Agenda and minutes

Apologies were received from Tenant Representative Mandy Powell-Hardy. The Committee noted that Ms Powell was on agreed medical leave and sent her best wishes for a speedy recovery.

 

Apologies were also received from Councillor Thittala. Councillor Barnett was present as the alternate.

 

Name	Item	Interest
Lulu Agate	19/7/HSC	Personal and Prejudicial: Participated in the debate but did not vote on recommendation 2.2 or 2.3.
Diane Best	19/7/HSC	Personal and Prejudicial: Participated in the debate but did not vote on recommendation 2.2 or 2.3.
Kay Harris	19/7/HSC	Personal and Prejudicial: Participated in the debate but did not vote on recommendation 2.2 or 2.3.
Diana Minns	19/7/HSC	Personal and Prejudicial: Participated in the debate but did not vote on recommendation 2.2 or 2.3.

 

The minutes of the meeting of the 27^th September 2018 were agreed and signed as a correct record.

Councillor Price addressed the Committee regarding minute item 19/8/HSC. His comments can be found with the minutes for this item.

 

Recommendations a to l (part 1) were Chaired by Diana Minns (Vice Chair / Tenant Representative) and recommendations m to v (part 2) were Chaired by Councillor Todd-Jones 

 

Matter for Decision

As part of the 2019/20 budget process, the range of assumptions upon which the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) Business Plan and Medium Term Financial Strategy were based, had been reviewed in light of the latest information available, culminating in the preparation of the HRA Budget Setting Report.

 

The HRA Budget-Setting Report provided an overview of the review of the key assumptions. It sets out the key parameters for the detailed recommendations and final budget proposals, and was the basis for the finalisation of the 2019/20 budgets.

 

Decision of Executive Councillor for Housing

Under Part 1 of the agenda, the Executive Councillor resolved to:

 

Review of Rents and Charges

 

a.   Approve that council dwelling rents for all social rented properties be reduced by 1%, in line with legislative requirements, introduced as part of the Welfare Reform and Work Act, with effect from 1 April 2019. This equates to an average rent reduction at the time of writing this report of £0.99 per week on a 52 week basis.

 

b.   Approve that affordable rents are reviewed in line with rent legislation, to ensure that the rents charged are no more than 80% of market rent, with this figure then reduced by the 1% per annum, as with social housing. Local policy is to cap affordable rents (inclusive of all service charges) at the Local Housing Allowance level, which will result in rent variations in line with any changes notified to the authority in this level.

 

c.   Approve that rents for shared ownership are reviewed and amended from April 2019, in line with the specific requirements within the lease for each property.

 

d.   Approve that garage and parking space charges for 2019/20, are increased in line with inflation at 2.2%, with resulting charges as summarised in Section 3 of the HRA Budget Setting Report.

 

e.   Approve the proposed service charges for Housing Revenue Account services and facilities, as shown in Appendix B of the HRA Budget Setting Report.

 

f.     Approve the proposed leasehold administration charges for 2019/20, as detailed in Appendix B of the HRA Budget Setting Report.

 

g.   Approve that caretaking, building cleaning, estate services, grounds maintenance, temporary housing premises and utilities, sheltered scheme premises and utilities, digital television aerial, flat cleaning, third party management and catering charges continue to be recovered at full cost, as detailed in Appendix B of the HRA Budget Setting Report, recognising that local authorities should endeavour to limit increases to inflation as measured by CPI at September 2018 (2.4%) plus 1%, wherever possible.

 

h.   Approve that service charges for gas maintenance, door entry systems, lifts and electrical and mechanical maintenance are increased in an attempt recover full estimated costs, as detailed in Appendix B of the HRA Budget Setting Report, recognising that local authorities should endeavour to limit increases to inflation as measured by CPI at September 2018 (2.4%) plus 1%, equivalent to an increase of 3.4% in total, wherever possible.

 

Revenue – HRA

 

Revised Budget 2018/19:

i.     Approve with any amendments, the Revised Budget identified in Section 4 and Appendix D (1) of the HRA Budget Setting Report, which reflects a net increase in the use of HRA reserves for 2018/19 of £300,670.

