Three win places on £170m Sunderland housing upgrade programme

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Gentoo has appointed three North East firms to deliver a £170m internal modernisation programme for thousands of homes in Sunderland over the next decade.

The ten-year contracts, awarded under the housing association’s newly launched Gentogether partnership model, mark the first in a strategic procurement overhaul aimed at fostering long-term collaboration with contractors.

The initiative will see PHS Solutions, Esh Construction and RE:GEN Group North East carry out kitchen and bathroom replacements, as well as electrical rewiring, across the city.

Work valued at £36.5m is set to be completed in the first three years, targeting improvements to around 3,000 homes.

Gentoo said the framework would generate more than £32m in social value over the lifetime of the contracts, with a strong emphasis on apprenticeships and training for local residents.

Peter Akers, director of asset and sustainability at Gentoo, said the Gentogether model was designed to eliminate competition between partners and deliver a more consistent customer experience.

He said: “Not only will our customers’ homes be improved, the local economy and local people will benefit from employment opportunities.”

All three contractors signed up to a customer charter co-designed with tenants, and residents were involved in the tendering process.

Five Gentoo customers sat on the interview panels and fed into appointment decisions.

Support for the partnership is being provided by consultancy 4i Solutions, which is acting as a ‘critical friend’ to ensure collaboration and innovation across delivery teams.

Simon Watson, operations director at RE:GEN Group North East, said the firm would “build on” its previous £19m regeneration work in Pennywell, while Andrew Harrow, framework manager at Esh Construction, said the investment reflected a shared commitment to “improving living standards for residents”.

Jason Oakes, sales director at 0800 Repair, part of the PHS Solutions group, said the partnership would improve homes while creating “local jobs and apprenticeships”.

Source: Gentoo press release