Healthy Homes Conference 2024

Addressing the Critical Link Between Health and Housing

As part of our ongoing Homes for Health project delivery, CAHN proudly hosted the Healthy Homes Conference on Friday, 30th August 2024 at the Gorton Hub premises ( https://www.manchester.gov.uk/info/200079/regeneration/8381/gorton_hub ) a pivotal event aimed at tackling the pressing issues where health and housing intersect. Held at the Gorton Hub, the conference gathered leading officials from the housing sector, landlords, health professionals, civic leaders, and tenants to engage in meaningful dialogue and take collective action towards improving housing standards.

Key stakeholders in attendance

We were honoured to host the following speakers:

• Dr Cordelle Ofori (Director of Public Health Manchester)
• Samantha Watkin (Snr Policy Officer – National Residential Landlords Association)
• Mary Gogarty (Housing Principal – Greater Manchester Combined Authority)
• Bethan Galliers (Manchester Local Care Organisation)
• Nathan Sime (Manchester City Council Housing Compliance and Enforcement Team)

Key Outcomes:

1. Enhanced Collaboration: Strengthened partnerships between government officials, landlords, and tenants to foster more effective collaboration. Dr Cordelle mentioned, “…… a referral pathway was set up between NHS children’s health services and Manchester Housing to help support damp and mould in homes being addressed”
2. Actionable Recommendations: Tangible solutions and insights shared to inform future policies and improve housing practices.
3. Commitment to Higher Standards: A unified pledge from all parties to raise and maintain housing standards, ensuring healthier living environments for all, particularly within the Private Rented Sector (PRS).

This conference represents a critical step toward creating healthier, safer homes for all residents.

What attendees said about the event:

Feedback:

• “Thanks for such an interesting event on Friday. I enjoyed all the presentations and discovered a sense of the networks that have come together on health and housing in the region.”

• “There needs to be pressure on the new government to legislate legal protection for private tenants. Example rent control, no-fault evictions.”

• “Thank you for inviting me to the event last Friday! I found it very informative, and it was really good to speak to other parties with different knowledge and experiences of the private rented sector overall. Thank you to you and everyone for welcoming me. It was a well-run event and the food was exceptional. Thank you again!”