Corporate Strategy 2023 to 2025

Foreword Emily Cox MBE and Louise Bassett

Thank you for taking the time to read our Corporate Strategy

We have updated this key document in 2023 to renew our unwavering commitment to our customers who we serve and to our colleagues who make Gentoo a great place to work.

Together we commit to putting our customers at the heart of business decision making and to creating better working lives for everyone at Gentoo.

But we want to do more than listen. We also want to act.

Our customer promise

• We will review every aspect of our service to maximise opportunities for customer involvement.
• We commit to gaining greater understanding of our customers,
• and our homes.
• We will improve our service standards for our customers and ensure that every penny is spent wisely.
• We will continue to invest in and modernise our existing homes.
• We will help to address the housing shortage by building new affordable homes in Sunderland.
• We will create powerful, lasting partnerships with key organisations to benefit our customers, communities and neighbourhoods.

There will be challenges ahead, but we are stronger when we work together. With this renewed and determined focus we will ensure that Gentoo is a respected, forward-looking and inclusive landlord as well as an aspirational place to work, for many decades to come.

We are Gentoo.

Foreword  Tenant and Community Voice Chairs

We are the Gentoo Tenant and Community Voice Chairs

We are all Gentoo customers from across the City of Sunderland and we are committed to helping our local communities to thrive.

Our role is to create opportunities for customers to engage with Gentoo, at all levels. We start conversations, enable discussion, and we ask the big questions.

We help Gentoo to understand the key challenges that are being faced by customers and together we look to solve problems and create opportunities to build strong neighbourhoods and communities. 

We also hold the Group to account by identifying and asking for in-depth scrutiny of policies and procedures and we always strive to make things better, wherever we can.

Our overall aim is to create and sustain long-term mutually beneficial tenancies.

It is rewarding to manage the Aspire Grant Programme on behalf of Gentoo. Together we assess applications and award grants of up to £500 to various local voluntary groups every year. 

The projects are varied, and themes can include environmental matters, promotion of health and well-being and tackling unemployment. All successful Aspire grant projects have a core purpose – to enable local people to improve their communities.      

Our work focusses on fellow Gentoo customers but our voice is heard beyond that. We share insight with partners and policy makers and we are empowered to speak on a national stage, regularly contributing to national policy research discussions.

We welcome this refreshed Corporate Strategy and look forward to driving further customer involvement and opportunities for positive change.

Who we are

We are Gentoo.

We are a values-led, charitable organisation that provides more than 60,000 people in Sunderland with a place they can call home.

We have a clear vision and a social purpose. We believe that everyone has the right to live in a good quality home that they can afford.

We invest millions of pounds every year to keep our existing homes safe and decent. We also play our part in helping to deal with the UK housing crisis by building hundreds of new, modern homes for rent in Sunderland.

Our core purpose

Our core purpose is to provide safe and decent homes for our customers of today and tomorrow. 

Our vision

Our vision is to provide great homes, strong communities and inspired people for Sunderland. 

Our values

Our values are what we stand for and what we want to be known for. They are what make us, us. 

• We care about people
• We take accountability
• We shape the future
• We bring leadership
• We deliver

Our priorities

The safety of our customers and colleagues will always be our number one priority.

We have identified six further priorities which will guide the delivery of our services. We live our values in everything we do from the board room to the front room, to deliver our priorities for our customers.

We are Gentoo.

• We know our customers
• We provide great homes
• We help communities to thrive
• We are a great place to work
• We spend our money wisely
• We are well governed

Where we work

North Sunderland - 6,091 homes

Central Sunderland - 3,089 homes

South Sunderland - 8,542 homes

Washington - 6,044 homes

Houghton and Hetton - 4,739 homes

Properties in Northumberland, South Tyneside and Tees Valley - 52 homes

We know our customers

• We will work with our customers to review and improve how we engage with them and make sure they have a voice in how we provide our services.
• We will make sure at least 90% of our customers are satisfied with our overall service.
• We will make sure at least 90% of our customers are satisfied with our repairs service.
• We will make sure at least 90% of our customers are satisfied that we make a positive contribution to their neighbourhood.
• We will actively seek to create opportunities for customers to work with us in specific voluntary and paid roles.
• We will improve our digital services for customers to give them more choice on how they access our services.

We provide great homes

• We will work with our customers, colleagues and contractors to deliver new standards that help us to provide outstanding repairs and maintenance services.
• We will work with our customers to prevent damp or mould in their homes and to manage it when it occurs.
• We will spend £55 million on maintaining our existing homes and will improve our response times to provide a better service to our customers.
• We will invest £84 million in our existing homes as part of our investment plan and will focus on replacing roofs and kitchens and upgrading electrical installations.
• We will invest in energy efficiency and make sure at least 70% of our homes achieve an energy efficiency performance rating of C or better by April 2025.
• We will work with our customers to ensure our high-rise residential buildings are safe.
• We will meet our target of building more than 690 new homes and make them available through sale, affordable rent and shared ownership.

