One of the UK housing sector’s most senior figures is to lead a new Commission on the Future for Housing in Northern Ireland. Lord Richard Best OBE will chair the Commission, which will hope to play a leading role in contributing to housing solutions in Northern Ireland over the next decade and beyond.

The Commission is being organised by leading housing bodies in Northern Ireland and will be facilitated by the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH), supported by its consultancy arm, ConsultCIH Limited. Organisations supporting the Commission include: the Northern Ireland Housing Executive, the Northern Ireland Federation of Housing Associations, Co-ownership Housing, the Construction Employers Federation, and the Voluntary Sector Housing Policy Forum.

The Commission is being created to drive cross-sector consensus on a long-term vision for the future of housing, which is critical for Northern Ireland’s social and economic development. The Commission intends to capitalise on the growing benefits resulting from the devolution of power and the work of the Northern Ireland Executive, its departments and the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Lord Best said: "I am delighted to accept the invitation to Chair the Commission on the Future for Housing in Northern Ireland. I have been struck by the progress made in housing policy and practice in recent years, particularly since the restoration of devolution, and by the level of partnership working across the housing sector. These provide excellent conditions for the work of the Commission, and I sincerely hope that the recommendations arising from the Commission will be of benefit to the Northern Ireland Executive and to relevant Ministers, as they take forward their important work to shape the future of Northern Ireland".

Grainia Long, Principal Policy Advisor to the Commission and Director of CIH Northern Ireland said: "Housing in Northern Ireland has benefited substantially from devolution. The New Housing Agenda published by the Minister for Social Development, the wide ranging planning reform proposed by the Minister of the Environment, and a host of policy initiatives from the Northern Ireland Executive aimed at building sustainable communities, bode well for the future.

"The Commission is a timely opportunity to contribute to, and build on that work, and to create a long-term vision for housing in contributing to Northern Ireland’s future. I’m delighted that Lord Best has agreed to Chair this Commission, and that he and his Commission colleagues will be devoting their time to this important issue. I have every confidence that the Commission will play a central role in how we build places and communities in Northern Ireland in the future".

*ENDS*

News release issued on behalf of the Commission by Tony Osborne, CIH Press Office, Octavia House, Westwood Way, Coventry CV4 8JP. Telephone: 024 7685 1788. Email: press@cih.org).

Notes to Editors:

- The Commission’s was launched on 8 April 2009 and will run for a year. It is chaired by Lord Richard Best OBE. Lord Best will be joined on the Commission by Professor Greg Lloyd, Head of the School of the Built Environment at the University of Ulster, and by Alyson Kilpatrick, Barrister at Law.

- The Commission is facilitated by the Chartered Institute of Housing and supported by leading housing organisations in Northern Ireland including:

- Northern Ireland Housing Executive,
- Northern Ireland Federation of Housing Associations,
- Co-ownership Housing,
- Construction Employers Federation,
- Voluntary Sector Housing Policy Forum.

The Commission’s objectives are:

- To assess the key challenges and opportunities associated with the delivery of housing in Northern Ireland;
- To provide a space for housing professionals to contribute their knowledge, skills and ideas to the Commission’s outcomes;
- To publish a report containing specific recommendations on a strategic direction for housing and a roadmap for a way forward.

- Please visit the Commission’s Website from 8 April at http://nihousingcommission.cih.co.uk/ for more information and the latest discussions.

- Lord Richard Best - Lord Best is currently President of the Local Government Association, Chair of the Hanover Housing Group and of the House of Lords Audit Committee. He Chairs the Giving Forum and the Private Rented Sector Policy Forum. He is a Trustee of the RSA and The Tree Council and the Phoenix Fund for Zimbabwe. He is Vice Chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Urban Development and Treasurer of the APP on Housing Needs and Homelessness. He serves on the House of Lords Economic Affairs Committee. He is Deputy Chair of Westminster City Council’s Standard Committee and he is a Vice President of the TCPA and Patron of the Housing Associations Charitable Trust. He is also a member of the Audit Commission’s Housing and Regeneration Advisory Board. Richard Best is a member of the Council of the Ombudsman for Estate Agents and Chairs the OPM Public Interest General Council. He is a Hon Fellow RIBA, Hon Life Member Chartered Institute of Housing, Hon Doctor of Letters, Sheffield University. In the past Richard Best has been Director of both the Joseph Rowntree Foundation and Joseph Rowntree Housing Trust, and the Chief Executive of the National Federation of Housing Associations (now NHF). He was a member of Ministerial Sounding Boards from 1999 – 2005 and Chairman of the Westminster Commission (2005/6). He was created a Life Peer in 2001.