Council Motion - Housing Syrian refugees (00:12:00)
Following Council approval to support Motion no. 527 the Group will receive a presentation from the Housing Options Manager regarding the Syrian Vulnerable Person’s Scheme. This will be followed by a discussion as to the most appropriate course of action for the Council to now take.
Minutes:
At its meeting on 26 October 2016 Council had agreed to support Motion no. 527 regarding Syrian refugees and had requested that the Motion be brought back to this group to discuss the finer details.
The Housing Options Manager provided the Group with a presentation regarding the Syrian Vulnerable Person’s Scheme. This included the following information:
· Each Syrian refugee family came with a specific amount of funding which was intended to cover costs in relation to education, health and translation.
· Each property would need to be inspected in terms of health and safety and electricity and gas certificates.
· Legal documentation for each property may be required for anything from 12 months to 5 years.
· Furniture would also need to be provided.
· Based on the costings of other local authorities the cost to the Council was estimated to be £5,500 in officer time based on looking after one family for a year. Over a 5 year period staff costs would increase to over £13,500.
· At the end of the 5 year period the property condition may have deteriorated and this would need to be returned to the original state before re-letting it. Based on previous experience costs in relation to this could be anything from £1k to £6k.
· It was not intended that the original funding covered the cost of setting up a property.
· Rents would only be at the local housing allowance rate not at the normal market rent which may dissuade some landlords from coming forward.
Discussion took place regarding:
· The Council not being able to say categorically at this stage how many families they were prepared to re-house.
· It was explained that Exeter City Council had taken one family, as had East Devon District Council and Teignbridge District Council. West Devon Borough Council had taken two.
· It was clarified that the scheme related to families and not lone individuals.
· A lot of work needed to be done to understand the practical elements involved and any associated risks.
· Enough private sector landlords needed to come forward.
· Members needed a clearer understanding of the impact on officer time.
· Certain infrastructure was needed in addition to a suitable property such as available school placements.
· The Council needed to avoid further procrastination but also needed to fully understand the costs involved and the pitfalls to avoid especially for the families concerned.
RESOLVED that a Working Group be established to meet as soon as possible to gain an understanding of the issues involved and to come back with a recommendation for the next meeting which would then be forwarded to the Cabinet for approval. The Working Group to consist of Councillors: Mrs G Doe, P J Heal, F W Letch and one of the movers of the original Motion to Council. Meetings of the Working Group would also be attended by the Cabinet Member although he would not have any voting rights.
(Proposed by the Chairman)