New Forest Borough Council Housing and Homelessness Overview and Scrutiny Panel Meeting

RESOLVED:

That the minutes of the meeting held on 19 January 2022 be signed by the Chairman as a correct record.

No declarations of interest were made by members in connection with an agenda item.

No issues were raised in the public participation period.

The Panel considered the Housing Compliance Annual report which provided an update on the progress made against each of the various compliance policies.

A pilot retrofit fire sprinkler system was due to be installed in one of the Council’s extra care housing blocks.  Members received a presentation on the proposed sprinkler system, which has been attached to these minutes as an Appendix.

A member of the Panel asked about how the information contained within the compliance policies was fed down to the operatives working within properties.  It was noted that the policies set out the duties, requirements and the roles and responsibilities.  Existing staff had been informed of the Council’s responsibilities in relation to compliance and all new members of staff were taken through a thorough induction programme to ensure they were aware of their responsibilities.  They were also buddied up with other members of staff prior to attending properties to carry out work on their own. 

Members noted the need to decant residents from two of the Council’s housing blocks for six weeks to enable essential fire safety work to be undertaken.  A dedicated webpage and phone line had been set up to communicate key messages to residents and provide a main point of contact.  Officers had been working with all residents on a one to one basis to discuss options.  Some tenants would be moved permanently to alternative accommodation.  The Portfolio Holder addressed the Panel and spoke about the hard work of the team in order to manage this, including moving pets to enable these necessary works to be carried out.  The Panel expressed their thanks to the team for their efforts to work with the residents.

RESOLVED:

That the annual Housing Compliance report across the key compliance measures be noted.

The Panel received a presentation which provided an update on the progress of the Greener Housing Strategy.  The presentation has been attached to these minutes as an Appendix.

A contract had been awarded in January 2022 to install 50 Air Source Heat Pumps (ASHPs) into Council owned properties.  6 had been installed to date and a further 7 were expected to be completed by the end of March with the remainder being installed by the end of July 2022.  The District Council had received a Government grant award of £287,000 towards the cost of the project. 

Members asked whether any feedback had been received from those properties which had had the ASHPs installed.  The feedback to date had been very positive.  One tenant had written to the council and said that the impact had been life changing, with a much warmer property. 

In response to a question in relation to the noise generated from the ASHP it was noted that an onsite survey would consider the best location for the pump.  This would be discussed at a site visit with the tenant, considering environmental factors to achieve the best position.

The Panel were reminded of the key targets set by Government and the work the District Council had completed to date to make homes more energy efficient.

The Panel noted the draft Strategic aims of the emerging Greener Housing Strategy, as follows:

Strategic Priority 1: Reduce Carbon Emissions in Council stock

Strategic Priority 2: New Build Standards

Strategic Priority 3: Affordable Warmth

Strategic Priority 4: Housing Operations

Members noted that a corsortium bid, led by Portsmouth City Council had been submitted for £32.7m to support households in the area.  This had been successful in obtaining a total of £31.9m and would be allocated on a first come first served basis.  In order to ensure that those in the New Forest were aware and able to access this funding there would be a communication strategy to promote this opportunity.  The next Landlord Forum in April would also be used to inform landlords of the funding, as well a marketing exercise to promote the opportunities to homeowners and landlords.

The Panel received a presentation on the Charter for Social Housing White Paper and the proposed Tenant Satisfaction Measures.  The presentation has been attached to these minutes as an Appendix.

A report had been received by the Panel at the last meeting in January 2022 and a Member Task and Finish Group had been set up to consider the proposed Tenant Satisfaction Measures in order to respond to the Government consultation.  The Portfolio Holder for Housing and Homelessness services had submitted a response on behalf of the Council on 3 March.

The Panel noted that the proposals would be beneficial to tenants giving them a greater voice and it was anticipated that landlords would have better relationship with their tenants.  It was recognised that the housing service would have additional work in order to collect the information in relation to each of the tenant satisfaction measures and to submit an annual report on performance.  This work would involve new recording systems, building on continuous improvement as well as reviewing approaches to tenants, antisocial behaviour, repairs etc.

The Panel received a presentation providing an update on homelessness.  The presentation has been attached to these minutes as an Appendix. 

The Panel noted that a bid had been submitted for Government funding for a further three years in order to assist with homelessness support and sustainability.  The bid proposed for example, to maintain the current Housing Support team until 2025.  A bespoke accommodation fund had been proposed to target hard to reach sleepers to provide them with ‘out of the box’ solutions for accommodation.  A training and employment fund was also proposed to work in partnership with social enterprises.    It was anticipated that the outcome of the bid would be known in April / May.

A vulnerable renters fund of £129k had been made available from Government to support those in rent arrears who were at risk of eviction or homelessness.  To date 56 households had been provided with financial support from this fund.

Members noted there had been a significant increase in families in temporary accommodation since the last meeting in January 2022.  This was in part due to landlords increasing rent or had decided to sell their property.

The statistics of applicants on the housing register was noted.  The demand for one bedroom properties continued to be the highest, and Band 2 had the highest number of applicants within it.  It was highlighted to members that there was a need to manage expectations for social housing.  The demand for social housing far exceeded the supply, and it was necessary to look at the private rented sector for additional housing options.  The housing department would work with residents, providing both practical and financial assistance to help residents to secure properties. 

Members asked for an update on the “call before you serve scheme”.  It was noted that it was early days, however there had been an increase in the number of cases coming forward.  Officers would work with landlords in order to resolve any issues with tenants to encourage them not to evict their tenants.  It was recognised that landlords wanted reassurance that the District Council would provide them with support and advice when required.

The Panel received a presentation providing an update on the progress of the Housing Strategy and property development.  The presentation has been attached to these minutes as an Appendix.

The work to the Old Bakery (renamed “Jubilee House”), New Milton to provide 6 one bed flats for temporary accommodation had been completed.  Construction was continuing on site for the schemes at 110 Christchurch Road (Platinum House), Ladycross in Hythe and Gorse Close in New Milton. 

37 units of temporary accommodation had been provided to date during 2021/22.  The target for the year was 40, however a further 7 were expected to be completed in April 2022. 

Construction on the former Testwood Social Club in Totton was due to commence on site in the spring.  Officers were continuing to develop schemes and look at opportunities to increase the offer of affordable housing.

Members questioned whether unused buildings, for example, former public buildings would be considered as a development opportunity for affordable housing.  It was noted that the housing team were looking at all opportunities and sites for affordable housing.  Hythe Medical Centre was an example of a site which had recently been secured.  Members were invited to pass on any suggestions of particular sites within their local area to the housing team for consideration.     

The Portfolio Holder for Housing and Homelessness Services reported that the Panel had heard about the breadth of work being carried out across housing services from compliance work and keeping tenants safe, to making the social housing stock more sustainable, helping those most in need within our district as well as looking at all opportunities to create more affordable housing.  She was extremely pleased with what had been delivered so far.

Members noted that the Performance Dashboard identified that there had been a shortfall in rental income between September – November 2021.  This had been as a result of there being a number of void properties.  It was questioned how this was being addressed.  It was explained that the backlog in turning around void properties had initially arisen at the start of the pandemic due to a shortage of materials.  Additional funding had been sought to turn around these properties for occupation more quickly.  The number of void properties had since been reduced to around 30, which was considered to be an acceptable level and these were being dealt with.  This was regularly reviewed.

RESOLVED:                              

That the Work Programme be noted.