Discover what industry leaders and attendees have to say about The Housing Community Summit. Here, you'll find inspiring quotes that highlight the impact and value of the summit.
Dive into their testimonials and see why The Housing Community Summit is a must-attend event for anyone passionate about the future of housing.
If you would like to get involved please contact Rebecca Murphy rebecca.murphy@housing.org.uk or Becky Ibbertson becky.ibbertson@cih.org
"The Summit was a great event to share ideas and hear about creating a positive future. The sessions were full of housing professionals wanting to do the right thing, whether that was proactively tackling damp and mould or using technology to develop better data strategies. These events are key for the sector to come together and share best practice to produce better services and outcomes for residents."
Richard Blakeway
Housing OmbudsmanRichard was appointed as Housing Ombudsman from 1 September 2019. He has extensive experience in the housing sector, with previous roles including Deputy Mayor of London for Housing, chair of the Homes for London board, and a non-executive director of Homes England. During his eight years at the Greater London Authority, Richard was responsible for housing investment and land regeneration programmes. He also led the creation of the first team at City Hall to address rough sleeping, commissioning around £10 million of services each year, as well as the first Social Impact Bond on homelessness. Richard is a former board member of the Chartered Institute of Housing and has been an election observer in Somaliland and the Ukraine. He is a fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and sits on the Administrative Justice Council. Richard also chairs the Ombudsman Association and is a board member of the British Library.
“There is a current renaissance in the housing sector. Landlords everywhere are reassessing and building their relationships with their tenants ensuring that the future sector will be co-designed and co-managed. We launched our Tackling Stigma Journey Planner to a packed audience at the first session of the 2024 Community Housing Summit. It was a great way for us to start our journey with tenants and landlords on tackling stigma and the 2025 Community Housing Summit will be a great opportunity to continue these and many other debates”.
Nic Bliss
@nicblisscch
Campaign Director, Stop Social Housing Stigma CampaignNic Bliss recently became the Campaign Director for the Stop Social Housing Stigma campaign. A former tenant of a Registered Provider housing co-op in Birmingham, Nic retired from the Confederation of Co-operative Housing after nearly 30 years. He has led various national tenant organisation projects working with Government and others, including helping to shape the post Grenfell Ministerial roadshows, the National Tenant Voice programmes and research reports into the business benefits of tenant involvement and other tenant related matters. Nic has worked with numerous tenants and landlords across the country.
“The Housing Community Summit is a vital platform for collaboration and innovation in the housing sector. Community Housing Cymru campaigns for everyone to have access to affordable, high-quality housing. This summit presents an important opportunity to advocate for the policies and investment needed to achieve this at a UK-wide level. It’s also a chance to share best practice across the nations as we work together to provide safe, secure homes for those who need them most.
I look forward to joining sector leaders, policymakers, and housing professionals in Liverpool.“
Stuart Ropke
Chief Executive, Community Housing Cymru
"In light of the government's ambitious housing targets, it's more crucial than ever to recognise that a truly sustainable future depends on creating homes that prioritise health. The intersection of housing and health is not just about bricks and mortar but about building communities where mental, physical, and social well-being can thrive. This conference serves as a pivotal forum to explore how we, as a sector, can innovate and collaborate to ensure that the homes of tomorrow uplift lives and set a new standard for healthy living.”
Jenny Danson
Chief Executive,, Healthy Homes Hub
“The Housing Summit brings together our sector along with key stakeholders to discuss national and international best practice and learning. Last year’s Summit offered something for everyone in our sector with a lot of positive energy making it a great event to learn and network at.
Seamus Leheny
Chief Executive, NIFHA - Northern Ireland Federation of Housing AssociationsSeamus is the Chief Executive of the Northern Ireland Federation of Housing Associations that represents 20 housing associations who manage over 60,000 homes across Northern Ireland and are responsible for the development of new social homes on an annual basis. As Chief Executive of NIFHA, Seamus is responsible for the operational direction of NIFHA, specialising in development, finance and strategic housing issues. Previous to working in housing, Seamus worked as senior policy manager for Logistics UK specialising in legislation around supply chains regularly engaging with the UK government and the EU.
“The Housing Community Summit brings together the widest spectrum of professionals across the housing sector and I love the variety of topics covered and discussions that this prompts. Last year I came away so enthused with new ideas and fresh perspectives, it was like a breath of fresh air.”
Nicki Clarke
Head of Housing, Standing Together Against Domestic ViolenceNicki is the Head of Housing at Standing Together Against Domestic Abuse, leading the Housing team to ensure that survivors of domestic abuse can access safe and secure housing. Nicki also sits on the National Domestic Abuse and Housing Policy and Practice Group, working with partners across the sector to influence national policy around this area. Prior to this Nicki spent more than 13 years working frontline in various roles within social housing and as the Domestic Abuse lead for Westward Housing she successfully guided them to achieve DAHA Accreditation in 2022.
"The Housing Community Summit is an event that really delivers for housing providers, offering a wide range of subject matter from engaging and interesting speakers. It is fantastic to be part of helping to shape this!"
"We welcome the Housing Community Summit, which will bring together leaders from across the housing sector, including resident leaders, to discuss how to get social housing policy right. There is a paradigm shift happening in housing policy, as people really start to recognise the importance of safe, secure and truly affordable home and the government seeks to deliver the “biggest boost to social and affordable housing in a generation”. The Summit is a vital forum to discuss breaking down barriers to building affordable housing and place residents’ voices at the heart of policymaking."
G15 Residents Group
"The Housing Community Summit comes at a turbulent time, with global politics impacting the rollback of EDI measures in many organisations and ongoing inequalities for marginalised communities. This summit provides a space to come together as housing professionals, stimulate innovative partnerships and unite behind the aims of safe and inclusive housing for everyone. I look forward to hearing about good practice, sharing learnings and meeting passionate people working hard for residents across the country.”
Jack Mason
LGBTQ+ Housing Pledge Project Co‑ordinator, Stonewall Housing
“Upgrading and protecting the social housing sector is an investment in the UK’s future. But it is a huge challenge and one that none of us achieve do alone. This summit will be a chance to learn best practice, but even more importantly, create the relationships required to build a mass movement of people committed to the simple – yet radical - idea that people living in social housing should get access to truly decent homes. I look forward to meeting you there.”
Daniel Mackintosh
Assistant Director, Citizens UK