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Agenda and minutes

Venue: Exe Room, Phoenix House, Tiverton

Contact: Sarah Lees  Member Services Officer

Link: audio recording

Items
No. Item

1.

Election of Chairman (Chairman of the Council in the Chair)

To elect a Chairman of the Homes Policy Development Group for the municipal year 2019/20

Minutes:

RESOLVED that Cllr R J Dolley be elected Chairman of the Group for the municipal year 2019/20.

2.

Election of Vice Chairman

To elect a Vice Chairman of the Homes Policy Development Group for the municipal year 2019/20.

Minutes:

RESOLVED that Cllr W J Daw be elected Vice Chairman of the Group for the municipal year 2019/20.

3.

Apologies and Substitute Members

To receive any apologies for absence and notice of appointment of substitutes.

 

Minutes:

Apologies were received from Cllr Mrs E M Andrews

4.

Declaration of Interests under the Code of Conduct

Councillors are reminded of the requirement to declare any interest,

including the type of interest, and reason for that interest, either at this

stage of the meeting or as soon as they become aware of that interest.

Minutes:

All members of the Group stated that they had received correspondence with regard to item 8 on the agenda, Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Scheme.

5.

Public Question Time

To receive any questions relating to items on the Agenda from members of the public and replies thereto.

 

Minutes:

Ms Ali Dominy stated in relation to item 8 on the agenda, Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Scheme, that she and her husband were the landlords of a house in Cullompton that has, since the autumn of 2017, been home to a family from Syria who were fleeing the horrors and destruction of war, a family who have been given this life saving and life changing opportunity by Mid Devon District Council decision to take part in the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Scheme in which they and we thank you all so much. It was with great sadness that Mid Devon’s commitment to take five families seemed to stall after the first two in 2017. This we were told was due to a lack of private landlords having suitable properties, so it was with pleasure that we had heard that Anthea had come forward with the offer to purchase a house to facilitate another family being offered a home. Like ourselves, Anthea took the route of involving Mid Devon District Council from the start and so chose a house that was suitable in an area that would also be suitable. All seemed to be going well until at the last moment Anthea was told that Mid Devon had changed their mind and would not be taking any more families on the resettlement scheme. It was obviously a cruel blow particularly as Anthea had gone so far down the line of purchase with the approval of the Council.

 

When we were asked to have a look at the report issued in preparation of this meeting we were confused and concerned about paragraph 4.3 in the report that states that the work with the existing landlords, us being one of them has been extensive. This really hasn’t been the case. The report quotes concerns about possible issues that were raised before the first families arrived but did not accurately reflect the actual situation of the last two years. The report talks about consideration being given to the need for support that would need a minimum of two weekly visits by one or more officers. It also talks about twice weekly visits in the early months. We are pleased to say that both of these concerns proved unnecessary. Certainly there were initial visits required to welcome and settle the family and run through procedures but talking to those involved in our house and also those involved with the other Syrian family in Mid Devon we believe that two visits per family was all that was ever required.

 

As landlords we look after the maintenance of the property, Mid Devon are our tenants so as with any landlord/tenant relationship, we would expect them to leave any problems to us. Indeed we are more than happy to say that during the time that Mid Devon have rented the house from us, to our knowledge any problems with the house have been sorted out by us with no involvement from Mid Devon. There is a tireless  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.

6.

Minutes pdf icon PDF 92 KB

Members to consider whether to approve the minutes as a correct record of the meeting held on 12 March 2019.

 

The committee is reminded that only those Members present at the previous meeting should vote and, in doing so, should be influenced only by seeking to ensure that the minutes are an accurate record.

 

Minutes:

The minutes of the meeting held on 12 March 2019 were confirmed as a correct record and SIGNED by the Chairman.

7.

Chairman's Announcements

To receive any announcements that the Chairman may wish to make.

 

Minutes:

The Chairman had no announcements to make.

8.

Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Scheme (SVPRS) (00:18:30) pdf icon PDF 100 KB

To receive a report from the Group Manager for Housing Services providing an update on the provision of housing for Syrian Refugees in Mid Devon.

