The Mayor's Executive Decision Making meeting of Tower Hamlets Council on 15 September 2025 was scheduled to discuss interim arrangements for extending concierge services in five housing blocks. A report was prepared for David Joyce, Corporate Director, Housing & Regeneration. The report recommended that the Mayor authorise the extension of the concierge services contract with the existing contractor, OCS LTD, for nine months, until March 2026.

Extension of Concierge Services

The meeting was scheduled to discuss the extension of concierge services provided by OCS LTD in five housing blocks:

• Brewster House
• Malting House (shared with Brewster House)
• Pauline House
• Latham House
• Brodrick House

The report pack included a recommendation to extend the contract for these services for nine months, until March 2026, at a total value of £404,764.35.

The report noted that a procurement process, initiated in October 2023, had experienced delays, and a previous contract extension had been approved until 31 March 2025. The report stated that a new contract was unlikely to be in place until April 2026.

According to the report, the Environmental Services team consulted residents of the five blocks about the proposal to extend the concierge service. The survey asked residents for their views on retaining the service as is as well as outlining possible alternative options, including the option to entirely withdraw the service. The surveys were carried out during December 2024 and January 2025 and employed both face-to-face visits and electronic survey methods.

The report stated that of the 188 households (46%) that participated in the survey, 88% supported maintaining the service with higher charges starting April 2025. A minority preferred alternative approaches:

9% voted to discontinue the service, 2% suggested reducing hours, and 1% proposed exploring other security measures like enhanced CCTV, improved intercoms, fob-based access control systems for doors and lifts, or airlock door systems.

The report also stated that officers considered expanding the service to other blocks, including Bentworth Court, but that significant costs and logistical challenges were associated with widening the offer.

The report noted several risks of not approving the extension, including a negative impact on security and potential increase in anti-social behaviour (ASB). The report also stated that discontinuing the service could breach the Regulator for Social Housing's Transparency, Influence and Accountability Standard, which requires registered providers to consider tenants' views.

The report stated that extending the concierge service would require the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) to incur £243k of additional cost for which there is no budget provision. Cost reductions or budget savings will need to be identified to mitigate this cost to prevent an overspend against budget.

The report included comments from the Chief Finance Officer, who noted that the cost of extending the service for nine months was £647,000. This figure included £243,000 for additional services at Latham House and Brewster & Maltings, increasing the concierge service to 24 hours a day and introducing a fire walk service¹. These additional services were not rechargeable to tenants.

The report also included comments from Legal Services, which stated that the council had the legal power to enter into the contract extension, and that an interim arrangement with the existing contractor was the only pragmatic way to ensure continuity of service.