Agenda and minutes

Appendix A lists those Tenants’ and Residents’ Associations (TRAs), which have satisfactorily completed the registration process at the date of despatch of this agenda. It gives details of the representatives of those Associations to be co-opted onto the DMC, in accordance with the constitution, together with the names of the substitutes.

Appendix B lists those TRAs whose registrations have lapsed. If a TRA wishes to register it must hold an Annual General Meeting (AGM), open to all members, once a year (with an independent observer in attendance). The minutes must be sent to the Tenant Participation Team together with a membership list and a completed registered form.

The ‘A’ and ‘B’ lists were noted.

Apologies for absence were received from Petra Dando (CASP) and John Webb (Kennistoun & Willingham TRA).

There were no announcements.

There were no such declarations.

There were no notifications of urgent business.

To approve and sign the minutes of the meeting of the Kentish Town District Management Committee held on 13 June 2023.

Consideration was given to the minutes of the meeting held on 13 June 2023.

The DMC noted that at the meeting, under Agenda Item 4 - Election of Vice-Chair, a discussion took place, in which the role of Chair and Vice-Chair was discussed. The DMC sought clarity on what the expectations and duties of Vice-Chair were and how they worked alongside the Chair. Members also discussed the wider role of the DMC.

It was suggested, at the previous meeting, that an information report be provided to the DMC at a future meeting with the intention of explaining these points and providing clarity about the role of DMC Members, DMC Chairs and DMC Vice-Chairs.

ACTION: Tennant Participation

RESOLVED –

THAT the minutes of the meeting held on 13 June 2023 be approved and signed as a correct record, subject to the addition above.

The DMC is asked to note the progress of the action points arising from the previous meeting.

Void Properties

It had continued to prove difficult to obtain information from other Local Authorities on void properties.

The DMC discussed that long term void properties and rent arrears had continued to be an issue, and that policies related to these issues were in need of updating to address this. It was stated that current policies did not work for Londoners and Camden Council should lead the way on innovative ways to improve these policies and encourage people to downsize when necessary.

The Head of Neighbourhoods understood residents concerns and advised that three new Heads of Service had been appointed and moving forward work would be undertaken to improve services, and that the Council would be more transparent with residents about future plans.

Responding to a question about under occupation and downsizing, the Head of Neighbourhoods explained that the Council could not bring an assured tenancy to an end, mutual agreement or a court judgement was needed. However, there were several incentives offered to residents to encourage and assist with downsizing. Furthermore, a downsizing transformation project was underway but will take time to complete.

The meeting noted that some residents did not know about the incentives as they were not clearly advertised and that the strict allocation policy could cause issues for residents who are ready to move but don’t want to leave their estate or local area.

The Head of Neighbourhoods informed the DMC that the allocations and voids deep dive meeting was to be arranged and would provide DMC Members with more information and the work that was being undertaken by the service.

ACTION: Head of Innovation & Improvement

Master Key Scheme

A response had been provided to CASP in relation to the statement they made on the Master Key Scheme at the meeting of the DMC that took place on 13 June 2023. It was noted that the reply had been circulated.

The Action Point Update was noted.

Report of the Director of Housing and the Director of Property Services.

The DMC is asked to discuss and comment on the sections of the consolidated report that are of particular interest to members during the meeting.

The consolidated Housing Services report was compiled following feedback from DMC members at recent meetings and arising from specific requests from DMC chairs during their April agenda setting with the Cabinet Member. It includes Housing Management & Property Services performance and other requested reports.

Consideration was given to the consolidated report of the Director of Housing Management and the Director of Property Services.

HRA Budget Monitoring Update

Michael Webb (Head of Finance, Supporting Communities) presented the report which provided an overview of the Housing Revenue Account (HRA). It provided an outturn for 2022/23 and the budgeted and forecast expenditure and income for 2023/24.

The Head of Finance noted that there was a correction to the report on page 34 of the agenda pack. The report incorrectly stated that “interest payable is also forecast to be £2.6m over budget due to rising interest rates.” This figure should have stated £3.6 million.

Responding to questions and comments from DMC Members, Officers provided the following information:

·       In terms of energy costs, leaseholders were given an estimated cost and charged based on this, if the actual figure is higher leaseholders would then be required to pay the difference.

·       Depending on the next Bank of England announcement regarding the interest rate, some HRA borrowing would be impacted and a revised estimate would be formulated. It was hoped that the interest rate would soon start to decrease.

·       The main objective for the Community Investment Programme (CIP) was to provide replacement and additional council housing. Properties in council estates that had reached end of lifecycle were replaced with new properties. There was a set process which determined where regeneration needed to take place.

