Venue: Committee Room 1, Town Hall, Judd Street, London WC1H 9JE. View directions
Contact: Gianni Franchi Email: gianni.franchi@camden.gov.uk
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Apologies for absence To consider any apologies for absence Minutes: Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Samata Khatoon and Charles Bertlin and Larissa Hope, Co-opted Members. |
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Declarations by Members of Statutory Disclosable Pecuniary Interests, Compulsory Registerable Non-Pecuniary Interests and Voluntary Registerable Non-Pecuniary Interests in Matters on this Agenda Minutes: There were none. |
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Announcements Broadcast of the meeting
The Chair to announce the following: ‘In addition to the rights by law that the public and press have to record this meeting, I would like to remind everyone that this meeting is being broadcast live by the Council to the Internet and can be viewed on our website for twelve months after the meeting. After that time, webcasts are archived and can be made available upon request.
If you have asked to address the meeting, you are deemed to be consenting to having your contributions recorded and broadcast, including video when switched on, and to the use of those sound recordings and images for webcasting and/or training purposes.’
Any other announcements Minutes: Broadcast of the meeting
The Chair announced that the meeting was being broadcast live by the Council to the Internet and could be viewed on the website for twelve months after the meeting. After that time, webcasts were archived and could be made available upon request. Those who had asked to address the meeting were deemed to be consenting to having their contributions recorded and broadcast and to the use of those sound recordings and images for webcasting and/or training purposes.
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Notification of any items of business that the chair decides to take as urgent Minutes: There were none. |
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To consider the minutes of the meeting held on 22nd February 2024. Minutes: Consideration was given to the minutes of the meeting held on 22nd February 2024.
RESOLVED –
THAT the minutes of the meeting held on 22nd February 2024 be approved and signed as a correct record.
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Requests to speak at the Committee on a matter within its terms of reference must be made in writing to the clerk named on the front of this agenda by 5pm two working days before the meeting.
Minutes: A deputation was received from Jeremy and Joyce Yankey regarding support for the deaf community in relation to housing service engagement.
Jeremy then gave the following key responses to questions;
· The deputation felt that Islington Council were making progress regarding the support they were making available to the deaf community so Camden should look there as a point of good practice. · The deputation suggested that the Council should look at enabling the deaf community to make video messages using BSL to allow them to raise their concerns.
The Chair then thanked Jeremy and Joyce for their deputation.
Members noted the good work being done by the Disability Advisory Panel of the Council in relation to identifying issues of concern and seeking service improvements for people with disabilities. Members also asked that officers provide a briefing note to the scrutiny committee regarding the current service offer for all people with disabilities, and how this could be improved going forward.
ACTION BY: Director of Housing and the Director of Property Management
A deputation was then received from Jon Glackin, Streets Kitchen, regarding the Review of Rough Sleepers report on the agenda for the meeting.
Jon gave the following key response to questions:
· The deputation wished to see the Council and the voluntary sector work in partnership to seek to help rough sleepers. The review had not sought to include all groups working in that sector, and the review’s recommendation should be delayed to allow for these groups to be involved and have genuine independence from the Council. · The Homelessness Forum that was in place was being merged with the Homelessness Transformation Forum, and needed greater involvement of voluntary sector groups who were involved in service provision in this area.
The Chair then thanked Jon for his deputation. |
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Terms of Reference To note the terms of reference of the scrutiny committee as set out below
‘To scrutinise the Council’s policies and the provision, planning, financing, management and performance of services relating to housing provided by the Supporting Communities Directorate and other service providers’
Minutes: RESOLVED
THAT the terms of reference of the scrutiny committee as set out below be approved;
‘To scrutinise the Council’s policies and the provision, planning, financing, management and performance of services relating to housing provided by the Supporting Communities Directorate and other service providers’.
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Appointment of Co-opted Members 2024/25 To consider the appointment of co-opted members for the 24/25 municipal year as set out in the report.
