social housing

For those seeking to elevate their architectural projects with a touch of refined elegance, the core Blockleys clay brick portfolio offers a range of solutions. Known for their exceptional quality and reliable production, Blockleys provides a range of premium clay bricks that seamlessly blend aesthetic appeal with durability. Whether for a residential development, educational space or a commercial building, Blockleys bricks deliver both sophistication and performance.

With a suite of sleek, understated shades of grey and black, these bricks lend a refined, modern edge to any façade. Muted greys, such as Bowland Grey and Sterling Grey, along with the deep blacks, including Black Smooth and Kelham Black, create a striking visual impact without overwhelming your designs. For those looking to add a more personalised touch, the Blockleys Synthesis blend allows for the introduction of complementary tones, adding depth and unique texture to the overall appearance.

EJOT UK’s Mark Newell explains why the latest additions to its ETICS range are helping the EWI industry streamline its supply chain, and maintain consistently high quality during installation for the long-term benefit of specifiers and residents.

The performance of an EWI (external wall insulation) system or ETICS (external thermal insulation composite system) is only as good as its component parts. A weak link in the system build-up will not only undermine its promise to improve the thermal performance of a property, but it could also add complexity to the installation process, resulting in additional time costs for contractors.

Of course, in England there is no regulation for the provider to equip homes with flooring other than in kitchens and bathrooms (Scotland makes no such stipulations), but with the Welsh Housing Quality Standard 2023 stating that all habitable rooms, staircases and landings should have suitable floor coverings at change of tenancy, the writing is certainly on the wall. With the Decent Homes Standard now also in review, including a look at what the expectations are for a ‘decent’ home, we may well see change that means flooring in these areas will become a requirement in England too.

As the editor of Housing Association Magazine, I find myself reflecting on Labour's recent pronouncements on housing policy with a mixture of optimism, scepticism, and curiosity. Labour has indicated that addressing the housing crisis will be a central pillar of their platform, and this focus is much needed. But the question that looms large for many in the sector is: will Labour's housing strategy include a revival of council housing, and if so, what will that mean for Housing Associations (HAs)?

Henco multilayer pipes are a robust, lightweight and detectable pre-insulated piping system, suitable for various applications such as heating, cooling, compressed air, sanitary, drinking water and underfloor heating. Furthermore, the Henco pipes are WRAS approved and align with Part L building regulations.

Following on from his seminar presentation at this year’s Fire Safety Event, held in April at Birmingham’s NEC, Dr. Karthick Govarthanam, General Manager for FIREFLY®, explores some of the issues surrounding fire risk in roof voids.

Vortice is proud to unveil its latest range of DMEV (decentralised mechanical extract ventilation) fans, offering a vital remedy for condensation and mould challenges faced by UK social housing providers. Celebrated for their dependability and performance, these advanced fans can move over half a million litres of air in just 24 hours even at their minimal trickle speeds. It’s not difficult to see why these fans, which have features like automatic humidity boost and run-on timers as well as being IPX4 rated, are so popular.  However, when used in existing homes, they can struggle to meet the whole dwelling ventilation rates required by the latest Building Regulations due to the small number of ‘wet rooms’ in some of the UK’s older housing stock.