The Living in Hackney Scrutiny Commission met to discuss the annual housing complaints report and the council's empty homes campaign, with a focus on improving services and addressing housing needs. Councillors reviewed data, questioned officers, and discussed strategies for better complaint handling, policy improvements, and bringing empty properties back into use. The commission also agreed the minutes of the previous meeting and reviewed the action tracker and work programme.

Housing Complaints Annual Report 2024-2025

The Commission received the Annual Housing Complaints Performance and Service Improvement Report, which outlines the number, type, and outcomes of complaints, as well as how the council handles complaints, its performance, and what it has learned and improved from complaints. Councillor Guy Nicholson, Deputy Mayor and Cabinet Member for Housing Management Regeneration, and Tom Harrison, Assistant Director for Housing Transformation, presented the report.

Key discussion points included:

• Increase in Complaints: Complaints have doubled in the last four years, which is in line with the wider social housing sector. Tom Harrison explained that larger landlords and those in London tend to receive more complaints because it is more difficult to create personal relationships with residents. > What we've seen in the sector over the last four years is that relationship's kind of broken down. Because of the introduction of the complaints handling code, councils and, or housing association as well, are getting much better at capturing records of dissatisfaction.
  • Action: Councillor Zoe Garbett requested a breakdown of data to understand if satisfaction levels reflect minor repairs or significant issues.
• Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR): Councillor Garbett questioned the effectiveness of ADR in resolving issues and whether it expedites resolutions or placates residents. Tom Harrison responded that ADR is an alternative to legal disrepair claims and leads to quicker resolutions than legal routes.
  • Action: Councillor Garbett requested data on financial payments and timelines for outcomes related to ADR.
• Customer Satisfaction Surveys: Concerns were raised about the minimal responses to customer satisfaction surveys and whether they accurately reflect residents' perceptions.
• Stage One Complaints: There was discussion around whether stage one complaints are closed when matters are resolved or simply when a response has been provided.
• Policy Updates and Training: Councillor Garbett asked about the need for new policies and the fact that current policies are not being followed. Tom Harrison explained that outdated policies and a lack of training have led to inconsistencies in service delivery. He said that key policies should be reviewed within 12 months, with a full review within three to four years.
• Contractor Capacity: Councillor Garbett enquired about the impact of contractors on complaints and timeliness. Tom Harrison said that weekly management review meetings have been implemented with contractors to address overdue cases and access issues.
• Stage Two Complaints: Councillor Garbett highlighted that only 17.29% of stage two complaints were closed within 20 days in 2024-25. Tom Harrison explained that the corporate complaints team was overwhelmed, but additional complaints handlers have been hired and are now resolving complaints within the target timeframe.
• Differences in Stage 1 and Stage 2 Determinations: Concerns were raised about differences in determinations and outcomes between stage one and stage two complaints. Tom Harrison said that stage two complaints are viewed more objectively because they are handled outside of the service.
• Training: Councillor Ifraax Samatar asked if unconscious bias training was in place to ensure personal perceptions are not taken into account when dealing with complaints. Tom Harrison responded that it will be, and that equality, diversity, and inclusion are elements that all housing staff need to be aware of.
• Awaab's Law: Councillor Garbett asked how prepared the service was for Awaab's Law[^2] coming into effect. Tom Harrison responded that he thought it would drive more complaints as people would be aware of it and hold the council to a higher standard. [^2]: Awaab's Law is a piece of legislation that is designed to improve the living conditions of social housing tenants in the UK. It is named after Awaab Ishak, a two-year-old boy who died in December 2020 from a respiratory condition caused by prolonged exposure to mould in his family's social housing flat.
• Multi-Team Cases: Councillor Garbett asked about multi-team cases, particularly anti-social behaviour, and whether new policies and processes were being set in place to facilitate quicker resolution.
• Communication: Councillor Faruk Tinaz raised the issue of communication with residents and asked how the new system would decrease complaints. Tom Harrison responded that the system would provide visibility as to whether people are being communicated with, which enables accountability and transparency.
• Root Cause Analysis: Councillor Samatar asked Tom Harrison to explain what root cause analysis means for residents and how the council is making better use of the function on OneCase[^3]. [^3]: OneCase is a piece of software used by Hackney Council to manage members inquiries, MP inquiries, and complaints.
• Improvement Initiatives: Councillor Samatar asked what steps were being taken to ensure key lessons and service improvements captured are being effectively looked at, especially on cases being closed.
• Capacity to Respond: Councillor Garbett asked about the capacity within the service to respond to an increase in complaints as a result of Awaab's Law. Councillor Nicholson responded that the council is ready to meet the implementation and has put systems and personnel in place to respond effectively.
• Complaints by Families with Children: Councillor Samatar asked if there was a log of how many people with severe damp and mould complaints are families with children, and if there was a specific work to ensure that those people will be prioritised.
• Flexibility: The Chair asked if there were elements of security that make it easier to pivot where things are shown to be not going as they should be at an earlier juncture. Councillor Nicholson responded that the new systems coming into play are focused on delivering the ability to transfer and share data and information.
• Investment in Staff: Councillor Garbett asked if it would have been better to invest in current staff and support them rather than going immediately to a restructure. Tom Harrison responded that the feedback from staff is that current structures do not work, and that the lack of investment in training means they do not always have the skills to do the things that they need.

