Stonewater, one of the country’s leading social housing providers, has strengthened its presence in the Midlands as part of the organisation’s continued expansion, adding a further 186 properties to its existing portfolio through stock transfer.
The properties have been purchased from housing association Bromford and include six for supported housing, 53 shared ownership properties and 127 homes for general needs.
Stonewater has a long-established presence in the region and already owns and manages more than 1,400 properties in Coventry, North Warwickshire and Nuneaton and Bedworth to a very high standard.
The tenanted transfer follows a consultation period with residents during which no concerns were raised.
Stonewater is committed to ensuring that there is no interruption to service for existing residents, who will be joining an organisation which has continued to provide a first-class customer experience throughout the upheaval of the past year.
Against a backdrop of on-going national uncertainty across the housing sector, Stonewater has not only managed to meet, but to surpass, pre-set targets.
Patrick Chauvin, Executive Director of Assets, Homes at Stonewater, commented: “We already own and manage a significant number of homes in the area, and we are always looking for new opportunities to provide high quality affordable homes and related services for people whose needs are not met by the open market.
“Everything we do at Stonewater is driven by our vision of enabling everyone to have the opportunity to have a place that they can call home and we are delighted to have reached an agreement with Bromford Housing to add these homes to our portfolio.”
Bromford’s Strategic Property Planning Manager, Jonathan Cooper, said: “We are delighted to have reached an agreement with Stonewater which marks the completion of our strategic goal to consolidate our presence in those communities where we are best placed to make a difference.
“Throughout this process, engaging with and empowering our customers has been our top priority. We firmly believe that this stock transfer is in our customers’ best interests, and we are confident that Stonewater will continue to build on the high standards of service which Bromford customers have come to expect.”
The stock transfer has been completed with the support of Coventry City Council, Nuneaton & Bedworth Borough Council and North Warwickshire Borough Council, in partnership with the Regulator of Social Housing and Homes England.
The newly acquired properties are being managed from Stonewater’s new hub in Coventry, as part of the organisation’s ground-breaking shift to a new hybrid-working model. Having seen how beneficial a home-based organisation could be for colleagues and customers alike during the pandemic, Stonewater has brought forward plans to make this a permanent move.
Whilst the organisation will remain predominantly home-based, Stonewater hubs are being set up in Coventry, Reading and Bournemouth to provide colleagues with the option to access flexible workspace.
