The Housing Corporation is not directly involved in the Housing Choice process. Its main role in the process is to provide the overall supervision of THCH which should guarantee that it meets both the promises which it makes, and that it continues to be managed in an open and effective way.

It is the Housing Corporation which defines what a Housing Association is, and how it must conduct its business.

The notes below are adapted very slightly from the  Housing Corporation Website, where you can also find annual evaluations of all associations.

 Housing Corporation assessment of THCH

What is the Housing Corporation?

The Housing Corporation is responsible for investing public money in housing associations and for protecting that investment and ensuring it provides decent homes and services for residents. We invest in housing associations to provide homes that meet local needs. Through regulation we seek to ensure that people will want, and be able, to live in these homes, now and in

Their key aims are:

• to regulate to promote a viable, properly governed and properly managed housing association sector;
• to invest for the creation and maintenance of safe and sustainable communities;
• to champion a resident focus in the housing association sector; and
• to be a modern, customer-centred, forward-looking organisation, encouraging change in the sector.

What is a housing association?

How does the Corporation regulate the sector?

How does the Corporation invest in housing associations?

The Corporation works with associations and others to invest in social housing. They do this in two main ways:

Thye ensure that their investment meets the housing needs of today and tomorrow, and that it contributes effectively to the Government's regeneration agenda.

How does the Corporation champion a tenant focus among housing associations?

 Communities in control policy, launched in September 2000, aims to enable tenants to explore all the opportunities and options for their involvement at a level where they want to be involved and to develop those areas in which they are interested. Through the  Community Training and Enabling Grants programme

How is the Corporation accountable?

They strive to work in as open and transparent a way as possible. The Chief Executive is the accounting officer, which means he is responsible to Parliament for ensuring public funds are properly used and achieve value for money. They are also subject to scrutiny by the National Audit Office and can be called before the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee.

They also report annually to Parliament through the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister on the use of the funding allocated to them.

It is Government policy that all Non-Departmental Public Bodies, like the Housing Corporation, should be subject to a thorough finance, management and policy review (FMPR) every five years. These reviews are undertaken in two stages starting with a Prior Options Study which examines the justification for the organisation and its functions on policy grounds. The second stage looks at financial, management and organisational matters in detail. The last review took place in 2000.