Stronger partnerships create more homes and improved community wellbeing across the region says our Housing Forum.

Local authorities have a responsibility to secure more housing through partnerships and innovation to stimulate the local economy and support tenant needs, Keith House, Leader of Eastleigh Borough Council told a cross-sector regional housing forum organised by us in Portsmouth.

Keith, who is also a board member of Homes England (the public body that funds affordable housing) said: “Today, the chances of people under 20 buying a house by the time they’re 40 is virtually zero. A vital part of my role as council leader and tackling local housing need is to know the business plans of all housebuilders in the region. By working together with housing associations like VIVID we’ve learned to innovate for the good of tenants and prospective tenants.”

Our partnership with Eastleigh Borough Council through Aspect is delivering around 240 homes. We're also delivering 1,000 new homes, a care home, primary and nursery schools and other community facilities at Eastleigh’s Stoneham site.

This year’s Housing Forum was attended by around 130 key representatives from housing, health and wellbeing organisations keen to explore the role of partnerships in delivering more homes and improvements to wellbeing.

Addressing the links between homes and wellbeing to health services, Richard Samuel, NHS Transformation Plan Lead for Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, told the audience: “We share a common priority to improve the health and wellbeing of communities.

“There’s plenty of evidence that good, safe, secure housing influence good health outcomes. NHS partnership programmes show £1 invested in supporting a healthy home – one that is affordable, safe and connected to community services – can deliver £2 of public service benefit terms of health, wellbeing and crime prevention cost savings.”

Our Chief Executive, Mark Perry said: “The message is clear - collaboration works. It delivers benefits to customers, to local government and to the health services.

“As well as completing 749 new homes last year our partnerships with CABs helped us unlock £3m in unclaimed benefits, and working together with Hampshire libraries helped deliver more digital inclusion. We’ve now appointed two wellbeing officers to work with health and social services to connect customers to health, social care and community support. “

Sinéad Butters, Chair of the community-focused Placeshapers, a group of around 100 housing associations across England, said: “We each have an interest in tackling the housing crisis and the wellbeing of tenants. If we’re serious about it, we should be doing it together - partnership in a wider context, with tenants at the centre.”