Driving Innovation in social housing:

Social housing is a risk-averse sector. With tight budgets and high regulatory scrutiny, the impact of getting things right is significant, and the consequences of mistakes are serious. Warm, safe homes form the foundation for people’s stability and well-being, which naturally makes organisations cautious about change. We wrote about this in Inside Housing. But ideas alone aren’t enough. Turning pilots into lasting change – that’s where PfH helps 

Yet, this caution can slow innovation. Many housing providers trial new technologies, data tools, and AI, but the rate of adoption from pilot to business as usual remains low. Decision-makers often juggle day-to-day operational pressures, leaving little headspace to explore innovative approaches. 

Why innovation stalls 

Many housing associations and councils run pilots with AI, sensors, and smart tech, yet these pilots often never move beyond the pilot stage. 

Key reasons: 

Decision-makers are tied up in day-to-day challenges rather than planning ahead. 

• Procurement processes are slow, especially for new or unproven suppliers. 

• Boards don’t always spotlight innovation as a core role. 

PfH addresses all of these challenges through our frameworks and technology platforms. 

Innovation, paradoxically, is one way to create that headspace, helping housing organisations manage growing demand with constrained resources. Here’s how we guide housing leaders to adopt and scale new technologies confidently:  

Board composition and leadership 

Shifting the innovation culture starts at the top. Boards that encourage experimentation and model learning from both success and failure create an environment where staff feel empowered to explore new ways of working. 

Skills and development 

Being comfortable with change must be embedded in recruitment, onboarding, and ongoing learning. We advise housing providers to ensure their workforce has both digital literacy and a clear understanding of emerging technologies, including AI, so they can leverage these tools effectively. 

We also support boards and leadership teams through our consultancy services, helping them assess organisational risk appetite, shape innovation strategies, and embed a culture of learning. By working alongside our experts, housing providers can ensure that teams have the right skills and structures to adopt new technologies effectively. 

Culture of curiosity 

Organisations benefit from actively encouraging curiosity and exploration. Recognising and rewarding smart risk-taking, with a focus on learning, helps make innovation part of everyday practice. 

Procurement as an enabler 

We offer over 20 procurement frameworks that give social landlords fast, compliant access to suppliers and services (full list). These include retrofit, energy systems, independent living tech, and IoT solutions. These frameworks simplify engagement with both established and emerging technology providers, reducing barriers to adoption. 

Our consultancy team works hand-in-hand with housing providers to navigate complex procurement requirements. This guidance ensures organisations can access the right suppliers through our frameworks quickly and compliantly, making it easier to implement new solutions without unnecessary administrative barriers. 

Connecting with innovators through SHED 

We also created SHED (Social Housing Emerging Disruptors) in partnership with the Disruptive Innovators Network (DIN). SHED gives housing providers direct access to SMEs and innovators with simplified compliance (DIN overview) helping you bring new solutions to market faster. View our SHED5 Framework.

Our approach through Quantum

Our technology platform, Quantum, helps housing organisations to manage and streamline technology adoption, helping leaders identify suitable solutions, track implementation, and evaluate outcomes effectively. Complementing our SHED framework and Quantum platform, our consultancy support helps housing providers identify which technologies or innovative approaches best meet their operational needs and long-term goals. This ensures that every solution adopted aligns with strategy, compliance requirements, and practical delivery 

What this means for housing leaders 

For organisations facing rising demand and limited resources, PfH provides practical support: 

• Less procurement headache: Pre-tendered suppliers and compliant routes ready to use. 

• Vetted innovators at your fingertips: SHED brings new solutions into reach, from drones to digital twins. 

• Data-driven confidence: Quantum measures outcomes and helps scale successful pilots. 

• Support for SMEs: Heavy tendering paperwork is reduced, making niche expertise more accessible. 

The social housing sector may lag behind others in adopting innovation, but the culture can shift. By combining strong leadership, skills development, a curiosity-driven culture, and structured support through our frameworks and networks, we enable confident adoption of new technologies that improve services for tenants and staff alike. 

In summary 

The Inside Housing article highlighted the problem. Here, we show how PfH helps landlords adopt innovation at pace. 

From frameworks that simplify compliance, to SHED’s access to disruptors, to Quantum providing insight and assurance for scaling. Procurement and technology together become the engine for innovation in social housing.  

A version of this article by Annemarie Roberts and Neil Butters first appeared in Inside Housing, and can be read here.

About Neil Butters

Neil Butters is a procurement and operations specialist with extensive experience spanning the public sector, NHS, and housing framework sectors.

Currently Director of Operations at Procurement for Housing, Neil leads the operational delivery that enables housing providers and public sector organisations across the UK to access effective, compliant procurement solutions. He stepped into this role having spent over eight years as Head of Procurement at PfH, a tenure in which he made a significant and lasting contribution to the organisation’s growth and the development of its procurement offer.

Earlier in his career, Neil held senior procurement roles within the NHS, serving as Strategic Procurement Manager at NHS Shared Business Services and as Senior Contracts and Project Manager at Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. In those roles he led end-to-end procurement projects across a wide range of disciplines, deputised for the Head of Procurement, and managed complex, high-value contracts including the outsourcing of an outpatient pharmacy dispensary and the implementation of a managed equipment service across multiple clinical specialties.

With deep expertise in public sector contracting, project management, and change management, Neil brings a commercially sharp and energetic approach to driving procurement excellence across the housing sector..

About Annemarie Roberts

Annemarie Roberts is a senior housing leader with more than 15 years of executive experience across the social housing sector, bringing a rare combination of operational breadth, strategic clarity, and an unshakeable focus on the customer.

Currently serving as Interim Executive Director of Customer Experience at mhs homes, Annemarie has operated at executive and director level across G15, community-based, and G320 housing associations, leading functions spanning customer experience, assets, operations, transformation, IT, HR, and communications. She also runs Iki’Den, her own consultancy providing interim executive cover and strategic advice to housing organisations, and serves as an Associate Director at the Disruptive Innovators Network, where she works with social housing members on property technology innovation.

Annemarie’s executive career includes senior roles at Moat Homes, Golding Homes, and One Housing, where she spent over a decade progressing from Legal Team Manager to Director of Customer Operations. At Golding Homes, she led a nationally recognised customer service improvement campaign – What about Shirley? – which delivered an 11% improvement in customer satisfaction within three months and attracted industry-wide recognition and awards. In the same role she brought repairs and maintenance in-house, improving productivity by 40% within ten weeks, and drove a 17-point improvement in staff engagement during the pandemic.

Earlier in her career, Annemarie trained and practised as a solicitor, beginning her legal career at the London Borough of Greenwich before moving into housing operations, a foundation that informs her rigorous, principled approach to governance, compliance, and customer advocacy.

Driven by her values of honesty, ambition, generosity, and a genuine belief that housing should be a positive force in people’s lives, Annemarie brings energy, experience, and a boldly customer-first perspective to every organisation she works with.