Purpose

To adopt the Housing Compensation Policy to support the delivery of the Complaints Service.

Decision

1. Adopts the Housing Compensation Policy
2. Delegates minor operational amendments and/or legislative changes to the Housing Compensation Policy to the Service Director - Housing in consultation with the Portfolio Holder for Strategic and Operational Housing
3. Recommends to Council that they amend the following delegation for compensation to: The Service Director – Housing (and in their absence the Executive Director for Communities) to authorise payment of compensation in connection with complaints regarding the Council’s function as a social landlord of up to £2,000 in consultation with the Portfolio Holder for Strategic and Operational Housing.

Reasons for the decision

The adoption of the policy will improve consistency, transparency and tenant confidence in the Council’s approach to redress, whilst ensuring compensation decisions are aligned with the Housing Ombudsman Remedies Guidance and best practice, relevant legislation and the Regulator of Social Housing’s Consumer Standards.

Alternative options considered

Option 1 – Do Nothing The Council could continue to consider compensation on a case-by-case basis without a dedicated compensation policy. However, this approach would increase the risk of inconsistent decision making, reduced transparency and potential non-compliance with Housing Ombudsman expectations.

Option 2 – Continue to Rely Solely on Existing Complaints Procedures Whilst complaints procedures provide a mechanism for investigating service failures, they do not provide a comprehensive framework for assessing compensation. This option would not provide residents or officers with clear guidance on how compensation decisions should be made and would not adequately support consistent outcomes.