Agenda and draft minutes

Members are invited to declare any disclosable pecuniary interests (DPIs) and other registrable and non-registrable interests they may have in relation to any item(s) of business on today’s agenda.

There were no disclosures of interest made at the meeting.

To receive notice of any business not on the agenda which in the opinion of the Chair, by reason of special circumstances, be considered as a matter of urgency.

There was no urgent business for the consideration of the Homes Sub-Committee at this meeting.

The Homes Sub-Committee is asked to:

1.    Note the draft Housing Strategy 2023-2028.

2.    Consider whether there are any comments it wishes to make on the Housing Strategy, which can be taken into account by the Executive during the preparation for submission to Council for adoption.

The Sub-Committee considered a report set out on pages 21 to 40 of the agenda which provided with a draft version of the updated Housing Strategy which covering the 2023-28 period.

Councillor Hale introduced the item. The draft version of the Housing strategy provided a foundation for the development of the forthcoming strategies, including Asset Management Strategy, Resident Engagement Strategy and Homelessness Prevention, and Rough Sleeping Strategy.

The first question considered the conducted consultation – what the impact of it would be and its main conclusions were. It assured that the report from the consultation would be shared with the Sub-Committee members. It was added that one of the largest comebacks from the consultation was around the issue of respect for residents.

The next question considered the previous Housing Strategy and how the previous strategy related to the new one. It was explained that for a long time the Council did not have a housing strategy, and the previous one was from ten years ago. Taking into consideration this long period of time, the previous strategy was not relevant from the perspective of the new strategy. It was added that to develop the strategy, the officers interviewed relevant officers and researched other boroughs. It was also highlighted that the Housing Strategy would be a live document.

The subsequent question considered the data gathering, particularly where and how the data was gathered and then how it was analysed to make the informed decisions. It was explained that census and Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) were two main sources of data. It was acknowledged that data gathering in Croydon had been poor and this issue would need to be addressed in the near future. Then it was explained that this was not included as a priority in the strategy as it was in-ward facing. However, it was assured that data and informed decision-making were key priorities for the housing transformation.

The next question considered the hierarchy between the priorities. It was suggested that potentially the first priority could be an overarching one. It was responded that the priorities were not numbered based on their hierarchy or importance. It was acknowledged that potentially the first priority could have an overarching function.

The next question asked about the potential expansion of the Decent Homes Standard to the private sector and how the licencing scheme would feed into it. It was explained that the strategy ensured that the Council would be able to respond to either of them. If the licensing scheme was introduced, then it would be up to the borough to determine the details. It was mentioned that the licencing scheme could also have a negative effect on the Borough, for instance the supply of rentable accommodations could decrease. Also, if the licencing scheme was introduced, it would most likely not be a borough-wide scheme, instead it would be focused on particular areas.

Then a question was asked about the support for tenants who were living in unacceptable  ...  view the full minutes text for item 23/23

The Homes Sub-Committee is asked to:

1.    Note the work to date and development plans that will be used as a basis to create the Resident Engagement Structure.

2.    Consider whether there are any comments it wishes to make on these development plans, which can be taken into account during the preparation of the Resident Engagement Structure.

The Sub-Committee considered a report set out on pages 41 to 56 of the agenda which provided an update covering the following areas: (i) Tpas (leading engagement expert); (ii) the current status of work; (iii) methodology; (iv) discovery sessions; (v) leadership; (vi) communication standards; (vii) trust and accountability; (viii) structure and process; (ix) design sessions; (x) outcomes.

Councillor Hale introduced the report. It was highlighted that it was the Council’s approach to create the first-class resident engagement structure and this paper carried through the customer standards, the white paper and the Resident Charter. A presentation on the development of the Resident Engagement Structure was delivered.

The first question concerned the negative past experiences of residents, and how the Council would rebuild trust whilst many members of staff remained the same. It was explained that one of the factors was to engage a group of staff members who would act as champions. The cultural change had been happening, however, the pace of change could have been quicker. It was also important to ensure that all staff members were accountable for their interactions with residents. It was stressed that it was very important to give an opportunity to members of staff to go thought the cultural transformation and see the benefit of better customer service. A supplementary question about performance management was asked. It was confirmed that performance management was built into the one-to-one appraisal process – this included ensuring that members of staff delivered what they promised and there was a system to monitor that. In addition to that, there was a training programme and case studies available. It could also be done through the recognition of high-quality behaviours.

