Decision details

13.1  Deputy Mayor Nicholson introduced the report.

RESOLVED:

That the ‘Resident Ballots for Regeneration Projects in Hackney’ Policy Statement, in Appendix 1 of the published report, be approved.

REASONS FOR DECISION

As Hackney is facing an unprecedented housing crisis, the Council is building new genuinely affordable homes across a range of sites in the borough to help meet housing demand, engaging and consulting with the local community and putting residents at the heart of any proposals for redevelopment.

To ensure that regeneration brings real benefits to local communities and opportunities are given to existing tenants, the Council has already developed

and adopted Local Lettings Policies as well as the Leaseholder and Freeholder Options Document. Moreover, the Council follows the guidance provided in the ‘Better Homes for Local People’, the Mayor of London’s Estate Regeneration Good Practice Guide. The latter sets out good practice and principles to deliver better homes for local communities, and encourages housing providers to openly engage with residents affected by a regeneration project, from its inception. The Mayor of London’s Guide encourages the use of ballots when demolition is involved in a regeneration scheme in receipt of GLA funding (specific requirements for ballots are set out in the GLA’s Capital Funding Guide).

If a regeneration scheme is in receipt of GLA funding, the Mayor of London introduced requirements for resident ballots in circumstances where there is large-scale regeneration and proposed demolition of any homes. The ‘Resident Ballots for Regeneration Projects in Hackney’ Policy Statement (Appendix 1 of the published report) defines how the Council intends to undertake voluntary resident ballots for future regeneration projects not in receipt of GLA funding and therefore not subject to the Mayor of London’s requirements. It provides guidance for regeneration projects developed by the Council itself and will be promoted as a good practice example - via a Hackney Council-Registered Providers Compact - for regeneration projects undertaken by Registered Providers within the borough.

The ‘Resident Ballots for Regeneration Projects in Hackney’ Policy Statement sets out the Council’s commitment to carrying out ballots of residents on future regeneration schemes that involve large-scale demolition where a formal decision was made after 18 July 2018. It reinforces Hackney Council’s commitment to placing residents at the heart of decision-making on regeneration projects.