Agenda item

The commission heard from Councillor Merrill on the following points

·  Inflation rise of 30% on costs of materials for new builds.

·  Rising rate of borrowing affecting the housing market.

·  Ensuring that costs of repairs for leaseholders are accurately calculated and repairs completed in a timely manner.

·  Improvements in the repairs service involves setup of repairs resident group, repairs hub, hiring of multi trade services that could complete the entire repair work and improving the call centre effectiveness by using video calls.

The commission then asked questions around the following points of discussion

·  Only 50% of stage one complaints being upheld.

·  Council communication with leaseholders and estate agents on channelling repair complaints to the correct team within the council.

·  Repairs resident group.

·  Real time updates for residents on repairs through telematics systems.

·  Prevention of minor repairs turning into major repairs.

·  Differing repair needs of buildings built decades apart.

·  Apprenticeships for trade services.

Councillor Merrill explained to the commission that repairs resident group would include Southwark Group of Tenants Organisation (SGTO) Chair, Local Housing Forum Chairs and members of the public and it due to bet setup by December 2022.

The commission then heard from Christine Bramman, Head of Repair and Maintenance that the council do not directly contact letting agents, repairs are managed holistically by trained staff at the repairs contact centre and a repairs improvement program is underway. On only 50 % of complaints being upheld, the commission learned that more than 40% of stage one complaints are a result of residents not reporting the issue on the first occurrence this then gradually leads to major issues later which take longer to resolve, multi skilled operatives have been hired and tasked with resolving stage one complaints and process failures.

The commission learned that the proposed telematics system is being negotiated and is to be launched soon. Text messages are currently being used to communicate with residents. Some minor repairs have turned to major repairs due to Covid and not being able to access the property and also staff being redirected to delivering food, supplies in the community and only essential repairs being carried out. The backlog of repairs has now recovered. A cohort of 11 apprenticeships have started in September 2022, 5 electricians, 4 plumbers and two multi-skilled traders undergoing training courses.

The commission then discussed the following points

·  Major works prevention in asset management strategy and restrictions in budget.

·  Terms of reference of Repairs Residents Group to be discussed at its first meeting as its resident led and reconvening of Local Area Forums to meet.

·  Call backs for inadvertently disconnected customers getting through to the call centre after long waiting times this is to be fed back to the contact centre as a customer service improvement measure.

·  Customer service training for internal repairs service and contractor code of conduct to be enforced during their interactions with residents.

·  Leaseholder charges are to be fair, value for money, calculated accurately and scrutinised rigorously by the major works team.

·  Transparency of leaseholder’s charges from inception to completion of work; extensive market research and benchmarking with other London councils on costs before contracts are out for tender; value for money to be attained by looking at specific elements within improvements in the homeowners’ improvement plan.

·  Transparency that has been built in with the help of Strategic Core Group where consultants and contractors are discussing market fluctuations; the rise in inflation causing the feasibility to not reflect the final accounts.

The commission then asked questions around the following themes

·  Unclear breakdown of leaseholder charges and reasons for repair leading to leaseholders questioning the value for money.

·  Involving leaseholders in conversations with major works contractors and councils to build trust in the community.

·  Responsibilities of leaseholders and freeholders with regards to charges.

·  Several tiers of contractors and sub-contractors leading to spiralling costs.

The commission then learned from Councillor Merrill that there is a need to involve leaseholders when major works contracts are being procured to ensure they are well informed of the works needed on their estates. In addition there is substantial amount of work being undertaken to be able to explain to leaseholders as to why certain small works are being included in the major works contracts. For example a cost effective measure would be to replace windows that are nearing their end of life whilst scaffolding has been setup for other major works. Leaseholder charges only include costs which the leaseholder is legally required to pay, additional costs are paid from the council’s budget, for e.g. when external insulation is required as per the council’s climate emergency strategy.

The commission then heard from Desmond Vincent, Asst. Director of Building Safety, Housing and Modernisation that the council’s homeownership team is legally required to send leaseholders specific component breakdowns of charges which includes a contingency sum for unknown risks, works and related costs. Leaseholders can contact the homeownership team for further explanation on certain service charges that might be a result of a response to preventive repairs to avoid major works in the future.

The commission also learned that the partnering framework between consultants and contractors has mechanisms to look at fluctuating costs in different supply chains and the council as the contract administrator looks at unit cost prices being reflective of the contracts that have been agreed. The council with the help of the homeowners’ improvement plan is looking at challenging the consultants on feasibility.

On empty homes the commission heard that private sector empty homes are decreasing and that two contractors have been hired to bring the council back on target to reduce minor council voids by the end of 2022.

The commission then discussed the following points

·  Empty homes to be included on the agenda in the council meetings with large housing associations of more than 1000 units.

·  Property visits and checks by special investigation teams on council tenants illegally sub-letting in high rental cost properties.

·  Update on housing allocation strategy and its consultation by end of financial year.

·  Under occupying residents registering interests in downsize has increased due to economic crisis and rise in energy bills, although it is not substantial enough yet to address overcrowding, efforts are being made to reach out to people through advertising and individually answering residents’ concerns with downsizing.

·  Response to recommendation 4 from the previous year’s commission ‘that the Cabinet Member asks officers to implement a consultation protocol which prioritises clear, consistent and timely communications for all development projects where the council is building on existing estates. This protocol should take account of recommendations made in the SGTO consultation Charter.’ The commission heard that the housing consultation processes have improved and mistakes made during the Covid lockdown period of online consultations have been addressed; and that the commission would be kept updated on progress.