Improving access to the private rented sector for low-income households
Since I joined The Dispute Service (TDS) 11 years ago, I have increasingly witnessed homeless people, care leavers and ex-offenders being housed in the private rented sector. One of the key barriers to access good quality private rented housing is the requirement to provide a cash security deposit.
However, since the pandemic, the process became much more difficult. On one side, we have households struggling financially (ex-offenders, homeless, care leavers). On another, we have landlords who require additional financial safeguards to rent to the mentioned group.
Many local authorities offer a range of incentives to private landlords to encourage them to accept low-income tenants. This is done by either paying rent deposit to the private landlord on behalf of the tenant or by providing the landlord with a deposit bond/guarantee, local authorities need to step in to cover entry costs required.
Charities and organisations across the UK have long argued in favor of a publicly funded National Deposit Scheme to help overcome this barrier. However, to date, governments across the UK have not risen to the challenge of funding such a service.
New National Deposit Bond Scheme
At the Brighter Future Conference, together with Ben Beadle, Chief Executive of the National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA), I will talk about the FairBonds scheme, a voluntary & not-for-profit National Deposit Bond Scheme to assist low-income households moving into the PRS.
I believe FairBonds can offer a quicker and leaner process for private landlords, tenants and local authorities. Developed by TDS, NRLA, Crisis and Home Connections, the scheme brings together years of expertise in housing and in deposits management.
The scheme will reduce the need for local authorities to pay upfront cash deposits or administer their own schemes, resulting in reduced administration costs.
Through the partnership between NRLA, Home Connections and FairBonds, more properties from private sector landlords will be advertised via Home Connections national mobility scheme, Homefinder UK. The commitment from private landlords to accept a FairBond instead of an upfront cash deposit will lead to more supported moves.
Looking ahead, could there be a publicly funded solution? Possibly. FairBonds will continue to advocate for national funding to support such scheme. Through the operation of the voluntary scheme, which requires only a small admin fee per FairBond registered, we will provide clear evidence to policy makers on the efficacy and value for money of this type of initiative.
I am looking forward to discussing the scheme in detail during the Brighter Future Conference on 14th of October and it will be notably insightful to hear from you on how you believe such a scheme can help you offer better housing options for those in need.
Steve Harriott
Chief Executive of The Tenancy Deposit Scheme
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How can housing providers test their digital infrastructure for vulnerabilities?
In our digital era, everything revolves around data. And, whether you are a local authority, housing association or a private landlord, the volume of highly sensitive information processed by your systems only increases. Strengthening your defences against cyber risks is imperative to defend your organisation and more importantly, your customers.
The introduction of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in 2018 placed several obligations on all organisations, housing providers included. The main goal was to ensure the careful handling of personal data. A GDPR fine for an unreported data breach can cost you a weighty £17.5 million, or 4% of your annual global turnover – whichever can be even greater. Did you also know that the average time breaches are left undetected is 206 days?
According to a survey by Ponemon Institute, 60% of breaches in 2019 involved unpatched vulnerabilities. One way to mitigate this risk is by performing routine network vulnerability assessments. And you can conduct a successful vulnerability assessment by following these six steps:
Planning
Identify your assessment goals. Consider which assets you want to evaluate. How important is the device(s) on your network? Who has access to the device(s)? Any staff members, or solely administrators and authorised users?
Think about the following in your planning:
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Risk level
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Risk tolerance level
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Risk mitigation practices and policies for each device
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Residual risk treatment
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Countermeasures for each device or service (if the service is linked with the device)
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Business impact analysis
Scanning
Actively scan the system or network using threat intelligence, automated tools and vulnerability databases. A vulnerability scanner can help you identify any systems that are subject to known security risks. The scanner should be able to locate and identify devices, software and open ports, and gather other system information. This will be then correlated with known vulnerability information from one or more databases.
The list of vulnerabilities produced by the scanners can be exhaustive and even overwhelming to many IT security professionals. Therefore, an evaluation stage is extremely important to decide how critical the vulnerability is, how would it impact the organisation and whether any existing security controls could reduce the risk of that impact.
