The Housing Select Committee of Lewisham Council are scheduled to meet on Thursday 27 March 2025. The report pack for the meeting indicates that the Brockley Housing PFI scheme is scheduled to be discussed. The Committee is also expected to hear updates on the repairs service provided by four Housing Associations operating in Lewisham.

Expiry of the Brockley Housing PFI

A draft report, prepared for the Mayor and Cabinet, is scheduled to be discussed, which contains an appraisal of the options for managing the 1,829 properties in the Brockley Housing PFI contract area after the contract ends on 3 June 2027. The report states that there is no option to extend the contract, and identifies six possible ways forward:

• No change to the existing arrangement
• Bring management of the properties in-house to Lewisham Council
• Transfer the stock to an existing Private Registered Provider
• Transfer the stock to a new resident-led housing provider
• Negotiate a new contract with RegenterB3
• Negotiate new contracts with the sub-contractors for housing management and repairs and maintenance

The report recommends the second option - bringing management in-house - as the preferred option, subject to a consultation with residents that is scheduled to be discussed later in the meeting. The report says this would allow the Council to integrate the management of the units with the rest of the Council's stock and ensure that the properties are being managed in line with the required legal and regulatory requirements and produce synergies. The report goes on to say:

The current HRA business plan assumes that the stock and land being managed by the current contractor will transfer back to the council and has anticipated management, maintenance and capital costs similar to the existing council stock on a per property basis. It also assumes no further PFI Credit is available.

The report also indicates that a consultation with residents, to seek their views on the preferred option of bringing the management of the properties back in-house, is scheduled to take place over summer 2025. The report states that Government guidance states that any change in housing management should be subject to a test of opinion and goes on to say that The new regulatory standard requires that a stronger voice be given to tenants.

Repairs Update from Housing Providers

Representatives from Hexagon Housing Association, Housing For Women, L&Q and Notting Hill Genesis are scheduled to provide updates on their repairs services to the Committee. The report pack contains documents that detail the information each organisation has been asked to provide, including:

• Key Performance Indicators on repairs, complaints, disrepair cases etc.
• An overview of how the implementation of the Social Housing (Regulation) Act 2023 has impacted their repairs services.
• Their performance on the Tenant Satisfaction Measures.¹
• Information on the Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) ratings of their properties in Lewisham.

The report pack includes an update on the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund, which has been secured by Hexagon. The report also states that:

If this funding was secured, a comprehensive window replacement programme would follow. Another approach planned for significant window replacements over the next five to ten years. High-rise blocks, requiring extensive scaffolding, were scheduled for work in a way that maximised efficiency by incorporating multiple major tasks, such as window replacements and roof repairs, once scaffolding was erected.

The information provided by L&Q indicates that they will provide an update on their use of Schedule 2, Ground 8 of the Housing Act 1988.²

L&Q are also scheduled to provide information on their stock in Lewisham, which includes Lewisham Park Towers.