Agenda item - Chairs Communications

          Chris Cooke

65.1   The Chair stated that on a very sad note, she would like to extend the Committee’s sympathies to the family and friends of Chris Cooke, who had died after a fire at a flat in Essex Place over the weekend of 20/21^st February. The Chair was aware that some councillors and staff would have worked with Chris over the years, and would miss him dearly.  The Committee stood for a minutes silence.   

          Additional funding from the DCLG – Preventing Homelessness Grant

65.2   The Chair was pleased to be able to formally advise the Committee that the council had been successful in bidding for an additional £200k from the DCLG through the preventing homelessness grant.  The one off grant would be used to extend the council’s work in preventing homelessness through a range of provisions. 

65.3   The Council would  extend the landlord rescue service, to provide very early intervention to help households retain their tenancies.  The Council would, where appropriate, support homeless households to move into private sector tenancies through the deposit and /or relocation packages and the Council would help support households to move directly into private sector housing avoiding the need to move twice. This would also reduce the pressure on the Council’s limited temporary accommodation, as well as reduce pressures on health & education budgets.

65.4   The Council would enhance partnership working across the city to maximise prevention by earlier intervention through

·       officers based in hospital multi-disciplinary teams to identify housing issues at a very early stage

·       working with the local prison to resettle people upon discharge

·       working with health/GPs,  to prevent homelessness/seek alternatives

          Mears Sub-Contractor Overcharging – Payment from Mears

65.5   The Chair was pleased to advise the Committee that following on from the overcharging issues with a Mears sub-contractor, as discussed at the last committee, she could confirm that the Council had now received £274,866 payment from Mears, in respect of the post-April 2014 over charging. A further settlement from Mears was anticipated in the next few weeks with respect to the pre-April overcharging.

          Consultation Event and Repairs Partnership Workshop

65.6   As requested by the Housing & New Homes Committee, the council held a very well attended and successful additional consultation event on the 26^th January with members of the committee and tenant representatives to discuss and comment on the HRA budget, medium term financial review and the HRA capital programme and feedback was included in the report that went to Policy & Resources Committee.

65.7   In addition, a Repairs Partnership Workshop was held on 23^rd February with councillors, officers and managers from Mears to understand why the contract was put in place and what it had delivered over the first five years.

65.8   In regard to the on-going pressures on the private sector housing rental market in the city, the Chair was also pleased to confirm Budget Policy & Resources Committee had approved an additional £39,000 recurrent funding to support raising standards in the private rented sector including appropriate enforcement of licensing and regulations.

New Homes for Neighbourhoods programme:

65.9   The Chair reported that she and some members of Housing & New           Homes Committee visited the Y:Cube innovative modular build scheme    in Merton which is used for short term accommodation by the YMCA.

65.10  The Chair was pleased to report she would be opening Robert Lodge South block of 9 flats on the 10^th of March.  Alll members of the committee had been invited to the event.

65.11  The Findon Road new build scheme for 57 flats at the site of the former library in Whitehawk had started on site.