EXCL Labour anger at £90k rebrand for Government's affordable housing quango

Emilio Casalicchio

Labour has lashed out at the Government after its affordable housing arm spent almost £90,000 to spruce up its image.



Homes England handed an £87,000 rebrand contract to design agency Lloyd Northover give it a “new tone of voice” and produce business cards, among other things.

The quango, which funds affordable housing in England, replaced the Homes and Communities Agency when it was set up in January last year and quickly commissioned the redesign.

But Shadow Housing Secretary John Healey pointed out the dismal Government record on cheap housing as he took aim at the contract.

“The Government has funded just 307 new homes for social rent in the last six months,” he told PoliticsHome.

“Rather than splashing public cash on PR, Conservative ministers should tell Homes England to put every spare penny towards building new, desperately-needed affordable homes.”

The Homes England contract was awarded to Lloyd Northover in June and will run to January next year.

It will include a “new tone of voice,” a “brand visual approach” and “key initial products such as pull-up banners for conferences, business cards, trade stand and digital assets”.

Homes England said it needed to “connect and work with partners” like local housing developers and businesses in order to help the Government meet its target of building 300,000 homes a year.

“Our branding helps us to do this, giving us a visual identity that frames our strategy and helps us talk to our target audiences in a direct and cost effective way,” it argued.

It added: “As compared to many branding exercises, we understand this is a relatively modest sum that will help us form the right partnerships to deliver the homes England needs.

“As a public sector organisation, we are focused on achieving value for money for taxpayers. That is why we have undertaken a robust, competitive procurement process as laid out by the Crown Commercial Service.”