Minutes: Consideration was given to the report of the Director of Property Management.
RESOLVED –
THAT Vic Seedman, Larissa Hope and Charles Bertlin be appointed as non-voting co-opted members on the scrutiny committee for the 2024/25 Municipal Year. |
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Review of Rough Sleeping Services Report of the Executive Director Adults and Health
The report presents the context, method, findings, and recommendations of a review of Camden’s rough sleeping services, which has been led by Jess McGregor, Executive Director Adults and Health. This review was initiated following the meeting of the Housing Scrutiny Committee on 18th December 2023, at which the Committee received a report of the investigation into an incident on Huntley Street on 10th November 2023.
The purpose of the review of rough sleeping services in Camden has been to answer the following questions:
1. Does Camden have the appropriate policies, procedures and resources in place to respond well and in an empathetic way to people rough sleeping? 2. Do services meet the needs of a diverse group of people? 3. Are we making the most of strong community willingness to help and support people rough sleeping?
The review process has involved analysis of data and evidence relating to rough sleeping in Camden and rough sleeping services, interviews with Camden staff and practitioners from commissioned services and the voluntary sector in Camden, and consultation with neighbouring boroughs.
The review has found that rough sleeping services in Camden operate in a challenging context, characterised by exceptionally high levels of rough sleeping by national standards, short-term funding, and a very diverse and complex range of needs and vulnerabilities among people who sleep rough in Camden. Despite this, the review has found that rough sleeping services work well in Camden. There are areas where Camden may make improvements and explore different models of rough sleeping service, and so the review makes recommendations that may inform the ongoing work to make improvements to how rough sleeping services operate. There will be further opportunities as Camden develops a new Homelessness and Rough Sleeping strategy. Additional documents: Minutes: Consideration was given to the report of the Executive Director Adults and Health.
Councillor Pat Callaghan, Cabinet Member Safer Communities, and Jess McGregor, Executive Director Adults and Health, took the meeting through the report and they along with Glendine Shepherd, Director of Housing, gave the following key responses to questions:
· The Executive Director had been charged to undertake the review as she was independent from the providers of the service within the Council and was the Council’s statutory officer responsible for adults. All appropriate groups had been invited to be involved in the review and had been sent a copy of the draft report for comments. Street Kitchens, though part of the review, had helped shape some of the proposals, but had not taken up the offer of commenting on the draft report. · The Council had and would continue to lobby the Government to seek funding to pay for the provision of support needed to help non-uk national rough sleepers. It was hoped that the new Government would look differently at this issue and provide resources for local authorities to fully fund this work. · The Council was seeking to develop a clear understanding of its role in supporting rough sleepers, how to maximise the use of its resources to help them, as well as the enforcement considerations around crime and anti-social behaviour that affected local communities. The Police were there to enforce the law, and Council staff were there to provide support and care for the rough sleepers. The need to clarify roles had come out of an event arranged by Street Kitchens. · Gambling, drugs and alcohol abuse were all routes into rough sleeping, and once a person was sleeping rough it often only took the individual a few weeks before they started taking drugs or undertaking alcohol abuse. · Camden was always likely to be a destination for rough sleepers due to it being a major transport hub, so the Council had to think about what a fully costed optimum rough sleeper service looked like going forward. This should ensure the Council was able to make clear decisions about what it wanted from the service (including working on prevention) and then ensure resources were put in place to deliver its programme. · The local community were sympathetic to rough sleepers but did not want the resulting crime or anti-social behaviour they were connected with. · The Homelessness Transformation work stream would be taking forward the recommendations proposed in the report (and were already working on some initiatives identified like the Personal Passport), and they very much saw the voluntary and community sector playing a vital role in the support and care being given to rough sleepers. Also this work would be pulled together as part of the Council’s Homelessness Strategy. There was currently a service reorganisation going on for the Homelessness Transformation Team but it was expected that this would be completed by September. · The conclusion from the thorough review that had been undertaken regarding all the policies and procedures that ... view the full minutes text for item 9. |
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Report of the Borough Solicitor
The Housing Ombudsman requires all Landlords to produce a report annually. The report must contain the following key elements:
· Annual self-assessment · Analysis of Housing complaints performance · Any findings of non-compliance · Service Improvements made · Housing Ombudsman Annual Report on the Landlord · Any other relevant reports.