 

Budget 2019/20:

j.     Approve with any amendments, any Non-Cash Limit items identified in Section 4 of the HRA Budget Setting Report or shown in Appendix D (2) of the HRA Budget Setting Report.

 

k.    Approve with any amendments, any Savings, Increased Income, Unavoidable Revenue Pressures and Reduced Income proposals, as shown in Appendix D (2) of the HRA Budget Setting Report.

 

l.     Approve the resulting Housing Revenue Account revenue budget as summarised in the Housing Revenue Account Summary Forecast 2018/19 to 2023/24 shown in Appendix J of the HRA Budget Setting Report.

 

l1  In light of issues surrounding Universal Credit and payment arrangements for housing costs, approvals for eviction will not be progressed for a tenant in rent arrears which relate solely to Universal Credit delays and missed payments which are beyond their control. Any delays that are deemed to be the result of the tenant’s own delay in applying/supplying the correct information will be followed up through the usual processes.

Full support will be provided for any tenant in such difficulties, including ensuring that the rent element is paid direct to the Council, through a DWP managed payment arrangement.

If there are other breaches of the tenancy agreement (such as ASB) then appropriate action will be taken.

 

Under Part 2 of the agenda, the Executive Councillor for Housing resolved to recommend to Council:

 

Treasury Management

m. Recognise the decision to defer the review of the current approach to treasury management, which requires 25% of the value of the housing debt to be set-aside by the point at which the loan portfolio matures until after it is formally confirmed that the legislation allowing the introduction of a levy in respect of the sale of higher value voids will be repealed.

Housing Capital

n.   Approval of capital bids, shown in Appendix D (3) of the HRA Budget Setting Report, to include the replacement of the lifts at Ditchburn Place whilst other major refurbishment work is underway.

o.   Approval of the latest Decent Homes Programme, to include any updated allocation and timing of decent homes expenditure for new build dwellings, as detailed in Appendix E of the HRA Budget Setting Report.

p.   Approval of the latest budget sums, profiling and associated financing for all new build schemes, including new scheme specific approvals for Colville Road, Meadows and Buchan Street and Clerk Maxwell Road, based upon the latest cost information from the Cambridge Investment Partnership (CIP) or direct procurements, as detailed in Appendices E and H, and summarised in Appendix K, of the HRA Budget Setting Report.

q.   Approval of re-phasing of budget for the last phase of refurbishment at Ditchburn Place from 2018/19 into 2019/20, as detailed in Appendix E, and summarised in Appendix K, of the HRA Budget Setting Report.

r.     Approval of the revised Housing Capital Investment Plan as shown in Appendix K of the HRA Budget Setting Report.

General

s.   Approval of delegation to the Head of Finance, as Section 151 Officer, to approve an in year increase or decrease in the budget for disabled facilities grants, in direct relation to any increase or decrease in the capital grant funding for this purpose, as received from the County Council through the Better Care Fund.

t.     Approval of delegation to the Strategic Director to review and amend the level of fees charged by the Shared Home Improvement Agency for disabled facilities grants and repair assistance grants, in line with any decisions s made by the Shared Home Improvement Agency Board.

u.   Approval of delegation to the Strategic Director, in consultation with the Head of Finance, as Section 151 Officer, to draw down resource from the ear-marked reserve for potential debt redemption or re-investment, for the purpose of open market property acquisition or new build housing development, should the need arise, in order to meet quarterly deadlines for the use of retained right to buy receipts.

v.   Approval of delegation to the Strategic Director, following formal consultation with tenants, to make a decision in respect of the number of rent weeks over which the annual rent is charged for council tenants, and implement any change in policy accordingly.

 

Reason for the Decision

As set out in the Officer’s report.

 

Any Alternative Options Considered and Rejected

Not applicable.

 

Scrutiny Considerations

The Committee received a report from the Business Manager / Principal Accountant.

 

The Committee made the following comments in response to the report:

     i.        Praised the work of the Estate Champions and welcomed the improvements achieved so far.

    ii.        Tenant representatives expressed concern about the loss of an office in the South of the City and how his might impact tenants experiencing difficulties due to Universal Credit. It was confirmed that staff were moving to more mobile working.

