About Great Places
Social purpose is at the heart of Great Places Housing Group. A not-for-profit organisation, Great Places owns over 26,000 affordable homes in more than 30 local authority areas across the North West and South Yorkshire. In 2024/25 Great Places delivered 726 new affordable homes and sold 196 homes for shared ownership. It invested over £230 million into building new homes as well as running a wide range of projects and initiatives to help our customers and their communities. It currently has over 2,300 homes on site.
The Group
The Group, which is supported by approximately 1,000 colleagues across four regional offices (our Manchester head office, Oldham, Sheffield and Blackpool), encompasses:
- Great Places Housing Association – providing general needs rented homes and tenancy services as well as accommodation and services that promote independence and wellbeing for some of society’s most vulnerable people.
- Plumlife – an award-winning affordable home ownership company. Plumlife helps people to fulfil their home ownership dreams through Help to Buy schemes such as Shared Ownership as well as outright sale.
- Cube – developing quality new homes for market sale and private rent.
Our history traces back to 1972; however, it was the merger of Manchester Methodist Housing Association and Ashiana Housing Association in 2006 that created Great Places Housing Group.
Profit for Purpose
Great Places is a profit-for-purpose organisation that gives back to our customers, communities and colleagues.
Our aim is to be as efficient as possible and remain a top performer in the industry; however, we then make a very conscious decision to use a large chunk of our surplus to be much more than just a landlord and improve our customers’ lives.
We work hard to harness the power of our commercial activity to allow us to deliver on our charitable objectives and make a positive difference.
Our vision is clear – we are committed to creating:
- Great homes: maximising our investment in sustainable homes
- Great communities: building successful, vibrant communities
- Great people: providing outstanding customer service and support
Our vision is supported by the following core values:
- We are fair, open and accountable
- We know, respect and care about our customers
- We appreciate the effort of everyone who works here
- We promote partnerships, efficiency and value for money
- We passionately embrace creativity, change and innovation
Building homes. Creating communities. Celebrating diversity.
We are unapologetic in our commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion. Great Places is proud to be an anti-racist, multicultural and inclusive organisation. We stand against racism, hate and discrimination in all its forms and will continue to challenge prejudice wherever it exists. We are committed to creating environments where people feel safe, valued, respected and able to be themselves, regardless of their race, ethnicity, culture, faith, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, age or background.
Our role in society goes beyond building and managing homes. We work alongside customers, colleagues, partners and local organisations to create thriving, cohesive communities where everyone feels they belong. We want the neighbourhoods we serve to be welcoming places where people from all backgrounds can live well together, build connections, put down roots and fulfil their potential. By encouraging understanding, celebrating diversity and fostering mutual respect, we help create places where people and communities can thrive.
We’re proud of our welcoming and inclusive culture. We believe diversity in all its forms makes us stronger, bringing different perspectives, experiences and ideas that help us better serve our customers and communities. We have created a workplace where colleagues are encouraged to bring their whole selves to work, where differences are respected and valued, and where we learn from one another’s cultures, experiences and lived realities.
We are committed to listening, learning and taking meaningful action to help create places where every individual is welcomed, valued and given the opportunity to thrive.
