Decision

Current regulatory judgement: Broadacres Housing Association Limited (17 January 2024)

Updated 17 January 2024

Applies to England

RSH Narrative Regulatory Judgement

• Provider: Broadacres Housing Association Limited
• Regulatory code: LH4014
• Publication date: 17 January 2024
• Governance grade: G1
• Viability grade: V2
• Reason for publication: Viability regrade
• Regulatory route: Stability Check and Reactive Engagement

Regulatory judgement

This regulatory judgement regrades the regulator’s previous assessment of Broadacres Housing Association Limited’s financial viability grade from V1 to V2 and confirms its existing G1 grade for governance.

The regulator has assurance that Broadacres Housing Association Limited (Broadacres) continues to comply with the financial viability elements of the Governance and Financial Viability Standard and that its financial plans are consistent with, and support, its strategy. Broadacres has an adequately funded business plan with sufficient security in place.

Broadacres is continuing investment in improving the quality and energy efficiency of its existing homes. At the same time, it is developing new homes, including homes for sale, exposing Broadacres in the short term to housing market risk. Delivering this plan weakens its financial performance and, set in the context of current economic pressures including inflation and interest rates, impacts on Broadacres’ capacity to respond to adverse events.

The regulator’s assessment of Broadacres’ compliance with the governance elements of the Governance and Financial Viability Standard remains unchanged. On the basis of the Stability Check, the regulator has concluded that there is no evidence to indicate a change to Broadacres’ current governance grading.

Other providers included in the judgement

None

About the provider

Origins

Broadacres is a charitable community benefit society and the registered parent of the group. It provides mostly general needs homes, with a small number of supported and shared ownership properties.

Registered Entities

Broadacres is the only registered entity in the group.

Unregistered Entities

Broadacres has three unregistered entities:

• Mulberry Homes Yorkshire Limited, develops homes for private sale;

• Broadacres Services Limited, provides development services; and

• Marketgate Residential Management Company Limited, provides a property management service to the schemes at Blossomgate and Marshall Way, Ripon.

Geographic Spread and Scale

Broadacres owns and manages around 6,600 homes in North Yorkshire.

Staffing and Turnover

Broadacres’ turnover for the year ended 31 March 2023 was £45m. It employs the full-time equivalent of 364 staff.

Development

Broadacres Growth Strategy 2023-2028 targets delivery of 1,000 homes in the five years to March 2028.

About our judgements

Key to Grades

Governance:

	Compliant
G1	The provider meets our governance requirements.
G2	The provider meets our governance requirements but needs to improve some aspects of its governance arrangements to support continued compliance.

	Non-compliant
G3	The provider does not meet our governance requirements. There are issues of serious regulatory concern and in agreement with us the provider is working to improve its position.
G4	The provider does not meet our governance requirements. There are issues of serious regulatory concern, and the provider is subject to regulatory intervention or enforcement action.

Viability:

	Compliant
V1	The provider meets our viability requirements and has the financial capacity to deal with a wide range of adverse scenarios.
V2	The provider meets our viability requirements. It has the financial capacity to deal with a reasonable range of adverse scenarios but needs to manage material risks to ensure continued compliance.

	Non-compliant
V3	The provider does not meet our viability requirements. There are issues of serious regulatory concern and, in agreement with us, the provider is working to improve its position.
V4	The provider does not meet our viability requirements. There are issues of serious regulatory concern, and the provider is subject to regulatory intervention or enforcement action.

Note: The use of an asterisk (*) against a grade indicates that the assessment refers to a provider that is designated as being for-profit.

Definitions of Regulatory Routes

In Depth Assessment (IDA): An IDA is a bespoke assessment of a provider’s viability and governance, including its approach to value for money. It involves on-site work and considers in detail a provider’s ability to meet its financial obligations and the effectiveness of its governance structures and processes.

Stability Checks: Based primarily on information supplied through regulatory returns, a Stability Check is an annual review of a provider’s financial position and its latest business plan. The review is focused on determining if there is evidence to indicate a provider’s current judgements merit reconsideration.

Reactive Engagement: Reactive engagement is unplanned work which is triggered by new information or a developing situation which may have implications for a provider’s current regulatory judgement.

Stability Checks and Reactive Engagement: In some cases, we will publish narrative regulatory judgements which combine evidence gained from both Stability Checks and Reactive Engagement.

For further details about these processes, please see Regulating the Standards.