Officials from the Ministry for Housing last week attended a conference organised by the Chartered Institute of Housing(CIH) in Manchester.

CIH has been bringing the housing sector together for more than 60 years, making this conference the largest housing event in Europe. The conference was opened by Ms Terrie Alafat, Chief Executive of the CIH.

The Housing Management sessions featured a diverse, lively and interactive programme on many topics, of which the Grenfell Tower Tragedy featured prominently. Although discussions were cautious because investigations are still ongoing, the panel discussing Grenfell Tower were informed of the procedures being followed by the UK in order to identify potential fire risks in other blocks.

The Principal Housing Officer also had the opportunity to discuss with other delegates a number of working practices.

Minister for Housing, Samantha Sacramento said "Attendance by officials at conferences such as these as extremely important because it helps continuous professional development of officials and as a result helps them develop better policies. The knowledge gained has been important as well as the networking with housing authorities and other relevant organisations in the UK."