Agenda and minutes

Appendix A lists those Tenant and Resident 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 TRAs 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 Service together with a membership list and a completed registered form.

The DMC considered the list of registered tenant and resident associations (TRAs) provided by the Tenant Participation Service listed at Appendix A to the agenda and those TRAs whose registration had lapsed, which were listed at Appendix B.

Apologies for absence were received from Forge, Mutton and Castle Road TRA and Kiln Place TRA.

Supplementary Agenda

The Chair announced that a supplementary agenda was circulated to members. The supplement contained an updated budget report as the report in the main agenda was not up to date.

Vice-Chair attendance at Joint Chairs meeting

The Chair announced that he would be raising this in Local Issues.

No declarations were made.

There was no such business.

To approve and sign the minutes of the meeting of Gospel Oak DMC held on 5 September 2024 and to consider the progress report.

Consideration was given to the minutes of the meeting held on 5 September 2024.

Mohammed Hussen, Bacton Tower TRA, asked to amend the minutes to reflect his attendance at the meeting. This was agreed by the Committee.

RESOLVED –

THAT the minutes of the meeting held on 5 September 2024 be approved subject to the correction outlined above.

Report of the Director of Finance

This report provides an update on Housing Revenue Account (HRA) 2025/26 Budget Setting progress ahead of the January Joint DMC meeting at which DMC representatives will be asked to provide feedback on proposals

Consideration was given to the report of the Director of Finance. After an introduction by the Strategic Finance Lead – Housing, the committee discussed the report, making the following key comments:

·       In response to a question from the Committee the Strategic Finance Lead said that the requirement for the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) to be self funding was law and not rule created by the Council.

·       Residents were interested in resources for supporting those experiencing homelessness and whether the cost came from the HRA. The Strategic Finance Lead clarified that the cost of supporting homeless people came from the general fund, not the HRA. Some of Camden’s housing stock was used for temporary accommodation but this was not a pressure for the HRA.

·       A member raised that it was a requirement to pay for two months’ rent at the start of a tenancy, they said this was unfair and could skew figures on arrears. The Strategic Finance Lead agreed to provide information about how the system worked when starting a tenancy.

ACTION BY: The Strategic Finance Lead – Housing

·       Responding to a question from the Committee, the Strategic Finance Lead agreed to provide details on window cleaning as residents had been told that windows without balconies would not be cleaned.

ACTION BY: The Strategic Finance Lead – Housing

·       Members of the Committee discussed their experiences of responsive housing patrols and raised concerns with the effectiveness of them.

·       The Committee spoke about grounds maintenance and the proposed increase, there was concern that the cost had increased each year but the level of service had not improved. The Strategic Finance Lead said that she would feed this back to the Head of Service.

·      
The Cabinet Member for Better Homes agreed to share links to grounds maintenance contracts which were publicly available.

ACTION BY: The Cabinet Member for Better Homes

·       In response to questions from the Committee about the work of grounds maintenance, the Strategic Finance Lead agreed to provide more detail on Appendix A and what services charges were used to pay for.

ACTION BY: The Strategic Finance Lead

RESOLVED –

THAT The report be noted.

Report of the Director of Housing

The purpose of this paper is to update the DMCs on progress of the Housing Transformation programme, raise awareness of key pieces of work and immediate priorities within the programme.

Consideration was given to the report of the Director of Housing. The report was introduced by the Strategy Delivery Manager and the Housing Policy and Change Lead.

The Committee spoke about support with homelessness and asked for an update on the two family hostels that were to be built. The Strategy Delivery Manager agreed to provide an update.

ACTION BY: The Strategy Delivery Manager.

Members raised that the proposed model could create confusion as the individual roles of each service and team was not clear. The Housing Policy and Change Lead agreed to circulate information about the objectives of different services within the proposed department model.

ACTION BY: The Housing Policy and Change Lead.

RESOLVED –

THAT the report be noted.

Report of the Tenant Participation Coordinator.

This report details the Camden Town DMC budget allocation for 2024/2025, progress on approved bids and any new bids submitted for consideration. 

The Tenant Participation Co-ordinator informed the Committee that there no bids to hear at this meeting.

RESOLVED –

THAT the report be noted.

To receive an update from the Cabinet Member for Better Homes on housing issues in the Borough.

Consideration was given to the report of the Cabinet Member for Better Homes, who introduced the report.

The Committee raised concerns about the waiting list for residents needing repairs or alterations done to their properties. The Cabinet Member said that due to the pressures on the repairs service, works needed to be prioritised based on urgency and could involve a wait for completion.

A resident spoke about their experience of the repairs service with issues such as problems not being logged or tracked properly and the length of time it has taken to get a solution.

In response to a question from members, the Cabinet Member said that a new system for repairs would be introduced towards the end of early next year, this system would allow residents to track and monitor repairs jobs.

A member of the Committee asked about funding that had been secured through the government’s levelling up programme as they understood funding had been given to the Gospel Oak and Kentish Town area. The Cabinet Member agreed to provide an update on what happened to funds that were secured by Gospel Oak and Kentish Town as part of the Government’s Levelling Up scheme

ACTION BY: The Cabinet Member for Better Homes

RESOLVED –

THAT the report be noted.

Holmes Road Depot

Paul Tomlinson and Tom Young addressed the Committee as a follow up to the motion passed at the September meeting.

In the presentation, they made the following comments:

·       There was a consultation underway on the Regeneration Strategy, that would finish on 23 December. He told the Committee that this would be a good opportunity for them to have their voices and opinions heard and asked members to consider responding.

·       Paul Tomlinson asked for the DMC to agree request Camden for a public meeting to discuss the future of Holmes Road.

·       Paul Tomlinson asked for the DMC to agree to request that Camden set up a panel, with membership including DMC reps, to review available options for Holmes Road.

The DMC then voted on the issues raised by Paul Tomlinson and agreed to request a public meeting to discuss Holmes Road and to request Camden set up a panel, with membership including DMC reps, to review available options for Holmes Road.

Attendance of Vice Chairs at the Agena Planning meeting

The Chair sought the opinion of the Committee of Vice Chairs attending the Joint DMC Chairs meeting if the Chair was unable to.

The Committee understood that attendance at these meetings was important as it provided an opportunity for DMCs to discuss items to be brought to future DMC meetings. The Committee agreed for Vice Chairs to attend Joint DMC Chairs meetings if the Chair was unable to do so.

Information report of the Director of Property Management

This paper provides an update on the Voids Improvement Programme

The information item was noted.

Information report of the Director of Housing

This report provides an update on the ongoing work to implement the Housing Service's KPIs

The information item was noted.

Information report from the Director of Property Management

The DMC Chairs requested an update on the programme and how estates without CCTV would be considered for addition to the network.

The information item was noted.

Information report of the Executive Director Supporting Commnities

This report provides a summary update on the re-provision of the Holmes Road Depot as part of the Regeneration Strategy for Regis Road.

The information item was noted.

There was no such business.