Tenants Forum 2011
The Tenants Forum was held on Thursday 9th June 2011, and these are the minutes from the meeting.
Mr Lovelady welcomed everyone and outlined the agenda for the meeting. He also informed the meeting of the sad death of the chairman Michael Feeley.
Government Changes
Mr Lovelady outlined the most recent government changes. The government has reduced grant rate for new build properties, with associations expected to fund part or all of new build through property sales, private finance and rent increases. Any new build properties will have a rent of 80% of the market rent compared to social housing rents which are around 50%. A percentage of relets will have to be converted to the higher rent. There are also proposals to restrict new tenancies to 2 years, and review them periodically. If the tenant improves their circumstances, for example starts to work, then the tenancy can be terminated, as they will not be deemed to be in need of social housing.
When asked by the tenants, Mr Lovelady confirmed that these changes would not affect existing tenants.
The consensus of the tenants at the meeting was that if Arcon want to develop they will have to charge the 80% market rents on the new properties, but this could be restricted geographically as there will be a limit to the amount of rent that can be charged in low rent areas. The tenants were not in favour of converting relets to the higher rent, as your neighbour could be receiving the same service but paying 30% more rent. Also the limited 2 year tenancies were not a good idea as they would be a dis-incentive to people to find work or improve their circumstances, and will not help to create stable communities. None of the tenants felt they would have liked to be given a short term tenancy. There was an acceptance that tenants in larger family housing should consider moving into smaller accommodation, but that incentives should be offered to get them to move such as pay removal costs, or decorate the property they are moving into. This was preferable to fixed term tenancies.
Welfare Reform
Mr Lovelady explained that the government are proposing a number of changes that will affect Arcon tenants. In April they increased the non dependent deduction from housing benefit by £2 up to £9.40 per week. Anyone with a non dependent living with them such as a child who has left school or a partner, will have £9.40 per week deducted from their housing benefit entitlement. This will increase by £2 each year for the next couple of years. Whilst none of the tenants at the meeting said they will be affected themselves, they were concerned about the impact on others, and whether this could lead to young people being asked to move out. There are also proposals to deduct housing benefit from claimants who have spare bedrooms. At present the figures proposed are around £13 per room per week. The aim is to encourage tenants to only have properties of the size they require, and again to help release larger family houses. The tenants raised concern that people who had lived in their property for many years could be forced to leave and downsize if they were in receipt of housing benefit. Mr Lovelady informed the group that these changes do not come into effect until 2013, and there may be changes or exemptions introduced. However a large number of Arcon tenants could be affected, and Arcon do not have sufficient one bed properties to offer transfers to tenants who may need to downsize. Finally the government are proposing to introduce a Universal Credit which will contain all benefits that a claimant is entitled to receive, including housing benefit. Several tenants said they received housing benefit themselves, and then pay Arcon. But they felt that if a tenant found it easier to manage their money by having their housing benefit paid directly to Arcon, then this should still be an option. Mr Lovelady said there are conflicting reports as to whether direct payments will continue.
Local offers
Mr Lovelady outlined the local offers that have been made to tenants, as publicised in the spring newsletter and on the website. For example offering a mobile warden service to our elderly tenants, increasing security on schemes, introducing car parking permit schemes, and encouraging recycling opportunities. These are being delivered to tenants, and if anyone else is interested in receiving any of the local offers where they live, or have any further ideas, they should contact their housing officer.
Tenant Scrutiny Committee
Mr Lovelady informed the meeting that the Tenant Scrutiny Committee (TSC) had completed scrutiny exercises on day to day repairs, and void repairs. They had made recommendations for improvement, which had seen a reduction in time taken to repair empty properties. They are currently working on Tenant Satisfaction, reviewing how we gather this information, and what we do with it. Mrs Barber who is a member of the TSC said that the work had been very useful and changes have been implemented.
Value for Money
Mr Bradley gave a brief overview of the value for money work which has resulted in savings across the organisation. This has allowed the maintenance team to complete improvements to properties such as replacing kitchens and boilers. Any further savings will be used to help to carry out major repairs, and also put towards the cost of building new properties.
Future of the Tenant Forum
Mr Lovelady asked whether the tenants still wanted an annual forum. Attendance has steadily declined over the years, with only 6 tenants attending today’s meeting. A lot of the topics that are discussed at the forum are now covered in the two newsletters, the annual report and on the website.
The tenants from Albert Avenue said that they have a local meeting which they attend, and this was sufficient for them. Similar meetings are held at Larkhill Court. There was also a feeling that many residents do not want to travel into Manchester for a meeting, choosing to attend their local meetings instead, or have access to housing staff to raise any issues on a one to one basis.
The tenants agreed to stop holding the annual Tenants Forum. Mr Lovelady agreed to put an article in the autumn newsletter informing all tenants of the decision.
Added 21st June 2011
