Agenda and minutes

1.1.  Councillor Adejare was duly elected as Chair for the 2022/23 municipal year.

1.2.  Councillor Joseph was duly elected as the Vice-Chair for the 2022/23 municipal year.

2.1. The Chair updated those in attendance on the meeting etiquette and that the meeting was being recorded and livestreamed.

2.2 Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Young.

2.3 Apologies for lateness were received from Councillor Rathbone.

2.4 Councillors Ozsen and Joseph were in virtual attendance.

3.1 There were no urgent items, and the order of business was as set out in the agenda.

4.1 Councillors Adejare and Joseph declared that they were Clarion Housing Association tenants. 

4.2 Councillor Ogundemuren declared that he was a Clarion Housing Association employee.

5.1 The Chair opened the item by explaining that the session would cover how local housing providers in the borough had responded to and were implementing the seven commitments outlined in the Charter for Social Housing Residents - Social Housing White Paper November 2020, which outlined plans for new regulation, a strengthened Housing Ombudsman to speed up complaints, and a set of tenant satisfaction measures that social landlords had to report against.

5.2 The Chair explained that further sessions would be held to cover Hackney Council in relation to the charter, but with the constraints on time and to ensure a full discussion it had been agreed to bring local housing associations together for a standalone session.

5.3 The Chair reminded those in attendance that the Commission would not expect a response to individual cases but to patterns and trends, issues raised about processes and key points made in the meeting.

5.4 The Chair then explained that Commission Members would reflect after the meeting on the evidence heard and may make recommendations for improvement to the organisations for consideration.

5.5 This item would cover tenants’ experiences of local social housing since the charter was put forward and the work of local advocacy groups in supporting social housing tenants.

5.6 Representing Social Housing Action Campaign

·  Mick O’Sullivan - Committee Member

·  Terry Harper - Committee Member

5.7 The Chair invited Councillor Joseph to give a summary of the written testimonies received. The main points are summarised below.

5.8 One of the major issues that social housing tenants faced was disrepair. Some had waited years for issues such as cracks, damp and mould to be dealt with. One resident had seen multiple target completion dates missed, leaving her to live with her children in a damp and overcrowded home.

5.9 Another resident had explained that the housing association had failed to respond to five emails and a lack of engagement meant that he was unsure if contractors would turn up, or what they were scheduled to do on dates given by the housing association. Some said that contractors ring up and cancel on the day, and for one resident this mean losing out on money having taken the day off work.

5.10 A pensioner had waited over 18 months for repairs as a result of flood damage, despite making multiple calls to service lines. She felt that estate offices serve her needs much better, and questioned what accountability structures were now in place.

5.11 Many residents questioned the value for money that their housing associations provided. One resident said that her key worker accommodation had risen rapidly, and another in sheltered accommodation described increased service charges and expensive charges for adjustments for disabilities. A resident said that their pension once comfortably covered rent but now she was forced to claim housing benefits to meet the cost.

5.12 Some residents pointed out significant housing regeneration and building schemes in their local areas, but felt that little of this would provide for social housing.

5.13  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.

6.1 The Chair opened the item by explaining that this section of the discussion would focus on how local housing associations had responded to and were implementing the seven commitments outlined in the Charter for Social Housing Residents - Social Housing White Paper November 2020.

6.2 Representing Sanctuary Housing Association

·  Stephanie Turton, Regional Housing Director - London and South East

·  Tom Forty, Director of Customer Experience

6.3 Representing One Housing

·  Richard Hill, Group Chief Executive Officer

·  Chyrel Brown, Chief Operating Officer

6.4 Representing Shian Housing Association

·  Aaron Whitaker, Chair, Shian Management Board

·  Minara Sultana, Operations Director

·  Leslie Laniyan, Managing Director

6.5 Apologies had been received from the following attendees:

6.6 Representing Peabody

·  Veronica Kirwan, Managing Director - South London & Hackney

6.7 Representing Agudas Israel Housing Association

·  Chaya Spitz, Chief Executive

6.8 The Chair invited Stephanie Turton and Tom Forty, representing Sanctuary Housing Association, to give a short verbal presentation. The main points from the presentation are outlined below.