Minutes:

The Group had before it a report * from the Group Manager for Housing Services updating it on the provision of housing for Syrian Refugees in Mid Devon.

 

The Chairman opened the discussion by stating that he had a lot of sympathy for the families involved and he congratulated those that had tried to help and who had worked so hard up until now.

 

The Director of Operations briefly outlined the contents of the reports.

 

Consideration was given to the following:

 

·         The advantages and disadvantages of using a third party agency one being that the liability would still rest with the Council as they would own the tenancy. A lot of negotiations took place behind the scenes before a family was housed and there was only so much a charity or third party could be asked to do.

·         The positive and welcoming nature of the Crediton community.

·         CHAT being prepared to help set up and support these families.

·         The legal obligations of the Council.

·         The implications on the housing options team following the introduction of the Homelessness Act which placed extra responsibilities on councils in terms of its statutory obligations and a requirement to have to work with all eligible applicants regardless of any priority need. There was work that the team had to undertake statutorily and there was work that they didn’t, participation in the resettlement scheme was not a statutory obligation. The local authority needed to act lawfully with limited resources.

·         The need for a ‘can do’ attitude and a full appreciation of the challenges faced by Syrian families.

·         A similar resettlement programme had existed for the Vietnamese Boat People back in the 1980’s. One family had been rehoused in Tiverton but they had not stayed having felt isolated and preferring to move north where other Vietnamese families were living.

 

It was AGREED that the issue be brought back to the next meeting having taken on board the representations made and investigations taken place regarding the following:

 

a)    What could be achieved by working with a third party or parties such as CHAT and;

 

b)    How other local authorities were managing to resettle families given that they were also required to comply with the Homelessness Act and would be experiencing the same time constraints.

 

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

 

 

9.

Performance and Risk report for 2018/19 (00:44:00) pdf icon PDF 71 KB

To receive a report from the Director of Operations providing Members with an update on performance against the Corporate Plan and local service targets for 2018/19 as well as providing an update on the key business risks.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Group had before it, and NOTED, a report * from the Director of Operations providing Members with an update on performance against the Corporate Plan and local service targets for 2018/19 as well as providing an update on the key business risks.

 

The officer summarised the key highlights throughout the year which fell under the housing area. This included mention of the fact that 4 new housing units had been completed in November 2019 and 6 in March 2019. 26 units at Palmerston Park were due for completion in the autumn of 2019.

 

The Housing Department were congratulated for an excellent set of results and wished for this to be passed back to the wider team.

 

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

10.

Revenue and Capital Outturn 2018/19 (00:49:08) pdf icon PDF 286 KB

To receive and NOTE the Outturn report from the Deputy Chief Executive (S151) and the proposed recommendations to the Cabinet.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Group had before it, and NOTED, a report * from the Deputy Chief Executive (S151) presenting the revenue and capital outturn figures for the financial year 2019/20. The report also contained recommendations to the Cabinet which would be presented to them at their meeting on 27 June 2019.

 

The Deputy Chief Executive (S151) outlined the contents of the report and drew the Group’s attention to the following areas:

 

·         The external auditors were currently undertaking an audit of the 2018/19 accounts and their work was progressing well.

·         The General Fund outturn for 2018/19 showed an overall underspend of £19k.

·         The Council had managed to transfer some funds to ear marked reserves due to several factors including some additional payments in relation to New Homes Bonus.

·         The Council had changed the way it financed the vehicle fleet making sure that it got better value for money.

·         The General Fund reserve was held at 25% of the operational budget.

·         Financial Monitoring presented to each Policy Development Group throughout the year had been very accurate.

·         Investments had performed well.

·         In December every single unit in Market Walk had been occupied although it was acknowledged that rents had been low.

·         The Council Tax collection rate for 2018/19 was 97.8% demonstrating how effective the Revenues section had been in collecting the annual charge in extremely challenging economic times.

