Summary of our history
The 1980s
ASRA was formed in 1984 as a Greater London Council-funded community project to help Asian elders in Lambeth.
Gerard Lemos, our first employee, developed two sheltered schemes in converted properties owned by Solon Housing Association.
We were registered with the Housing Corporation in 1984, and Gerard Lemos became our first Chief Executive. ASRA was one of the first three BME (black and minority ethnic) housing associations in the country.
Our objective was to provide good quality affordable accommodation for Asian people in housing need, and our first homes were for Asian elders and Asian women.
At this time we managed just four properties, had one member of staff, a second hand typewriter, and a shared office.
But by 1986 we had established ourselves as the foremost Asian provider with over 90 homes in Camden, Ealing, Greenwich, Haringey, Lambeth and Wandsworth.
The Housing Corporation launched its BME strategy to grow the sector, and a £7m allocation allowed us to expand further.
By the end of the decade, we employed 25 staff, managed almost 100 homes across 11 London boroughs, and had 400 homes in development. We also widened our remit to house single women.
Around this time, we participated in the Homeless Families Initiative, providing 14 large temporary homes for Asian families forced to live in bed and breakfast accommodation in Camden.
In order to take advantage of the new mixed funding regime, we focused on further growth to expand our asset base, and introduced a professional management team.
The 1990s
We marked the arrival of the new decade by developing innovative specialist accommodation for frail Asian elders, Asian people with care and support needs, and (in partnership with Apna Ghar housing association), people with disabilities.
One example is Aashna House, the first residential care scheme for frail elderly Asians in London.
We also took a leading role in government-funded large-scale regeneration schemes, and appointed a Community Development Worker to help ensure sustainability.
In 1992, Darra Singh became Chief Executive and oversaw a period of rapid growth where we developed 140 homes each year for three years.
In just 18 months, our housing stock doubled to almost 700 homes across 15 London boroughs and the Home Counties.
We received our largest development grant allocation to date of £9.7m, and became the first BME association to raise money through the Housing Finance Corporation - £8m during 1992-4.
The 1990s also saw us begin to diversify to meet the housing needs of non-Asian communities.
By 1994, more than one family a day were moving into ASRA homes, thanks in part to a £12m development grant allocation, which was among the top 10 in London.
This enabled us to develop 600 new homes in 22 boroughs and local authority areas, including Reading, Harrow, St Albans, Aylesbury and Watford.
With an asset base worth £100m, our growing financial muscle allowed us to freeze rents for the majority of our tenants for the next few years.
1996 and 1997 saw Darra Singh move on to become one of only two BME chief executives of a mainstream association. He was replaced as chief executive by Steve Douglas, and Sadru Visram became Chair.
By the end of the decade, we employed 90 staff, managed almost 2,000 homes, had tenant representatives as co-opted members on our board, and established our Tenant Forum, embedding customer involvement in decision-making.
We launched ‘Friends of ASRA’, to draw together people to help us meet the increasingly diverse needs of our customers.
In 1999, Brenda Dean, then Chairman of the Hosing Corporation opened our new and better offices in Southwark which enabled us to take advantage of the latest developments in IT, enhancing our communications internally and with customers.
The 2000s
At the start of the new millennium, we had diversified to the extent that 40% of our customers were non-Asian reflecting the true cultural diversity and vibrancy of modern life in London and the Home Counties.
Our Community Development Unit was launched, to help support the social and economic regeneration of the many neighbourhoods in which we are a key stakeholder.
We partnered with a network of voluntary groups across London who provide a range of complementary services in the community, and support tenants in setting up tenant and resident associations.
Tenants have become increasingly involved in reviewing and improving services, through surveys, conferences, and the Tenants Advisory Panel (TAP).
We have found new ways of working with our development partners to maximise quality and value for money, in line with the recommendations of the government sponsored Egan report, ‘Rethinking Construction’.
The launch of our Income Recovery Team reduces rent arrears by £100,000 in just six months, freeing up housing officers to spend more time with customers.
Atul Patel was appointed Chief Executive of ASRA in 2001, from the Neighhbourhood Renewal Unit, and the same year we introduced new customer care standards, alongside Best Value Tenant Panels.
2002 saw us achieve £14m of development grant – our largest ever allocation – and complete an award-winning £4.4m partnership scheme at Scotts Road, Ealing, which adopted innovative construction methods.
We also further expanded our women’s refuge service.
Throughout 2004 -2005, we delivered a record £25 million housing allocation. The Housing Corporation confirmed its confidence in ASRA, granting us an additional £5 million to develop even more homes as well as our first part-buy/part-rent key worker developments in London. We also become a top 40 housing association developer.
In 2006, we joined forces with LHA to create the LHA-ASRA Group, which was swiftly augmented by the arrival of a new group member, Family First.
Atul Patel was appointed Group Chief Executive the same year, and Asit Acharya was appointed Managing Director of ASRA.