Agenda item

Mick Barber, Chair of Lincoln Tenants Panel, provided a written report on the panel’s continued work with tenancy services, fire safety assurance, maintenance, business management and resident involvement on a variety of projects, covering the following areas:

·         Within tenancy services LTP was working with the Voids Team Leader inspecting one property a week. We had also adapted the way we reported our findings moving from paper to digital format to speed up the process to ensure information could be shared immediately with officers.

·         During the summer months, LTP attended estate inspections at Hartsholme, Birchwood & Moorland in the south; Ermine East & West and St Giles in the north and West End, Burton Road/Newport, Tower, Stamp End, City Centre, High Street and Manse in the city centre. Follow up inspections were due to take place in November/December.

·         We held out first meeting with Business Management on 17^th July – our recommendations have been shared with relevant officers together with a request for further feedback relating to some complaints.

·         At a recent LTP meeting the Panel assessed the Tenant Involvement Strategy Action Plan and he was pleased to confirm there were no red flags. Actions had been awarded based on one of the following:

Ø  Bronze – Process has started – early stages

Ø  Silver – Making good progress

Ø  Gold - Full implementation and maintained

·         LTP was working closely with the Interim Maintenance Manager on the schedule of repairs project, attending monthly meetings to review performance, focused on creating a marketing programme to deliver a consistent message and information to tenants on the benefits of the project. Councillor Hewson, Chair of Housing Scrutiny Sub-Committee attended a meeting in August when the group discussed how we could enhance tenant experience – as a result, series of Face Book posts  had been created by the working group scheduled to go out on a six-week cycle to promote and encourage tenants to make an appointment.

·         We continued to hold our monthly LTP meetings. The Director of Housing attended our last meeting in September to discuss the proposed rent cap. Our AGM would take place on Monday 7^th November with face book posts on both City of Lincoln Council sites together with LTP members sharing the posts on other community-based pages. We were thrilled to confirm we would be hosting a celebration event on Wednesday 15^th November acknowledging all the hard work over the last couple of years in creating the LTP Constitution. The event would be held at the Guildhall and the Mayor had accepted our invitation.

·         All LTP 1-2-1’s had been completed by The Resident Involvement Manager and Vice Chair of LTP, which had provided us with valuable feedback, knowledge and panel aspirations, to be used to help us expand LTP and move forward.

·         LTP had volunteered to assist the Resident Involvement Manager at the Jarvis and Shuttleworth House fire safety exercises and engagement events. We attended the recent fire safety exercise at Trent View which provided Lincoln Fire and Rescue with valuable information – Over thirty fire fighters carried out the training exercise with six fire engines in attendance from across Lincolnshire providing fire fighters will the knowledge, skills and agreed implementational procedures in the event of a major fire.

·         We were currently working with The Tenancy Services Manager on the Incentive to Downsize Project and had provided a list of recommendations.

·         Five LTP members would be attending a free ARCH Conference – The conference offered two workshops on decarbonisation and fuel poverty/cost of living and in addition to this, three guest speakers; Kate Dodsworth – Director of Consumer Regulation and Fleur Priest-Stephens - Tenant Engagement Manager for the regulator of social housing, would be presenting information on the proposed tenant satisfaction measures and regulatory changes. Caritas Charles – Policy and Insight Manager would be addressing the conference on resident engagement in building safety.

·         Further to Jo Crookes presentation at the LTP in July, the Panel asked to shadow Customer Services operatives and one LTP member had been the first to shadow. Jo had agreed to duplicate these sessions with other LTP members.

Members discussed the content of the report in further detail.

Councillor Dyer thanked LTP members for their support on ward works. He asked for further detail of the work on the Incentive to Downsize Project.

Daren Turner, Director of Housing confirmed that a piece of work had been carried out a while ago with input from members to help tenants wishing to downsize with moving costs etc. It had been reviewed by our legal colleagues and  LTP members, prior to being presented to the Portfolio Holder for Quality Housing. The Draft Policy would be brought to the next meting of Housing Scrutiny Sub Committee for comments.

Councillor Loffhagen received confirmation that any changes to the Tenancy Involvement Strategy following the Action Plan in place would be reviewed in due course by this Committee.

RESOLVED that:

1.    A report on the Draft Incentive to Downsize Initiative be presented to the next meeting of Housing Scrutiny Sub Committee.

2.    The content of the written update from the Chair of LTP be noted with thanks, to be continued as a regular agenda item.