This was followed by a question about ARC Independent Investigation report and whether there had been any work done around understanding why members of staff behaved in an unacceptable manner. It was explained that there were issues with engagement, empathy and care for residents. The Council had been working on ensuring that maintaining acceptable standards was everyone’s responsibility and officers were able to report and escalate incidents if necessary. It was also added that the Council recently procured customer service training and there was a professionalisation agenda to ensure that officers had all skills necessary to do the required tasks.

Another question considered how the Council identified and approached disengaged residents. It was explained initially residents that were involved in existing activities were approached. However, the Council also approached many other residents – through letters, but also directly by the team members. There were around 25 members of staff and 25 residents involved. It was added that many residents would only like to be involved in a certain issue. Therefore, it was important to accommodate that, and ensure that there were different pathways available. Then a question about the platforms used for engaging with residents was asked. It was explained that a website review was underway. It was challenged that the Council had not done any work on the Council  ...  view the full minutes text for item 24/23

The Homes Sub-Committee is asked to:

1.    Note the underlying principles and assumptions that will be used as a basis to develop the Housing Revenue Account Business Plan.

2.    Consider whether there are any comments it wishes to make on these underlying principles and assumptions, which can be taken into account during the preparation of the Housing Revenue Account Business Plan.

The Sub-Committee considered a report set out on pages 57 to 59 of the agenda which provided an overview of a statutory requirement for the Council to prepare a 30-year Business Plan for the Housing Revenue Account on an annual basis to set out the long-term financial position of the ring-fenced general fund account.

Councillor Hale and Susmita Sen, Corporate Director for Housing, introduced the report and stressed that it was a statutory requirement for the Council to prepare an HRA business plan, and that the Council was keen to ensure that the business plan became a more robust part of the business planning process.

The first question considered how this year’s HRA business plan compared to the last year’s one, and what were the principles and priorities coming through. It was explained that the largest priority at the moment was damp and mould. There has been around 1800 damp and mould cases that the Council had worked on. It was added that another priority was prevention of disrepair. It was stressed that there was a need to have a capital programme focused on ensuring that buildings were safe and watertight.

The next question considered the timeline for completing the remaining 75% of stock surveys. It was explained that it took approximately six months to complete a quarter of the surveys. It was highlighted that many social landlords would review 20% to 25% of stock each year. Therefore, completing this many surveys in a considerably shorter amount of time had been a challenge for the Council. By the end of December 2023, the Council would like to have completed one third of the stock surveys, and then they would like to maintain this pace for the rest of the financial year. One of the challenges has been to gaining access to the flats – at the moment the access rate was around 50%. However, in some cases data from other surveys could be used for other flats, e.g. external walls data for the block of flats placed in the same building. Also, the team has been using other opportunities, e.g. when there was a repair scheduled, to conduct surveys.

The next question considered the access rate and what was being done to increase it. It was explained that residents did not necessarily see the benefit in allowing officers into their homes. The team had been working on improving the communication and ensuring that residents were well-informed. It was also highlighted that the access rate might be affected by residents subletting their homes or the properties being vacant. However, it was added that the Council has been undertaking a programme of tenancy audits. This would be a three-year programme that was to be rolled out next month.

Another question was asked about whether the surveys were prioritised in any way. It was explained that they were not prioritised because there was very little information available. However, they had been looking into targeting large panel system blocks. At the beginning of the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 25/23

To consider any additions, amendments or changes to the agreed work programme for the Sub-Committee in 2023/24.

The Sub-Committee considered a report on pages 61 to 66 of the agenda, which presented the work programme for review.

Resolved: That the current work programme for the Homes Sub-Committee is noted.

To approve the minutes of the meeting held on 24 July 2023 as an accurate record.

The minutes of the previous meeting held on the 24 July 2023 were approved as an accurate record.