Agenda item

Paula Burton, Assistant Director, Housing Management:

a.    presented the reviewed Tenancy Housing Fraud Policy document to Housing Scrutiny Sub-Committee

b.    advised that following consultation with Lincoln Tenants Panel (LTP) in this area of work the following comments had been received:

·       They found the policy easy to read and that it provided a clear understanding of preventing, identifying and acting on tenancy fraud.

LTP requested the following:

·       On page 5, the start of the last paragraph to be reworded from “we accept” to “we understand” – this was updated

·       On the final page, a brief explanation for why references, legal frameworks, and regulatory framework was included, e.g. why was it important to the policy? – this was updated to be clearer

·       Adding a section in the policy that explained where an individual could get support either from the Council or from other extra support – this was not added because it related to procedures and information to the public, but it had been requested that the web page be updated to include this

·       On the website there was a link to different forms for reporting and these could be included – the link to the relevant web page was added

·       Adding a section for if you suspected someone/yourself as a victim of tenancy fraud then you could report it - this was not added because it related to procedures and information to the public, and it was already on the web page 

c.     highlighted that as a Registered Provider of social housing, we had obligations under the Prevention of Social Housing Fraud Act 2013 to identify and prevent tenancy fraud, it was also a requirement of the Regulator’s Tenancy Standard that we made every effort to identify and prevent tenancy fraud

d.    referred to the reviewed Tenancy Fraud Policy originally created in November 2020, found at Appendix A to the officer’s report, which:

·       provided the legal and regulatory context for managing tenancy fraud

·       made clear reference to measures we would take to identify, prevent and minimise the risk of tenancy fraud occurring

·       reflected a clear intent that we would take decisive action where we had evidence that fraud had taken place, including supporting prosecutions

e.    requested members’ feedback on the content of the report.

Mick Barber, Chair of LTP, advised he was pleased to have been given the opportunity to review the Tenancy Fraud Policy for Housing Tenants which was a good document. It had been a pleasure working alongside officers.

Members commented on the content of the report, raising the following questions:

Question: When tenants signed up to a council property, did the relevant estate officer attend the ‘sign-up’ appointment to introduce himself/herself to the new tenant?

Response: Normally an officer from the Voids Team was in attendance, followed by a visit from the Housing Estate Officer within six-weeks’ time.

Question: The new tenant should know who their housing officer would be when signing up to the property.

Response: There had been officer discussions around this matter. With the new IT system, housing officers would be able to access photo ID. Everyone received a six-week follow up visit.

Question: Why was ID taken from the tenant and not the residents moving in?

Response: The tenant was responsible for the tenancy agreement. The Housing Authority had limited rights over household members.

Comment: There could be a safeguarding issue, should the tenant sub-let to another person who may be a potential danger to others, hence the need for the housing officer to be aware of the tenant’s identity when he visited the property.

Response: The Tenancy Agreement was discussed in great length with all new tenants at ‘sign-up’. This included the strict rules around sub-letting.

Comment by LTP Chair: It was important for the Housing Officer to visit the property to make contact with the tenant and make sure there was no overcrowding.

Response: That was true. When visiting the tenant, all officers were always alert to any under/over occupancy.

RESOLVED that the contents of the Tenancy Fraud Policy for Housing Tenants be noted.