Sanctuary Group is a housing and care provider. We were set up over 50 years ago to deliver housing and care to those who need it, and that original purpose still guides us today. Throughout our history, acquisitions, mergers and development have enabled Sanctuary to grow into one of the largest not-for-profit housing associations in the UK.
We are a registered, exempt charity, which means instead of returning a profit to shareholders, every penny we make must be used to improve homes and services, and build new social housing. We are a housing association, which means we provide affordable, social housing for some of the poorest people in society. We own and manage more than 100,000 homes. We are committed to building more social housing and believe it is critical to creating a housing market that functions for everyone. This will include a range of tenures to support more people into home ownership, as well as helping to meet the need for additional rented homes.
As well as generating revenue through development, we have several other commercial business streams including over 100 care homes managed by Sanctuary Care, specialist and supported housing through Sanctuary Supported Living, our Sanctuary Students university accommodation and a telecare service called Sanctuary365. These business streams provide us with a surplus that helps us meet our charitable objectives and are at the core of why we exist: to ensure no-one is homeless and that everyone receives the care they need.
We are committed to having an ongoing conversation with all of our residents. We have a structure of resident involvement that places residents at the heart of shaping and scrutinising services through our National Resident Scrutiny Panel - a formal panel responsible for monitoring Sanctuary’s performance against specific regulatory expectations. This has been independently accredited by an external consultancy organisation (Housing Quality Network) for its effectiveness. Tenants are members of the Group Housing Committee and able to both update on scrutiny and hold the Group formally to account. It is through this connection that scrutiny can demonstrate its influence on Group Board.
In 2019/2020, our revenue was £763 million. We have more than 13,000 employees who are motivated by our mission; and every day embody our shared values of ambition, diversity, integrity, quality and sustainability.