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Housing Scrutiny Committee - Tuesday, 10th December, 2024 6.30 pm

December 10, 2024 View on council website
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Summary

This meeting included reports on the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) budget for the next financial year, private sector renting in the borough, and a plan to improve energy efficiency in council homes. The committee was also scheduled to discuss a report on performance across all council services.

Energy Efficiency in Council Homes

A report entitled “Retrofit at Scale for Council Homes – Procurement Strategy” was prepared for the meeting. It puts forward a plan to improve the energy efficiency of council homes by installing solar panels and battery storage and sets out a method for paying for the work. This would be a pilot scheme, to be delivered in partnership with a private investor through a new “Special Purpose Vehicle” (SPV), involving around 3,000 council homes. If successful, the pilot could be extended to more council homes.

The report describes how the SPV would work, explaining that the private investor would part-fund the installation of solar panels and batteries, and residents in the pilot scheme would be offered lower electricity bills in return for a “comfort charge” paid to the SPV. Residents would also benefit from cheaper electricity during peak times. Excess energy stored in the batteries would be sold by the SPV to the National Grid, with income from this and from the comfort charge going towards repaying the investor. Camden Council would also invest in the SPV and receive a return on its investment. The report explains that the council would also be liable for paying the comfort charge on void properties and for any resident bad debt above an agreed threshold.

The report describes this as an innovative approach to financing energy efficiency in social housing and sets out a number of potential risks and how they could be addressed. Because this would be the first scheme of its kind in the UK, and because it relies on a complex legal and commercial partnership between the council, an institutional investor, residents and the energy market, the report asks the committee to approve the principle of making a “Direct Award” contract to a single supplier without a competitive tender process. It argues that a competitive tendering process “would not support this collaborative approach, and investors are unlikely to commit the significant investment required to develop a bespoke prototype that meets the Council’s requirements”. The report makes clear that if a Direct Award contract is to be pursued, the council would have to follow a statutory process including publishing a “Transparency Notice”.

The report also mentions the council’s application for a grant from the Government's Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund and explains how the grant funding would be used. It states that the council has made a consortium bid with the GLA and London Councils as lead applicant, representing 14 other local authorities and housing associations.

The report is accompanied by an Equality Impact Assessment, which describes the potential positive impact of the scheme for low-income households, noting that:

Those on low incomes are disproportionately affected by fuel poverty, and the impact on health, wellbeing and quality of life can be severe.

The report concludes by recommending that the committee approve the project and delegate authority to the Executive Director of Supporting Communities to make all necessary decisions and take operational actions, including approving the heads of terms of the contract, issuing Transparency Notices and awarding the contract.

Private Sector Renting

The committee was scheduled to receive a report entitled “Private Rented Sector – Follow Up report to the Themed October Debate”. The report summarises the points raised by five external speakers who attended a “Themed Debate” at a previous Full Council meeting, describing concerns about the quality and affordability of private rented accommodation. The report also outlines the council’s plans for addressing these issues.

The council’s proposals include renewing its “additional” HMO licensing scheme. This is a scheme that requires landlords to obtain a license to let out properties to three or more unrelated people who share facilities. The council also intends to hold a series of surgeries for private renters to help them understand their rights and the support available from the council, and to improve the information on private renting that’s available on the council’s website. The report also notes that the council is preparing for the introduction of the Government’s Renters’ Reform Bill, which includes provisions to abolish “no-fault” evictions.

Housing Revenue Account Budget 2025/26

A report prepared by Emma Cardoso, Strategic Finance Lead for Housing, provides an update on the HRA budget. This is the council's ring-fenced budget for social housing.

The report notes that the HRA is currently predicted to overspend by £3.5m, mainly due to the costs of repairs, insurance and borrowing. It goes on to state that the main source of income for the HRA is from social rents, and that increases in these rents are limited by the Government’s Rent Standard.

The report explains that, for the next financial year (2025/26), the maximum permitted rent increase would be 2.7% (September CPI of 1.7% + 1%), and that this would increase the HRA’s income by £3.7m. The report also provides information on the estimated service charges for 2025/26, which include an average increase of 12% for grounds maintenance. It explains that this increase is due to inflationary pressures and the need to replace vehicles used for grounds maintenance. The report states that new savings options for the HRA will be discussed at the next District Management Committee (DMC) meeting.

Insight, Learning and Impact Report – Quarter 2 2024/25

The committee also had before it a comprehensive report, with a separate data dashboard, entitled “Insight, Learning and Impact Report – Quarter 2 2024/25”. It provides a detailed overview of performance across all of the council’s services in the second quarter of the financial year 2024/25.

Of particular interest in relation to housing, the report notes that the council is forecasting an overspend of £12.4m on temporary accommodation. It explains that the number of households in temporary accommodation is increasing, and attributes this partly to the Home Office’s policy of fast-tracking asylum decisions. According to the report, the council has launched a working group, chaired by Jon Rowney, Executive Director of Supporting Communities, to address this issue.

The report also states that:

Rough sleeping rates in Camden are high. Between July and September, 298 people were seen rough sleeping. This represents a 7% increase compared to the same period last year.

The report notes that the council received 1,071 complaints in Q2 2024/25, with nearly half of these (49%) relating to Property Management services, and states that “the Corporate Complaints team continued to work closely with the Property Management Service to develop an approach for learning from complaints”.

The report also provides information on the number of empty properties let by the council and average reletting times. In particular, it notes that the number of properties let in Q2 2024/25 was significantly lower than the target of 240.

The report states that the council’s performance on repairs remains strong, with customer satisfaction levels for emergency repairs at 86%, but it also notes that there are 4,571 day-to-day repairs awaiting completion. The report explains that the council is focusing on productivity to make sure repairs are completed promptly and to keep within budget. It states that the council’s performance on gas safety certification remains above 99%.