Housing Development Company Advice

Hyas have provided advice to South Gloucestershire Council (SGC) to support its thinking around the creation of a council owned Development Company as a means by which the Council could take a pro‐active delivery role in the local housing (and potentially commercial) development markets.

Hyas were commissioned to provide support in the initial stages of work to examine potential opportunities and benefits in establishing a SGC Housing Development Company.

Hyas facilitated a workshop with senior officers to explore the key purposes of such a company, reviewed potential ways forward including stages to prepare a feasibility study. A key output from the initial work was the confirmation of a series of strategic objectives from the endeavour, and corporate support to move forward with the initiative.

Hyas were subsequently appointed to support with the preparation of the first phase of a development company feasibility study. This study was broken down into three distinct stages, enabling the Council to systematically evaluate the key strategic, organisational and commercial/delivery issues that would need to be addressed in order to develop a sufficiently robust business case.

Hyas have provided the following support to SGC

• Reviewed key issues and identified options for a development company model;
• Identified potential sustainable development opportunities as the basis for further, more detailed assessment of feasibility;
• Drew together available evidence base including development costs/values to inform initial viability work; and
• Provided clear recommendations on purpose/tasks for the next stage of the feasibility work and potential requirements for further external support.

Hyas worked closely with the Councils project manager and with multiple other Council corporate interests.