Agenda item

(a)       That Members support the development of a Sustainability Strategy for Housing in line with appropriate standards and consultation with planning control and that Members note the success of energy efficiency schemes to date;

(b)       That Members note changes to energy efficiency funding, with the ending of the Community Energy Saving Programme (CESP) and the introduction of the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) and the Green Deal; and

(c)        That Members support the collection of water charges based upon the rationale presented.

The Housing Renewal Manager introduced the report which sought to inform Members of the changes to the energy efficiency funding streams and to outline to Members the rationale for the collection of water charges.

            Energy Efficiency

• The cost of building social housing was higher than private sector because of a higher specification.  Government grants had been reduced in spite of more demand for this housing.

• New Building regulations for social housing would be more rigorous in terms of energy efficiency in the future.

• Community Energy Saving Programme (CESP) had delivered approximately 439 measures in over 200 council homes over past two years and 132 private homes over the same period.

• Bids had been made for Mostyn and Oakenholt to obtain “Arbed “funding from the Welsh Government.

• The need for the reduction of reliance on oil for heating.  Successful bids for mains gas funding had resulted in mains gas installations in Sealand Manor, Isabella Court and Coppa View.

            ECO and the Green Deal

All existing UK wide energy programmes came to an end on 31 December 2012, which included CERT and CESP.  They had been replaced by the new Energy Company Obligation (ECO) from January 2013.  ECO was a levy placed on utility companies to provide funding for energy efficiency measures.

• Arrangements for the scheme were to be confirmed at the end of January 2013.

• The Green Deal was the energy efficiency programme which aimed to provide finance in the form of Green Deal loans for energy efficiency measures.  Flintshire must decide how it would be involved in Green Deal, whether as a promoter of other providers, a partner to other providers or to provide funding for loans in the form of a prudential borrowing capital programme.

The Neighbourhood Housing Manager introduced the second part of the report to review the Flintshire county Council contract with Welsh Water and Dee Valley Water which collected water charges along with the rent for Council dwellings.  The Council collected the charges which were paid to the water companies in one lump sum in exchange for commission.

• In 2011/12 the Council earned commission from the contract of £481,548 which was ring fenced to the HRA account and was re-invested to improve homes and services.  The Council could identify households struggling with water bills and refer them to The Welsh Water Assist programme.

• Disadvantages were that the Council carried arrears of water rates as “rent arrears”.  It was not possible to calculate exact percentage of arrears on an account solely due to water charges.  Housing was looking at devising a solution with IT.

• It was estimated that water arrears accounted for 10% of current debt.  No evictions of Council tenancies had occurred for water rate arrears alone.  Water rates as opposed to water meters benefited the majority of tenants.

Councillor P.G. Heesom said that this was a good report which dealt with a diversity of issues.  He said that quality housing was required at the right price and that they should aim for Code 4 standards rather than Code 3.  This could be achieved by driving down costs with developers who must be prepared to narrow profit margins.

Councillor A.M. Halford agreed that Code 4 should be pushed with developers and asked if this should be a condition of planning.  She asked for more information about specifications for Codes 3 and 4. The Head of Housing agreed to provide information about the costs and specifications for codes 3 and 4.   The Housing Renewal Manager said that the Council could not make rules about planning subject to Code 4 as it was above the specification set out in building regulations.

Councillor R. Dolphin asked if Flintshire gave out information about Water Assist.  The Neighbourhood Housing Manager said staff were aware of eligibility criteria and could advise relevant tenants about the scheme.  The tenant had to be in arrears to qualify.  Councillor Dolphin asked about savings from solar panels and if grants would be re-started for people to upgrade boilers.  The Housing Renewal manager said that lifetime savings made from the installation of solar panels could be calculated.  He agreed to circulate figures concerning the panels to the Committee. He added that some properties that were unable to access CESP scheme would be passported to the ECO programme.  The new arrangements would be confirmed on 28 January 2013.

Councillor J.E. Falshaw asked if the Council kept up to date with advances in technology with regards to solar panels.  The Housing Renewal Manager said that the Council tried to source the most appropriate equipment.

Councillor Halford asked if heat pumps produced sustainable energy.  The Housing Renewal Manager said that heat pump technology had now advanced and worked well.  The Housing Assets Manager said that staff had started training to maintain heat pumps.

RESOLVED:

(a)       That Members support the development of a Sustainability Strategy for Housing in line with appropriate standards and consultation with planning control and that Members note the success of energy efficiency schemes to date;

(b)       That Members note changes to energy efficiency funding, with the ending of the Community Energy Saving Programme (CESP) and the introduction of the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) and the Green Deal; and

(c)        That Members support the collection of water charges based upon the rationale presented.