Haringey Council plans to spend nearly £5 million fixing “major and systematic failings” in its housing service.
The council’s housing improvement plan aims to provide “a high-quality and customer-focused landlord service to the authority’s 20,000 tenants and leaseholders”.
It comes after a survey revealed just 18% of leaseholders and 45% of tenants were satisfied with the performance of the council’s housing services.
The survey, carried out in November and December last year, shows only 21% of leaseholders were satisfied with the repairs service, while just 14% believed the housing service provides a well-maintained home and 22% were satisfied that it provides a safe home.
Reports presented to a meeting of the council’s cabinet on Tuesday acknowledge “major and systematic failings” in the running of its housing stock, which was insourced from council-owned company Homes for Haringey in June last year.
Earlier this year, the Regulator of Social Housing found the council had failed to complete 4,000 high-risk fire safety works and did not have up-to-date electrical safety reports for thousands of homes. It also found more than 100 properties had serious hazards and nearly 5,000 did not meet minimum social housing standards.
The council is also being investigated by the Housing Ombudsman for “persistent poor performance over damp and mould complaints”.
The improvement plan sets out a pledge to put residents at the heart of decision-making. The council will launch a programme of workshops and a residents’ forum giving tenants and leaseholders the chance to have their voices heard. There are also plans for a “stronger governance framework” to monitor improvements.
Key aims of the plan include responding to emergency repairs within 24 hours of them being reported, carrying out annual programmes of energy improvement works and gas safety checks, and undertaking monthly lift safety checks.
There is also a pledge to provide residents with fire safety information specific to their home every three years, or sooner if there is any significant change.
The report sets out £4.7 million of investment to deliver the improvements, including £2.8 million of extra spending on the housing repairs service, £500,000 on housing management and £300,000 on resident engagement.
It reveals the improvement programme will initially run for 24 months but acknowledges that some activity will need to be carried out over the longer term.
Speaking during the meeting, Dana Carlin, cabinet member for housing services, private renters and planning, said the council had been “letting [its] residents down over many years” but now had a “solid plan for improvement”.
Cllr Carlin added: “We have a lot of work to do, and as a cabinet member I recognise how important this is. Good governance and clear reporting to cabinet is set out in this report so we are assured that progress is being made.”
Liberal Democrat housing spokesperson Dawn Barnes said the tenant and leaseholder satisfaction levels were “really, really low” and asked how they would be addressed.
Cllr Carlin said the council was “very concerned” about the low level of satisfaction and she expected that levels would increase.
The plan and associated spending to deliver the improvements were unanimously agreed by cabinet members.
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