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Agenda and minutes

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Items
No. Item

7/23

Minutes of the Previous Meeting pdf icon PDF 121 KB

To approve the minutes of the meeting held on 6 February 2023 as an accurate record.

 

Minutes:

The minutes of the previous meeting held on the 6 February 2023 were approved as an accurate record.

8/23

Disclosures of Interest

Members are invited to declare any disclosable pecuniary interests (DPIs) and other registrable and non-registrable interests they may have in relation to any item(s) of business on today’s agenda.

Minutes:

There were no disclosures of interest made at the meeting

9/23

Urgent Business (if any)

To receive notice of any business not on the agenda which in the opinion of the Chair, by reason of special circumstances, be considered as a matter of urgency.

Minutes:

There was no urgent business for discussion by the Homes Sub-Committee at this meeting.

10/23

Pre-Decision Scrutiny: Re-Procurement of the Repairs/Voids and Heating Contracts pdf icon PDF 739 KB

The Scrutiny and Overview Committee is asked: -

 

1.        To note the report due considered by the Mayor at the Cabinet meeting on 6 March 2022.

 

2.        To consider whether there are any recommendations or observation arising from the Sub-Committee’s consideration of the report to the submit for the consideration of the Mayor at the Cabinet meeting.

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Sub-Committee considered a Cabinet report, set out in the agenda supplement, about the re-procurement of the responsive repairs contract, which included recommendations on the contract award for decision by the Mayor. The report had been included on the agenda to allow the Sub-Committee to review the content prior to the decision being taken, providing the opportunity to flag any recommendations for the consideration of the Mayor as part of the decision.

The Cabinet Member for Homes, Councillor Lynne Hale, the Corporate Director for Housing, Susmita Sen, the Director of Housing – Estates & Improvement, Stephen Tate, the Head of Repairs and Maintenance, Jerry Austin, the Strategic Procurement Manager, Matthew Devan, the Finance Manager, Orlagh Guarnori, the Local Government Association (LGA) Procurement Improvement Advisor, Nigel Kletz and from Echelon, the Council’s advisor on the process, Peter Gudge all attended the meeting for this item.

In introducing the report, the Cabinet Member highlighted the importance of the contract to the Council and its residents, thanking officers for their hard work over the past year in managing the procurement process and thanking the residents who had been involved in the process.

Following the introduction, the Sub-Committee had the opportunity to ask questions on the content of the report. The first question raised by the Sub-Committee asked whether the key performance indicators (KPIs) had already been set or would be set in collaboration with the preferred bidders. It was advised that a set of KPI’s were included within the contracts, but there was a mechanism in place to add, amend or remove KPI’s as needed to improve the process. Any changes would be subject to the approval of both parties. It was highlighted that the KPI’s relating to customer service had been designed with residents to improve their validity.

It was agreed that a copy of the contract would be shared with the members of the Sub-Committee once it had been signed. It was envisioned that it would be signed by the end of April 2023 to ensure mobilisation could begin in May.

It was confirmed that provision had been included in the contract to ensure that all parties had a responsibility to flag as a priority any emerging issues that could affect the delivery of the contract. There was also a requirement for all parties to engage in quarterly value engineering sessions to identify improvement.

Responding to a question about how the risk of challenge against the contract award decision had been mitigated, it was highlighted that the process had been conducted within the specified timescale, with a clear process and opportunities for bidders to raise queries. There had been one minor issue with a specific supplier who was initially excluded from bidding, but after a successful challenge had been included again. However, in the end that supplier had decided not to submit a bid. The process had been fair to all bidders, with robust answers provided and additional time allowed to respond where needed. It was acknowledged that the risk of challenge  ...  view the full minutes text for item 10/23

11/23

Update on the Housing Transformation Programme pdf icon PDF 130 KB

The Sub-Committee is presented with a report and an accompanying presentation for its consideration updating on the progress made in delivering the work streams set out in the Housing Transformation Programme.

