As we celebrate 30 years of Progress, our vision remains to ensure everyone has a place to call home and the opportunity to live their best life.
Our annual report brings this vision to life by sharing the experiences of our tenants and customers. It draws on the peoples’ personal experiences to demonstrate how important a home is to each and every one of us. It shows how social housing makes a positive difference to our society, our communities and the lives of people of all ages.
Some stories show the reality of living in crisis, the challenges our customers face and how people overcome adversity. Others show the importance of living in secure, safe housing without fear.
Many stories simply explain how small amounts of support, kindness and understanding can enable people to be connected to their community, be themselves and make positive changes in their lives. They all share the celebration of people and the wonderous achievements we can make in our world.
The annual report celebrates the contribution social housing can make to our society. It reminds us of our ongoing commitment to do our very best to provide everyone with a place to call home and live their best lives.
We very much hope you enjoy reading the report and viewing the videos.
Jacqui De-Rose, Group Chief Executive
Some stories show the reality of living in crisis, the challenges
our customers face and how people overcome adversity.
Our 2023/24 annual report is our opportunity to highlight that our continued focus remains, as always, on our tenants and customers. This year has been another enormously challenging year for all, with inflationary pressures such as rising prices, interest rates, and energy costs impacting the overall cost of living. This has had a major impact on those on low incomes and created a challenging environment for businesses.
We have worked hard this year to focus singularly on our core social purpose by providing a wide range of excellent housing and related services whilst maintaining sound finances despite the difficult operating environment. We have had a successful year delivering most of our Strategic Plan objectives, including continued delivery of new homes to increase the supply of affordable housing and maintaining our existing stock to a high standard.
We have been determined to ensure we meet the highest standards. Therefore, it was hugely rewarding to receive the highest rating for governance and financial viability of G1 V1 from the Regulator of Social Housing, published in March 2024. The board will continue to focus on good governance, leadership, and financial stability to assist us in retaining this rating. From this position of strength, we can continue to provide quality services to our tenants, including keeping them safe in their homes.
We are well prepared for the consumer regulation changes introduced in April 2024 and working hard to improve tenant satisfaction.Â
We are introducing new committees with tenant representation that will empower tenants to engage in and influence our work on services that matter to them.
Our business streams will concentrate on delivering services to a wide range of tenants and customers, each delivering a business plan that reflects the needs of those we serve. Collectively, they will ensure we achieve our future strategic aims and priorities.
This annual report captures Progress Housing Group's overall resilience and the positive impact we continue to have on the lives of our tenants, customers, and communities in the face of significant challenges. We hope you will celebrate these achievements with us.
This is the final time I introduce our annual report as I step down from Chair of the board in September 2024. Our new Chair, Sheena McDonnell, will oversee the board and report to you next year on our achievements in 2024/25.
On behalf of the board, as we celebrate our 30th year, I would like to thank all our tenants, customers, employees and partners for your continued commitment and trust in us and my fellow board and executive colleagues for their enduring hard work and unwavering dedication to our core social purpose. I wish the Group every success in the years ahead.
Nigel Wright, Chair
