Agenda item

To receive a presentation from social housing provider, Raven Housing Trust Directors, Amy Cheswick, Director of Customers and Partners, and Jo Hills, Director of Assets & Services.

The Committee received a presentation from social housing provider, Raven Housing Trust Directors, Amy Cheswick, Director of Customers and Partners, and Jo Hills, Director of Assets & Services. As the largest social housing provider in Reigate and Banstead, Raven Housing Trust (RHT) gave an overview of the core activities of the organisation, performance of their housing services, challenges during the pandemic and beyond, planned development and joint venture schemes, affordability, regeneration of homes, its Net Zero Carbon programme, health and safety matters including fire safety. The Raven Housing Trust presentation was published as part of the O&S agenda pack.

Members made observations and asked questions which included the following areas:

·       Homelessness -  Members raised the issue of a rise in potential evictions for housing tenants as court orders and bailiff enforcement restarted following the COVID-19 emergency which paused this temporarily. Councillor Neame, Executive Member and Portfolio Holder for Housing & Support, told the Committee that the Council’s housing team had worked hard during the COVID-19 crisis to keep tenants affected in their current tenancy in order to prevent them becoming homeless. This included negotiation with all social housing and private landlords on deposits and rent arrears and assisting with money advice. Raven Housing Trust had responded to this challenge by working closely with the Council to minimise evictions during the pandemic.

·       Damp, mould and condensation – issues of damp, mould and condensation in homes was raised. It was suggested this was particularly a problem for residents who could not afford to heat their homes due to fuel poverty and those who had long-term health problems. Managing ventilation and moisture in homes was discussed. RHT confirmed that it was tackling damp, mould and condensation across 866 homes with a £1.2m investment from 2020-23 as part of the Healthy Homes initiative. Following a survey of homes and review of data from its call logs, RHT had prioritised repair work for elderly people and those living in the dampest properties. Reporting any issues for vulnerable residents and hidden sufferers so these could be identified in call data was important.

·       Building and fire safety including Nobel House, Redhill – it was confirmed that RHT was investing £8.5m over 5 years to address building and fire safety concerns locally arising from the Grenfell fire in London as well as statutory changes set out in the Fire Safety Act and Building Safety Bill. Nobel House, Redhill was discussed which was an Avon Rents Ltd building. The fire alarm system and evacuation procedures had been updated in the flats following issues raised in a fire engineers’ report. Cladding safety issues had been identified as costing £14m to fix with a potential cost to leaseholders of £100k per flat. RHT was supporting and informing residents alongside Members and the local MP.

·       Development of properties – 933 homes over five years with an average of 130 affordable homes per year and 30 market sale homes per year were proposed in Raven Housing Trust’s Development and Sales strategy 2021-22 to 2025-26. This was in line with RBBC’s Housing Strategy which supported mixed tenure of housing. Preference was for land-led delivery by acquiring sites and investing in existing properties to enable better management of a whole site.

·       Southridge Homes – this was a joint venture between Raven Housing Trust and RBB which targeted 50% of affordable housing on sites which was higher than government targets set on affordable housing. This aimed to build long term sustainable communities. 

·       Social value assessment – Members asked how conditions were improved for residents and the difference Raven Housing Trust (RHT) was making through social value. This was a tangible benefit to help bring about improved social, economic and environmental benefits. This helped to minimise payment debts and support people who were struggling financially.

·       Digital inclusion – a digital support team at Raven Housing Trust helped residents who could not access services digitally. The organisation had worked with Voluntary Action Reigate and Banstead (VARB) to supply refurbished laptops to support learning for children and set up one to one sessions to improve digital skills, and support elderly and vulnerable residents who struggled to access online services.

·       Supporting community activities – the organisation had supported local community activities such as a litter pick day and worked closely with ward councillors to support these local initiatives.

·       Performance and benchmarking – Raven Housing Trust reported that overall satisfaction from residents on their housing services was 84% in 2020/21 compared to 80% in 2019/20; 78% believed they listened to and acted on residents’ views. It was confirmed that wider housing association comparison data showed that RHT performed well and better than other housing providers.

·       Regeneration programme – a long term programme of regeneration of properties was taking place in areas that were in need, starting with Chavecroft. This was part of the aim to make homes desirable, comfortable and affordable to run. Unpopular homes and unviable homes in terms of investment were disposed of and replaced with high-quality, sustainable and affordable homes. In response to Member questions, RHT confirmed that this did not mean fewer properties as 531 net extra new homes were planned over five years.

·       Net Zero Carbon programme – this programme of work and grant funding was discussed with benefits to residents that included lower net carbon emissions and more efficient homes. Partnership with RBBC included a range of grant funding from the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund (SHDF) and Local Authority Delivery (LAD) Scheme to fund energy efficient upgrades to low income and low energy efficiency rated homes. Retrofit plans were completed on 12 homes in 2021 using £0.6m funding with £1.8m proposed funding over the next two years.

In addition, written responses to the Committee had been provided in advance on numbers of socially rented properties, current number of voids in social housing across the borough and numbers on the waiting list and transfer for social housing.

Committee Chair, Councillor Harrison, thanked Raven Housing Trust directors for their presentation and attending the meeting to respond to Member questions.

RESOLVED – to note the Raven Housing Trust presentation and observations of the Committee.