Housing sector must reflect deeply on Cosmopolitan failures says CIH
WASHINGTON, D.C. – June 17, 2014 – (RealEstateRama) — Responding to the Altair report Cosmopolitan Housing Group: Lessons Learned, Grainia Long, chief executive at the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH), said: “The eventual rescue of Cosmopolitan marked a successful resolution to a critically important period for the housing association sector.
“It protected tenants, their homes, public and private investment in Cosmopolitan and the wider track record and reputation of the housing association sector.
“This was a welcome result, but, as the report makes clear, it is important to recognise that this rescue was preceded by serious failings in governance and control at Cosmopolitan which were not immediately effectively picked up by the regulator.
“The report is an extremely careful and thorough piece of work – it does not leap to conclusions or offer quick fix solutions and neither should we. It is crucially important that the housing association sector and the wider housing industry reflects deeply on the wide-ranging implications of Cosmopolitan and takes seriously the recommendations in this report so that governance, control and regulatory arrangements are better placed to prevent a similar crisis occurring in the future.”
Altair was commissioned by the Homes and Communities Agency and Sanctuary Housing Group to complete an independent review of the events which led to the rescue of Cosmopolitan.
