CCH is delighted to announce the winners of the 2021 Housing Awards which celebrate all the great things that our housing co-ops and co-operators do to bring lasting change to their communities. This year we had two special awards to recognise how co-ops had gone the extra mile to help their members through the pandemic. Our awards were presented at our 2021 Conference ‘Shaping the future….. co-operative housing in a new decade’ which we held in Liverpool on the 8-9 October. Here are the official 2021 winners!
Winner:
Brian O’Hare – Huyton Community Co-operative
Watch the video of Brian here!
Brian is currently Chairperson of Huyton Community Co-operative for the Elderly, and also Chairperson of North West Housing Services.
He has been involved with Huyton Co-op for over 35 years, and was one of the driving forces behind the setting up of the Co-op back in the 1980’s. He has always been a passionate supporter of Co-operative Housing, which is demonstrated by the length of time he has been involved in the sector. Brian was a local councillor for many years, and has always championed Co-operative Housing within the borough of Knowsley and the wider Merseyside area. He also worked closely with the local Member of Parliament to investigate the feasibility of an older persons Housing Co-operative in the neighbouring town of Kirkby.
During his time with the Local Authority, Brian was the lead cabinet member for Housing, and oversaw the stock transfer of Council Housing to Knowsley Housing Trust.
In the last 12 months, he has worked tirelessly to develop 6 new bungalows for the Co-op, using his experience and knowledge to negotiate the land purchase from the Local Authority.
In addition to his work with his Co-op, Brian has been Chair of NWHS for over 10 years, during which time he has been a key person in developing and growing the organisation into a position of financial strength. He has been instrumental in putting NWHS at the forefront of supporting and developing Co-operative Housing.
SHORTLISTED:
Theresa Lyons – Senacre Housing Co-operative
Helen Bartlett – Bunker Housing Co-operative
Award sponsored by:
Winner:
South Road Housing Co-operative
During the last 12 months a member of the Management Committee received support and training from CCH to develop the Co-op’s own website www.southroadhousing.com
The website is very informative and was set up to help re-engage with Co-op members.
The website is easy to navigate and includes information on ‘Meet the Committee’ and the story of South Road.
The website also contains up to date policies and procedures, as well as an updated version of the 2017 Fully Mutual Co-op rules which have recently been adopted by South Road Housing.
As well as setting up the website the Co-op has also held all of their meetings virtually since the beginning of the pandemic and this has proved successful with more member involvement and participation.
Award sponsored by:
Winner:
Brandrams Housing Co-operative
Brandrams Housing Co-operative is a rich and diverse community of front-line health and social care workers, school-teachers, probation officers; and artists, community gardeners and retired people. Throughout this challenging time, the community has come together and supported each other in several creative and inventive ways including:
Weekly singalongs where residents and sang with and to each other, socially distanced, from their balconies and walk-ways. The weekly Singalongs became a lifeline. Through curating and singing their favourite songs, residents connected with their neighbours, felt less isolated and experienced some light and welcome relief from the stress and anxiety of the pandemic.
Songs for the River: One of the residents, Charlotte Ginsborg, is a talented filmmaker and with residents’ permission began filming the weekly singalongs and interviewing individual residents about their thoughts and experiences throughout this exceptional time. From this, ‘Songs for the River,’a feature documentary was created. Told through observed footage of residents’ daily lives and conversations, interviews to camera, portrait, landscape photography and song, the film charts the individual and shared experiences of their community, as they came to terms with the challenges and uncertainties of living with a pandemic.
They also provided additional support for their community including cleaning rotas and sanitization for communal areas, WhatsApp groups, rent reduction scheme and a foodbank deposit box.
Award sponsored by:
Winner:
Cheshia Toka, Two Piers Housing Co-operative
Cheshia is a recent Sussex Uni Media and Cultural Studies graduate who joined Two Piers HC 2 years ago, full of beans and co-operative ideals. Cheshia’s vision is to create meaningful, green jobs for young people in the future, seeing the climate and ecological crisis as an opportunity to create a better world for the common good. Their favourite aspect of housing co-ops is that they require active participation to function, unlike private renting you are passive in comparison.
They were a lead role in setting up the Co-op’s new Sustainability Team which is focusing on retrofitting the properties. They also organised talks on a local electric car sharing scheme, the future of transport in the city, and eco architecture.
Cheshia had a major part in the Co-op’s groundbreaking year-long production of a Blueprint for the Future and is working to introduce the Co-op to methods of Sociocracy with practical, consent-based tools for decision making. As an LGBTIQA+ young person they also contribute to the Co-op’s understanding of equalities.
Cheshia has worked on the Co-op’s interpretation of the Co-operative Principles in day-to-day management and took a lead in the Co-op’s covid response. They supported the work of the Co-op’s Development Group, and is now considering convening the Co-ordination Group as they wish to gain an overview of how the Co-op functions, and play an active role in implementing the aims of the Blueprint
Award sponsored by:
Winner:
Plum Tree Housing Co-operative
Plum Tree Housing Co-operative was registered in May 2020. The co-operative was born out of necessity but also out of a sense of unity in facing housing adversities.
Their journey is unusual, they did not choose their members as they already lived together for some years as property guardians. When the property guardian company went into liquidation they collectively decided to take matters in their own hands. After the appalling experience of poor management and lack of maintenance they were sure they could do a better job looking after the building and creating a safe environment for its all residents.
They all come from different backgrounds, different countries, and different age groups and have diverse life experiences and skill sets but are joined by the common sense of purpose and democratic values.
While fighting for just housing, they connected with many inspiring people from other co-operatives and community-oriented individuals. It inspired them to create deeper connections with their local community in Purley organising a free online Spanish course for beginners, a permaculture course and a seed bank for local residents.
They are also busy spreading the knowledge of co-operative housing especially among councils and local politicians.
Shortlisted: Stirchley Co-operative Development
Award sponsored by:
