Housing associations should look at residents for next generation of talent, says Peabody asset chief

The director of asset management at Peabody has urged housing associations to look at their own young residents for the next generation of talent.

Addressing skills shortages in the social housing sector at the Housing Today Live conference, Andrea Joseph said she thought the sector needed to “reach from within”.

Asked what was the main barrier to meeting the requirements of the nation’s affordable and social housing stock, 39% of attendees at the conference answered skills and workforce capacity.

Joseph acknowledged that social housing faced a serious challenge in attracting talent.

“We are competing against the private sector who are obviously offering higher salaries than we are,” she said, before suggesting a less traditional answer to the issue.

“We are in a great position as social housing landlords where we can look at our communities and speak to our young people,” she added.

“It is a great opportunity for us. We are building homes, we are managing homes where we can talk to the people who live there, find out what their dreams and aspirations are.

“Look at the young people coming through who might think that it is almost impossible to come in the sector or do not know where to start.”