Agenda and minutes

To issue a welcome to those present, and to confirm if there are any apologies for absence.

The Chair welcomed new and returning members to the Commission and noted that apologies for absence had been received from Cllr Halford and Cllr Modhwadia.

Members will be asked to declare any interests they may have in the business to be discussed.

The Chair asked Members of the Commission to declare any interests. Cllr Gregg declared that his company look after young people, some of whom have applied council housing as care leavers.

The minutes of the meeting of the Housing Scrutiny Commission held on 12 March 2024 have been circulated, and Members will be asked to confirm them as a correct record.

The Chair highlighted that the minutes for the meeting on 12 March 2024 were included within the papers and asked members for comments.

AGREED:

·       It was agreed that the minutes of the meeting held on 12 March 2024 were a true and accurate record.

Members will be asked to note the membership of the Housing Scrutiny Commission for 2024/25:

Councillor O’Neill (Chair)

Councillor Zaman (Vice Chair)

Councillor Bajaj

Councillor Halford

Councillor Waddington

Councillor Gopal

Councillor Modhwadia

Councillor Gregg

The membership for the Housing Scrutiny Commission for 2024-2025 was noted. 

Members will be asked to note the commission meeting dates as follows:

·       Thursday 11 July 2024

·       Tuesday 27 August 2024

·       Tuesday 12 November 2024

·       Tuesday 7 January 2025

·       Tuesday 18 March 2025

·       Tuesday 22 April 2025

The dates of the meetings for the Housing Scrutiny Commission for 2024-2025 were noted.

Members are asked to note the scrutiny terms of reference.

The Commission noted the scrutiny terms of reference.

The Chair is invited to make any announcements as they see fit.

The Chair highlighted that in discussion with the Chair of the Public Health and Health integration Scrutiny Commission it is intended that an informal scrutiny inquiry day will be arranged to explore homelessness and the impact on health. Members across both Commissions will be invited to participate in the task group and further details of the scope and arrangements will be circulated in due course.

In response to Members comments, the Chair confirmed that the terms of reference for the task group will be shared for comment and can include mechanisms for regular check-ups for homeless individuals who may not have access to medical treatment.

The Chair reminded Members to consider their role and responsibilities as councillors and the role of scrutiny to serve residents in its capacity as a social landlord. The Deputy City Mayor for Housing and Neighbourhoods confirmed Leicester City Council as the largest landlord in the city and with the biggest housing stock of any Local Authority.

Any questions, representations and statements of case submitted in accordance with the Council’s procedures will be reported.

It was noted that none had been received.

Any petitions received in accordance with Council procedures will be reported.

It was noted that none had been received.

The Director of Housing submits a presentation to provide an overview of the service and key challenges.

The Director of Housing presented an overview for the Commission, and it was noted that:

·       Leicester City Council is the largest landlord with around 19.5k properties of the 145k homes in the city and is within the top twenty authorities in the country with the most housing stock.

·       Council homes generate over £90m through rent and service charges with an excellent rate of income collection. The Housing Revenue Account budget is ringfenced to provide services to tenants and enable investment in housing stock and estates through the capital programme and such things as the public realm & environmental budget. Services include tenancy management, support and advice services, repairs, voids etc. The housing division also provide additional services including homelessness, rough sleeping, private rented sector support and advice as well as an empty homes team but these are not funded through the HRA.

·       The ratio of council properties has significantly reduced over recent decades due to the Right to Buy scheme and demand for affordable housing is at a record high with over 6k people and families on the housing register. The Authority is however proud to be delivering additional housing to meet need in the city, providing 1,100 new affordable homes in the last term and on track to deliver the commitment of 1,500 affordable homes throughout 2023-2027.

·       The housing division receives around 5k approaches each year from individuals and families facing homelessness and has a 60% success rate with its aim to prevent people becoming homeless by continuing to remain in their accommodation. If this is not possible, temporary accommodation is provided by the Authority and the service develop a plan to find suitable permanent accommodation.

·       In 2022 the Authority declared a housing crisis due to the lack of suitable affordable housing to meet demand in the city & with over 500 families and 100 individuals currently now living in temporary accommodation. Full Council recently approved £45m to deliver 225 new temporary accommodation units and 125 leased units in addition to the acquisition and new build programme to alleviate pressures of people stating in temporary accommodation for long periods.

·       Leicester has established strong positive partnership working with other public sector organisations and the VCSE sector to work collaboratively to provide support and services in the city, including a strong rough sleeper outreach offer as well as homelessness and drug and alcohol services.

·       Around 45k-50k of the 145k homes in the city are privately rented and the Authority has built relationships to ensure the market is driven to provide good quality and affordable homes through the development of the Private Rented Sector Strategy. The Local Housing Allowance has been adjusted nationally and should provide more opportunity for people on low incomes or benefits to acquire properties up to the thirtieth percentile of market rent in the PRS.

