Opportunity for RBH: get involved in new agenda

Reporter: David Barlett (RoFTRA)
Date online: 12/05/2008

A new report from Housemark, launched at the ALMO Chief Executives' Conference, offers advice to ALMOs on how to get involved in the wider agenda of government policy and extending their operations beyond the landlord function.

Called ALMOs and the new local government agenda and written by local government expert John Warburton its message is clearly stated in the introduction: ALMOs must learn how to engage effectively with the new local decision-making machinery and take an active interest in making sure it works well.

The paper spells out for ALMOs the opportunities they have within recent government legislation that aims not only to devolve powers from national to local government, but also from councils to communities. Most ALMOs, including Rochdale Boroughwide Housing (RBH), have had to concentrate so much on the delivery of Decent Homes that they have been largely by-passed by the new structures and policy initiatives.

These include, as John Warburton spells out in detail: Local Strategic Partnerships, Neighbourhood Renewal Strategies, Sustainable Community Strategies, Thematic Partnerships, Local Area Agreements and Comprehensive Area Assessments,

RBH has, to date, had little involvement in these areas.