• A further aim of the CIP was to reduce repairs expenditure by regenerating the estates which need the most repairs.

·       The only way the CIP scheme generated income was by selling flats privately, but in addition to these private flats, the council replaced existing council properties and built additional properties.

·       The intention of the Better Homes programme was to invest in and improve existing housing stock. The Council wanted homes to be safe and in good condition and the Better Homes programme enabled the Council to do this.

·       Concerns about damp and mould were noted and the Council was working on this issue.

·       The Council wanted to demonstrate to residents how improvements to services would be achieved, and communications would be sent to residents providing more information on improvement strategies on this information was available.

·       The CIP Scheme was projected to break even. Private sales covered the costs of new social housing and replacing old housing. With development schemes there was always risk involved, but as a whole it was expected that the programme would break even.

·       Forward buying and the LASER Scheme had helped lower the costs to residents, as there were examples of other local authorities that had not forward purchased and residents there were faced with even higher costs.

·       Gas prices were decreasing but not at the pace that would mean prices could be lowered in year. This would be reassessed when charges were determined for the next financial year.

·       When energy prices went up in April, the increase was estimated at about 290% and the only way it could be lowered was by  ...  view the full minutes text for item 8.

Report of the Head of Neighbourhoods.

In line with the DMC funding guidelines, TRAs will be asked to provide an update to the meeting regarding the progress of agreed bids, including an update on the associated spend. TRAs are invited to circulate any relevant information in advance through the clerk.

TRAs are encouraged to submit bids as soon as possible, so they can be properly assessed and prepared by officers, ready for submission to the DMC. TRAs are reminded that verbal bids cannot be accepted at DMC meetings as, in line with the guidelines, officers need to be able to assess bids before passing them to the DMC.

For more information on DMC bids, please see our webpages: www.camden.gov.uk/dmcbids.

Consideration was given to the report of the Head of Landlord Services.

Tara Cookson (Neighbourhood Manager) introduced the report and outlined the bids received. The Neighbourhood Manager specified that the installation of the Gerda security panels were officer lead bids and the panels had been effective on the estates where they had already been installed.

Representatives from Whittington TRA had attended the meeting but left before they were able to support their bid. Therefore, it was not possible to seek clarity on specific details of the gardening project, therefore Whittington TRA would be invited to resubmit the bid to the December meeting.

Torriano Estate TRA clarified details of their bid, highlighting that the money would be spend on items for the TRA Hall, which would enable the hall to be hired out, such as tables, chairs and other furniture, kitchen equipment, toys, and speakers.

RESOLVED –

THAT the following requests be approved:

Consideration was given to the report of the Head of Neighbourhoods.

Tara Cookson (Neighbourhood Manager) provided an overview of the report and highlighted that the work at St Pancras Way was proving to be more complicated than initially thought due to planning and building regulations, a more substantive update would be provided to the TRA prior to the next meeting.

The meeting were further advised that it had not yet been possible to complete the redesign of refuse storage arrangements at Leighton Crescent, but alternatives had been proposed, including the installation of a MetroSTOR bin store. Representatives of Leighton Crescent TRA explained that there had been issues surrounding the proposed location of the bin store, but a solution was needed to prevent animals and vermin getting to the bins.

An Ingestre Road TRA Representative presented their update, as outlined in the information report.

Responding to a question about addressing fly tipping on the estate, officers advised that, unfortunately, it was not possible for a camera be installed to deter fly tipping but physical deterrents could be considered instead and that Environmental Services could be asked to advise on a solution to address this issue.

Responding to a question about the rent arrears table shown within the report, it was explained that the total number of residential accounts and the number of accounts in arrears had a sharp increase after November 2022 because there had been a boundary change and Camden Square Ward had been added into Kentish Town DMC area. 

The Neighbourhood Manager invited DMC Members to send her updates from their estates for inclusion in the next report.

The report was noted.

The Chair requested an urgent update on the use of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) and sought confirmation if RAAC had been identified in any Council properties.

The Head of Asset Management advised that schools were the priority and were currently being investigated and a statement would be released. However, there was no indication that any of Camden’s schools were affected. In terms of other council properties, this was an emerging issue that had not yet been investigated. Once work was underway in this area, residents would be informed of any surveys, findings and identified risks.

A DMC Member raised concern about asbestos on their estate. The Head of Asset Management advised that if asbestos was encapsulated it was considered a managed risk and disturbing it was avoided.

Councillor Slater advised that he had some helpful written information about asbestos that he would circulate to the relevant TRA.