Oxfordshire housing association celebrates 25 years

Cottsway Housing Association, the largest social housing provider in West Oxfordshire, began in 2001 as West Oxfordshire Housing.

It was formed through a Large-Scale Voluntary Transfer (LSVT) of 3,643 homes from West Oxfordshire District Council, following a tenant consultation that resulted in a vote in favour of the transfer.

Since then, Cottsway has grown by around 65 per cent and will soon be taking handover of its 6,000th property, with homes in Gloucestershire, Wiltshire and Worcestershire.

Andrew Hall, who will stand down as Board Chair at the end of this month, said: “Reaching our 25th anniversary is a proud moment for everyone connected to Cottsway.

“It’s an opportunity to reflect on what we’ve achieved together and, just as importantly, to look ahead.

“I will leave Cottsway knowing that it is in a strong, robust position and on track to deliver targets set out in its Corporate Plan with three key focus areas – most importantly ‘People’ and ‘Homes’, but also ‘Business strength’ which enables Cottsway to continue investing in current homes so that they are to the high standard customers expect and deserve, but also in a good position to continue providing more homes in the future.

“I would like to thank everyone who has played a role in Cottsway over the past two and a half decades and especially to our customers, for telling us when we get things right or when we could be doing things better so that we can take action to improve, because their views are what matter the most.”

To mark the anniversary, Cottsway has launched several community-focused initiatives.

These include an extra £25,000 for its Community Fund to support local projects that help residents gain new skills, improve wellbeing, and build stronger neighbourhoods.

The association will also donate 25 trees to a community to promote biodiversity.

Cottsway serves more than 13,000 customers, with more than three-quarters of its homes offered at social rent, typically half the cost of private market rent.

Where social rent is not feasible, homes are provided at affordable rent – about 20 per cent below market rates – or through shared ownership schemes.

The organisation invests more than £10 million annually in maintaining and upgrading existing homes, prioritising health and safety.

It has also secured government funding to improve energy efficiency in older properties and help residents manage energy costs.

Cottsway holds top ratings for viability and governance from the Regulator of Social Housing and reports a customer satisfaction rate of 85 per cent.

It recently published a corporate plan for 2023-2028, which sets out targets to deliver 833 new homes and invest £63 million in improving existing properties, including energy upgrades.

The plan commits more than £150 million toward meeting these goals over the next three years.