Issue - meetings

Arising from a report of the Head of Housing and Property Services, the Homes Policy Development Group had made the following recommendations:

a) Up to 5 refugee families are housed / supported, as and when properties come forward, for the duration of the scheme providing the costs are met by the Devon County Council led resettlement programme and that this be reviewed four months after the arrival of the first family (Note: the programme is currently of 4 years duration).

b) These refugee families be accommodated in Private Sector accommodation. However, further consideration must be given to the need for support (help) which would involve a minimum of weekly visits by one or more officers and also an exit strategy involving the landlord, the Council and DCC.

Arising from a * report of the Head of Housing and Property Services, the Homes Policy Development Group had made the following recommendations:

a) Up to 5 refugee families be housed / supported, as and when properties came forward, for the duration of the scheme providing the costs were met by the Devon County Council led resettlement programme and that this be reviewed four months after the arrival of the first family (Note: the programme was currently of 4 years duration).

b) These refugee families be accommodated in Private Sector accommodation. However, further consideration must be given to the need for support (help) which would involve a minimum of weekly visits by one or more officers and also an exit strategy involving the landlord, the Council and DCC.

The Member Services Manager outlined the decision making process for this item, referring to the original Motion put before Council on 31 August 2016, the initial discussions by the Homes Policy Development Group (PDG) and decision by Council on 26 October 2016  to support the Motion.  Following this, the Homes Policy Development Group had considered a report of the Head of Housing and Property Services and made recommendations; she informed the meeting that in her view it was now a business decision that should be made by the Cabinet.

The Cabinet Member for Housing stated that all were aware of the situation in Syria and he welcomed the offer of voluntary help from those present, it was however necessary to look at the issue from a Local Authority point of view and the scheme that was being run by Devon County Council with Government funding.  He outlined the number of Syrian families already in place in Devon and the process that was required.  He reiterated that refugees would only be housed in the private sector and properties had to be found, preferably in the urban areas so that facilities were at hand.  There would be on costs for the Local Authority which would have to be funded through the Housing Revenue Account.

Addressing the questions posed in public question time, he welcomed the help offered by volunteers present but explained that the Local Authority had to follow the guidelines outlined in the scheme, the recommendation from the PDG had been that up to 5 families were housed in Mid Devon, he felt that this was a starting point and that the scheme should be trialled at this level initially.  The accommodation at Washfield was welcomed and if it met the standard required (with any necessary planning permission) then it would form part of a recommendation to Devon County Council.

Consideration was given to:

·         Financial implications

·         The work of the volunteers within the scheme

·         Possibly increasing the number of families to be housed

·         The need to support the recommendation of the PDG and trial 5 families in Mid Devon

RESOLVED that the recommendation of the Policy Development Group be approved.

(Proposed by Cllr R L Stanley and seconded by Cllr P H D  ...  view the full minutes text for item 129

To receive a report from the Head of Housing & Property Services providing an overview of the Syrian Vulnerable Person’s Resettlement Scheme and possible implications for the Council.  

The Group had before it a report * from the Head of Housing and Property Services providing an overview of the Syrian Vulnerable Persons’ Resettlement Scheme (SVPRS) and the possible implications for the Council.

The following factors were brought to the attention of the Group:

·         The report needed to be corrected slightly to state that families would not have leave to remain in this country after resettlement but would have humanitarian visas which would be reviewed after 5 years.

·         There were now 4 not 5 years remaining for the resettlement programme in line with the current parliamentary term.

·         The Working Group had met with a representative from Devon County Council who had fully briefed them on what was happening throughout the county. The recommendation within the officer report had been made directly by the members of the Working Group.

·         Other Devon local authorities who had initially signed up to the programme and who had originally put forward ambitious targets in terms of the numbers of families they had hoped to re-house were now having to revise those figures based upon experience relating to such issues as rural isolation, poor transport links, religion, language  and educational complexities.

·         The low number of private sector landlords coming forward with properties to let.

·         The Council could not afford to employ a dedicated officer for this resettlement programme, it would need to be fitted into the day to day business of the Housing Options team, this might have a detrimental effect upon homelessness work.

Discussion took place regarding:

·         The disturbing news images from Syria compared to living in the rural Mid Devon countryside.

·         The lack of public transport in some rurally isolated villages together with potential language difficulties. However, it was recognised that some Syrian families may have previously lived within rural communities in their own country.

·         The fact that the Group needed to make a recommendation based upon the number of families the Council would support not on where they would be located.

·         The merits involved in taking one family initially and monitoring the situation before agreeing to take more.

·         The fact that it took approximately 3-4 months after initial agreement before families actually arrived.

It was RECOMMENDED to the Cabinet that:

      i.        Up to 5 refugee families are housed / supported, as and when properties come forward, for the duration of the scheme providing the costs are met by the Devon County Council led resettlement programme and that this be reviewed four months after the arrival of the first family (Note: the programme is currently of 4 years duration).

    ii.        These refugee families be accommodated in Private Sector accommodation. However, further consideration must be given to the need for support (help) which would involve a minimum of weekly visits by one or more officers and also an exit strategy involving the landlord, the Council and DCC.

(Proposed by Cllr W J Daw and seconded by Cllr D R Coren)

Note: * Report previously circulated; copy attached to the signed minutes.