Posts with tag: local authorities

Local authorities fail to record private rental sector complaints, says NRLA

Published On: February 11, 2022 at 11:06 am

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Most local authorities in England do not accurately record the number of private rental sector (PRS) tenure complaints that they receive, the National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA) reports.

Its research, based on Freedom of Information Act requests, indicates that 56% of councils do not accurately record the number of complaints they receive concerning PRS housing. This figure rises to 61% for those local authorities which have selective licensing schemes.

The local authorities that did accurately record PRS complaints reportedly dealt with an average of 274 complaints per year.

Councils conducted a total of 98,858 inspections under the Housing, Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) across England between 2018 to 2021, says the NRLA. According to its findings, this roughly equates to just 1 in 45 PRS properties.

It also shows how the recording of these inspections is not consistent across local authorities, with many councils failing to register any of their inspections. The NRLA says only 1% of HHSRS inspections resulted in a follow-up prosecution, with 4% of improvement notices resulting in the imposition of a civil penalty.

Chris Norris, Director of Policy & Campaigns for the NRLA, comments: “What is needed in order to build a private rented sector which is fair and inclusive for all, is for councils to use all of the powers at their disposal.

“These figures show that there is a long way to go before councils deal effectively with the rogue landlords who bring the sector into disrepute.

“Until councils adopt a more effective approach towards record-keeping, it will be impossible for them to take the steps necessary to enforce regulations.”

Most councils are not issuing penalties against rogue landlords, NRLA finds

Published On: August 4, 2021 at 8:07 am

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A new survey shows how few local authorities in England have issued civil penalties against rogue or criminal landlords in the last 3 years.

The National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA) has found that between 2018/19 and 2020/21, only 130 local authorities in England out of 275 replying to the survey (47%) had issued any civil penalties. Most had used only a handful, with 71% of all civil penalties issued by just 7% of the local authorities.

This is despite councils in England having the option to issue civil penalties of up to £30,000 for a range of housing offences since April 2017. This income can be re-invested by local authorities to help finance further enforcement against criminal operators who cause harm to tenants and give private renting a bad name, the NRLA points out.

As a result of the NRLA’s Freedom of Information (FOI) requests, it also found 40% of councils that had issued civil penalties had issued between just one and five over the past three years.

In total, fewer than 3,200 civil penalties were issued over the last three years by the local authorities responding to the survey. This is despite Ministers suggesting during the passage of the legislation to introduce them that there may be 10,500 rogue landlords in operation.

Chris Norris, Director of Policy and Campaigns at the NRLA, comments: “Our findings show that most councils are failing to use all the tools available to them to tackle rogue and criminal landlords.

“By failing to apply appropriate sanctions to punish wrongdoing, councils are weakening the principle of deterrence which underpins the civil penalties regime.

“We are calling on all councils to ensure they are making full and proper use of the powers they have to tackle those landlords who cause misery to tenants and bring the sector into disrepute.

“The Government’s plans to reform the private rented sector due later this year will mean nothing if changes are not properly enforced.”

Major push to help the homeless during coronavirus lockdown

Published On: April 7, 2020 at 10:48 am

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Homeless charities and local authorities must work together to help rough sleepers get access to accommodation during this time of lockdown.

Major Homeless Charities including Crisis, Homeless Link and The Passage have written to the government asking them to ‘remove the barriers’ that prevent homeless people from getting access to the shelter that they need during a time of government-mandated self-isolation. 

This is following on from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and the Minister for Local Government and Housing writing to all local authorities with detailed plans on how to protect rough sleepers at this time. 

The plans included closing night shelters and communal hostels, as they are a hotbed for the spread of Coronavirus and flout the rules of self-isolation. However, many of the charities state that they have received numerous reports of councils denying help to many homeless people on the grounds that they don’t have a local connection to the area or simply that the council doesn’t have the funds to house them elsewhere. 

The Government has committed £1.6 billion in funding to help local authorities with the task of housing the homeless during the coronavirus emergency. 

But as this remains a public health emergency, the charities warn that failure soon to act could risk putting more lives in danger.

Jon Sparkes, Chief Executive of Crisis, said: “We commend the government’s swift action to protect people most at risk by ensuring they have somewhere safe to stay during the pandemic. But the stark fact remains that there are people whose lives are still in danger, sleeping on our streets or trapped in crowded hostels and night shelters.

“To fulfil the ambition of getting ‘everyone in’ we must see the final barriers stopping people from getting the help they need removed. This means ensuring councils have the money they need to support people into hotel accommodation and a clear message that anyone, no matter who they are or their circumstance, will get the help they need to shelter from the pandemic.

“We must also ensure that once people have been accommodated they get access to the health care they need if they are affected by the virus, and in the long term are supported into safe, permanent housing once this crisis is over.”

