11 October 2012
On Friday 12 October the Housing Minister, Deputy Andrew Green, and representatives from his department will visit their counterparts in Guernsey to discuss items of mutual interest and to update each other on their latest projects and developments.
Items on the agenda include Guernsey’s population management proposals and their reform of the housing and welfare benefits system.
Housing representatives from Jersey will be discussing the successful launch and implementation of the Affordable Housing Gateway, which was established to resolve the inequality and duplication caused by having separate waiting lists held by various providers.
The gateway has seen all housing waiting lists amalgamated into one single list, which is arranged on a new priority banding structure. All social housing void properties are now allocated from the Gateway list.
Discussions
The Minister will also use the opportunity to discuss the proposals set out in the White Paper,‘Achieving Decent Homes’, a key element of which is the incorporation of the Housing Department into a wholly States owned Housing Association, alongside: -
- The establishment of a Strategic Housing Unit
- The establishment of a Regulator for Social Housing
- The reintroduction of the States fair rent policy to establish social housing rents at nearer market levels
Other items on the agenda include housing an ageing population and how housing associations operate in Guernsey. In the afternoon the group will visit some of Guernsey’s housing developments.
Deputy Andrew Green said “These regular meetings have proved to be extremely productive in the past and we have been able to learn a great deal by sharing our plans and experience with our Guernsey colleagues.”
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