There is plenty of vulnerability management software tools out there, including automated tools. The National Cyber Security Centre has recently published advice on the choice, implementation and use of automated vulnerability scanning tools for organisations of all sizes.
Analysis
In this step, take a closer look at the reasons behind the detected vulnerabilities, their possible impact and how they can be alleviated. This all needs to go in the all-important Vulnerability Assessment Report, which should include recommendations and risk mitigation techniques.
Keep the following details in mind and remember that high and medium vulnerabilities should have a detailed report that may include the name of vulnerability, the date of discovery, affected systems and process to correct the vulnerability.
Alleviation
Also known as the remediation, this step takes actions on the recommendations put forth in the report. As vulnerabilities are detected and reported, the next step is to rectify, monitor, or eliminate those vulnerabilities. This can be achieved through the necessary updates and patches, or workarounds to avoid the threat.
Repeat
Vulnerability management is a process. It is essential to schedule regular assessments to ensure ongoing security of your organisation’s digital infrastructure.
Verify
The final step is to verify that threats have been eliminated through follow-up audits.
Investing in cybersecurity is essential for any company these days and particularly for housing providers given the large amounts of sensitive data they are responsible for protecting. Find out how can our housing specific software help you to manage your data securely.
Cyber security: how can housing providers prepare for cyber security threats?
Why are social housing providers targets of malicious cybercrime?
You might think that hackers would only be interested in hacking large corporations with many millions of pounds behind them. But as we have increasingly seen in the last few years, that is far from the case.
So why do hackers target the housing sector? One obvious reason is data. Social housing providers, whether huge housing associations or local councils, all store vast amounts of personal information on their tenants and applicants. Cyber criminals can then sell this data to a wide range of illicit organisations hungry for customer intel. Another reason is that hackers may want to disrupt critical services for political or personal reasons.
What are the consequences of cyberattacks on housing providers?
Let’s take a look at what happens when hackers do launch a cyberattack on housing providers.
In October 2020, Hackney Council suffered a vicious cyberattack which, nine months down the line, continues to cause major disruption to housing and benefit services. The hack is expected to cost the East London council around £10m in total.
Hackney Council is just one of many housing providers that have suffered as a result of cyber criminals.
So how can you protect yourself from cybercrime?
1. Ensure all your staff are trained
Cyber criminals commonly impersonate someone in an organisation and send fraudulent emails asking other employees for confidential data. You need to ensure your staff know how to detect a fraudulent email. Train them to:
- Check links before clicking them
- Check email addresses from the received email
- Be careful sending sensitive information. If a request seems odd, call the person in question before sending over the sought-after data
- Notify anything suspicious to IT department
The National Cyber Security Centre provides in their website a rich session on advice and guidance that covers a range of topics related to cyber security.
As 99% of housing associations are planning to move to ‘hybrid working’, implementing guides with advice for staff is recommended to ensure they can work from home securely.
2. Keep your software and systems up to date
Cyberattacks often happen because systems or software are not fully up to date resulting in vulnerabilities. Cybercriminals exploit these weaknesses to break into your network.
To prevent this from happening, invest in a patch management system to manage all software and system updates.
3. Install a Firewall
Unfortunately, there is an ever-growing plethora of sophisticated data breaches. Councils have reported more than 700 data breaches in 2020, according to a FOI research by Redscan.
Guarding your network with a firewall is one of the most effective ways to defend yourself from any cyberattack.
5. Ensure endpoint protection
Since the pandemic, we have all acclimatized to working from home. This has meant a dramatic surge in additional devices being connecting to corporate networks. Consequently, access paths to security threats are created. These paths need to be protected with specific endpoint protection software.
6. Controlling admin rights
Don’t allow employees to install software that could compromise your systems. Having managed admin rights and blocking staff from installing or even accessing certain data on your network is important.
7. Each application deserves a different password
Do not fall into the trap of using the same password for various portals. If you do, one exposure of your password will leave you vulnerable to hackers breaking access to everything in your system and any application you use. If possible, change your systems’ password policies to prompt users to update their passwords every certain period. Find out more about good password practice.
