Worcestershire Housing Strategy - Stakeholder Questionnaire

Introduction This questionnaire has been developed to capture insight from all stakeholders engaged in the development of the 2021-2040 housing strategy for Worcestershire. The objectives of the strategy are: · To strengthen the joined-up approach to housing and service delivery across the county – focused particularly on health and social care outcomes, · To identify 5-year priorities to enable short-term housing targets and priorities to be met, · To develop a long-term vision that will inform the development of housing plans up to 2040. Core questions focus on developing short-term and long-term priorities as well as exploring opportunities to join-up initiatives associated with housing delivery. Optional questions explore policy-specific matters in greater detail. The development of the housing strategy is informed but not constrained by the existing policy framework. The structure of the questionnaire follows four main themes of policy: · Homes, jobs and growth · Wellbeing and inclusion · Quality and standards · Sustainability and net-zero carbon At the moment, the scope of the strategy exercise is very broad and it covers a wide base of roles and responsibilities. At this stage, we want to capture as wide a range of views as possible. We would prefer for respondents to provide as much insight as possible across the full range of policy issues. However, we emphasise that the policy questions are optional. Please note that the questionnaire needs to be completed in one session. If you have any queries in connection with the questionnaire, please contact Simon Rawlinson at Arcadis @ simon.rawlinson@arcadis.com Please return the completed questionnaire by Friday, 26th March 2021. Please note that in accordance with GDPR, we will not hold any personal data once the survey is completed. Your completion of the questionnaire provides consent for us to use personal data strictly for the purpose of data analysis.

Organisational Questions

Connection as a stakeholder to the development of the housing strategy

Core Questions

Core questions should be answered by all recipients

Housing strategy vision

Do not feel that your answers should be constrained by current policies or means of delivery.

Identify three priorities for Housing Strategy for the period to 2025

Identify three priorities for Housing Strategy for the period to 2025

Identify three priorities for Housing Strategy for the period to 2025

Describe three longer term outcomes that you would expect to see in 2040 as a result of the housing strategy

Joined-up approach to housing and service delivery

What conditions and interventions might be needed to support successful, sustainable communities across Worcestershire?

How should local, county-wide, and regional priorities be brought together to plan for the best possible housing offer in Worcestershire?

Are there any aspects of performance or delivery that should be highlighted for short-term priority to expedite new housing delivery in Worcestershire?

The public sector is one of the most important employers in the County. How can housing contribute to making the County an attractive destination for public sector workers?

Optional questions

These questions are focused on the Policy Framework. Whilst we do not expect respondents to answer all questions, we are aiming to obtain a wide range of insight. We are looking for a divergent range of experience and opinion. You do not need to be a subject matter expert to complete these sections.

Homes, jobs and growth

This area comprises policies and factors that influence: · Homes and jobs · Homes and connectivity · Housing demand · Housing supply · Housing stock This policy area combines considerations of forecast housing supply and demand across all tenures including the suitability of the existing stock. Policy is also concerned with aligning land supply to growth opportunities as well as the creation of thriving communities that have the right level of services and facilities.

How should housing supply change in the short term if current housing needs are to be met?

What steps should be taken to ensure long-term sustainable housing supply in Worcestershire?

To what extent should places developed in Worcestershire be sustainable and focused on local need as opposed county-wide or regional demand for housing?

How should the aim to accommodate growth in the housing stock be balanced alongside the wider social, economic, and environmental needs of places?

If there were no constraints, what policies addressing housing supply and demand should be brought forward?

Inclusion and well-being

This area comprises policies and factors that influence: · Health and wellbeing · Affordability · Equality and accessibility · Social care and inclusion · Fuel poverty and energy This policy area focuses mainly on measures to integrate the provision of healthcare alongside housing and in particular to reduce inequality. Affordable housing plays a key role in delivering these policy outcomes, especially with respect to provision for people with complex health and social care needs. Relevant policies also include support that enables people to remain in their own homes alongside measures to improve health outcomes by eliminating fuel poverty.

What changes are required to planned and existing housing provision in order to improve health and reduce health inequalities?

What steps need to be taken in the private and public sector to expand affordable housing delivery?

Over the longer term, how could the provision of health and social services to vulnerable people be integrated with housing-related services to deliver better outcomes?

What steps can be taken to enable the growth of sustainable, inclusive communities that are based on mix of housing types and tenures?

If there were no constraints, what policies addressing well-being and inclusion through housing should be brought forward?

Standards and Innovation issues

This area comprises policies and factors that influence: · Consumer standards and safety · Housing quality · Innovation agenda This policy area is concerned with the long-term quality and adaptability of housing, ensuring that homes retain their useability and value in the long-term. Standards also cover existing homes with a particular focus on health, inequality and fuel poverty. Looking forward, the innovation agenda covers both improvements to productivity and sustainability performance.

Should local authorities aspire to setting better standards for space standards or carbon reduction than are set nationally? Is there a justification for such an approach?

What steps need to be taken to ensure safe building in the county? What is the role of local bodies in driving change?

How does the condition of existing housing affect social and economic outcomes? What aspiration should be set to improve housing conditions and performance?

What lead should local authorities take in encouraging the adoption of innovation? How can housing providers in the county collaborate to deliver enhanced product quality, design and layout?

If there were no constraints, what policies addressing standards and innovation in housing could be brought forward?

Sustainability issues

This area comprises policies and factors that influence: · Environmental sustainability and resilience · Net-zero carbon This policy area is applied at the level of county, settlement and individual dwelling. In particular, the policy is concerned with the development sustainable communities that are well-integrated with their surroundings. Net zero carbon is a rapidly evolving area of policy that will affect new and existing homes, including the implementation of programmes to improve housing performance for people living in fuel poverty.

How should the adopted pathway to net-zero carbon influence housing delivery and improvement in Worcestershire?

What aspects of environmental sustainability should be prioritised as part of the wider development of existing and new sustainable communities?

What plans should be developed to address the resilience of homes and places affected by climate change – e.g., flooding

What role could the public sector play in promoting the retrofit of existing homes to meet net-zero carbon targets?

If there were no constraints, what level of aspiration should be set for environmental sustainability and resilience in Worcestershire? Should the county aim to set higher standards faster in order to reduce environmental impacts?

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