Agenda and minutes

No declarations of interest were received.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Caulfield and V Diouf.

·        Housing Revenue Account Business Plan

4:05pm to 4:40pm

The Cabinet Member for Homes and Customers, and the Housing Manager attended to provide members with an update on the position of Housing Revenue Account (HRA) Business Plan.

Members were advised that legislation which was formally introduced in 2016 set out national policy changes, including a 1 per cent rent reduction for all social housing tenants in each of the four consecutive years, beginning in April 2016.

This policy change had to be accounted for within the HRA Business Plan, and was forecasted to reduce income to the Council from Housing Service by over £10 million over the first four years, and by £172.4 million over the full 30 years of the HRA Business Plan.

The Housing Manager reported that a series of recommendations were presented to, and approved by, Cabinet in May 2016 that aimed at mitigating the financial impact of the rent reduction and other policies.  These related to a number of areas within the housing business plan including the responsive repairs budget, disposal of land and assets, and reviewing contracts and tenant repairing obligations.

An additional recommendation was made to carry out this work in partnership with tenants, cross-party elected members and officers, which led to the establishment of the HRA Business Plan Steering Group.

It was reported that the Steering Group had been split into separate Working Groups to take a more focused review of services and strategies.  This resulted in a number of recommendations made to Cabinet and Corporate Management team on a number of areas, including:

·        A 52 week rent year (commencing April 2018) to make paying rent as manageable as possible for tenants when Universal Credit is rolled out

·        Updated rent recovery letters and processes aimed at promoting a payment culture

·        Improved desirability of hard to-let properties through decorating and carpeting

·        The use of ‘Rightmove’ to advertise hard to-let properties

·        A reduced repairs budget, updated repair response times and proposed changes to tenants’ obligations in respect of household repairs

·        Proposed changes to the Tenancy Agreement

The Housing Manager advised that Cabinet had recently approved the proposed changes to the Tenancy Agreement (subject to consultationwith tenants) and the introduction of a 52 week rent year, and that the use of ‘Rightmove’ had recently commenced.

Members were also made aware that over 60 per cent of the HRA budget was being spent on repairs, with responsive housing repairs equating to approximately £1K per property each year, compared to a national average of £850 per property each year.

In attempt to reduce spending, it was proposed that tenants be asked to undertake some of the minor ‘DIY’ repairs within their household, such as changing light bulbs and shower curtains.

The criteria for the response times of repairs had also been revised both help with managing tenants’ expectations and the resources of Housing Services.  The classifications for appointments were revised to: ‘within 24 hours’, ‘within 3 days’, ‘within 7 days’ and ‘up to 30 days’, with the latter option offering tenants a specific appointment date at the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 20.

·        Play Strategy

·        Leisure, Sport and Cultural Activities

·        Development of the site of the old Queen’s Park Sports Centre

4:45pm to 5:00pm

Development of the old Queen’s Park Sports Centre site

The Lead Member of the Scrutiny Project Group, Councillor Simmons, attended the meeting along with; the Assistant Cabinet Member, Councillor Dickinson; Executive Director, Michael Rich; and Democratic and Scrutiny Officer, Brian Offiler, to update members on the progress made by the Project Group.

Councillor Simmons made members aware that he had met with Mike Piet of FMG Consulting to discuss a range of potential options for the site. 

Michael Rich advised that FMG Consulting had also met with Historic England following this, and were now working with the Council to construct a full business case.  It was planned that the draft investment proposal be completed in the near future.

Councillor Dyke asked about the range of leisure and sport opportunities that were being considered to be made available at the site.

Councillor Dickinson echoed the importance of maximising the opportunity to provide inclusive services that attract a number of people from different age groups, and to produce an effective income that can help to further support the economic growth of the borough.

The members were informed that, if the desired timescales and deadlines for the business proposal are met, there may be a need to arrange an additional meeting of the Committee prior to its next scheduled date in December.

Play Strategy

The Lead Member of the Scrutiny Project Group, Councillor Derbyshire, updated members on the progress made to develop a new Play Strategy.  It was advised that a draft strategy had been produced and that consultation with the Planning Department had commenced.

It was informed that a wider consultation relating to the draft strategy with all Council members was intended to be in place before the end of the calendar year.

RESOLVED –

1.   That the update on the progress of the Scrutiny Project Group for the Development of the Old Queen’s Park Sports Centre, be noted.

2.   That the update on the development of the Play Strategy be noted.

5:00pm to 5:05pm

The Work Programme was considered.  The Vice-Chair noted that ‘Procurement of the Council’s Waste Contract’ was discussed as a potential item to come to committee at the pre-agenda meeting.  It was instead proposed to add this item to the work programme for a suitable future meeting.

RESOLVED –

1.   That ‘Procurement of the Council’s Waste Contract’ be added to the Work Programme.

2.   That the Work Programme be approved.

5:05pm to 5:10pm

The Monitoring Schedule was considered.

RESOLVED –

That the Monitoring Schedule be approved.

5:10pm to 5:15pm

Housing Revenue Account Business Plan Steering Group

The Chair confirmed to members that the Housing Revenue Account Business Plan Steering Group was updated on by the Cabinet Member for Homes and Customers, and the Housing Manager during Item 3 of the agenda.

RESOLVED –

That the update provided as part of Item 3 of the agenda, be noted.

5:15pm to 5:20pm

The Forward Plan was considered.

RESOLVED –

That the Forward Plan be noted.

5:20pm to 5:25pm

The Minutes of the meeting of the Committee held on 25 July, 2017 were presented.

RESOLVED –

That the Minutes be accepted as a correct record and be signed by the Chair.