Hertsmere Borough Council is an example of one local authority taking an active approach to the problem. They have been contacting rough sleepers, but they are appealing for the public’s help, asking them to use the StreetLink app to report any rough sleepers that they come across.

StreetLink is a website, mobile phone app and telephone service which enables members of the public to connect adults sleeping on the streets with local services.

Councillor Jean Heywood, Portfolio Holder for Housing, said: “Our main priority at this time of unprecedented national crisis is to keep our residents safe, particularly those in vulnerable groups, such as rough sleepers.

“While we have been able to provide a number of individuals with accommodation, there may be others who we have not as yet been able to contact and who would qualify for support.

“We would ask members of the public who are worried about anyone sleeping rough to report it through StreetLink.

“In the meantime, we are working with our partners, including the police, to visit rough sleepers to provide them with guidance of where to go for support.”

Find out more by going to https://www.streetlink.org.uk/StreetLink_HomePage, by downloading the StreetLink app or by calling 0300 500 0914. Anyone with concerns about a child’s welfare, please call 999.

Regulator criticises councils for slow searches

Published On: February 15, 2016 at 12:36 pm

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A regulatory body for property searches has slammed some councils for providing a, ‘very poor service,’ which leads to a delay in transactions.

The Property Codes Compliance Board, regulator for the Search Code of Practice, stated that local authorities and private sector search companies provide information to conveyancers. This information corresponds to properties being purchased in the LLC1 and CON29 search documents.

Woeful

Kate Davies, chairman of the PCCB, said that despite the majority of authorities providing a good service, a growing number are, ‘performing woefully.’

Davies stated she was, ‘very concerned that he home buying and selling public are being adversely affected by very poor performance by some local authorities and in some cases transactions are breaking down due to the delays.’[1]

‘If you live in Wiltshire for example, it is an accident of geography if a lawyer can expect to receive searches back in six days or six weeks and this is totally unacceptable,’ she continued.[1]

Regulator criticises councils for slow searches

Regulator criticises councils for slow searches

No excuses

PCCB board member Kate Faulkner, who runs the consumer-focused online service Propertychecklists, was also less than complimentary about some councils. Faulkner said that with the housing market in a precarious position, ‘the last thing that prospective homebuyers and sellers need is unnecessary delays for which there is absolutely no excuse.’[1]

Faulkner also claims that personal search companies are being frustrated in their attempts to carry out a first class service to layer clients. This is due to the number of local authorities who are taking too long to give access to data than other councils.

[1] https://www.estateagenttoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2016/2/regulator-slams-councils-for-very-poor-searches-that-delay-transactions

 

Further Welfare Cuts Could Cause Social Sector Issues

Published On: May 27, 2015 at 8:42 am

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If welfare funding suffers further cuts by the Government, then the social rental sector could experience spiralling rent arrears, tenant evictions and homelessness, warns a new report.

The study of 75 local authorities and housing associations in England by Grant Thornton UK LLP, estimates that the ongoing effects of bedroom tax, alongside plans to extend the benefit cap and impose additional limits to housing benefit, could cause more financial difficulty for tenants.

The report indicates that councils’ and housing associations’ ability to ease growing arrears problems has been reduced. Growing numbers are issuing possession orders to tenants who cannot pay the rent.

The document, titled Easing the burden: The impact of welfare reform on local government and the social housing sector, explored how local welfare has changed over the last two years from the eyes of local authorities and housing associations.

YFurther Welfare Cuts Could Cause Social Sector Issues

Further Welfare Cuts Could Cause Social Sector Issues

Most local authorities and housing associations reported an increase in average Council Tax and growing rent arrears since 2012-13, which they claimed was partly down to welfare reform.

Housing benefit reforms have caused people to move to smaller homes, but less than 10% of those affected have actually moved. This is due to a shortage of smaller properties.

Following the changes, 47% of local authorities and 51% of housing associations stated that housing benefit is substantially more expensive to administer, as cases are now more complicated.

Head of Local Government at Grant Thornton UK LLP, Paul Dossett, says: “In general, welfare reform has prompted an impressive response from many local authorities and housing associations, and has been a key driver for innovation and improvement.

“The question is: Can they continue to make efficient use of rapidly reducing resources? Our research suggests that without flexibility from Whitehall and further measures, such as devolution of welfare funding, this is unlikely.”

Dossett continues: “The collective impact of welfare reform on those in need of support is to some degree hidden due to the lack of data on the casual link between welfare reform and poverty. Our research found that only 42% of local authorities track poverty levels to measure the impact of welfare reform.

