What is the role of social housing in enabling place-based change?

Social housing providers have a long-term presence in places and a vested interest in ensuring these communities are welcoming, safe and connected for residents. In our partnerships with housing sector clients, we have seen the potential for social housing providers to be champions and anchors for place-based systems change. This is why we’re organising a special edition of our Community of Practice on July 7th, dedicated to the role of social housing in enabling place-based change.

What will we be covering during the session?

• What role should social housing play in enabling place-based systems change?
• How might they best navigate power and relational dynamics inherent in their position in communities?
• How might social housing providers recognise and build upon their own and places’ existing strengths?
• What role can social housing providers play in sustaining place-based systems change approaches?
• What opportunities are there for better coordinated working between social housing providers and wider public and social sector organisations?

We will hear lighting talks from Sanctuary, South Yorkshire Housing Association, Hyde Foundation and Peabody Community Foundation, on how they are taking place-based systems change approaches in their work. We’ll facilitate a Q&A session to extend the conversation and provoke further discussion.

Join us on July 7th, from 12-1pm, on Zoom. Register by clicking the button below.

Curious to learn more about what we have planned? Find out more about our speakers below:

Sanctuary

Presenter: Anthony Morrow, Community Connector (Sanctuary Scotland)

Set up in 1969, Sanctuary is a leading not-for-profit housing association that owns and manages around 125,000 homes across England and Scotland. We provide housing and care in England and Scotland to more than a quarter of a million people. Sanctuary are committed to delivering an excellent customer experience and we strive to be a customer-centric organisation. This is at the heart of our corporate strategy and is embedded in the value of our organisation.

What is our approach to place-based change?

Our approach to place-based change is grounded in the lived-experience and collective power of the people that live in that neighbourhood. It is our belief that positive community connection is a fundamental driver of stability, well-being and long-term resilience. By taking an Asset Based Community Development (ABCD) approach we can identify and grow the existing strengths within a neighbourhood, contributing to conditions where local people can not only shape solutions but be active participants in creating change.

We integrate ABCD with Trauma Informed Practice, focusing on a strengths-based approach to trauma and its impacts and relocating power into community rather than services. We acknowledge the complexity of people’s experiences and challenges, but recognise that everyone in a community has agency, capability and wisdom that will support sustainable change across many generations.

What will our lightning talk be about?

Sanctuary Scotland has been working alongside the Priesthill community in south‑west Glasgow since 2014, developing a deep understanding of local strengths, challenges and aspirations. Since 2023, this partnership has evolved to focus on building a trauma‑informed community, grounded in ABCD that positions residents rather than services as the primary agents of healing, resilience and change. This approach recognises the expertise, relationships and assets within the community itself, shifting the emphasis of support from formal systems to the everyday connections between neighbours, and creating the conditions for sustainable, community‑led transformation.

This session will focus on sharing some stories, practical work done on the ground and the importance of the lived-experience and contribution of the community in our work to date

Peabody Community Foundation

Presenter: Rachel Solomon, Head of Community Investment

Peabody is one of London’s oldest and largest housing associations. We provide homes and support for over 220,000 people across London and the South East. The Peabody Community Foundation leads our work to strengthen communities, reduce inequality and help people thrive. We work in partnership with residents, local groups and public services to create positive change in the places we call home.

Our approach is rooted in our long-term presence in neighbourhoods. We know that every place is different, and that real change happens when residents have the power and support to shape their own communities.

What is your approach to place-based change?

We believe that strong communities are built on trust, relationships and shared purpose. Our approach to place-based change is about:

• Listening to residents and learning from their experiences.
• Building on the strengths and assets already in each neighbourhood.
• Working with local partners to tackle challenges together.
• Supporting residents to lead projects and make decisions about their area.
• Investing in long-term relationships, not just short-term projects.

We know that trust can be fragile, especially where there have been challenges with repairs, regeneration, or past decisions. That’s why we focus on being open, honest, and present in our communities. We work to rebuild trust by showing up, listening, and acting on what matters most to residents.

What will your session be about?

In this session, we’ll share how Peabody is working with residents to create lasting change in places like our Parkside estate in Lewisham. We’ll talk about:

• The importance of recognising the history and lived experience of each community
• How we’re building trust, especially where relationships have been strained
• Practical ways we support residents to have real agency and influence, even when there’s disagreement or pushback
• The role of local partnerships in making change stick

We’ll share stories from our work on the ground, including the challenges and what we’ve learned about bringing people together. We’ll also talk about the need for housing associations to be honest about their role – acknowledging where things haven’t gone well and working with residents to find better ways forward.