It is a requirement to present this report to the relevant governing bodies and to publish the governing bodies’ response alongside the report and self-assessment.
In Camden the governing bodies have been agreed as the RCP Scrutiny Committee and Housing Scrutiny Committee. This is the first report following the new requirements and has been developed in an accessible and easy to understand format. Members are an important source of insight and intelligence on concerns raised by residents and communities Additional documents:
Minutes: Consideration was given to the report of the Borough Solicitor.
Jim Read, Service Manager, along with Kathryn Byrne, Head of Business Support, took the meeting through the report and they along with Scot Reid, Head of Property Customer Services & Engagement, gave the following key responses to questions:
· The Council had seen a sizeable increase in the number of complaints over the last two years with the majority of these being in housing repairs. This has led to an increase in the escalation of stage 1 complaints to stage 2 and from there to the Housing Ombudsman, which was not unique to Camden, with other social housing providers also seeing such increases. This was partly due to an increase in the awareness of the complaints process through the increased profile of the Housing Ombudsman. Also, the increase was due to greater investment being required in the Council’s homes. Due to these reasons, it was expected that in future all stages of the complaints process were likely to see increases. Additional resources were being put in place to seek to improve the response process which it was hoped over time would reduce the number of the later stage complaints. · The Council was putting in place processes and procedures to learn from the information coming out from the complaints it received. This information would be used to make service delivery improvements. · The level of activity in the Repairs Service had greatly increased over the last few years due to the Council’s proactive approach with work related to fire safety and damp and mould. This service was currently undertaking approximately over a hundred and fifty thousand interactions with tenants every year. · Repairs matters were the second highest complaints issue that tenants were raising. This was partly due to the Council having to reaffirm what was a tenant’s responsibility to deal with and what the Council would put right. · The level of positive customer satisfaction with completed repairs was running at approximately 86% (this had been independently assessed) and this had remained stable over the last few years. · Improving communications with tenants was an on-going theme arising out of the complaints that were being made, and this was something the Council was being proactive about in seeking to improve. · The Council had put in place a resident led oversight panel that was looking at the themes that were arising from complaints raised, holding officers to account, along with seeking appropriate service improvements so the issues were not repeated. · A number of service changes had been made to improve internal processes and procedures and it was hoped that these would make a real difference in the way complaints were dealt with, which would then lead to greater customer satisfaction at an earlier stage of the complaints process. It was hoped that this work could reduce the number of compensation settlements. · Complaints generally increased over the winter months due to issues related to heating systems.
The scrutiny committee noted the difficult context housing ... view the full minutes text for item 10. |
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Insight, Learning and Impact Report - Quarter 4/End of Year 2023-24 Report of the Executive Directors of Adults and Health, Children and Learning, Supporting Communities and Corporate Services
This report focusses on the year 2023-24 using a broad range of measures from each directorate and division across the organisation. In this report, Camden Directors have been asked to provide a narrative covering key areas of challenge, opportunity, and learning.
This report is divided into two main sections:
· An overview of key themes: a summary which highlights key responses from directorates and highlights particular cross-cutting themes · A more detailed account of individual service responses across each of our three Directorates.
Appendix A contains the data dashboard with key measures and data for 2023-24 from services across the Council. Additional documents: Minutes: Consideration was given to the report of the Executive Directors.
Gavin Haynes, Director of Property Management, took the meeting through the report and he along with Glendine Shepherd, Director of Housing, gave the following key responses to questions:
· Officers agreed to provide members with a copy of the Tenant Satisfaction Measures relating to fire safety when they were available this week.
