Teesdale Housing Association – Celebrating 10 years of transforming tenants’ lives

July marks 10 years since Teesdale District Council transferred the homes it owned to Teesdale Housing Association.

North Star Housing Group was set up in 2006 to provide services to, and bring together, Endeavour and Teesdale Housing Associations into a group structure.

The driving force behind the transfer was to attract funding to modernise and upgrade homes and to help support communities to thrive in a geographically large but sparsely populated area.

For a decade Teesdale Housing Association (THA) has been working hard to transform both the homes and lives of people living in West Durham.

Since the transfer almost £12m has been invested into improving tenants’ homes, not only ensuring properties meet the decent homes standard, but going above and beyond. This has not only modernised homes, but helped reduce fuel poverty through the installation of modern heating systems and energy efficient boilers.

The housing provider has also invested in a range community projects in Teesdale, ranging from support with Welfare and Benefits, to high quality youth work delivered by Teesdale YMCA. Projects have also included helping people with education and training opportunities, digital initiatives and volunteer drivers schemes to tackle rural isolation.

Angela Lockwood, Chief Executive of North Star, said: “I’ve had the privilege of witnessing Teesdale Housing Association transform, improve and progress over the last ten years into a provider that makes a genuine and remarkable difference to people’s lives.

“One of our primary motivations as a housing provider, is to involve our tenants in the development and delivery of our services, and this has been a huge part of the work we’ve done across Teesdale. Over the years the membership and format of our formal tenant groups across Teesdale has changed, but the commitment and the influence they have remains.

“As well as investing in peoples’ futures, increasing the amount of affordable housing was always an absolute priority for us. Since transfer, £7m has been invested in the development of 58 new homes across Teesdale. This has enabled 58 families and households to improve their opportunities and widen their horizons.”