Community Housing Cymru

We wrapped up #CHCAnnual25 with a session on building safety, informative workshops, a keynote on technology and disinformation and a panel on trust - Rich discussions and too many insights to share here, so look out for a roundup soon!
Huge thanks to all delegates, speakers, sponsors and partners.

🧵(3/3)Jac Larner: "In terms of engaging tenants, a lot more needs to be done to explain the change…a lot of people haven’t heard of the new electoral system at all".

🧵(2/3) Nerys Evans: "‘As organisations, you do so much brilliant work on the ground, but how do politicians know about this?…It’s in all candidates' benefit for you to explain to them what you do"

🧵(1/3) Steffan Evans: "There’s no doubt in our mind that poverty must be a priority for all political priorities - you won’t deal with other issues such as health, housing and disrepair without doing this".

The Year Ahead: Politics, Policy, and People

Dr Jac Larner was joined by Nerys Evans from Cavendish Cymru and Steffan Evans from the Bevan Foundation for a panel focused on the latest policy developments and the economic forecasts and social trends impacting tenants. Highlights in thread👇🧵

🧵 (3/3) "Almost 30% of people say that housing is the biggest issue facing them and their families", said Jac Larner.

🧵 (2/3) He has also shared his expert insight into what Welsh voters really think about the key issues facing them, their communities and the country - and crucially, where housing fits into that picture.

🧵 (1/3) ‘For the first time, there is no such thing as a safe seat in Wales, so parties are going to have to campaign everywhere, even where they might not have campaigned before’, he said.

We've kicked off Day#2 of #CHCAnnual25 with a keynote from Dr Jac Larner, Cardiff University, where he's been talking us through what a larger Senedd and the brand-new voting system will mean for the political map of Wales.👇🧵

🧵(3/3)We also explored the importance of community involvement in placemaking and discussed AI, retrofit, leadership, the tenant voice and more through a wide range of workshops. So much shared learning! 🧠

🧵(2/3) One of the highlights was the conversation between our Director of External Affairs Clarissa Corbisiero and journalist Vicky Spratt on the real-world, human impact of the #HousingCrisis on people and communities today.

🧵(1/3) Yesterday, we launched our campaign for the Senedd elections 2026 with a powerful keynote from Chief Executive Stuart Ropke, followed by a key speech from Cabinet Secretary for Housing and Local Government, Jayne Bryant MS.

Good morning from @techniquest.org!
Before we dive back into key discussions on housing, policy, and safety on Day #2 of #CHCAnnual25, here's a quick recap of what happened yesterday.👇🧵

🧵(4/4) Stuart Ropke, Community Housing Cymru: "We are on a huge moment of change in Wales.The task for us now is to make the case for housing anew and build new relationships".

🧵(3/4) Richard Meade (SFHA): "The biggest challenge facing social housing and housing associations in Scotland is significant policy uncertainty, especially relating to net zero".

🧵(2/4) Kate Henderson (NHF): "If we look at the challenges facing housing associations in England, there are similarities - cost of living, quality of existing homes, building safety, and new supply".

🧵(1/4) The Chief Executives of the National Housing Federation (NHF), the Scottish Federation of Housing Associations (SFHA) and Community Housing Cymru (CHC) came together earlier today at #CHCAnnual25 to explore how the housing sectors in each nation are adapting and leading through change.

Social Housing Collaboration R&D Programme - HACT Social Housing Collaboration and R&D Programme brings together senior leaders from across the UK to spark sector-wide innovation and space for long-term thinking, shared learning and collective action...

🧵(3/3) Alongside the UK HIVE, HACT has launched a Social Housing Collaboration & R&D Roadmap, which sets out a 3–5 year vision for collaboration and innovation, providing practical recommendations for shared investment, infrastructure and collective action.

More information here: bit.ly/3X30kkG

🧵(2/3) The aim of this new space is to embed collaboration and continuous improvement into the DNA of the sector. UK HIVE will act as a hub for testing ideas, sharing learning, pooling resources and scaling what works.

🧵(1/3) HACT’s CEO Andrew van Doorn joined us today at #CHCAnnual25 to introduce the UK HIVE, a new centre for collaborative innovation, research and development in social housing.

🧵(4/4) Adam Kennerley, DTA Wales: "There’s a phrase, 'nothing for the community without the community', and this needs to be more than a tick box… there needs to be an offer, an open door to collaborate"

🧵(3/4) Sian Diaz, Lovell Partnerships: "We engage the community, involve them in what we are proposing… you can look at Google maps, but you can’t replace the knowledge of people who live there".

🧵(2/4) Mike Brough, Cardiff Capital Region: "‘Making places is for people who live there and work there. Without that, we’ve probably failed".

🧵(1/4) For the first panel session of #CHCAnnual25, we invited three experts to discuss what it really takes to build thriving communities. The message was clear: Involving the local communities is key to the success of any placemaking effort.

🧵(3/3) We will be talking in detail about what those three calls mean in practice as we launch our full election calls in the next few weeks, so stay tuned! But for now, What does “Homes: for every future” mean to you? #CHCAnnual25.

🧵(2/3) To make this a reality, we’re calling all political parties to pledge their commitment to three clear aims: More Homes, Better Homes and Healthier and Fairer Places. #CHCAnnual25

🧵(1/3) “We need a bold and deliverable plan to end Wales’ housing emergency, because the people of Wales have the right to live with dignity in warm affordable homes that allow them to thrive and stay healthy”, says CHC’s CEO Stuart Ropke. Wales needs Homes: for every future. #CHCAnnual25.

We are really looking forward to welcoming housing association colleagues, sponsors, partner organisations, and Welsh Government representatives to our Annual Conference in Techniquest tomorrow.

We’re ready. Are you?

#CHCAnnual25 #SocialHousing #Conference #Wales

Rhys talked about the three projects Adra has developed. 1) Tŷ Gwyrddfai - a decarb hub 2) The Adra academy - train skills 3) Framework 24 - a Wales wide procurement framework that Adra took over from government last year.