Agenda item

Councillor Diarmaid Ward, Executive Member for Housing and Development, introduced the quarterly performance report.

The following main points were noted in the discussion:

·         No new affordable homes had been completed in quarter one. This was partially due to delays in completing electricity and mains water connections. It was still expected that the target of 200 new affordable homes by 2020 would be met.

·         The number of tenants in under-occupied properties downsizing was significantly below target. The Executive Member commented on the importance of using the council’s housing stock efficiently. It was suggested that some tenants were discouraged from moving as they were concerned about losing their secure tenancy under proposals previously announced through the Housing and Planning Act. The Committee commented that greater work was needed to explain that this was not the case.

·         The Committee suggested that increasing the number of downsizers should be a top priority of the housing service, and that downsizing communications should be targeted at middle-aged couples whose children had left home. The Committee noted that it may not be beneficial for some older and vulnerable people to downsize, as the stress of downsizing could have a detrimental effect on their wellbeing.

·         It was advised that there were services to assist tenants with moving home, including furniture removal, but there was a lack of awareness of these services and they needed to be promoted further.   

·         It was the council’s downsizing policy was that nobody should pay more rent for a smaller property. Dr Brian Potter, Chair of the Islington Leaseholders Association, queried this, commenting that his understanding was that the rent was only held at a lower rate for one year. The Executive Member reiterated the council’s policy and commented that he was not aware of anyone who was paying more rent as a result of downsizing. It was advised that any instances of tenants paying more rent as a result of downsizing should be reported to the Executive Member to investigate further.

·         It was reported that the new repairs system had been implemented largely successfully. It was positive that the first time fix rate was only 1% below target given the significant changes, however it was expected that this would improve over time, and it was suggested that a more challenging target may be appropriate.

·         The Executive Member attributed the reduction in homelessness to cross-borough prevention work. It was commented that the Homelessness Reduction Act had well-meaning aims, however additional resources were required to meet the new duties under the Act. The Executive Member considered that the £48 million allocated to local authorities to meet their duties under the Act was insufficient.

·         Islington Council currently had its lowest number of households in nightly-booked temporary accommodation since September 1998. 

·         The leading cause of homelessness was loss of private sector tenancy. It was commented that assured shorthold tenancies were not a secure form of tenancy and the private rented sector needed reform.

·         The Executive Member explained that homeless households must be vulnerable and have a local connection to be eligible for housing from Islington Council. ‘Local connection’ meant living in Islington for three of the past five years.

·         It was commented that shared ownership housing was not ‘affordable’, particularly in the south of the borough. The Executive Member believed that it was important to have intermediate housing options available, but also had concerns about the affordability of shared housing.

·         The Committee considered the ‘Housing First’ model used in Finland, where vulnerable homeless people are given a permanent home quickly, rather than temporary accommodation. It was commented that this enabled a more effective focus on substance abuse and other issues.

·         Following a question from a member of the public, it was advised that the St Mungo’s Outreach Service regularly engaged with people who were street homeless, however any concerns about homeless people should be reported to streetlink.co.uk.

The Committee thanked Councillor Ward for his attendance.

RESOLVED:

That that progress against key performance indicators in Quarter 1 2017/18 be noted.