Agenda item

Kevin Beirne, Group Director of Housing Care and Support, and John Gregory, Group Director of Housing Services, made a presentation to the Committee on the performance of One Housing Group.

The following main points were noted in the discussion:

·         One Housing Group was in its 50^th year of providing affordable housing in London and the Home Counties. The organisation managed 16,000 homes and operated in 27 London boroughs. One Housing provided homes to around 11,500 older and vulnerable tenants and had built 1,500 new affordable homes since 2011. 

·         One Housing considered the delivery of new housing to be fundamental to the role of a housing association. The organisation also developed a small amount of private housing, the profits from which were reinvested to develop further affordable housing. Housing development had been a core element of the organisation’s business plan since the coalition government significantly reduced the social housing grant in 2010.

·         One Housing was a relatively small provider in Islington, however was the largest provider of young people’s housing services in the borough.

·         The organisation worked in partnership with the council and NHS to provide supported housing to people with mental health issues. One Housing operated the Crisis resource centre at Highbury Grove, which offered support to people experiencing mental health crisis as an alternative to hospital admission. It was noted that 80% of those supported at Crisis would otherwise have been admitted to A&E.   

·         One Housing considered the introduction of the Local Housing Allowance cap to be a significant risk. The cap was expected to result in a significant increase to the cost of providing supported housing for vulnerable people inside London.

·         It was commented that One Housing had been looking to develop more social housing in Islington however land values were prohibitive and the organisation had been outbid by private organisations.

·         The Committee noted the organisation’s performance as monitored by the independent HouseMark service. Satisfaction and rent collection rates were in line with other London-based housing associations. One Housing had an average re-let time of 32.38 days in 2015/16, which was longer than comparable housing associations and work was underway to improve this.

·         It was advised that 88% of tenants were satisfied with their most recent repair in 2015/16, which was a decrease of 8% in comparison to the previous year. One Housing had brought its repairs service in-house during 2015/16 and satisfaction data was previously collected by its repairs contractor; it was thought that the 2015/16 data provided a more accurate representation of tenant satisfaction. Providing repairs in-house was expected to achieve savings of around £30million over the next ten years. 

·         The Committee noted the organisation’s average weekly rents. The average weekly rent was around 70% of market rent, lower than the government definition of “affordable” at 80% of market rent. It was commented that average rent would be lower than 70% of market rent in Islington due to the high private rental values.

·         The organisation had a low number of re-lets in Islington at only 2.6%. If tenants moved to another property One Housing would honour the level of rent they were already paying.

·         Housing benefit accounted for £40million of the organisation’s £70million income.  One Housing had held financial workshops for tenants affected by the benefit cap and no tenants had been evicted as a result of the changes; however eight tenants had refused to engage with the organisation and were now in significant rent arrears. It was commented that One Housing would welcome a closer information sharing agreement with the council to assist residents likely to be affected by welfare reform.

·         The organisation had assisted tenants to find work and training opportunities.

·         One Housing worked with the Police to address anti-social behaviour issues affecting its tenants. The organisation had identified 30 properties being fraudulently let since 2013 and had taken action against the tenants.

·         The organisation had sold very few of its central London homes. Although sale could generate substantial income, these properties were the most valuable for the organisation to retain. It was noted that around 100 central London properties had been re-let at market rent in order to finance new development and improvement works.

·         The Committee queried how One Housing would respond to the 1% annual decrease in social housing rents for the following four years. In response, it was advised that this was a significant financial pressure which would reduce the organisation’s finances by £30million by the end of the period. It was commented that the organisation would be making efficiencies and was not seeking to reduce wages or cut services, however there was a concern that more significant savings would be required if the annual rent decrease extended beyond the four years.

·         A member queried the organisation’s work in supporting vulnerable people, particularly in regards to welfare reform and drug and alcohol dependencies. It was noted that the organisation had supported tenants in looking for work and had commissioned drug and alcohol support services. It was also commented that the level of need for support services, including mental health services, was increasing, as was the level of street homelessness. 

·         It was advised that One Housing’s anti-social behaviour team received a significant amount of contact about criminal activity. It was emphasised that tenants witnessing criminal activity should contact the Police in the first instance.

·         It was queried if One Housing had strategies to deal with increasing levels of vulnerability as the population ages. It was noted that one third of One Housing general needs tenants were over retirement age. One Housing appreciated the growing need for elderly accommodation nationwide and was the second largest developer of supported accommodation for elderly people in the country; although the organisation did not provide such accommodation in Islington.

·         It was suggested that the redistribution of housing from older to younger people could assist with solving the housing crisis. There was a growing number of elderly people in three and four bedroom houses and many young families had homes too small for their needs. One Housing had worked with local authorities in other boroughs to develop high quality sheltered accommodation for older people in order to increase the supply of family homes.

·         A member of the public noted that he was formerly a board member of Patchwork Community Housing Association, which previously provided communal living options to people wanting to live in mixed-need communities, including the Islington Park Street community, the management of which had since been taken over by One Housing Group. The member of the public asked for One Housing to elaborate on proposals to decant Islington Park Street tenants to other properties and the background to how the organisation acquired Patchwork properties. In response, it was noted that only limited information could be provided as the organisation did not want to prejudice ongoing discussions between One Housing Group and the Islington Park Street community, however the organisation was working with the community and partner organisations to identify properties suitable for the tenants’ needs. It was explained that One Housing was asked to acquire Patchwork properties at a time when Patchwork was at risk of liquidation and experiencing other problems in relation to rent arrears, maintenance and a high proportion of voids.

·         A member of the public identified himself as the Chair of the Six Acres Estate Tenants’ and Residents’ Association and highlighted ongoing maintenance and repair issues on the estate. It was also noted that there was a lack of clarity in regards to service charges. Mr Gregory and Mr Beirne agreed to discuss the matter further outside of the meeting and indicated that a visit to the estate would be arranged.

·         Following a query from Dr Brian Potter of the Islington Leaseholders Association, it was clarified that tenants paying target rent downsizing from a three or four bedroom house to a one bedroom flat would continue their tenancy at target rent levels.

The Committee thanked Mr Gregory and Mr Beirne for their attendance.