Agenda item

The Committee considered the report presented by the Business Manager – Housing Services which set out the process of repairing and allocating the Council’s rented housing and temporary accommodation, the performance and satisfaction with the services and sought recommendations for further improvements and investigation.

The report provided Members with details of the work undertaken by the team who were dedicated to the repair of properties.  Details of the ‘relet journey’ were reported together with statistical information as to the Council’s performance.  The report also provided information as to tenant scrutiny and the lettings standards for temporary accommodation.  Details of the development of an “Empty Homes Improvement Plan” were provided, which would include temporary accommodation. 

In considering the report, a Member queried as to why the Starting Well Fund had a take-up of less than 50%.  In response, Officers advised that not all tenants required the help and that it was only available to new lettings. 

In response to the proposed support with the maintenance of gardens and trees, Members were advised that this was a draft proposal and would be funded out of savings realised from bringing Housing Services back in-house.  Further details would be provided when the pilot initiative had been finalised.  A Member requested that consideration be given to tenants who could not afford to carry out works themselves but were not necessarily in receipt of benefits.  

In relation to a query raised about how lessons were learned from complaints made by tenants, Members were advised that complaints were reported to the Tenant Engagement Board for consideration and what could be learned from them, were there any themes emerging, what actually happened.  Officers also considered complaints in detail on a monthly basis with a view to how changes could be implemented to improve service provision.  These were then reported back to tenants in the annual tenants’ report.

The Chair requested that following submission of the Tenant Satisfaction Measures to the Regulator of Social Housing, a report be presented to the next meeting of the Committee, showing the results of the Tenant Satisfaction Measures survey.  The report also to include any changes to the Home Standard brought about by the current consultation.

AGREED      (unanimously) that the Policy & Performance Improvement Committee endorsethe following recommendations:

a)            there are discussions in the housing sector about furniture poverty and the value ofcarpeting homes as part of the landlord’s lettable standard.  It is proposed to take thisinitiative to the Local Influence Networks to explore the benefits and challenges ofproviding floor coverings in allnew lettings;

b)            recognition that there is no simplified version of the Fit to Let standard currently available to applicants and tenants to ensure we do what we say we will. This Committee supports a request to involve tenants to design a simplified Fit to Let standard to hold the service to account and promote feedback inc. complaints;

c)             to support the introduction of a satisfaction measure for quality of temporary accommodation from Qtr. 3 2023-24;

d)            to support the develop of a policy to pilot the Council assisting tenants with maintaining trees within their gardens using funds available from efficiency savings; and

e)            thesealign  tothe Council’sobjective ofcreating more andbetter-quality homesthrough ourroles aslandlord, developerand planning authority.