The Homes for Surrey campaign held its first event on Friday 2 December 2016.
The event was a resounding success with the room near full capacity and featuring some of the most prominent business leaders involved in house building in Surrey.
Three distinguished speakers from the housing community on our panel, included:
Sir Edward Lister, Chairman of the Homes and Community Agency
Cllr Tony Rooth, Guildford Borough Council Cabinet Member for Housing and Social Welfare
Guy Burnett, Group Development Director at Thames Valley Housing Association
Sir Edward focused his speech on what he believed to be the most important factors facing the housing industry. He stressed the importance of building more homes and that the key objective was the number of homes delivered. He also provided insight into how the HCA is attempting to speed up house building by providing loans and guarantees as well as supporting the modernisation of home building techniques.
Cllr Rooth spoke of the difficulties in framing the debate about housing development in a positive light to the average resident. He stated that providing the necessary infrastructure to support housing plays a major role in swaying opinions.
Mr. Burnett discussed the effects of unaffordability within the housing market for Surrey residents and some of the ways TVHA is trying to combat those problems.
Everyone in attendance was very enthusiastic about the benefits of the Homes for Surrey campaign and the need for a campaign to emphasise the benefits and need of more housing in Surrey. The campaign is preparing to host a second event sometime in the New Year.
To keep up to date with the campaign, sign up at www.homesforsurrey.org.uk
