Agenda item

Councillor Diarmaid Ward, Executive Member for Housing and Development, presented his annual report to the Committee. Jo Murphy, Director of Homes and Communities, also contributed to the presentation and discussion.  

The following main points were noted in the discussion:

·         The Executive Member provided an update on the council’s work to replace flammable cladding on its housing blocks. The work to remove ACM3 cladding on Braithwaite House commenced three working days after it was identified, and the cladding was expected to be replaced in October 2018.

·         Work was underway to convert dry risers to wet risers in the council’s tallest blocks. The risers in Michael Cliffe House had been converted in August 2017, and the risers in Peregrine House would be converted in October 2018.

·         Although much of the media attention following the Grenfell Tower fire had focused on the safety of high-rise blocks, the safety of low-rise blocks was also a priority. The Executive Member advised that linked fire alarms would be installed in street properties, which did not have compartmentation to contain a fire to single unit. 

·         A member queried if works had been carried out to insulate street properties, and if not, would this work be carried out in future. Another member advised that insulation work was carried out to street properties some years ago, however it was not known how many properties had benefitted at that time. The Executive member advised that he would investigate this matter further.  

·         It was explained that the rebranding of the Housing Operations service to ‘Homes and Communities’ would better reflect the service’s work to support the communities living in the council’s homes, which was a priority of the council. The service was working with colleagues across the council to develop an early intervention approach which would support the wellbeing of Islington residents.

·         The Executive Member advised that the Homes and Communities leadership team had been restructured around the service’s priorities, and explained that further work to transform the service would take place throughout 2018. It was hoped that the service would develop a more trusting relationship with residents.

·         The Committee expressed concern about the roll out of Universal Credit. A total of 359 council tenants were in receipt of Universal Credit; the average rent debt of claimants was over six times the average debt. The council was holding bi-monthly meetings with the Department for Work and Pensions ahead of the full service being deployed in Islington in June 2018.

·         Islington Council would not evict anybody solely for arrears caused by their move to Universal Credit. It was emphasised that it was important for tenants struggling financially to engage with the council at the earliest possible opportunity. 

·         A member highlighted that he kept his rent account in credit to ensure that he had some security if his circumstances changed and he was unable to pay his rent. It was suggested that this approach could be promoted to tenants. It was also suggested that incentives to pay rent on time may result in a lower level of arrears. The Director of Homes and Communities advised that paying by direct debit was the best way of ensuring that tenants did not fall into arrears.

·         Voids performance had decreased over the past year, partly due to an issue with a contractor in the south of the borough. However, significant improvements had been made recently, and the contractor was now achieving 100% of properties returned on time.

·         Homelessness was continuing to decrease in Islington, which was attributed to the council’s prevention work. The leading causes of homelessness were domestic violence, a change of financial circumstances, and the end of tenancy in the private rented sector. Islington was participating in the Trailblazer project, which sought to prevent homelessness by working with partners such as Jobcentre Plus.

·         Although the Homelessness Reduction Act would present operational challenges, it did place a duty on other agencies to refer those at risk of homelessness to the council, and it was hoped that this would enhance the council’s homelessness prevention work.

·         A member suggested that the number of street homeless and people begging on Upper Street appeared to have increased recently. In response, it was advised that these people were routinely offered help by the council’s Outreach Team, and it was known that some individuals were not homeless. A member commented that begging gangs operated in Islington, and it was explained that it was not helpful to give money to these vulnerable people, who may be victims of exploitation.

·         Around two thirds of homeless households were families with young children. 

·         It was suggested that a survey of Partners tenants may be useful to compare satisfaction to performance against KPIs. It was reiterated that some Partners tenants were dissatisfied with the organisation’s resident scrutiny arrangements.

·         The NRPF Team had experienced an increase in referrals over the past year. A contract had been awarded to Refugee Action to provide support to Syrian refugees.

·         The number of severely overcrowded households on the Housing Register had slightly reduced over the past year, however there was still a significant lack of affordable housing in the borough. There were over 18,000 applications on the Housing Register, however only around 1,000 properties became available each year.

·         The Executive Member commented on the importance of downsizing as a means of securing larger properties to let to families. The council’s new housing developments would also assist in housing those on the Housing Register. The Kings Square development had a dedicated over-55s block, and it was thought that older people may be more willing to downsize into these sort of properties.

·         The Committee expressed concern at the sale of housing association properties in the borough, commenting that the loss of nomination rights partially negated the benefits of new affordable housing being developed in the borough. A discussion was had on the negative impacts of Right to Buy legislation.

·         The Committee queried why Partners rent arrears were higher than the arrears for directly managed properties. The Executive Member advised that he would take this up with Partners.

·         A member of the public highlighted that a local night shelter was distributing free sanitary products to women and suggested that this could be promoted by council services and in public buildings. 

The Committee thanked the Executive Member and the Director of Homes and Communities for their attendance.

RESOLVED:

That the progress against key performance indicators and Annual Report be noted.