Issue - meetings

[Report of the Director of Housing, Regeneration and Planning. To be introduced by the Cabinet Member for Housing and Estate Renewal.]

Amendments to the Community Benefit Society's governance and it's funding and lease arrangements with the Council.

The Cabinet Member for Housing and Estate Renewal introduced this report which provided an update on progress on the Community Benefit Society (CBS) and noted the amendment to its funding arrangements from being a General Fund supported activity to a Housing Revenue Account supported activity. In addition, the report proposed a change to the agreed leasing arrangements so that properties are leased to CBS for periods of up to seven years instead of up to ten years.

The Cabinet Member highlighted the administration was elected on a manifesto that made it clear that it would act decisively to reduce homelessness and take action to improve the poor quality and precarious temporary accommodation in which nearly 3,000 homeless households in Haringey live. The administration argued: “Poor housing has knock-on effects everywhere; from education to health to crime. And the regular churn of families and children moving from one temporary tenancy to another makes it difficult to build strong local communities.” The administration promised that it would do housing differently.

The Cabinet Member outlined that in July 2018, Cabinet approved the establishment of the Haringey Community Benefit Society, with its sole aim being to improve the housing available to Haringey’s homeless households. Many of these households often ended up in private rented accommodation, which was expensive, insecure and often not of the quality the Council would like. Also, much was provided outside of Haringey. The recommendations in this report were the final steps in putting in place the CBS, which would help the Council ensure homeless families can have a home which is better, more stable and with lower rents than that provided by the market. Meanwhile, the Council would make substantial savings in its annual temporary accommodation budget and, ultimately, re-municipalise stock that was lost under Right to Buy.

RESOLVED

1. To approve the new lease arrangements set out in paras 6.15 to 6.16, with each lease lasting up to seven years and comprising a portfolio of properties.

2. To note that 52 residential units have already been acquired for transfer to the Community Benefit Society on its registration pursuant to the authority given on 17 July 2018 and:
3. To agree to the acquisition of a further 17 residential units up to the end of financial year 2019/2020: and

4. To agree to the acquisition of a further 65 residential units per year from financial year 2020/21; and

5. To agree that this authority replaces that given on 17 July 2018

:

6. To note that properties bought and leased to the CBS should be accounted for in the Housing Revenue Account, rather than the General Fund as set out at 8.15 below.

7. To note that the detail of this change is set out in a report titled ‘Approval of additional Housing Revenue Account budget for new build properties and acquisitions of existing properties to house homeless households’ to be presented to Cabinet on 12 November 2018. [decision item 73]

8. To give delegated authority to the Director of Housing, Regeneration and Planning, after consultation  ...  view the full minutes text for item 74