A New Social Housing in the Private Rented Sector: The Role and Limits of Social Lettings Agencies

A Housing and Communities Research Network Seminar conducted by Dr Halima Sacranie. 

Halima’s seminar reflects on recent case study research, funded by the West Midlands Housing Officers Group, on Social Lettings Agencies (SLAs) in the West Midlands, to assess the roles and limits of SLAs which have been advocated as the ‘next best alternative’ given ‘the absence of political will to revive the social housing sector’ in England (Rugg, 2011).

Further insight is provided by additional empirical evidence from a JRF funded project on “Scaling-up Social Lettings: Scope, Impact and Barriers” which Halima is currently working on with the Universities of Sheffield and Sheffield Hallam. With the aim to address the lack of evidence on how SLAs might become ‘the new social housing,’ Halima’s presentation will focus on four key purposes of social housing (quality, needs based access, security and affordability) and draw on evidence from interviews with tenants, landlords, SLAs and local authority staff to assess the extent to which different models of SLAs can meet these purposes.

The case studies highlight enablers and barriers to meeting each purpose and compare the efficacy of different models. The research also identifies some broader policy, funding and market drivers that determine and limit the role that such interventions can play in meeting housing needs. The question posed is that while SLAs are a consequence of the privatisation of social housing, are they significantly limited in their ability to fulfil the key purposes of social housing?

All are welcome to this free seminar. 

About Halima

After graduating in 2011 with a PhD from the Centre of Urban and Regional Studies at the University of Birmingham, Halima has worked on a variety of research projects as a Research Associate at the Housing and Communities Research Group, and was recently awarded a finalist position for the University of Birmingham’s College of Social Sciences Outstanding Early Career Impact Prize 2017 for her work on the Empty Homes Community Grants Programme Legacy project. Halima is also lead lecturer on the undergraduate Housing Policy Module in her role as Teaching Fellow within the School of Social Policy. 

Find out more

• Read more about Dr Halima Sacranie
• Read more on the SLA case study