Agenda item

The Scrutiny Committee is asked to consider and comment on the draft version of the HRA Business Plan and its accompanying Action Plan 2020-2025.

The Committee received the report of the Housing and Environmental Health Service Manager which asked Members to consider and comment on the draft version of the HRA Business Plan and its accompanying Action Plan 2020-2025. The HRA and Action Plan were considered by the Executive on 5 September 2019 and approved for consultation with key stakeholders.

Members noted that the HRA detailed the Council’s ambitions over the next five years and beyond as to how it managed and looked to improve its housing stock, ensuring as much as possible that the needs of residents were met now and in the future.

Officers explained that the HRA Business Plan provided tenants, the Council and Members with priorities and direction as to how it would manage Council owned social housing in the Selby District. The plan outlined key responsibilities for the Council and set out priorities for spending. The plan took into account the views of tenants and formed a key element of the over-arching Housing Strategy, including an understanding of the demand versus resource of social housing and reviewing the Council’s long-term financial position.

Members learnt that HRA self-financing commenced in April 2012, which allowed local housing authorities to fully retain the money they received in rent in return for taking on a proportion of national social housing debt. This allowed them to plan and provide services to current and future tenants. Although this system provided the freedom to develop and deliver a less constrained vision for council housing, it was noted that it should be done in a prudent, viable and measured way with a number of checks and balances built into the system.

The Committee acknowledged that the Council’s plan was consequently to drive the development of more new homes and for all housing in the District to be of a quality, type and size which met the needs of local communities. The new objectives were:

·           Objective 1: To ensure good quality housing within the District which helped to meet the needs of the local community.

·           Objective 2: To provide a first rate housing management service which made the best use of existing stock.

·           Objective 3: To deliver a financially sustainable service which demonstrated value for money and ensured that investment was targeted to Council priorities.

Members expressed concerns around maintenance of homes to a decent homes standard, and emphasised the importance of recruiting a maintenance workforce that could address the work that needed doing. Officers acknowledged that recruitment of trade workers had been difficult due to the Council being unable to pay the market rate for services, and past issues with the management of performance. A new housing system was currently being implemented which would improve monitoring, and contracts were being reviewed in order to streamline the improvement works that were required. Apprentice schemes were already being used successfully and it was hoped that this would continue to expand in the coming years.

Members asked a number of questions about the housing service, including its sustainability, the number of Council homes lost each year to Right to Buy, and the use of sustainable and renewable materials. Officers confirmed that they were looking closely at thermal and energy efficiency, including the phasing out of electric and solid fuel systems. Gas systems were still being fitted in Council homes, but Members were assured that improvements to insulation were also being considered.

Lastly, Officers explained that whilst off-site construction or modular homes had been looked at, there were still significant issues with this type of construction, and at present it was not cheaper than the traditional building methods.

RESOLVED:

To note the Draft Housing Revenue Account Business Plan and Action Plan 2020-2025.