8. Backup your data
Up-to-date backups are the most effective way of recovering from a cyberattack. From cloud storage to saving files locally, establishing a data backup strategy will protect your critical data. Cloud backups are usually a good solution for most businesses as they can be done automatically, reducing human error. The speed you can retrieve your backup data is also key to ensure you face less disruptions and maintain business continuity.
Investing in cybersecurity is the best way to protect the high volume of sensitive data housing providers and local authorities hold. Especially in times when we are more vulnerable. Find out how can our housing specific software help you to manage your data securely.
*FREE webinar* COVID-19, benefits and beyond: supporting tenants through changes in income
COVID-19, benefits and beyond: supporting tenants through changes in income
Online event | 26th May 2021 | 11am - 12pm
Many people’s income will have changed in the last year. Whether they stopped, changed or started work, any income change could have an impact on their benefit entitlements, including support for housing costs.
We are hosting a FREE webinar to cover how the housing sector can support tenants as they deal with changes to their income. In this webinar, you will:
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Hear about the brand new benefits calculator integration implemented for Wheatley Group, the largest housing association in Scotland
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Learn what benefits are available for people affected by coronavirus
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Practical advice: How Universal Credit works for people who are self-employed or are considering moving into self-employment
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*Please note this event is only open for housing professionals. Your booking will only be accepted if this can be confirmed*
How can housing specific software help the housing sector against cyber security threats?
The pandemic year of 2020 saw an unprecedented spike in cyber attacks across the world with the IT companies FireEye and Solar Winds being just two of the best known of over a dozen major attacks. Given this global context it is important to assess the security risks from off-the-shelf software.
This comes after the news reported, last November, that a 32,000-home landlord was hit by a major cyber attack, which led to severe disruption of its services. This sent a clear message for other RPs and local providers - that the social housing sector is a lucrative target.
“Generic software offers a ready-made solution which can be more vulnerable to cybersecurity threats as they tend to meet only general requirements, not considering specific working practices, security policies and procedures. Solutions provided by tech giants are also a greater target because of the volume of data they hold” says Ninesh Muthiah, Founder and CEO of Home Connections.
There is a lot to consider, from securing remote working practices, improving authentication, securing corporate devices. And if services are provided by third party organisations, security assurance is needed now more than ever.
“In contrast, custom software can be built to resist cyber threats as it is designed according to specific organisational needs and countering specific threats. In such cases, bespoke software can be much harder to infiltrate” says Ninesh.
Cyber risks for the housing sector
A pre-discovery report completed by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Government (MHCLG) in May 2020 investigated the specific problems and challenges that local authorities faced in improving their cybersecurity.
The report revealed a lack of consistent understanding of what cybersecurity entails or means for a local authority, making consistent prevention more difficult. The research highlighted that several councils are not taking all available measures to reduce the risk of an attack. Some of these relate to the regularity of IT health checks and the use of legacy technology.
There is not one single solution that could solve cyber risk as issues vary in size, severity and context and there is a continuous arms race between attackers and cyber defence. The MHCLG report recommended that taking a ‘secure by design’ approach would protect against potential attacks, data breaches and any impact on the citizens that use services. It also recommended that organisations should recognise cybersecurity as a business risk as well as an ICT risk.
"As an IT company, cybersecurity is deeply embedded in our business decisions. For 20 years, we have been trusted by over 200 local authorities and housing providers to implement and maintain robust bespoke solutions that match their specific requirements and working methods. We have procedures in place to ensure that housing officers can manage the data securely, regardless of whether they are working in the office or remotely" says Ninesh.
"We follow a range of security protocols and provisions, with a high level of data encryption. We also opted for automated penetration test tools to perform continuous testing of systems. We learnt that proactive monitoring is the best approach in keeping the data safe. Our solutions are all cloud-based, and accreditations by all key ISO standards which adds increased reliability and security to our systems and information processed by them”.
ISO 27001 is a voluntary certification which sets out best practice in terms of managing the security of assets such as financial information, intellectual property, and information entrusted by third parties. It is a thorough solution that offers a framework that can be tailored to the needs of any organisation.
