Our shared ownership campaign is going public – now it’s time to make a real impact

Two years ago, we began a discussion with a group of housing associations about how we could better promote shared ownership to the public.

We’re living in a time where owning your own home has never been more of a challenge, and with a whole generation locked out of the housing market, we thought it was the perfect time to clearly convey the many benefits shared ownership can provide to prospective homeowners.

Shared ownership is a fantastic product that has existed for decades – as a former shared owner myself, I know what a great opportunity it offers to get a foot on the ladder – but it doesn’t have the profile it deserves.

So, with the invaluable backing of a steering group of our members, and the support of more than forty other housing associations, we developed a campaign to help us create a consistent and clear message about shared ownership that the whole sector can get behind, and make it front and centre of our housing offer.

Now we’ve reached the exciting stage of launching a nationwide advertising campaign that will spread this message far and wide, helping people understand what shared ownership is, and breaking down the many misconceptions that exist around it. 

We want everyone to understand how shared ownership can make it easier for people to become homeowners. And it’s not just first-time buyers that this applies to – shared ownership can also help private renters, people still living at home, older people looking at downsizing, or those whose life circumstances have changed. We want our campaign to reach all those audiences.

The award-winning design agency we’ve been working with has helped us create some fantastic new visuals built around a bold and fresh approach to help us cut through to the public. Our campaign messaging tells people what shared ownership is, and isn’t, aiming to bust misconceptions – in an engaging and eye-catching way.

Supporting this advertising is our new website, at SharedOwnership.net, designed to help people understand more about the product, and helping them work out whether it might be the right solution for them.

Our advertising campaign is just the start. The Conservative manifesto outlines the government’s ambitions to reform shared ownership, and we want to work with the government and housing associations to make sure the product continues to meet the aspirations of customers in the future.  

It’s important we continue to build this campaign and make it stronger so if you’re a housing association with shared ownership properties, please do consider signing up.