 

The Group were presented with a budget position paper summarising the key areas within the housing area. Particular mention was made of the following:

 

·         Private Sector Housing was showing a variance of £59k. This had occurred as a result of receiving a rogue landlord grant. The intention was transfer to this to reserves for future years.

·         The Housing Revenue Account (HRA) investment income had performed very well helped by a Bank of England rate change in December 2018.

·         Staff vacancy savings in the Repairs and Maintenance area.

·         Savings on the gas servicing contract.

·         An underspend on the estates budget.

·         The ongoing detrimental effect on the HRA of Right to Buy (RTB).

·         The need to look at the overall budget position rather than just individual cost centres.

 

The following was requested to take place:

 

a)    That a precise breakdown of the budget position with regard to the Crediton building be circulated to all members of the Group.

 

b)    That some training with regard to finances in this area be provided to the Group before the next meeting and certainly before budget considerations were brought before it.

 

The Group congratulated the Finance team on an excellent set of results and wished for this to be conveyed to the wider team.

 

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

11.

Housing Revenue Account (HRA) Asset position (01:12:43)

To receive a verbal update and presentation from the Group Manager for Building Services on the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) asset position.

Minutes:

The Group Manager for Building Services provided the Group with a presentation on the asset position of the Housing Revenue Account.

 

Discussion took place with regard to:

 

·         The pressure on the HRA of Right to Buy and the inflexible nature of the Government’s stance on this issue.

·         On average there were 25 RTB’s per year.

·         The Council’s responsibility to provide social housing.

·         The lack of financial incentive to build properties.

·         In order to maintain the housing stock it was vital that the Council collected all the rent that was due to it.

·         Replacement kitchens and bathrooms would need to be prioritised.

·         It was a priority of the Housing Department to reduce the numbers on the housing waiting list wherever it could. This was managed through Devon Home Choice system which categorised tenants in terms of their housing need.

 

The Group requested that they receive information with regard to Council owned garages; how many were fit to be let and how many were in a state of disrepair for example? Also, how many garages were let to charities at a reduced rate? It was explained that information could be provided as long as it was of a general nature and did not relate to specific lets.

 

12.

Housing update report (01:46:09) pdf icon PDF 101 KB

To receive a report from the Group Manager for Housing providing a written briefing on the latest developments relating to social housing.

Minutes:

The Group had before it, and NOTED, a briefing paper from the Group Manager for Housing providing a written briefing on the latest developments relating to social housing.

 

The Neighbourhood Team Leader briefly outlined the contents of the report with reference to:

 

·         The Hackett Review

·         A new deal for social housing with the development of key performance indicators and how these could help tenants to hold their landlords to account.

·         Recent regulatory judgements demonstrating how important it was for Registered Providers to be compliant with both legislative and regulatory requirements.

·         The consultation in relation to a new five year Rent Standard.

·         Yarlington (a housing association) had announced that they were exploring options to form a partnership.

·         Tenure Reform and the drive to simplify the tenancy process especially in relation to flexible tenancies.

·         Leasehold Reform.

·         Welfare Reform

 

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

13.

Start time of meetings (01:53:47)

To agree the start time of meetings for the reminder of the municipal year.

Minutes:

It was AGREED to continue to hold meetings of the Group at 2.15pm for the remainder of the municipal year.

14.

Identification of items for the next meeting (01:55:25)

Members are asked to note that the following items are already identified in the work programme for the next meeting:

 

·         Performance and Risk first quarter 2019/20

·         Corporate Asbestos Policy

·         Allocations Policy and Procedures

·         Income Management Policy

·         Overview of the Housing Service

·         Overview of Homelessness

·         Devon Home Choice – briefing

·         Presentation on Private Sector Housing

·         Housing Sector update

·         DARS (Deposit and Advance Rent Scheme)

 

Note: This item is limited to 10 minutes. There should be no discussion on the items raised.

 

Minutes:

In addition to the items already listed in the work programme for the next meeting, the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Scheme was also requested to be on the agenda.