§ Mr. RuaneTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales which housing associations in Wales(a) do and (b) do not participate in mutual aid development on their estates. [62274]
Mr. Jon Owen JonesMutual aid development refers to the activities known as "housing plus" or sustaining communities. The Welsh Office sets "Regulatory Requirements", which are the standards that housing associations must work to. They state
Associations should help to safeguard their tenants' quality of life by providing support to communities which help protect the interests of existing neighbours or tenants or contribute to the prevention or reversal of social decline".Our experience at audit of housing associations is all are engaged in a range of such projects, some more extensively than others. We have encouraged associations to increase this work in the future as part of the Government's agenda to tackle social exclusion.
Tai Cymru issued in September 1998 a report on "Sustainable communities for the future" which gave many examples of good practice in this area and made recommendations for future action.
§ Mr. RuaneTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many housing association development workers are employed by each housing association in Wales. [62275]
Mr. Jon Owen JonesThis information is not held centrally but we believe all associations employ development workers. Some Associations employ specific officers to carry out this work while others use generic staff who provide this function alongside their housing management role. We believe both approaches can be equally effective.