The technology available for housing providers is in constant evolution, but so are cyber attacks, as they get more sophisticated each day. Investing in cybersecurity is the best way to protect the high volume of sensitive data housing providers and local authorities hold, especially in times when we are more vulnerable.
Are you a social landlord looking to advance your digital transformation
At Home Connections, we’ve worked closely with local authorities, housing associations and PRS landlords, of all shapes and sizes over the last 20 years. We have enjoyed providing game-changing housing solutions that help our community of social landlords to reach their digital ambitions. From Wheatley Group to Islington Council and Devon Home Choice, getting digital ‘right’ has reaped countless benefits for these organisations. And with the ongoing pandemic causing demand for social housing to soar, whilst simultaneously posing significant restrictions, embracing technology has never been more crucial.
Looking to advance your digital transformation? Read on…
Choice-based Lettings
Our Choice-based Lettings (CBL) system is refreshingly user-friendly and fully flexible enabling housing providers of all shapes and sizes to smartly allocate properties. Features include multi-tenure advertising with all letting types in one system, in-depth reporting, and full visibility of your entire letting process, along with full audit options.
Homelessness Reduction Act software, hope
hope offers a thorough assessment of duties owed, a fully configurable case management system, recording tools and advice on accommodation options. The system is designed to ease the everyday administration tasks of housing officers. Hope aids from the start of the assessment stage, up until secure accommodation has been established for the homeless and homeless prevention cases.
Uniquely, Home Connections’ national mobility scheme, Homefinder UK, can also be supplied as part of the system. This enables the integration of direct housing options. It also alleviates the pressure from casework for applicants wanting or willing to move out of the borough.
Virtual Tours
Our Virtual Tours offer a powerful integration that allows housing officers to upload videos of the properties into the system's back office so the videos are displayed side-by-side property adverts info. It allows property viewings to go beyond geographical limits and distances to be accessed from any place, anytime! It is also proven to reduce the risk of refusals and help customers find their ideal home easier.
Voice Assist
Did you know that currently, there isn't a local authority or housing association in the UK that would offer interaction between social housing applicants and allocations systems via a voice interface? Inevitably, that's where the future of Choice Based Lettings is heading. Will you be the first to explore how Voice Assist, our CBL integration with voice assistants, can help customers carry out their property search via speech? 'Alexa' would find properties available that match the applicant's criteria, read out the description available and place a bid if the home seeker simply says so. Request a demo today!
Online learning platform, EazyLearn
Share knowledge with a large number of applicants or housing staff via online training! Through our EazyLearn tool, you can build courses, turn your Personal Housing Plan and tenancy manual as well as other services into an easy-to-use online training tool.
Take advantage of multiple courses based on your demand, enroll unlimited users, monitor and track their progress through a real-time access dashboard. You can also send automatic reminders to customers who haven't started or completed the course, receive instant feedback & more! Find out how we have helped Homes for Haringey implement this Covid-secure training module!
Get in touch today to advance your digital transformation. We will be happy to accommodate your specific needs and offer free demonstrations on all our products.
Haringey Council trailblazes new online learning course in a bid to help get their housing applicants ‘tenancy ready’
Tenancy sustainment in social housing is a real sore spot for many professionals in the sector and the Covid-19 pandemic hasn’t made it any easier. Prior to the pandemic, many local authorities, like Haringey Council, were offering face-to-face tenancy training workshops. They were not only resource heavy, but also difficult to attend by targeted applicants due to childcare or work commitments.
“The introduction of the Homelessness Reduction Act and the need to create a Personalised Housing Plan for each customer also meant that we had to review our capacity to offer face-to-face training to significantly more people, and we considered other ways to deliver this. The majority of our customers will need to consider moving to the private sector to resolve their housing need and we wanted to ensure that they were prepared for this. We therefore decided to create e-learning courses for customers that we could include as an action for them to complete in their Personalised Housing Plan” says Bev Faulkner, Head of Housing Needs at Haringey Council.
Could EazyLearn be the solution to socially distanced learning?