Empty Homes Campaign

The Commission received an update on the manifesto commitment to reduce the number of privately owned long-term empty properties in the borough. James Goddard, Assistant Director of Strategy Assurance and Private Rented Sector, and Alex Clark, Director for Housing Strategy and Homelessness, presented the report.

Key discussion points included:

• Definition of Long-Term Empty Property: James Goddard clarified that there is no straightforward definition, with definitions varying from six months to two years. Hackney uses council tax data to identify empty properties, which must be unoccupied and substantially unfurnished.
• Number of Empty Properties: As of 10 October, there were 151 privately owned empty properties in Hackney, a vacancy rate of 0.12%. James Goddard stated that this is extremely low and possibly the lowest in London.
• Reasons for Empty Properties: The housing market, second homes, short-term lets, probate issues, and capability assessments can all influence vacancy rates.
• Interventions: The council can intervene through legislation, council tax premiums, informal case working, Empty Dwelling Management Orders[^4] (EDMOs), and Compulsory Purchase Orders[^5] (CPOs). [^4]: An Empty Dwelling Management Order (EDMO) is an order that allows a local authority to take over the management of a property that has been empty for a certain period of time. [^5]: A Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) is a legal instrument that allows certain bodies to obtain land or property without the consent of the owner.
• Case Data: In 2024-25, only 11 out of 334 cases pertained to empty properties, representing 3.3% of the caseload. This year, only three out of 251 cases related to empty properties, or 1.1%.
• Priorities: The private sector housing team prioritises fire safety, licensing, damp and mould, and HMOs[^6]. [^6]: HMOs are Houses in Multiple Occupation. These are properties rented out by at least 3 people who are not from 1 'household' (for example, a family) but share facilities like the bathroom and kitchen.
• Empty Property Officer: Hackney previously had an empty property officer, but the function has been mainstreamed across the team.
• Challenges: James Goddard explained that enforcement is difficult, as private property rights must be respected unless a property is causing significant harm.
• Temporary Accommodation (TA) Focus: The council is exploring using TA capital programme funds to bring empty properties back into use for TA purposes.
• Landlord Engagement: Alex Clark said that, at his previous authority, it was unbelievably difficult to get any of those properties back into use because you're so dependent in most cases on the goodwill of the landlord.
• Enforcement Costs: Councillor Samatar asked if enforcement incurs costs and if that is taken into consideration in terms of communication. James Goddard responded that enforcement can incur costs, but the starting point is for the owner to fix the problem at their cost.
• Data Accuracy: Councillor Gondheim asked what data the council holds and looks at to develop an understanding of a property owner and their circumstances. James Goddard responded that the council tax database is as good as it can get, and that the number is just the starting point.
• Database: Councillor Gondheim asked if a standalone database would help to more accurately assess, report, and manage statistics and target interventions. James Goddard responded that the council does have something akin to a standalone database, and that a new management system is coming with an empty property package that has a lot more detail in it.
• Dedicated Officer: Councillor Garbett asked about the lack of a dedicated empty homes officer. James Goddard responded that the council is recruiting four private sector housing officers, one or two of which will have a focus and function across private sector council.
• Raising Issues with Government: Councillor Garbett asked if Hackney has raised issues with the government about how some of this makes it hard for the council to do this work. James Goddard responded that he has done that in the past, and that they are cumbersome and burdensome things to put in place.
• Renters' Rights Bill: Councillor Garbett asked if the changes in the Renters' Rights Bill will affect the council's work. James Goddard responded that the council is looking at how the bill will impact, and that it will be a much more broader approach.
• Short-Term Lets: Councillor Garbett asked if there was scope for the commission to look at short-term lets at another point.
• Risk of Increased Empty Properties: Alex Clark said that there is a risk that the Renters Rights Act could lead to an increase in the number of empty properties, because landlords are going to be a lot more selective about who they let their properties to.

Other Business

The Commission also:

• Scrutiny Reports, Letters & Responses: Noted that there were no scrutiny reports, letters, or responses to discuss.
• Scrutiny Actions Tracker: Noted the actions tracker.
• Living in Hackney Work Programme 2025/26: Noted the work programme.
• Minutes of the Last Meeting: Agreed the minutes of the last meeting.