The Cabinet Member for Housing and Estate Renewal
introduced this report which set out a proposal to join the
pan-London ‘Capital Letters’ scheme which will
collaboratively procure new properties to rent on behalf of London
boroughs, supported by the Ministry of Housing, Communities &
Local Government (MHCLG).
The Cabinet Member reiterated that there was a
desperate shortage for housing in Haringey. With limited supply and
properties often required at short notice, this also incurred significant costs to
the Council.
Capital Letters was a pan-London scheme,
which sought to increase the supply of temporary accommodation,
reduce the cost of this accommodation, and reduce the need for
households to be accommodated out of the borough. This scheme would
also combat the competition between boroughs
to secure emergency and temporary accommodation, which was also
driving up the costs. The pan-London
approach would impact on this high cost and would enable boroughs
to work together on common housing issues.
It was therefore proposed to enter into partnership
with other boroughs to enable a significant impact on reducing
those costs.
In
response to questions from Cllr Cawley- Harrison, the following
information was noted:
-
It was considered unlikely that MHCLG would not be
funding the scheme beyond the first year. This funding could not
yet be confirmed until the spending review was
announced.
-
If the scheme were not funded in second year, it
would not mean that the scheme collapsed. It would only mean that
additional funding was not available to acquire additional
properties in future years. However, the funding from the first
year would have been utilised to secure properties that could be
used over a longer period. In the event that the scheme collapsed,
this would not lead to a financial risk for the Council as set out
at paragraph 6.27. Also any Assured Short Hold Tenancies would have
been acquired in the first year, which would have already been paid
for.
- It was
clarified that the 50% of Council-secured property lets proposed to
be added to the capital letters scheme part of our proposed
commitment to the scheme. There was an expectation that the capital
letters scheme would acquire 4500 homes in addition to what the
boroughs acquired independently. It was the ultimate intention for
all Council property lets to be put into the capital letters scheme
but the Council would firstly consider how this arrangement works
in the next three years before such a commitment was considered and
any staff transferred to the scheme.
RESOLVED
- To
note the £39 million over three years potentially being made
available by MHCLG for pan-London collaboration on the procurement
of accommodation for homeless households.
- To
note the draft Articles of Association at Appendix A
- To
note the draft Members Agreement at Appendix B
- To
approve, in principle, for the Council to join Capital Letters
London Ltd, a Company Limited by Guarantee that will be established
by the London boroughs, as an ‘A member’.
- To
delegate to the Director of Housing, Regeneration and Planning,
after consultation with ... view
the full minutes text for item 98