Haringey Council appointed Home Connections to provide a housing solution that would enable tenants to learn whilst socially distanced. The partnership created EazyLearn, a bespoke software to deliver easy-to-use online learning courses that teach housing applicants how to manage a private rented tenancy. The courses can be accessed 24/7 and completed in the applicant’s own time and at their own pace. At the end of each successfully completed course, an applicant receives a certificate to show to their Housing Officer.
“We have worked with Home Connections on a number of projects over the years and have always been impressed with their ‘can do’ attitude, efficiency and value for money. Once again they haven’t disappointed, but were able to realise the vision that we had” says Bev.
The first module was designed to ensure housing applicants are ‘tenancy ready’, and to teach prospective applicants the pitfalls of the private sector and understand their rights when privately renting. This is a great selling point for prospective landlords and for applicants. Out of 209 of Haringey’s housing applicants surveyed, 82% stated that the course was useful in teaching them things about private sector they didn’t know. Over 96% said they would put into practice the things they have learnt.
“Completing this online learning course is sometimes the first time an applicant has accessed training on-line, and the first certificate they have received, which is a great way to empower them” says Bev.
Following the success of the first module, Haringey Council is now looking to roll out a second one which will focus on tenancy sustainment. There are also plans to design a specific course for applicants moving to social housing. “The system is easy to use in terms of user experience and the back-office admin and so we are keen to enrol it in as many areas of the applicant journey as possible to help ensure smooth transitions and longer tenancies” says Bev Faulkner.
“This universal and innovative e-learning solution can be used in such a wide range of scenarios, it might just be a way forward in this ‘new normal’ way of living and working. Many people are finding the lockdown has put extra pressure on tenancies, incomes and relationships. Our e-learning
platform can offer free advice, support and a degree of reassurance. Most importantly, it is a resource-free way to share knowledge with a large numbers of applicants, helping obtain realistic expectations about their potential housing outcomes” says Ninesh Muthiah, CEO at Home Connections.
Find out more about our Eazylearn e-learning software
Home Connections sees 75% tender win rate as a preferred IT provider for Scottish housing associations
Eildon, Queens Cross and Link housing association and Angus council are four of the most recent social landlords to turn to Home Connections for IT upgrade in the past year. The social housing providers are most commonly choosing the organisation’s powerful Choice Based Lettings and Housing Register systems. In some cases, this system upgrade represents move from a paper-based approach to a digital platform offering people more choice over where they want to live.
The paper based approach relies on a lot of staff resource in inputting applications and making necessary referrals. CBL provider, Home Connections helps social landlords to move to away from this approach and in doing so, has so far processed over 230,000 bids and let 12,230 properties across its Scottish customer-base. As concluded in Chartered Institute of Housing’s 2019 study, a CBL system offers increased transparency to applicants. It also means staff can focus more time on allocating and letting properties than dealing with people’s queries about their applications. Furthermore, CBL can help identify areas of low demand and therefore help with strategic decision-making around stock.
“Queens Cross Housing Association and Angus council belong to a group of landlords that are choosing to move from a paper-based approach to a digital platform to cut out the paper trail, improve document management, speed up the referral process, enjoy faster reporting and much more. The housing associations and local authorities We work with housing associations and local authorities to build a bespoke system to meet their unique needs to enjoy a smarter allocations system. Our dedicated project management team works closely with customers from the very beginning and ensures that customers are continually supported’ says Ninesh Muthiah, Home Connections CEO.”
The associations join a group of over 60 satisfied Home Connections customers such as Wheatley Group, Loreburn, Inverclyde council and Riverclyde Homes.
Angus Council went live with their new Choice Based Lettings system November last year. A representative of Angus Council, Lynne Warburton, described the benefits of implementing an integrated housing suite: "It provides more transparency and a more efficient application process, increasing choice for applicants. The online process means that staff no longer have to input all our applications, reducing the time taken to process them. Also, the referral process for housing options and occupational therapy is now automatic, so referrals are picked up at the very early stages of the application process".
Home Connections builds strength in Scotland
We are proud of our longstanding relationships with Scotland-based social housing providers, large, small and everything in between. And we are extremely pleased to have further increased our customer-base in the country during this challenging year, with latest customers to include Angus Council, Elidon Housing Association and Link Housing Association.
