Thrive Homes and Watford Community Housing are exploring a potential merger
Watford Community Housing and Thrive Homes are exploring a potential merger that could create a new, stronger organisation — one that builds on both our strengths and ensures even better homes and services for our residents.
Our aim is simple: to combine our resources and expertise so we can invest more in your homes, deliver excellent customer service, and build more affordable housing for local people.
Why we're exploring this merger
By working together, we can:
- Invest more in existing homes and neighbourhoods - with greater capacity for planned works and energy efficiency upgrades
- Build more affordable homes – pooling resources to tackle the housing shortage locally.
- Enhance customer service – offering faster, more consistent responses through combined expertise.
- Create new opportunities for residents – giving tenants and leaseholders more influence over decisions.
- Strengthen long-term stability – combining financial strength to protect services for the future.
By joining together, this merger will create a larger community gateway housing association, giving more power to customers and ensuring they are at the heart of decision-making. This proposal is about partnership and long-term improvement, not short-term change.
Chris Blackett, resident at Watford Community Housing, shares what this could mean for you.
How we use your feedback!
Our resident consultation, took place from 26 November 2025 to 1 February 2026, and gave all customers the opportunity to share their views and help shape what happens next.
To make sure this consultation was fair, transparent, and inclusive, we partnered with Tpas – The Tenant Engagement Experts. Tpas is an independent tenant engagement specialist with over 30 years of experience helping residents to have a meaningful voice in decisions that affect their homes and communities.
Tpas are currently undertaking a full review and report of all feedback received to ensure that every resident, across both organisations, has the opportunity to be heard.
To find out more about the support offered by Tpas, you can download their Resident Information Guide here.
Customer feedback will play a vital role in shaping the Boards’ final decision on whether to move forward with the merger. To ensure that this process is confidential, we have made sure that the feedback you provided via the online survey and drop-in sessions will be kept completely anonymous unless you state otherwise.
We will be sharing an overview of feedback received in due course which will identify key themes that will shape our future service.
What's happening and when?
| Stage | What is happening | When |
| Consultation launch | The formal resident consultation will open, giving everyone a chance to share views online, by phone, email or in person. | 26 November 2025 |
| Drop-in sessions |
Tpas will host in-person sessions where you can meet teams from both organisations, ask questions and give feedback directly. We also have 2x online session where you will have the chance to hear from WCH and Thrive senior leaders about the merger, feedback directly to them or confidentially to our Tpas adviser. |
December 2025 - January 2026 |
| Consultation closes | The consultation period will end and all responses will be reviewed and analysed by Tpas. | 1 February 2026 |
| Feedback and decisions | We'll publish a report written by Tpas of what we have heard. Both Boards will consider the findings before making a final decision. | March 2026 |
Watford Community Housing and Thrive Homes have been consulting residents on a proposed merger between the two organisations.
The consultation gave every resident the opportunity to share their views and help shape what happens next in the decision-making process.
No.
The Boards have agreed to explore a possible merger, but no final decision will be made until after the consultation has closed and all resident feedback has been independently analysed.
A final decision is expected in March 2026.
The consultation period ran from 25 November 2025 to 1 February 2026. During this time, residents were asked to share their views online, by phone, email or in person.
Tpas – The Tenant Engagement Experts – is an independent national organisation with more than 30 years’ experience.
They are responsible for ensuring that the consultation is:
- Fair
- Transparent
- Independent
- Accessible to all residents
Tpas will:
- Collect all feedback
- Analyse responses
- Run drop-in sessions
- Provide confidential routes to share your views
- Produce an independent report for the Boards
All feedback shared with Tpas is confidential and anonymous, unless you request otherwise.
During the consultation period, we provided a range of opportunities to engage with us and share your views.
- We hosted an online survey and we made paper copies available on request
- We hosted four in-person drop-in sessions in our communities – giving people a chance to speak to us
- We held two online sessions – giving people a chance to hear from us and talk to Tpas in confidence
- Residents could also contact us or Tpas by phone or email.
The consultation has now closed.
We held the following sessions, giving people the chance to speak to us, find out more and share their views:
- Tuesday 9 December 2025 — 6pm (online)
- Tuesday 16 December 2025 — 1.30pm–4pm (Gateway House, 59 Clarendon Road, Watford, WD17 1LA)
- Saturday 10 January 2026 — 10am–1.30pm (South Oxhey Parish Council Office, Oxhey Dr, WD19 7SB)
- Thursday 15 January 2026 — 4.30pm–6.30pm (Thrive Homes Office, 180 St Hughs Avenue, High Wycombe, HP13 7TX)
- Thursday 22 January 2026 — 1pm–3pm (online)
- Saturday 24 January 2026 — 11am–1pm (Leavesden Green Community Hub, Clarke Way, Watford, WD25 0BW)
Members of our senior leadership were present for the first hour of our online drop-in sessions. This gave attendees a chance to give direct feedback.
Yes. All feedback given in surveys, calls, emails or drop-ins will be collected by Tpas and kept anonymous unless you explicitly request otherwise. A summary of what customers say – not individual responses – will be published in March 2026.
After 1 February 2026:
- Tpas reviews and analyses all feedback.
- Tpas produces an independent report reflecting what residents have said.
- The Boards of Thrive Homes and Watford Community Housing will consider the findings before making a final decision.
- A summary of feedback and the Board decision will be published in March 2026.
If Boards of either organisation decide not to progress with the merger, both organisations will continue operating as they do now.
We will publish:
- a summary or customer feedback
- the Boards' decision
- next steps for both organisations.
Yes, the consultation is designed to gather customer views and feedback to inform decision-making.
Feedback collected during the consultation period will be reported and considered carefully by the Boards of both organisations as part of the overall decision process.
A summary of consultation feedback and key themes will be shared publicly so residents can see how views have been captured and considered.
If you have questions or would like to speak to someone about the proposed merger, you can speak to us directly or to Tpas – your independent adviser. Tpas have been appointed to make sure this consultation is fair, transparent, and inclusive.
If you would like to speak directly to us, please get in touch:
- Call 0800 917 6077
- Email merger@thrivehomes.org.uk
To contact Tpas:
Call Tpas on 0800 731 1619 for a free confidential chat. All calls go through to voicemail so you can leave a message and they will call you back within one working day.
Email Tpas at merger-consultation@tpas.org.uk
The inbox is monitored and they will respond within two working days.
More information
You can find out more about the proposed merger on our dedicated page here. The page includes a full set of frequently asked questions about the proposal and what it would mean for residents.