Back in September, Mark White, managing director of Hampshire-based housebuilder, Bargate Homes, was announced as the chair of the Future Homes Hub’s SME liaison group. With the group now established, Mark delves into what it’s looking to achieve.
“Diversification of the market is so important. PLC housebuilders are well aware of this and appreciate the health of the whole industry relies on us regarding each other as peers, not rivals. But, to make real headway with the roll-out of green technology, we must work together more effectively as a collective – for the sake of the customer”, says Mr White.
The Future Homes Hub is an independent organisation bringing together the homebuilding sector with the wider circle of supply chain, infrastructure, finance and government organisations that need to collaborate. Over 50 of the largest homebuilders are active members, with many other related organisations committed to working together through the Hub to achieve environmental and sustainability goals.
The work of the Future Homes Hub includes developing technical solutions for regulatory changes, and collaborating sector-wide to overcome barriers to successful implementation, for example on skills and supply chain. The Hub also develops industry-led proposals for current and future policy challenges. It has created the basis for measuring sustainability performance, capturing the value of improving performance. The team is in constant communication with all parts of the homebuilding sector and facilitates sharing and learning.
Three years on from the Hub’s establishment, the SME liaison group has been formed to review specific challenges, identify solutions, support the government in understanding SME circumstances, and help communicate out to the SME sector.
Ed Lockhart, CEO of the Future Homes Hub, said: “While recognising that SMEs are vital to housing delivery and innovation in homebuilding, they often have less capacity and can face unique circumstances in complying with new regulations. Our SME liaison group gives us a distinct mechanism to support smaller housebuilders on the latest set of challenges around net zero and sustainability.”
“As an active Future Homes Hub member, and having sat on the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Housing Market and Housing Delivery, and the APPG for SME housebuilders, we are thrilled that this group is ably chaired by Mark White.”
Mark White was a founding member of Bargate Homes and became managing director three years ago. Established in 2006, Bargate delivers 300 high EPC-rated homes per year and is a wholly owned subsidiary of VIVID – one of the South East’s largest providers of affordable homes. While being at the helm of this acclaimed regional housebuilder, his pedigree and influence extends far beyond.
Mark White continued: “I’m proud that a number of SMEs are already at the forefront of driving change and working with the new government to address the vast challenges and environmental targets faced by the housebuilding industry.
“But while the journey to net zero is so critical, unless residential developments are commercially viable, they won’t be delivered. All SMEs want to play a meaningful role in achieving the Labour administration’s manifesto pledge of 1.5 million new homes to be delivered during this parliament. To do this, we need to debate key issues, suggest solutions, and approach continued change with an open mindset.”
“The Future Homes Hub has a Chief Executive Council, which is well supported by industry heavyweights such as Barratt’s David Thomas, Taylor Wimpey’s Jenny Daly, and Greg Fitzgerald of Vistry. While their corporate challenges cannot be underestimated, the immense buying power and budgets of the PLCs are something to behold.”
“My task as chair is to take the obstacles that my SME friends and colleagues are experiencing to the Future Homes Hub team – and rally the Chief Exec Council. We’ll be collating new intel and listing the top asks that would make the biggest difference. While we’re not looking for cash handouts, the sharing of expertise, buying power, and technologies would enable thousands more homes to be delivered – on sites the PLCs largely overlook.”
“SMEs do not have substantial group funds, which exacerbates the fact planning and pre-construction delays can have a catastrophic impact on business plans. Far too many SME housebuilders have gone into administration this year – a situation we have to reverse.”
“Smaller sites naturally have tighter budget allocations. If SMEs can be party to detailed findings of what’s been successfully trialled to make the UK’s future homes and developments even more greener than they are today, this could be replicated in the most cost-efficient way. The number of homes that are then commercially viable to take through the planning process and deliver could rise exponentially.”
“As a case in point of why so few homes are being delivered, Bargate Homes is currently on site constructing a handful of large developments. We have 500 skilled tradespeople working for us, and with the impact of planning obstacles, labour availability, and the new Building Regulations, it costs £20,000 more to build a typical three-bedroom Bargate home than it did only five years ago.”
“Chairing the Future Homes Hub’s SME liaison group and navigating through the shared desire to deliver more beautiful, highly sustainable, energy-efficient homes, is a challenge I’m relishing.”