 

The Business Manager / Principal Accountant stated the following in response to Members’ questions:

     i.        The Transformation Fund could be used to fund a fourth edition of Open Door, subject to the approval of the Strategic Director.

    ii.        Confirmed that a funding bid for extra resources needed to complete a stock condition survey was expected shortly.

   iii.        Clarified the delays in the delivery of some new build schemes: Ventress Close had been delayed by a bat survey.

 

Councillor Cantrill introduced the Liberal Democrat Amendment to the 2019/20 Housing Revenue Budget.

 

The Committee made the following comments in response to the report:

       i.        Suggested that the zero tolerance policy regarding storage of items on landing was necessary and that fire resistant items would not resolve the issue of trip hazards in an emergency. Any proposals to soften the policy would be difficult to police.

     ii.         Discussed Housing First approaches and the role of the County Council in funding this.

    iii.        Stated that offering lower rents to 3 and 4 bedroomed properties would not be directing the limited resources to those most in need.

   iv.        Discussed the best way to assist those transitioning to Universal Credit.

 

The Strategic Director undertook to circulate figures regarding the use of Discretionary Housing Payments.

 

The following vote was chaired by Diana Minns (Vice Chair /Tenant Representative)

 

The Liberal Democrats Group alternative budget: 3 votes in favour to 9 against. The amendment was lost.

 

Diana Minns proposed and Lulu Agate seconded the following amendment to the recommendations:

 

Part 1 Recommendations, insert as new (L1).

 

In light of issues surrounding Universal Credit and payment arrangements for housing costs, approvals for eviction will not be progressed for a tenant in rent arrears which relate solely to Universal Credit delays and missed payments which are beyond their control. Any delays that are deemed to be the result of the tenant’s own delay in applying/supplying the correct information will be followed up through the usual processes.

 

Full support will be provided for any tenant in such difficulties, including ensuring that the rent element is paid direct to the Council, through a DWP managed payment arrangement.

 

If there are other breaches of the tenancy agreement (such as ASB) then appropriate action will be taken.

 

The following vote was chaired by Diana Minns (Vice Chair /Tenant Representative)

 

The additional recommendation was agreed unanimously.

 

Resolved (by 9 vote to 0 and 3 abstentions) to endorse the original recommendations A to L and additional recommendation L1.

 

The following votes were chaired by Councillor Todd-Jones

 

Resolved (4 votes to 0 and 3 abstentions) to endorse the original report recommendations M to V of the budget proposals

 

The Executive Councillor approved the recommendations.

 

 

This item was Chaired by Diana Minns (Vice Chair)

 

Matter for Decision

A review of a suite of tenancy management, repair and void management policies, and the way the service recovers money owed to the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) for rechargeable work, damage to HRA assets or fees relating to HRA owned property or land.

 

Decision of Executive Councillor for Housing

     i.        Approved the suite of revised policies

    ii.        Noted the review dates listed within each policy and delegated authority to the Head of Housing to determine if individual policies should be brought back for committee approval depending on the degree or significance of any changes made at review points.

 

Reason for the Decision

As set out in the Officer’s report.

 

Any Alternative Options Considered and Rejected

Not applicable.

 

Scrutiny Considerations

The Committee received a report from the Head of Housing.

 

The Committee made the following comments in response to the report:

     i.        Welcomed the gas safety policy.

 

The Head of Housing stated the following in response to Members’ questions:

     i.        Assistance was available to help vulnerable residents to clear properties.

    ii.        The mutual exchange system allowed medical needs to be considered when extra bedrooms were needed.

   iii.        The re-chargable repairs scheme was targeted at wilful damage rather than no fault incidents.

 

The Committee unanimously resolved to endorse the recommendations.

 

The Executive Councillor approved the recommendations.

 

This item was Chaired by Diana Minns (Vice Chair)

 

Matter for Decision

The report provided an overview of three changes which impact Tenant and Leaseholder Representatives (TLR). A dedicated TLR Code of Conduct (Appendix 1) had been written which aligns with their unique position on the Housing Scrutiny Committee (HSC). This report also reviews TLR allowances and provides an update on the Tenant Representative vacancy, as required by committee decision.