We help communities to thrive

• We will actively seek to create more community-based hubs across Sunderland. We will do this alongside other agencies and local services to provide greater benefits to our customers, neighbourhoods and communities.
• We will work with health providers, Sunderland City Council, the police and other agencies to reduce antisocial behaviour in our neighbourhoods and communities.
• We will review how we manage our estates and open spaces to make sure they are clean, well maintained and meet the needs of our neighbourhoods and communities.
• We will work with other housing associations, local councils and other stakeholders to influence social housing policy as part of the North-East devolution deal.

We are a great place to work

• We will listen to and communicate with our colleagues to build trust and create an inclusive culture.
• We will embed positive values and behaviours to enable our colleagues to work better together for each other and our customers.
• We will invest in developing our current and future managers and leaders and give them opportunities to thrive.
• We will invest in developing the capability and professionalism of our people.
• We will review how we value, and reward our colleagues for the great work that they do.
• We will invest in technology so our teams can work seamlessly with each other to provide joined-up services.
• We will continue to improve how we work so health and safety is part of everything we do.

We spend our money wisely

• We will review Gentoo Homes’ operating model to make the most of its surplus and reinvest it to enable us to build more affordable homes.
• We will embed a comprehensive approach to value for money throughout all areas of our business.
• We will continue to invest in knowing the condition of our homes so we can invest our money in the right places.
• We will increase our operating margin to at least 20%.
• We will operate with a commercial mindset and drive continuous improvement in everything we do.

We are well governed

• We will retain our G1 regulatory grading.
• We will review our committee structure to ensure our customers’ voice is at the heart of our decision making.
• We will continue to demonstrate effective supply chain governance through appropriate procurement and supplier management procedures.
• We will continue to invest in our IT systems and infrastructure to protect us from cyber attacks.

Enabling strategies

Our corporate strategy has five enabling strategies that help us to achieve our core purpose, vision, and priorities. 

Customer and Communities Strategy

This sets out how we work alongside our customers to provide our services in their homes, neighbourhoods and communities.

People Strategy

This sets out how we create a culture through our people that is led by our vision and values. 

Property Strategy

This sets out how we invest in and maintain our existing homes to make sure they are safe and decent for our customers, and how we build outstanding new homes that are affordable.

Digital Transformation Strategy

This sets out how we are transforming our digital services for our customers and colleagues and how we support the wider digital agenda in Sunderland.

Sustainability Strategy

This sets out how we will reduce the effects of climate change on our people, neighbourhoods, communities, and the environment.

Overseeing and measuring success

Our Group Board plays a critical role in overseeing and governing the delivery of our Corporate Strategy.

We measure our success to track and challenge the progress we are making against our priorities and strategic objectives.

We report our progress to our Group Board every quarter through our Corporate Strategy Scorecard, and every six months through a full report. 

We know our customers

% of customers who say they are satisfied with Gentoo’s overall service

2023 to 2024 target: 85%

2024 to 2025 target: 90%

 

% of customers who are satisfied with Gentoo’s repairs service

2023 to 2024 target: 85%

2024 to 2025 target: 90%

 

% of customers who are satisfied that Gentoo makes a positive contribution to their neighbourhood

2023 to 2024 target: 85%

2024 to 2025 target: 90%

 

We provide great homes

% of eligible properties with a current Landlord Gas Safety Record

2023 to 2024 target: 100%

2024 to 2025 target: 100%

 

% of domestic properties with a current electrical installation condition report

2023 to 2024 target: 100%

2024 to 2025 target: 100%

 

% of non-domestic properties with a current fire risk assessment

2023 to 2024 target: 100%

2024 to 2025 target: 100%

 

Number of overdue remedial actions arising from a Landlord Gas Safety Check

2023 to 2024 target: 0

2024 to 2025 target: 0

 

Number of overdue remedial actions arising from a domestic electrical installation condition report

2023 to 2024 target: 0

2024 to 2025 target: 0

 

 

We provide great homes

Number of overdue actions arising from a fire risk assessment           

2023 to 2024 target: 0

2024 to 2025 target: 0

 

% of homes that meet the requirements of the Decent Homes Standard*

2023 to 2024 target: 100%

2024 to 2025 target: 100%

*This does not include homes that the Group does not need to report to the Regulator of Social Housing as not meeting the requirements of the Decent Homes Standard due to customer refusal.

 

Number of new homes sold by Gentoo Homes

2023 to 2024 target: 160

2024 to 2025 target: 207

 

Number of new homes built for affordable rent and shared ownership

2023 to 2024 target: 133

2024 to 2025 target: 196

 

% of homes with an energy performance rating of C or above

2023 to 2024 target: 65%

2024 to 2025 target: 70%

 

We are a great place to work

% of colleagues who would recommend Gentoo as a great place to work

2023 to 2024 target: 80%

2024 to 2025 target: 85%

 

Colleague turnover rate

2023 to 2024 target: 10%

2024 to 2025 target: 10%

 

% of colleagues who believe Gentoo is committed to their health and safety 

2023 to 2024 target: 75%

2024 to 2025 target: 85%

 

We spend our money wisely

Overall operating margin

2023 to 2024 target: 20%

2024 to 2025 target: 20%

 

Social housing lettings operating margin

2023 to 2024 target: 25%

2024 to 2025 target: 25%

 

EBITDA MRI IC

2023 to 2024 target: 100%

2024 to 2025 target: 100%