Dan Ellwood

Renew update

Over the past few months, the NHC has been continuing to press the case for regeneration in the North with the Government and building the political momentum around Renew – our inquiry into housing-led regeneration for northern growth – supported by Homes for the North and Muse. 

Our most recent work on Renew includes:  

  • sharing our Renew report with northern MPs, ministers, Mayors, and other political stakeholders – including Andy Burnham MP and No.10 housing advisors.  
  • meeting with Tom Riordan, Northern Growth Envoy at HM Treasury. We’ve also met HM Treasury policy officials to discuss our Renew findings and understand their priorities.   
  • holding a policy roundtable with NHC members and Emma Payne, Director of Social Housing, MHCLG, and Selvin Brown, Director Net Zero Buildings, DESNZ, to explore the findings of our Renew report and discuss the real-world challenges and opportunities. 
  • discussed Renew at an MHCLG Social Housing Directorate away day, as part of the panel ‘Social Housing: Looking Ahead’. 
  • continuing to work with Lord Best OBE DL and Andrew Cooper MP, as Chairs of our Renew Inquiry and Westminster Group respectively. Lord Best OBE DL wrote an article for The House magazine (the magazine for parliamentarians) and Andrew Cooper MP wrote an article for Red Brick.  
  • Andrew Cooper also raised Renew in parliament during a Westminster Hall debate on estate regeneration. He highlighted our Inquiry and said that without significant intervention 100,000 social homes in the North could be lost over the coming decade. He also spoke about the far-reaching benefits of housing-led regeneration, and the need for regeneration to be delivered with communities. The overall tone of the debate was positive, with the need for good resident engagement a strong focus. It’s great to see how the rhetoric on regeneration is changing. The debate and a comment from the NHC was covered in Inside Housing.   
  • sharing our Renew findings and recommendations with key Labour Party figures at the Fabian Society’s Housing Summit in London, where Patrick Murray, Executive Director (Policy and External Relations) was on a panel with Martin McCluskey MP, now Minister for Local Energy and Jobs and Anna Dixon, MP for Shipley, along with social housing activist and author Kwajo Tweneboa.        
  • hosting a one-day Great North theatre on Renew at Housing 26 – with key contributions from Lord Best OBE DL, who set out how the continued focus on new homes was crowding out regeneration, but was optimistic the tide was turning. Martin Hilditch, Editor, Inside Housing, a whole host of brilliant NHC members, along with Sheffield resident, Lara Joyce, added to the packed agenda! The Great North Theatre showcased some of the fantastic work going on in the North. The message was clear – even more can be done with further support for housing-led regeneration and continued devolution.  
  • continuing to work with Inside Housing as part of their Spotlight on Regeneration series. Recent regeneration articles can be found on their website. We also worked with Red Brick on a series of articles on regeneration.   

The NHC team has also been developing resources to help you activate engagement with Renew with your local politicians. We will share these with members in the coming weeks and months to help build momentum to make this change happen. If you would like to take action now – get in touch with Saskia and we’ll work with you or your team, email – Saskia.neibig@northern-consortium.org.uk  

We will also discuss how you can help Renew as part of our joint Communications and Policy Network in September – you can view further details about the event and book your place at My NHC.