 

Decision of Executive Councillor for Housing

     i.        Agreed the terms of the new TLR Code of Conduct.

    ii.        Agreed the allowance proposal detailed as option 1 in this report, to increase the TLR allowance for 2019 to correspond with the Consumer Price Index level set in the preceding September.  The new allowance rate would begin from March 2019.

   iii.        Agreed from 2019 the TLR allowance should change annually by the Consumer Price Index level set in the preceding September, thus creating an inbuilt review mechanism. The allowance will then be reviewed again in 2022.

  iv.        Noted the approach taken to fill the vacant Tenant Representative position.

                                       

Reason for the Decision

As set out in the Officer’s report.

 

Any Alternative Options Considered and Rejected

Not applicable.

 

Scrutiny Considerations

 

The Committee received a report from the Resident Engagement Officer. The Committee noted a correction to page 2 of the report, para 3.8, allowance B should read £299.

 

The Committee made the following comments in response to the report:

     i.        Welcomed the clarity regarding the roles.

    ii.        Stated that the representatives were good value for money.

 

The Committee resolved unanimously to endorse the recommendations 2.1 and 2.4.

 

The Committee resolved (by 8 votes to 0) to endorse the recommendations 2.2 and 2.3.

 

The Executive Councillor approved the recommendation.

 

This item was Chaired by Councillor Todd-Jones 

 

Public Speaker

 

Councillor Price addressed the Committee as follows:

     i.        The proposal was an exciting opportunity.

    ii.        The Meadows Community Centre had been an asset to the local community.

   iii.        New development should be even better.

  iv.        The Buchan Street development would provide much needed housing.

 

Matter for Decision

 

The report proposed a redevelopment of The Meadows and Buchan Street sites, to provide much-needed Council rented housing, and a new community centre. It proposed adding these sites to the Council’s Rolling Programme of Housing development, making the resources for the redevelopment available, and working with centre users, neighbours, staff and others to ensure the design of the new homes and community centre provides well for the local community.

 

Decision of Executive Councillor for Communities:

 

     i.        Approved the rationalisation of two community centres into a new community hub in line with the Community Centres Strategy (June 2017), in order to make land available for much needed Council housing; The development process will ensure that a community centre remains open throughout the redevelopment period; and that local residents and centre users are engaged in the detailed design of the new community facility.

 

Decision of Executive Councillor for Housing:

 

     i.        Approved the addition of Meadows and Buchan Street sites to the Rolling Programme, to enable detailed design and project work to proceed

    ii.        Approved the indicative mix of the proposed scheme, subject to design and planning, to include a mix of Council rented housing, as set out below:

 

	Meadows	Buchan
1B2P Flat (Housing First)		2
2B4P Flat (Housing First)		1
1B2P Flat	58	6
2B4P Flat	27	5
3B5P House	0	7
Totals	85	21
Community Centre GIA	1583m2
Retail space GIA		148m2

 

   iii.        Recommended to Council the inclusion of an indicative budget of £26,379,880 in the Housing Capital Programme (to be presented to Council in the HRA BSR).

 

  iv.        _{­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­}Authorised the Strategic Director, delegation exercised in consultation with the Executive Councillor, Chair and Spokes following future business planning, to seek approval from the Secretary of State for use of HRA resources to fund part of the cost of the Community Centre and commercial unit (on the basis that this would aid the release of land for much needed housing in line with national government policy), subject to this being viable within a revised HRA business plan, and to vary the contributions recommended from the Housing Revenue Account and the General Fund in the light of the decision.

 

   v.        Approved that the site is offered to CIP to progress in accordance with the CIP process which was approved at Strategy & Resources Committee on 9th October 2017 subject to a value for money assessment to be carried out on behalf of the Council prior to entering into the Agreement for Lease set out in that process.

 

Reason for the Decision

As set out in the Officer’s report.

 

Any Alternative Options Considered and Rejected

Not applicable.

 

Scrutiny Considerations

The Committee received a report from the Manager, Housing Development Agency.

 

The Committee made the following comments in response to the report:

     i.        Thanked officers for work over a number of years that had brought this project to the point of delivery.

    ii.        Expressed regret at the loss of green space.

   iii.        Concerns were raised about conflicting demands for parking and the level of provision for the new housing units.

 

The Manager, Housing Development Agency said the following in response to Members’ questions:

     i.        The new facility would be slightly larger than the combined size of the two existing community facilities.

    ii.        Stated that the remaining green space would require better management to ensure the full benefit was achieved.

   iii.        The proposed building would cross the City /South Cambs boundary and planning permissions would need to take this into account.

  iv.        Sports England was expected to approve the plans.

   v.        Existing users would be given priority when allocating resources in the new facility.  

 

The Executive Councillor for Communities confirmed that a range of consultations had taken place and the resulting scheme was intended to meet as much need as possible.

 

Councillor Cantrill expressed concerns that an application was being submitted to the Secretary of State regarding the use of HRA funds for the community building when full business case had not been completed. He asked for an assurance that this Committee would have sight of the business case before such an application was submitted.

 

Councillor Cantrill proposed an amendment to delete recommendation 2.2.4.

 

Authorise the Strategic Director to seek approval from the Secretary of State for use of HRA resources to fund part of the cost of the Community Centre and commercial unit (on the basis that this would aid the release of land for much needed housing in line with national government policy), subject to this being viable within a revised HRA business plan, and to vary the contributions recommended from the Housing Revenue Account and the General Fund in the light of the decision.

 

The Strategic Director suggested additional wording to recommendation 2.2.4 could achieve the desired level of scrutiny.

 

Councillor Cantrill withdrew the proposed amendment to delete recommendation 2.2.4 and proposed the following amended wording (additional text in bold):

 

Authorise the Strategic Director, subject to final approval from the Housing Scrutiny Committee, to seek approval from the Secretary of State for use of HRA resources to fund part of the cost of the Community Centre and commercial unit (on the basis that this would aid the release of land for much needed housing in line with national government policy), subject to this being viable within a revised HRA business plan, and to vary the contributions recommended from the Housing Revenue Account and the General Fund in the light of the decision.

 

The amendment was lost by 3 votes to 4.

 

Following Committee discussions, the following amendment to recommendation 2.2.4 was proposed:

 

Authorise the Strategic Director, delegation exercised in consultation with the Executive Councillor, Chair and Spokes following future business planning, to seek approval from the Secretary of State for use of HRA resources to fund part of the cost of the Community Centre and commercial unit (on the basis that this would aid the release of land for much needed housing in line with national government policy), subject to this being viable within a revised HRA business plan, and to vary the contributions recommended from the Housing Revenue Account and the General Fund in the light of the decision.

 

This amendment was carried by 4 votes to 0.

 

 

The Committee resolved (by 4 votes to 0) to endorse the recommendation 2.1.1.

 

The Executive Councillor for Communities approved the recommendation.

 

The Committee resolved (by 4 votes to 0) to endorse the recommendation 2.2.1 to 2.2.6 (as amended)

 

The Executive Councillor for Housing approved the recommendations.

 

This item was Chaired by Councillor Todd-Jones 

 

Matter for Decision

     i.        The City Council had agreed a devolution deal with government to deliver 500 new Council homes over 5 years.

    ii.        Clerk Maxwell Road is a scheme of 35 units being brought forward by Hill in conjunction with Trinity College Cambridge and has been identified as a potential S106 opportunity with Hill. The proposed scheme will provide 14 new Council rented dwellings (40%).

   iii.        The report sought approval for a capital budget for the acquisition of the 14 affordable units as Council rented units based on an initial appraisal of the scheme and approval for the delivery route to be adopted.

 

Decision of Executive Councillor for Housing

     i.        Noted the indicative mix of the proposed scheme to include 10 no. one bedroom flats and 4 no. two bedroom flats to meet minimum Council space standards requirements (NDSS) and provision of through floor lifts.

    ii.        Approved that the scheme be brought forward with an indicative capital budget for the scheme of £2,837,760 to cover all of the purchase and construction costs, legal and professional fees and associated other fees to deliver a scheme that meets an identified housing need in Cambridge City.

   iii.        Noted that the scheme is indicative and authorise the Strategic Director in consultation with the Executive Councillor to approve variations to the scheme including the number of units and mix of property types and sizes outlined in this report.

  iv.        Approved that the site is progressed subject to agreement of terms and a value for money assessment to be carried out on behalf of the Council prior to entering into a build contract with Hill.

 

Reason for the Decision

As set out in the Officer’s report.

 

Any Alternative Options Considered and Rejected

Not applicable.

 

Scrutiny Considerations

 

The Committee received a report from the Manager, Housing Development Agency.

 

The Manager, Housing Development Agency said the following in response to Members’ questions:

 

     i.        A Head of Terms agreement had been agreed with the developer.

 

The Committee resolved (by 4 votes to 0) to endorse the recommendation.

 

The Executive Councillor approved the recommendations.

 

This item was Chaired by Councillor Todd-Jones 

 

Matter for Decision

The report sought approval for a capital budget for the scheme based on the indicative capacity study which has been undertaken for the site and the outline appraisals referenced in this report and for the delivery route to be adopted.

 

Decision of Executive Councillor for Housing

     i.        Approved that the scheme was brought forward with an indicative capital budget for the scheme of £13,781,590 to cover all of the site assembly, construction costs, professional fees and associated other fees to deliver a scheme that meets an identified housing need in Cambridge City.

    ii.        Authorise the Strategic Director in consultation with the Executive Councillor for Housing to approve variations to the scheme including the number of units and mix of property types and sizes outlined in this report.

   iii.        Approved that the site was offered to CIP to progress in accordance with the CIP process which was approved at Strategy & Resources Committee on 9^th October 2017 subject to a value for money assessment to be carried out on behalf of the Council prior to entering into the Agreement for Lease set out in that process.

  iv.        Delegated authority to the Strategic Director to commence Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) proceedings on Leasehold properties to be demolished to enable the development should these be required.

   v.        Delegated authority to the Strategic Director to serve initial Demolition Notices under the Housing Act 1985.

 

Reason for the Decision

As set out in the Officer’s report.

 

Any Alternative Options Considered and Rejected

Not applicable.

 

Scrutiny Considerations

 

The Committee received a report from the Manager, Housing Development Agency.

 

 

The Committee welcomed the scheme.

 

The Committee resolved (by 4 votes to 0) to endorse the recommendation.

 

The Executive Councillor approved the recommendation.

 

This item was Chaired by Councillor Todd-Jones 

 

Matter for Decision

The report provided an update on the programme to deliver 500 Council homes by March 2022 with funding from the Combined Authority.

 

Decision of Executive Councillor for Housing

     i.        Noted the overall progress on the Combined Authority programme to deliver 500 Council rented homes.

    ii.        Noted the overall Cambridge Investment Partnership programme.

   iii.        Approved (subject to specific project approvals) the addition of the Meadows Centre & Buchan Street site to the Affordable Housing Programme.

  iv.        Noted the updated reporting arrangements with the Combined Authority.

 

Reason for the Decision

As set out in the Officer’s report.

 

Any Alternative Options Considered and Rejected

Not applicable.

 

Scrutiny Considerations

 

The Committee received a report from the Manager, Housing Development Agency.

 

The Committee made the following comments in response to the report:

     i.        Suggested that a covering report listing all sites under development, budgets and delays would be very useful as an overview.

    ii.        Suggested that it was good that housing was being delivered but questioned how the Committee could be sure that this was the most efficient delivery method. A clear tracking of projects against the predicted budgets was needed.

 

The Manager, Housing Development Agency said the following in response to Members’ questions:

     i.        Stated that 611 homes were being delivered against a target of 500. These were a mix of new properties and re-provision and would be delivered very close to the original budget.

 

The Committee resolved (by 4 votes to 0) to endorse the recommendation.

 

The Executive Councillor approved the recommendation.

 

This item was Chaired by Councillor Todd-Jones 

 

Matter for Decision

 

The Housing Ombudsman had upheld a complaint relating to the victim of anti-social behavior (ASB) from a neighbouring tenant.

 

In these circumstances, the Head of Legal Services, as the Council’s Monitoring Officer, has an obligation to report the findings to the Executive. The Executive is obliged to set out what action has already been taken in respect of the findings, what action it intends to take and the reasons for taking the action.

 

Decision of Executive Councillor for Housing

     i.        Endorsed the actions taken by officers in response to the finding of the Local Government Ombudsman.

 

Reason for the Decision

As set out in the Officer’s report.

 

Any Alternative Options Considered and Rejected

Not applicable.

 

Scrutiny Considerations

 

The Committee unanimously resolved to endorse the recommendations.

 

The Executive Councillor approved the recommendation.