6.9 Sanctuary Housing Association had led a resident-led self-assessment against the Social Housing White Paper completed by the Sanctuary Housing Association National Resident Scrutiny Panel (NRSP).

6.10 Residents had identified 108 recommendations, from which a 32 point action plan had been developed. The implementation of the actions plan would be monitored and scrutinised by the NRSP, and the approach had been supported by the Regulator for Social Housing.

6.11 There had been continued investment and operational focus by Sanctuary Housing Association on ensuring tenants were safe in their home. There was a Building Safety Programme which focused on remediation and the end-to-end approach to building safety, which was audited to ensure it was appropriate and robust.

6.12 A Primary Authority Partnership with Hampshire Fire and Rescue had been agreed to ensure ongoing expert advice and guidance along with the recruitment of Building Safety Managers and fire safety expertise.

6.13 Sanctuary Housing Association had signed up to a seven year Asset Investment Strategy that would increase investment in capital properties. This would be monitored and scrutinised by the NRSP.

6.14 It was also investing in technology through the One Property Programme to ensure it could support trade operatives and repair staff to carry out their roles effectively and be more customer focused.

6.15 Sanctuary Housing Association had been working towards being more transparent and accountable to its tenants. This had involved agreeing the financial information and value for money information that tenants wanted to see, and redeveloping its approach to annual reports to residents.

6.16 A ‘Residents Academy’ had been developed to deliver CiH accredited courses to tenants involved in the NRSP to empower them to be involved in decision making and encourage informed scrutiny. 

6.17 A customer experience dashboard had also been developed to give an insight into a customer’s journey so that each stage of the journey could be improved as needed. The metrics for the dashboard had been set in consultation with tenants.

6.18 Sanctuary Housing Association were also reviewing resident involvement in its governance arrangements to  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

7.1 This item would cover the Living in Hackney Scrutiny Commission work programme for the 2022/23 municipal year.

7.2 Any suggestions from Commission Members this evening, as well as suggestions made in the public survey, by officers and by Cabinet Members would be collated into a shortlist and presented at the next meeting for agreement.

7.3 After the Commission had agreed the items for the work programme, the Chair and Vice Chair would update the Scrutiny Panel with the proposed work programme for the Commission.

7.4 The Chair then invited Commission Members to make any comments or suggestions for the 2022/23 work programme.

7.5 Commission Members supported the suggestion to explore and advise on existing models and develop new ways to build affordable and accessible homes in Hackney.

7.6 Commission Members supported the suggestion to look at how drug crime was policed in Hackney including stop and search and what happens to people when they were found with illegal substances.

7.7 A Commission Member supported the suggestion to look at the impact of the changes to the Housing Register and Lettings Policy on residents. 

7.8 A Commission Member supported the suggestion to look at the arrangements in place in Hackney to provide temporary accommodation to residents in priority need.

7.9 Commission Members suggested additional work programme items as outlined below.

7.10 To look at urban farming in Hackney as a means of promoting sustainable communities, including urban beekeeping.

7.11 To look at flood planning in Hackney, particularly the risks faced, the impact of flooding and measures taken to manage risks and reduce potential damage and destruction.

7.12 To look at the Council’s work to meet its net zero carbon target in relation to retrofitting buildings in the borough.

7.13 To look at the Council's work to revitalise high streets and town centres. However, as this would sit within the economic regeneration department it would therefore fall outside of the Living in Hackney Scrutiny Commission.

8.1 The minutes of the previous meetings held on 17th January and 7th March 2022 would follow in the next meeting agenda.

8.2 The draft minutes of the previous meetings held on 24th February 2022 and 13th December 2021 were agreed as an accurate record.

9.1 None.