In response to questions and comments from Members, it was noted that:

·       The service aims to identify suitable properties for individuals and families to provide temporary accommodation in the locality they need for education and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 78.

The Director of Housing submits a report to provide an update on the changes taking place in the regulation of social housing. The Scrutiny Commission is recommended to make any comments as they see fit. 

The Director of Housing presented the item, and it was noted that:

·       A new social housing regulator was introduced in April 2024 following tragedies such as Grenfell and the death of Awaab Ishak, to inspect all providers over a four-year period to assess against new standards. The Local Authority will therefore be subject to review and assessment of all activities delivered by the Housing Revenue Account with full details of the social housing regulator included in the report.

·       Social landlords will be graded following inspection and can range from C1 as the best to C4 the worse. C1 and C2 being the social landlord is compliant, C3 requires improvement and C4 if the social landlord is in serious detriment. The regulator has new powers and if a social landlord is found to be in serious detriment can undertake direct inspections, issue enforcement notices and unlimited penalties.

·       The Local Authority has and continues to work to prepare for the introduction of the social housing regulator and pending inspection. It has been challenging to undertake a self-assessment as the standards were issued in February 2024 and the regulator introduced shortly after in April 2024.

·       The housing division has many strengths but has identified areas for improvement. The regulator has made it clear to social landlords that they may not be expected to be fully compliant but require improvement plans for identified areas of improvement and processes are in place to provide assurance the division can meet the standards to the Deputy City Mayor for Housing and Neighbourhoods and can be reported to the Commission if requested.

The Deputy City Mayor for Housing and Neighbourhoods further highlighted that it had taken time for the detail of some out of standards to be issued which was important to benchmark against and commence development of an action plan of learning and priorities.

In response to questions and comments from Members, it was noted that:

·       The Local Authority is committed to ensure properties meet the decent homes standard and is 99.5% compliant by continuing to invest in housing stock to provide quality affordable homes for future generations. The service has robust safety and standards arrangements in place with a good intelligence that stock is of a good standard overall compared with others. However, the service is not complacent in its awareness that an aging stock can result in issues and some properties are sometimes returned in poor condition. 

·       A robust process in place to address damp and mould in council homes and work is also undertaken as part of the private rented sector strategy to support tenants in the private sector. Generally, there has not been widespread issues with damp and mould in the housing stock, although there are a small number of properties due to their design that have had problems. A specialist team has been created to manage cases including undertaking technical inspections and required work. Members were encouraged to ensure any cases of damp and mould be referred to the service.

·       Criteria is  ...  view the full minutes text for item 79.

The Director of Housing submits a report to inform the Commission on the rent arrears progress within the general housing stock for the financial year, April 2023 - March 2024.  The Commission is recommended to note the contents of the report and to make any comments as they see fit. 

The Head of Service presented the report, and it was noted that:

·       The Local Authority collect around £90m from tenants in rent and service charges each year for its housing stock. As of 31 March 2024, there was around £1.97m rent arrears – 14% higher than the previous year. This is likely to have been attributed to the cost-of-living crisis but when compared to other Authorities with similar housing stock, rent arrears in Leicester was lower.

·       Tenants are supported by the income management team who have been successful in collecting rent and preventing areas fully utilising discretionary housing benefits and the household support fund. Further support has been provided to tenants who may be experiencing financial difficulties with grants for fuel, water and white goods.

·       The cyber incident in March was an additional challenge that significantly impacted access to IT systems and impacted rent arrears.

·       The total value of the top 500 cases was 18% higher than the previous year and there had been an upward trend in people not engaging or vulnerable people needing support.

·       The migration to Universal Credit is expected to impact around a further six thousand tenants and is a possible challenge forecast for this year. The team continue to successfully work with vulnerable tenants with the highest arrears and will ensure tenants are in receipt of eligible benefits in a timely way as part of the migration to Universal Credit.

·       The Local Authority has trusted partner status with the Department for Work and Pensions to secure alternative payments for vulnerable tenants and if identified to be struggling to seek support of the DWP quicker. 

·       Seven evictions were carried out during 2023/24 for non-payment of rent which is much lower than the national rate.

·       Challenges remain for 2024/25 but the team will continue to support tenants and allocate discretionary payments where available and Members were encouraged to share concerns with officers to investigate and identify possible support.

Members of the Commission thanked officers for their positive work and in response to questions and comments, it was noted that:

·       Rent management advisors work with tenants who may be struggling to pay their rent to identify eligible benefits and support applications. Advisors can also make referrals if seeking work to the Jobcentre to help find employment.

·       Evictions are rare and a robust process is in place to ensure all support has been provided to tenants from all relevant services, including children and adult social care. Final agreement for eviction is required from the Deputy City Mayor for Housing and Neighbourhoods. No families have been evicted from council properties and Members were encouraged to always share details with officers if they know of cases where families have been evicted.

