Bromford has led the sector for a number of years in delivering a pro-active decarbonisation programme and 87% of our existing homes are already at EPC C and above. The new homes we are building across the West Midlands, Gloucestershire and the West of England are among the most energy efficient in the country.

Independent of any government position, we will continue with our own targets and strive to deliver energy efficient, low carbon homes for all of our customers, seeking out new and innovative technologies that reduce our carbon footprint. Doing this clearly benefits the environment and our customers by reducing the amount of energy they use to stay warm, making their homes more affordable and enabling them to thrive.

But we will go further than this. We will also continue to pursue our sustainability ambitions by delivering against every aspect of ESG (environmental, social and governance). Our journey to becoming a net zero carbon organisation by 2050 and the social value we create must take equal prominence in the decisions we make.

We are proud of our recent record of being a top three developer of social rent homes in each of the past three years, as well as being one of the country’s leading developers of affordable housing. As we continue to face into the rising cost of living and as the current economic challenges impact our communities, there has never been a more important time to provide our customers with somewhere to call home. This is why we have set ourselves the ambitious goal of building an additional 12,000 homes by 2031. We do this not through government instruction, but because we recognise it is the right thing to do for aspiring customers.

Our aspirations to deliver social value don’t stop there. We will continue to deliver our flagship neighbourhood coaching model building long-lasting relationships in our neighbourhoods; we will continue to help more of most vulnerable customers by driving positive interventions to help them increase their income; and we will coach more of our customers into employment and training giving them the best possible chance to thrive.

As a sector we have often been operating in the narrow corridor between government policy and funder demand, but as that corridor now widens, it is the ideal opportunity for housing associations to take ownership and lead our own ESG ambitions so they don’t rise and fall with the policies of the government of the day. That is what we are doing and will continue to do at Bromford; and we will always be driven by what we think is in the best interest of our customers.