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Masters of our own destiny
How Oaklee is transforming to meet the need for social and affordable housing
STRATEGY
Sharon Cosgrove
CEO, Oaklee
Sharon Cosgrove
CEO, Oaklee
Issue 74 | October 2024
In March 2023, after almost 22 years, Oaklee ceased to be a member of the Choice Housing Group and is now an independent stand-alone Approved Housing Body with an ambitious corporate strategy and a new brand.
The relationship between Oaklee and its former Northern Ireland-based parent company, Choice, was a very positive one. Choice was instrumental to Oaklee’s establishment. Oaklee, in the Republic of Ireland, benefited from a service level agreement with Choice which enabled Oaklee to access highly developed systems, processes and services for our tenants. However, as Oaklee and Choice both grew, operating in two different jurisdictions, and under two different regulators, the decision was made to separate.
Working towards the agreed separation date of 31 March 2023, a project plan and a dedicated project team was established. The project had multiple workstreams including governance, finance, services and stakeholder communications. Oversight and guidance were through a joint Board Working Group. Collaboration, teamwork and good communication were key to the successful implementation of the plan. Meanwhile, at Oaklee, the focus in the two years leading up to the separation was on building capacity and capability across a range of organisational functions to ensure we were on a solid footing as an independent entity.
An ambitious corporate plan
In the months leading to the separation, we took time to develop a new corporate plan for Oaklee, which involved stakeholder consultations facilitated by Campbell Tickell. This plan for 2023-25 sets a priority to deliver more homes and to make a significant contribution to increasing the supply of social and affordable homes.
To guide our work, we have restated our Purpose – why we exist – and refreshed our Values to confirm what our partners and residents can expect of us and what we hold ourselves accountable to, as we deliver on our most ambitious plan yet.
Our mission is to change people’s lives by providing them with secure and stable homes which enables them to live, thrive and prosper. We do this by creating more sustainable and inclusive futures for people and communities through great housing.
Oaklee recently acquired 24 units at the Rockview development in Portlaoise
Future growth
The delivery of social housing at scale, with strong counterparties and with the addition of Cost Rental properties, are all ambitions contained in the corporate plan. This is a challenge and a new tenure which we are excited to be involved in. Our in-house development team at Oaklee has grown in headcount and capability. We have strong technical and commercial skills in-house and have successfully expanded Oaklee’s pipeline during 2023/24 with larger social housing developments and mixed tenure schemes.
As well as forward-funded larger developments in high-demand locations in the Greater Dublin Area, we continue to design and build smaller schemes, such as Clonminch in Tullamore, which has been shortlisted for several awards.
Providing top quality resident services
We continue to focus on providing services to residents in Oaklee’s owned and managed housing, as well as in Comhar PPP Bundle 1, in partnership with Choice Housing. We strive to deliver high quality responsive services and ensure customers value what we do. We make use of feedback through strong resident engagement to design and to improve our services. We work collaboratively with support organisations, agencies, and service providers to ensure residents with specific needs are properly supported to sustain their tenancies and live independently.
Our approach to building communities starts with using our learning to inform the type, location and design of new homes and communities, working closely with development colleagues in Oaklee and design teams on construction projects.
Rebranding for the future
To support these ambitious company objectives, Oaklee has just completed a significant rebranding project. This unique identity will allow Oaklee to expand its communications channels and activities to achieve greater reach and drive increased awareness of the brand. This will in turn provide the right foundations from which we can achieve great things over the three-year period of the plan.
“Our approach to building communities starts with using our learning to inform the type, location and design of new homes and communities.”
