The Accelerating the Delivery of Affordable New Homes conference which is being hosted by Scotland Excel – Scotland’s centre of procurement expertise for local government – will give delegates an opportunity to hear from experts from a range of sectors involved in the delivery of new homes.

The cabinet secretary for finance, economy and fair work, Derek Mackay MSP, will deliver the keynote address. Other speakers include Sally Thomas, chief executive of the Scottish Federation of Housing Associations and Stephen Good, chief executive of the Construction Innovation Centre.  

The conference agenda will explore topics including the benefits of social housing to communities, the additional social value that can be delivered through the procurement of construction services, and the support that is on offer to streamline the commissioning and construction of new homes.

The conference will also see the launch of Scotland Excel’s new build residential housing framework, developed in partnership with local authorities to significantly reduce the time it takes to engage a contractor to build new homes.

The framework has been designed to deliver benefits for local areas through sub-contracting, employment and training opportunities, and has social value at its heart through community benefits, payment of the Scottish Living Wage and opportunities for supported businesses.

A total of 19 suppliers were awarded a place on the £1.5bn framework after a robust, two-stage procurement process. 

Julie Welsh, director of Scotland Excel, said: “We are delighted to be hosting this conference for key decision makers in councils and housing associations. The agenda covers a wide range of topics which will be of interest to those involved in developing social housing including offsite construction, energy efficiency and project bank accounts.

“The event also includes the official launch of our framework for new build residential housing, which has been specifically designed to streamline the process of engaging contractors and ensure that councils and housing associations can achieve additional social value for their communities.”

The event takes place at the Radisson Blu in Edinburgh on 8 October with attendance limited to invited delegates only. However, guest speakers at the conference will be sharing their views and expertise on Scottish Construction Now over the coming weeks. 

For more information on Scotland Excel’s New Build framework, visit Scotland Excel’s website.