At the heart of our approach is a belief that everyone should have a say in the future of their neighbourhood. We’re here for the long term, and we’re committed to working alongside residents to build places where everyone can thrive.

South Yorkshire Housing Association

Presenter: Vic Stirling, Head of Business Development and Contracts

South Yorkshire Housing Association’s (SYHA) vision is for their customers to ‘settle at home, live well and realise their potential’. SYHA’s first Chief Executive, John Belcher, founded the organisation in 1972 after watching Ken Loach’s Cathy Come Home. Since then, SYHA has been providing high quality homes and services across South Yorkshire, delivering great social impact, and creating meaningful partnerships across the region.

SYHA has over 5,700 homes and our purpose is to provide good quality, well-maintained homes. Our reputation is strong and over 98% of new tenants would recommend SYHA to a friend or family member. Our aim is to always do our best for our customers, our region and the housing sector.

What is our approach to place-based change?

SYHA’s LiveWell directorate successfully provides over 20 care, health and support contracts to approximately 7,000 customers each year across homeless, employment, mental health and services for older people.

Our services empower people to improve their health and wellbeing, live independently, develop their skills and meet their goals. We believe that everyone is entitled to live a fulfilling and joyful life. We think housing associations – with local knowledge, resources and connections – are well-placed to offer services that can help people flourish. Offering effective, personalised support alongside good-quality homes is what really empowers communities to thrive.

SYHA has placed co-production and lived experience at the heart of the way we support and work with people in communities across South Yorkshire. In recent years we have created opportunities and pathways for paid lived experience roles across our services.

What will our lighting talk be about?

In the session we will share how we have applied the learning from programmes such as Ageing Better and Changing Futures to embed paid lived experience roles such as peer support workers across SYHA services. We will talk about the role of peer support in local placed-based change. We’ll share how lived experience has directly informed systems change in South Yorkshire working at all levels including membership on citywide Boards. We will talk you through our journey of where we’ve got to so far and our ambitions for the future.

We’ll share practical tips and best practice for organisations who are keen to introduce lived experience roles and may not be sure where to start. Most of all we’ll demonstrate the impact that employing people with lived experience is having in the communities we serve.

Hyde Foundation

Presenter: Felicity Hunt, Communities and Social Impact Director

The Hyde Group is a housing association with a clear social purpose: to provide homes and communities that people are proud of. We own and manage around 45,000 homes across London and the South-East.

The Hyde Foundation plays a central role in delivering our social purpose, leading our social impact activity and building on over 40 years’ experience in community investment. Its focus is on supporting residents and strengthening communities through a combination of funding, partnerships and local insight.

In recent years, we’ve shifted from directly delivering services to working alongside a wide network of community organisations and public sector partners. This reflects a core belief that those closest to communities are best placed to understand and respond to local need.

Through grant-making, partnership programmes and social value activity, the Foundation supports residents facing increasing financial and wellbeing pressures, while also helping local organisations to grow and sustain their work.

Together, Hyde and the Hyde Foundation take a long-term, place-based approach, combining housing with sustained community investment to support stronger, more resilient communities.

What is our approach to place-based change?

Place-based change for us is about being rooted in the communities we serve and working alongside the people and organisations who know those places best.

We focus on the areas where Hyde has a strong presence, building a clear picture of local priorities through ongoing relationships. That means understanding not just residents’ experiences, but also the organisations and services that support them, and where the gaps are.

Our role is to enable rather than deliver. We work with community organisations, local authorities, schools and the NHS to bring people together around shared priorities and support more joined-up responses.

A key part of our approach is backing grassroots organisations. These groups are often best placed to respond but are under the most pressure, so we focus on long-term partnerships that build both delivery and organisational resilience.  This goes beyond funding. We support partners with connections, access to opportunities and practical support so they can sustain and grow their impact.

Overall, we’re aiming to strengthen local networks so organisations are better connected and communities are better supported over the long term.

What will our lighting talk be about?

I’ll be talking about what it really looks like to work long-term in place as a housing association, and how that shapes the role we play in our communities.

Because we have homes in these neighbourhoods, we’re not a short-term funder or an external partner, we’re part of the fabric of those places. That means we naturally take a wider view of what’s happening locally, and think about how we support not just individuals, but the organisations and networks around them.

I’ll focus in particular on our “funder-plus” approach. Rather than just providing grants we work alongside our partners, connecting them to others, helping them access opportunities, and supporting them through challenges. A lot of the value comes from those relationships and the consistency of being there over time.

I’ll share some practical reflections on what that looks like day-to-day, including how we add value without duplicating what’s already there, and how we support organisations in a way that strengthens their work.

At its heart, it’s about backing the people and organisations already making a difference locally, and helping that go further.