In the largest return to date, Sheffield City
Council has agreed to retake control of its former housing stock a year earlier
than originally planned. The move has delighted housing campaigners seeking to
reverse the long-term decline in council housing, which was once the
cornerstone of Britain’s housing market.
In February eight out of nine tenants with
Sheffield Homes, an arms length management organisation (ALMO) established in
2004 to manage housing on behalf of Sheffield City Council, voted to become
council tenants once again. At the time the council’s contract with the
ALMO was set to end in March 2014, but now it has been agreed to integrate
services by March 2013 and end the relationship.
‘Undemocratic’
The 42,000 homes transfer is the largest so
far in an emerging trend where Councils retake control of their former housing
stock.
Rotherham Council retook control from an ALMO
on 1 July and in Leicestershire, Charnwood Borough Council is set to dissolve
Charnwood Neighbourhood Housing and again manage its 5,700 homes. Consultation
with tenants had shown three quarters favouring a return.
Sheffield tenant Shirley Frost is a member of
the national Defend Council Housing (DCH) campaigning coalition of tenants’
associations, trade unions, councillor’s and MPs.
She said: “It’s great news that the ALMO is
ending earlier. It was undemocratic and distanced tenants from the decision
makers. ALMO’s are one step towards privatising housing and are part of a
strategy designed to sell off council services and facilities.
Tenants are coming back round to wanting
Council Housing and there are plenty who would welcome the chance to have
similar housing if it was made more widely available.”
DCH instead wants direct public investment in
‘a new generation of first-class housing, with lower rents, secure tenancies
and a landlord tenants can hold to account.’ In line with this 44 MPs, of which
just one is a coalition government member, have signed an early day motion on
‘Housing Emergency – Time for an Alternative.’ Britain has 2.5 million council
homes and the MPs are concerned that five million people are on waiting lists
for social housing.
Yet with radical changes
announced by the Government on council housing finance there seems little
likelihood of a return to the days when 168,000
council houses were built in 1950.
The decline set in when a generation later
under Margaret Thatcher the ‘right to buy’ saw more than two million tenants
take advantage of significant discounts to purchase their homes.
Labour maintained the policy and introduced
large-scale ‘stock transfers’ to ALMO’s and housing associations, which could
then access refurbishment finance. Sheffield Homes obtained £700 million under
such an arrangement.
Seeking to revive ‘the right to buy” the
Government is now offering council tenants a discount of up to 60%. Councils
face selling a £100,000 home for £40,000 and meanwhile any new homes built from
the receipts will see new tenants required to pay 80% of local market
rents.
Meantime councils are facing restrictions on
the amount they can borrow and under the Localism Act 2011 have to make council
housing self-financing. There is also a £257 million bill for necessary
maintenance - which putting off till later may see it rise- to ensure all properties reach the ‘decent homes’ standard. Rents will be
going up 7.8% next year and future rises are guaranteed under the Government’s
harmonisation policy in which council rents will converge with the housing
association sector by 2015-16.
As to whether the Council would be considering
future council housing construction the spokesperson couldn’t say but referred
to “our work with Sheffield Housing Company to build 2,300 new homes for sale,
shared homes and rent over the next fifteen years.” Phase one is just about to
start, but of the 305 new homes being built on land the council has put into
the project just 25 will be for affordable rent.
“We can deliver a first class housing service
by making it easier for tenants to get the housing and other council services
they need, spending a bigger proportion of money on front line services and
homes and giving tenants and leaseholders a bigger say” said the spokesperson.
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