first minister in October last year has set out some ambitious targets for Scottish house builders and housing associations in the years ahead.

There is considerable doubt that the number of new-builds the Scottish Government wants to see annually (35,000) can be achieved by the middle of the next decade. But the strong focus on the need for new-builds has been welcomed by Scotland's house builders. The Cruden Group has been a big player in the social housing market for more than 60 years. Operating in the west through Cruden Building and Renewals, and in the east through Hart Builders, the company is one of the most experienced in the sector.

Allan Callaghan, managing director of Cruden Building and Renewals (pictured right inset), estimates that social housing makes up around 70 per cent of the company's turnover each year. The remainder consists of housing built for direct sale to the public and non– domestic residential. Within this split, Cruden covers all aspects of tenure, from socially rented and Homestake, through to low-cost home ownership and private house building.

"A large and growing part of the business is mixed tenure development where our extensive experience and track record in each of the tenures is brought together in partnership with housing associations to produce a hierarchy of tenure within areas."

Cruden says it operates to the highest standards and makes every effort to ensure that its social housing units are virtually indistinguishable from houses built for the mainstream residential market. For Callaghan, the idea of mixed tenure is an excellent one. It opens the way for couples with young children who want to move to a larger, three-bedroom house, but who also want to remain in the same area of their families and friends who may be in established social housing.

Until social housing developed the mixed tenure principle, there was no way of accommodating the needs of growing families who wanted to stay close to these family and friends, in many heavily flatted areas around Glasgow and Edinburgh.

Cruden says it is conscious of the need to combine affordability with sustainable environmental efficiency in building its social housing projects. "You can't simply build in a price premium through using expensive cutting-edge materials as an easy option, because the tenant or first-time buyer in this market can't afford that kind of premium. So our challenge has been to design environmentally friendly homes that do not impose a price premium," Callaghan notes. One example is the way Cruden has come to an arrangement with Scottish Power which lets it offer Scottish Power's H20 "green energy" (from wind and water renewables) at no premium to the end user, whatever the tenure.

A strong growth area of the company has been the success gained in framework and longer term partnering relationships, both with progressive housing associations and key parts of the managed supply chain. Callaghan promotes this as the way forward to address the challenges of increasing quality and environmental standards being set for the industry against a background of tightening budgets. He believes that working together with a common goal is not only necessary, but also creates something traditionally missing in construction, and that is stability, which allows investment in resources for the future.

Government, both local and national, must also play their part in both strategic planning and delivery as well as improving the land supply at less than "market value" where the needs can be targeted.

Trained, well-motivated employees are absolutely vital to a company such as Cruden being able to deliver consistently high quality developments for its clients. The company was particularly pleased recently to gain accreditation with the BSI for PAS99, the Integrated Management System award. This standard aims to encourage organisations to develop a clear vision about their future direction and their route to those goals. In addition, it requires organisations to ensure that the strategy is communicated effectively throughout the organisation, with each staff member knowing their responsibilities and role in the overall plan for quality management, environmental management and health and safety.

"Developing the tal- ent of our people has been a key part of the Cruden culture for many years," says Callaghan . "On each assessment, the standards of the accreditation have been raised which clearly demonstrate the commitment Cruden has in these areas. We believe our employees are our most valuable asset, we are committed to their long term development of talents and skills at all levels of their careers with the company."

The Cruden Group, which builds, refurbishes, repairs and maintains domestic and commercial properties, puts its success down to a total company commitment in maintaining health and safety standards throughout all of its sites. Callaghan notes: "When I joined the group in 1994 a senior site agent said the company maxim was 'No job is so important that it cannot be carried out safely'. That is as true today as it was then."

An ongoing programme of health and safety training for all site staff and operatives is consistently applied to ensure the safety record is maintained.