About Us

Who we are and what we do

Founded in 1927, Cambridge Housing Society (CHS) is an independent housing association with over 3,000 homes in Cambridge and Cambridgeshire.

We are one of only two independent housing associations working just in Cambridgeshire and we are the only one to offer a blend of affordable rented homes, specialist supported housing and a range of community support services.

We believe our value lies in being well connected to our tenants, customers and local communities which means we are able to better respond to issues in practical and impactful ways:

We are unique in running the Cambridgeshire Local Assistance Scheme for the County Council

We have the only specialist young people’s housing project in East Cambridgeshire

We work in partnership with the charity Cyrenians to offer homes for rough sleepers

We are close to our tenants and offer a very responsive service

We are working hard to make sure we are listening to tenant priorities

Vision Statement

“Cambridge Housing Society will be a trusted local provider of long term, affordable, secure housing. We will listen to our tenants and customers and provide support where needed. We will be entrepreneurial with a social purpose, developing local partnerships and looking for new opportunities to support communities in Cambridgeshire.”

Our Strategic Themes

People (Tenants and customers) – We will listen to our tenants and customers and provide support where needed

Homes – Cambridge Housing Society will be a trusted local provider of long term, affordable, secure housing

Community – We will be entrepreneurial with a social purpose, developing local partnerships and looking for new opportunities to support Cambridgeshire communities

Staff – Achieve recognition as an employer of choice

Business – Maintaining a long-term viable Business Plan, V1 status and offering clear Value for Money

Governance – Seeking to maintain G1 status, securing top quartile consumer standards grading and achieving excellence in Care Quality Commission (CQC) and other regulatory assessments

CHS Group is the trading name of The Cambridge Housing Society Limited, a society registered for the benefit of the community with the FCA under the Co-operative and Community Benefit Societies Act 2014, no. 10457R, HMRC Charity no. X81275.

Read our Annual Report 2022-23 here

Our history

CHS was founded in 1927 in response to a desperate need for affordable homes in Cambridge. Alarmed by the squalid housing conditions many of the town’s poorest families lived in and the growing council waiting lists following the First World War, members of the United Council of Christian Witness decided to form a Housing Society. Their rallying cry was to provide ‘homes fit to live, within the reach of the lowest wage earner’ and throughout its lifetime, CHS has tried to live up to this aim.

Our Founding Members