·       Rent increases have not yet been considered for the coming year but there are a number of budget pressures on the service that will need to be considered when they are proposed. Assurance was provided that the Commission will be updated as part of budget discussions at the January 2025  ...  view the full minutes text for item 80.

The Director of Housing submits a report to update the Commission on house building and acquisitions with a particular focus on new build council houses and the ongoing acquisitions programme.  The Commission is recommended to note the content of the report and to make any comments as they see fit.

The Head of Service presented the report, and it was noted that:

·       The Local Authority has a commitment to deliver 1,500 new social homes through a mix of acquisitions and developing new builds over the four-year term – both are progressing. The Saffron Velodrome development is now on site; Lanesborough Road development is awaiting badger survey results; the Forest Lodge Education Centre site has been demolished and a planning application submitted with the intention of being on site in 2025; the Southfields Newry site has been demolished and tender expected to enable to be on site in the New Year; and the Stocking Farm development has had the shops and garages demolished to prepare for new housing development and conversion of the farmhouse for adult social care.

·       A limited amount of Right to Buy receipts has limited the delivery of new affordable housing but the service continues to look at funding mechanisms including Homes England funding to source additional funding and deliver more homes.

·       Acquisitions generally correlate with the purchase of former council properties as they align with existing infrastructure and are suitable to meet the affordable needs of tenants. Other properties are considered for purchase through acquisition dependent upon demand on the housing register.

·       A robust process is in place to enable the Local Authority to consider building and land not in its ownership for potential viability; examples included land behind Welford Road; land development at the former Sainsburys site; the leys site and the purchase of Hospital Close with contractors now on site and anticipated to complete refurbishments in the New Year.

·       The Local Authority also support and encourage other affordable homes in the city including extra care provisions. Larger developments, such as Ashton Green, have a requirement for a percentage of new builds to be affordable and accessible and the service work to support registered providers to ensure developments in the city are suitable to current demand.

·       The New Local Plan is currently progressing which includes provisions sites for possible development of affordable housing although it should be remembered that this is likely to be for future allocation and not immediate.

·       Increasing costs continue to be a challenge and developments therefore require affordability and viability to be properly assessed to ensure the Housing Revenue Account balances.

In response to questions and comments from Members, it was noted that:

·       Various developments are commencing on site and expect to have delivery of new homes over the coming year.

·       There is a strategic commitment to provide 1,500 new homes over four years. There are risks associated to development and acquisitions, including procurement, stability of the construction industry etc. but addressing the housing crisis is a strategic priority in the city enabling review and assessment of land to determine viability for all possible development or acquisition opportunities.

·       New build and acquisition provision is determined on demand of the housing register and financial viability. When developing itself, the Local Authority is able to address gaps that private providers do not, for example  ...  view the full minutes text for item 81.

The Director for Housing submits a report to update the Commission on how the Environmental Budget and other investment will fund improvements on estates across the city in 2024/2025.  The Commission is recommended to note the contents of the report and to make any comments as they see fit. 

The District Manager presented the report, and it was noted that:

·       The environment budget has historically been set at £750k but due to pressures on the Housing Revenue Account it was reduced in 2023/24 to £200k and will remain at the reduced level for 2024/25. The budget is equally divided across the three districts and consultation with ward councillors is undertaken to identify improvements and projects.

·       Schemes delivered in 2023/24 were contained within the report, including installation of metal gates at Flora Street and additional maintenance of greenery and fences. Limited resources in the green team meant there was an underspend on green projects, but the budget was utilised on the Burns Flats in Western Ward.

·       Consultation had concluded with ward councillors to review existing projects and new priorities for 2024/25. Identified proposals across districts were contained within the report and include low level ground maintenance and weed spraying across, external PIR lighting and security around bungalows and a community growing project.

·       A prioritisation process was undertaken to identify proposals to be taken forward as a result of the reduced budget. The prioritisation table was included within the report and proposals scoring three or above were identified for 2024/25.

·       The east and west districts have allocated projects to meet their budget and the underspend in the south will be utilised to deliver other priorities.

·       Community engagement is important and district managers continue to engage with residents to ensure work is being delivered and undertake patch walks to identify issues and new priorities.

Members were supportive of seeking ward councillor suggestions and feedback for determining the allocations of the environmental budget and the Chair reminded Members that they should contact officers of any issues identified in their wards.

In response to questions and comments from Members, it was noted that the community growing project in Saffron ward will be a pilot but there may be potential with public health to broaden the scheme across the city and in different communal areas.

AGREED:

·       The Commission noted the report.

Members of the Commission will be asked to consider items for the future work programme

The Chair highlighted that the work programme will be developed, and Members were invited to make suggestions for consideration.

There being no further business, the meeting closed at 20.09.