Paradigm Housing Group and Settle Group have entered into discussions to form a new 30,000-home housing association.  

Paradigm is also announcing proposals to buy almost 3,500 homes in South Buckinghamshire from L&Q housing association.

Paradigm Housing Group is a housing association with almost 17,000 homes mainly in Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire. Settle Group has over 10,000 homes across Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire and South Cambridgeshire. With Paradigm’s proposed acquisition from L&Q, this would see the new organisation own and manage over 30,000 homes.

The boards of Paradigm and Settle approved the initial business case last week to formally explore the partnership. If proposals go ahead, the new organisation, initially known as SettleParadigm, would be the largest housing association working in the region.

The target date for entering into a partnership is October 2025. The partnership will be subject to further approval by both boards and the relevant shareholders.

In a joint statement, Matthew Bailes, chief executive at Paradigm and Rod Cahill, interim chief executive at Settle, said: “We are delighted to announce these proposals today. Paradigm and Settle share the same geography and focus on core social housing.

“Both organisations want to deliver excellent services, high-quality homes and more new affordable homes to help tackle the housing crisis. We believe that by joining together, we can work more efficiently and cost-effectively, achieving more for our residents and the communities where we work. With the proposed addition of the homes from L&Q, we will be able to deliver the advantages of scale while remaining locally focused.”

Vicky Savage, executive director for development & sales at L&Q, said: “We have started to discuss the details of a possible transfer to Paradigm and residents will be formally consulted before a final decision is made. We believe that Paradigm, a locally based organisation, may be better placed to provide an excellent service in the area.

“As an organisation, we consider homes for transfer where they sit outside our core areas of Greater London and Greater Manchester. This supports our strategic decision to focus our activity on areas where we have the greatest concentration of homes, enabling us to provide responsive, joined up services which offer best value for residents.”

Both organisations involved in the partnership will now begin a period of due diligence and resident consultation, with the expectation that decisions about whether to proceed with the partnership are made later this summer.

Meanwhile, negotiations have also started between South Yorkshire Housing Association (SYHA) and Places for People.

South Yorkshire Housing Association owns over 5,000 homes, including social housing, care and support properties, leasehold and shared ownership homes. It also provides over 30 care, health and support contracts with strategic partners including local authorities and the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority, health and social care services, and national government.
 
The intention, subject to negotiations progressing well, is that SYHA will become a subsidiary of the Places for People Group.

Larry Gold, chief executive of South Yorkshire Housing Association, said: “Our proposed partnership with Places for People will enable us to continue our 50+ year legacy providing high-quality homes and services. This is the right thing to do for our customers, communities, employees and partners, and the partnership will be hugely beneficial for Sheffield City Region. As we progress with our discussions, we will ensure that our customers are kept informed about the partnership and have the opportunity to share their views.”

Greg Reed, group chief executive officer of Places for People, added: “South Yorkshire, and specifically Sheffield, is a core region for PfP and, like SYHA, we’ve been here for many years. Bringing our organisations together – pooling our skills and experience - will make us a greater force for good in the region, enabling us, under one group, to have a more significant impact, and further supporting the development of thriving Communities. We’re excited about what we can achieve together, and we’ll provide an update on our conversations in due course.”