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Sub-Committee considered a report set out on pages 5 to 38 of the agenda, which provided an update on the delivery of the Housing Transformation Programme. The report had been included on the agenda to enable the Sub-Committee to review the progress made in the delivery of the programme and to flag any areas of concern.

The Cabinet Member for Homes, Councillor Lynne Hale, Corporate Director for Housing, Susmita Sen, Director of Housing – Estates & Improvement, Stephen Tate, Finance Manager, Orlagh Guarnori, Head of Temporary Accomodation, Beatrice Cingtho-Taylor and Head of Homelessness & Assessments, Hamid Khan, Homeless Strategy Lead Officer, Janice Nuth and Senior Strategy Officer, Velvet Dibley all attended the meeting for this item.

The first question on this item questioned how the Prevention funding made available by the Government would be used and whether it could be used to address the shortage of housing in the borough. It was advised that one of the key strands of the Homelessness Strategy would be aimed at ensuring the best use of the Council’s housing stock and reprovisioning it if needed. Another strand of the strategy would be aimed at understanding the reasons why people were presenting as homeless and providing early intervention. As part of the transformation work, the emphasis of the Housing Needs service needed to move from being reactive to more proactive. 

In response to a question about the evolution of the Housing Transformation Programme from the original Improvement Plan, it was advised that following further review, it became apparent that the plan did not go far enough in addressing the deep rooted issues within the service. It was transitioned into a wider reaching transformation programme which encompassed the findings from the ARK report, failings highlighted by housing legislators and the expected level of professional standards. The Housing Transformation Programme would also feed into the Council’s wider transformation programme currently being developed.

It was confirmed that improving the relationship with local housing associations was included in the transformation programme. There was also a need to have an open dialogue with housing providers on the standard of accomodation available, particularly for temporary accomodation, as the current standard was not good enough.

Regarding the possibility of the Council introducing a Landlord Licensing scheme, it was advised that the forthcoming Housing Strategy was needed before any such scheme could be progressed, although officers had been asked to investigate potential options for a pilot scheme, from which a more expansive scheme could be built. It was possible that the eventual scheme could be a selective licensing scheme focusing on the parts of the borough where there were identifiable issues.

It was confirmed that improving the data held on council owned housing was a priority, as this data would be a key driver of the asset improvement strategy. The Transformation Programme had been focussed towards the areas that would make the biggest difference for residents. For the Housing Needs service, the initial emphasis would be to review the structure to ensure that the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 11/23

12/23

Update on Regina Road pdf icon PDF 69 KB

The Sub-Committee is presented with a report for its consideration updating on the process of addressing the current and recurring unsatisfactory situation at the Regina Road estate.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Sub-Committee considered a report, set out in an agenda supplement, which provided an update on the Regina Road Project and the consultation with the residents on the future options for their homes.

The Cabinet Member for Homes, Councillor Lynne Hale, Corporate Director for Housing, Susmita Sen, Director of Housing and Regina Road Programme Lead, Robin Smith were all in attendance at the meeting for this item.

The first question on this item asked whether there had been any barriers preventing people from responding to the formal consultation. It was confirmed that 51 people had responded, but only 31 had responded to the specific questions raised in the consultation. Reassurance was given that different methods had been used to encourage a wide range of responses. It was highlighted that the forthcoming Cabinet report on the consultation process include analysis of the responses.

It was noted that some of the local councillors had been unaware of the consultation events and as such it was suggested that ward councillors should be kept briefed on progress with the Regina Road project and notified about public consultation events. Confirmation that a meeting with ward councillors was planned, was welcomed.

At the conclusion of the item, the Chair thanked the officers for their attendance and their work in progressing the project to date. 

Conclusions

  1. The Sub-Committee welcomed the ongoing work to engage with residents of Regina Road on the future options for their homes.
  2. Confirmation that engagement with Ward Councillors was planned was also welcomed by the Sub-Committee.