Issue - meetings

Alarm Service Charges Review

Meeting: 16/01/2024 - Cabinet (Item 110)

110 Alarm Service Charges Review pdf icon PDF 117 KB

Additional documents:

Decision:

As detailed in the recommendation.

Minutes:

Councillor Bibby introduced the report and explained that within the Council’s housing stock (HRA) there were 2592 sheltered housing accommodation units. Following a review of the warden service in 2009 this service was ceased, and the Community Based Accommodation Service (CBASS) was created.  The service provided a tenure neutral service for any older person in Flintshire who may need housing related support.

 

In addition, the service provided a response service for alarm activations. For HRA residents this was a 24-hour service, operating an out of hours service from within the team for outside office hours (evenings, nights and weekends). The proposal was to apply the increased service charge to all sheltered residents who were currently using the alarm service.  All new residents in sheltered schemes with an alarm would have the charge applied as per current process at the beginning of their new contract.

 

The Chief Officer (Housing and Communities explained that the report provided details of a proposal to increase the service charge to all sheltered residents who were currently using the alarm service and that the service charge would be applied to all sheltered properties at the point they were let in future.

 

The proposal represented an increase of £0.85 per calendar week, or when calculating over a 50-week period it equated to £0.98 increase.  This would achieve full cost recovery from 2024/2025 and could then be reviewed annually as part of the HRA business planning process to align costs to service charges moving forward.

 

RESOLVED:

 

That the proposal to achieve full cost recovery for the housing revenue account alarms service be supported and endorsed.