The housing associations and local authorities we work with all enjoy a smart allocations system that meets their unique needs. Our dedicated project management team works closely with customers from the very beginning and ensures that customers are continually supported.
Angus Council went live with their new choice-based lettings system in November, moving from a paper- based approach to a digital platform offering people more choice over where they want to live. A representative of Angus Council, Lynne Warburton, described the benefits of implementing an integrated housing suite: "It provides more transparency and a more efficient application process, increasing choice for applicants. The online process means that staff no longer have to input all our applications, reducing the time taken to process them. Also, the referral process for housing options and occupational therapy is now automatic, so referrals are picked up at the very early stages of the application process".
"We were very pleased with Home Connections' performance. The service delivery was good, and the Home Connections team was very accommodating in terms of our changes in delivery dates and requirements, as we were facing impacts from Covid-19. They were very helpful throughout the process", Lynne adds.
Similarly, we have been working in close partnership with Wheatley Group, Scotland’s leading housing provider since 2018. A smart Housing Register, powerful choice-based lettings system and refreshingly user-friendly customer website are just some of the products we provide for Wheatley Group.
Wheatley Group is just one of over 50 satisfied Home Connections customers which include local authorities, registered providers, social enterprises and private sector customers.
If you are interested in advancing your digital transformation, we will be happy to accommodate your specific needs. We use the best fitting technology and partners to ensure you benefit from intelligent products with high return on investment. Get in touch today to find out how we can enhance your services. We are always happy to give a free demonstration of all our products.
Connections Forum England
Hear Westminster's approach to homelessness prevention | Homelessness eligibility criteria changes
Online Event | 25th February 2021 |10:00 - 12:00
This free online event welcomes all social housing professionals who are interested in hearing more about homelessness eligibility criteria post-Brexit and practical ways of improving the approach to homelessness prevention. You'll hear how the Virtual Tours integrated into Choice Based Lettings (CBL) systems help overcome lockdown restrictions and expedite the relocation process. Additional housing options as well as tenancy sustainment through digitalisation will also be discussed.
Attend this FREE event and receive our exclusive whitepaper that provides in-depth reporting and analysis of:
- Why applicants want to move out of their local area
- Common areas of choice
- How does the length of time spent on housing waiting lists affect applicants' decision making
- And much more!
Hear from experts in social housing & homelessness prevention:
Westminster's digital approach to homelessness prevention, Monju Haque, Housing Solutions Team Manager, Westminster Council
Monju will be sharing Westminster’s digital journey to tackling homelessness through HRA software, hope. Monju will discuss how since hope’s implementation in April 2018, the council has processed over 15,200 applications, providing housing advice and homelessness support in a streamlined manner.
Customer journey to social housing via Virtual Tours, Victoria Shaw, Customer Relationship Manager, Homefinder UK & Brenda Fraser, Manager, Homefinder UK
With a wealth of experience in customer service and the social housing sector, Victoria Shaw and Brenda Fraser will review customer journeys from homelessness to permanent social housing through the help of Virtual Tours.
What's more, Brenda will discuss additional housing options and highlight the latest survey results reviewing reasons for homeless applicants wanting to move out-of-area, common areas of choice and more!
Post-Brexit changes to homelessness eligibility criteria, Minos Perdios, Reviews Manager, Housing Reviews Ltd
Specialist in homelessness legislation & the perfect fit to discuss how the UK’s departure from the EU will affect housing officers’ duties. Minos will explain the changes to the homelessness eligibility criteria following Brexit.
Learn how to become champions of digital skills & inclusion, Kathy Valdes, Managing Director, Digital Unite
Digital Unite is a social enterprise that has been passionately helping organisations with digital inclusion and digital skills since 1996. Kathy will be sharing practical ways forward for social landlords to improve digital inclusion and become proud digital champions.
Embracing online learning with EazyLearn, John Manley, Project Support Officer, Home Connections
John will review how has e-learning enabled landlords to support their tenants in learning about private renting, sustaining their tenancies and more. John will be sharing Haringey Council's post-implementation impact of the online training solution - Eazylearn.
This event has now ended.