Agenda item

(a)       That the progress made to date with regard to the introduction of service charges and the feedback from the tenants’ consultation be noted; and

(b)       That the delivery of an action plan, as described in section 1.25 of the report, that focuses on achieving value for money for tenant services, be supported.

The Service Manager for Council Housing introduced an update of progress on the implementation of service charges, including feedback from a range of tenant consultation events held across the county during the summer.  As reported to the former Housing Overview & Scrutiny Committee, the separation of service charges from rents had been introduced from April 2015 as required by the Welsh Government (WG) and allowed greater transparency for tenants to see how much rent they paid together with charges for any additional services they received.  Following Cabinet approval earlier in the year, a phased approach to the introduction of services was planned for existing or ongoing tenancies from April 2016 whereas service charges were introduced fully for new tenancies from April 2015.

The Service Manager provided an overview of the methodology for charging, as set out in the report, together with a summary of the feedback from the tenant consultation process.  Members were informed that more detailed information on the feedback was available from the Sheltered Housing Officer.

Councillor Rosetta Dolphin asked if the window cleaning service was mandatory for all tenants as some may prefer to opt out (eg  ground floor tenants in Abbey Court), and whether tenants would be reimbursed if the service was not carried out in line with the agreed frequency.  She also took the opportunity to praise the cleaning service undertaken in Greenfield.

It was explained by the Service Manager that the intention was to review and re-tender the contract for window cleaning and to agree a set of standards to share with tenants.  This would address any areas of inconsistency, as indicated in the feedback, and enable tenants to raise any issues.

Councillor Gareth Roberts highlighted reference to the 63% of Council house tenants in receipt of housing benefit which covered some of the service charges, and asked about the potential for any additional housing benefit to release funds to the Housing Revenue Account.  The Service Manager agreed to obtain a response on the percentage of tenants in sheltered housing.  Councillor Bernie Attridge added that Councillor Roberts’ suggestion would need to be verified with Legal colleagues.

In response to a question from Councillor George Hardcastle on garage charges, the Service Manager advised that these did not form part of service charges and were subject to separate arrangements.  Any outcomes from the garage review would be addressed through work under the Welsh Housing Quality Standard and Strategic Housing and Regeneration Programme.

Following comments from Councillor Nancy Matthews on charging for satisfactory services, the Service Manager drew attention to the schedule in section 1.05 of the report.  Some services were being subsidised in recognition of inconsistent standards across schemes and would be resolved through a comprehensive review.

The Chairman felt that service charges should be reasonable in view of the prospect of rent increases set by WG.  He commented on unsatisfactory levels of communal cleaning at four blocks of flats in his ward which he hoped would be addressed and welcomed the delay in the re-introduction of assisted garden charges to make the necessary preparations.

On the latter point, Councillor Attridge said that this delay would allow for meaningful consultation to achieve the right outcomes.  He pointed out that the proposed charge for communal area cleaning in 2016/17 was only £2.75 per week and that information on rental charges was awaited from WG.

In stressing the importance of value for money on service charges, Councillor Ron Davies referred to repairs needed to a boiler within pensioners’ accommodation in his ward.  The Service Manager agreed to look into this.

During discussion on the laundry service, Councillor Attridge spoke about a token-operated system as a possible option for communal areas.

RESOLVED:

(a)       That the progress made to date with regard to the introduction of service charges and the feedback from the tenants’ consultation be noted; and

(b)       That the delivery of an action plan, as described in section 1.25 of the report, that focuses on achieving value for money for tenant services, be supported.