ACTION BY: Director of Property Management (MD)
· A new development on Chester and Camden Road planned for 2025 would deliver a further 89 family size hostel units, which would enable the Council to better support its residents as and when necessary.
RESOLVED –
THAT the report be noted |
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Response to the Homelessness Scrutiny Panel report Report of the Director of Housing
This report sets out the Council’s response to the recommendations made by the Homelessness Scrutiny Panel on 22nd February 2024 following a deep dive into homelessness services across Camden. This report provides an initial response, and any relevant commentary. Minutes: Consideration was given to the report of the Director of Housing.
Simone Melia, Head of Housing Solutions, took the meeting through the report and gave the following key responses to questions:
· Officers would be providing the scrutiny committee with a further update report to its October meeting, and the paper would also provide an update on the Voluntary and Community Sector contracts and the out-of-hours provision.
ACTION BY: Director of Housing (SM)
· Officers would be progressing the recommendation regarding expanding outreach work at physical hubs once the service reorganisation had been completed and officer leads could be identified. This service reorganisation would also seek to change the way services were being provided to tenants in hostels and temporary accommodation. · Officers would be considering how best to feedback to the Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) regarding where proposals for service change came from, along with whether there was scope to consider options to expand where the Council could commission the VCS to undertake aspects of the service instead of the local authority as they were better placed to deliver them. · Officers would also be considering how best to recognise and promote the good work that was being done by all public agencies, including the Council.
RESOLVED –
THAT the report be noted |
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Update from Cabinet Member for Better Homes To consider the report from the Cabinet Member Better Homes Minutes: Consideration was given to the report of the Cabinet Member Better Homes
Councillor Sagal Abdi-Wali, Cabinet Member Better Homes, took the meeting through the report.
The scrutiny committee welcomed the report of the Cabinet Member Better Homes and the approaches she had identified in her report. The Members looked forward seeing further improvements to service provision regarding ASB, voids turnaround and delivery, support for private rented sector tenants, the management of new homes and helping all tenants in all types of tenures arising from new developments.
RESOLVED –
THAT the report be noted |
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Work Programme and Forward Plan Report of the Director of Property Management
This report suggests a possible work programme for the scrutiny committee Additional documents:
Minutes: Consideration was given to the report of the Director of Property Management.
The scrutiny committee asked that the following matters be added to the provisional work programme, along with the further information required regarding items:
· Homelessness Scrutiny Panel recommendations update (October) · Review of Rough Sleeping Services (October and January)
Officers also agreed to provide all members of the scrutiny committee a copy of the proposed anti-social behaviour policy when available.
ACTION BY: Director of Housing
Programme of meetings 2024/25 (new items and information requests in bold)
7th October
· Tenant Satisfaction Measures and Benchmarking · Repairs and Operations & Capital Works Update (also covering voids delivery programme) · Cabinet Member Better Homes Update · Work programme · Homelessness Scrutiny Panel recommendations update · Review of Rough Sleeping Services
12th November
· Housing & Repairs Transformation Programme · Landlord Services update on: Anti-social Behaviour Policy, Estate Parking Report, Feedback from Tenancy Visits, and Voids lettings · Landlord Licensing Scheme (also covering conditions of homes and enforcement action) · Cabinet Member Better Homes update · Work Programme
10th December
· Asset Management Strategy (Cabinet Report) · Allocations Policy Report · HRA Budgeting Report · Cabinet Member Better Homes update · Work Programme
13th January 2025
· HRA Budget & Rent Review 24/25 · CIP annual report · Domestic Abuse Report Update · Cabinet Member Better Homes update · Work Programme · Review of Rough Sleeping Services
25th February
· Housing Associations Annual Performance Report · Cabinet Member Better Homes Annual Report · Work programme
Yet to be programmed
RESOLVED –
THAT the report work programme be revised as outlined above.
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Any other business that the chair considers urgent Minutes: There were none. |