“We urge the new Government to consider carefully the impact of the cuts to welfare reform that are put forward, not just in isolation, but collectively. Whilst Whitehall fiscally sees only individual cuts to local authorities, the people affected and we, as auditors, see the cumulative impact.

“A significant cohort of people – both working and unemployed – will remain in need of support, so local authorities and housing associations will need to focus any available money on them. Further devolution of powers to local government for welfare administration could be the key to a sustainable future, especially if different agencies work together.”1 

The report highlights areas of national policy that could be better coordinated, so that the financial impact of welfare put on local authorities can be fully understood and better managed.

They include:

  • Building more homes to keep up with demand.
  • Health and social care integration, particularly following instances of hardship.
  • The policy that supports groups of foreign nationals who have bypassed official immigration channels.

1 http://www.scottishhousingnews.com/3517/england-social-landlords-welfare-expect-cuts-to-trigger-new-wave-of-homelessness/?utm_content=buffer729c1&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer

‘Right-to-Buy giveaway’ will harm market

Published On: April 24, 2015 at 3:59 pm

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The Conservative party’s proposal to extend their Right-to Buy scheme to over 1.3 million housing association tenants has come under fire.

Costs

The Institute of Fiscal Studies believes that if the proposal were to become a reality, public finances would decrease and social housing would be severely reduced. Pointing to the lack of clarity in the finances underlying the change of policy, the ISF believe that this creates a real risk to the size of the social housing sector.

Additionally, the ISF are particularly concerned that if local authorities are forced to sell of their most high-value properties to reimburse housing associations that have in turn been forced to sell their homes to tenants at a discounted price, then the taxpayers will be hit in the pocket

Giveaway

An IFS spokesperson said that, ‘an increase in Right to Buy sales would amount to a substantial giveaway to a relatively small number of households.’ They also said that, ‘by selling public assets to fund a giveaway, the policy would ultimately represent a deterioration of the long-run state of the UK public finances.’[1]

Under their plans, the Conservatives propose to give housing association tenants the opportunity to purchase their homes at hugely discounted prices. These are £77,900 for properties outside of London and £103,900 for those in the capital. Of course, substantial discounts such as these would first need to be subsidised by the Government. The IFS believe that this cost is uncertain, as not all tenants will be able to afford or even wish to purchase their housing association property, with or without the discount.

As an absolute maximum, the IFS calculate that 221,000 homes could be sold, resulting in a bill of £11.6bn during the next Parliament. The Tories plan to justify this cost by selling high-value local authority property as it becomes available and then subsequently replacing it with more cost-effective homes. They claim that this process could raise £4.5bn per year.[2

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High-value property would be classed as such if it ranks within the top-third of property value of similar houses in the same area. Each sale is anticipated to raise up to £300,00. However, the IFS are confused to why this figure is substantially more than the £160,00 expected during an earlier, 2012 version of the policy. The spokesperson said that it was, ‘not clear why the expected revenue per property is so much higher,’ but speculated that rising house prices since the previous incarnation of the policy was one significant reason.[3]

Social Housing Shortfall

One of the biggest criticisms of the plan is that it could lead to an increased shortfall of social housing, as a result of local authorities struggling to replace properties like-for-like. Furthermore, the cash raised by selling high-value council properties will also have to fund the Right-to-Buy discount for Housing Association tenants.

As an alternative, the IFS has suggested that to replace the lost local housing, local authorities could look at building cheaper homes. This, they believe, ‘is likely to be achieved by building in localities within the same local authority where land and property prices are lower or building properties that are smaller or of lower quality.’[4]

The IFS has also criticised local authorities for not replacing sold property on a one-for one basis, pointing particularly at the failure of council homes sold under Right-to-Buy guidelines. Their spokesperson stated that, ‘the record on delivering this weaker commitment has been less than impressive.’ Continuing, they said, ‘between April 2012 and December 2014, 26,184 homes were sold under Right to Buy, but over the same period, work had started on just 2,712 properties funded by the proceeds-a replacement rate of around one in ten.’[5]

Bullish

Brandon Lewis, Minister for Housing, was bullish in response to the IFS claims. Lewis said, ‘Since Conservatives reinvigorated the Right to Buy for council housing in 2012, we have helped 33,000 families into home ownership and boosted council house building to a 23 year high.

‘Our plans to extend the Right to Buy to housing associations will similarly boost social housing construction and reduce housing waiting lists.

‘In Scotland, Labour and the SNP voted to abolish the Right to Buy, and Labour now plan the same for Wales. Labour and the SNP are the enemies of aspiration and would kick hard-working people off the first rung of the housing ladder.’[6]

 

[1-6] http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/mortgageshome/article-3053814/IFS-says-giving-housing-association-tenants-Right-Buy-home-harm-public-finances-reduce-social-housing.html?ITO=1490&ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490&utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter