The Tenancy Standard

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• Annual Report for Tenants and Leaseholders Oct 2011
• The Tenancy Standard

We are not expected to make a Local Offer to you regarding the allocation of the Council’s property. We are however committed to the Standards that have been set. This includes allocations and tenure.

Allocations

One of the Council’s priorities is to increase the supply of affordable homes in the borough, and let them in a fair and efficient way. We must also take into account the needs and wishes of our tenants and potential tenants, and demonstrate how we will:

• Make the best use of available housing
• Contribute to the Council’s strategic housing function and help to create sustainable communities
• Ensure clear application, decision making and appeals processes.

Full details of the Councils Allocations and Lettings policies can be found at

Alternatively you can call the Council’s Customer Contact Centre on 020 8547 5003.

How are we doing?

• The Council prides itself in taking innovative action to make sure that our tenants and potential tenants are given the best possible chance to access the housing they need.
• All applications for housing are assessed according to the housing they need and placed into one of four priority bands:

• Band A for emergency and top priority housing
• Band B for urgent housing,
• Band C for other identified housing need
• Band D for other applications.

• Additional priority is given to people with more than one housing need and the time they have been on the waiting list. This means that once someone is on the Housing Register they will gradually move up the queue.
• The Council operates a Choice Based Lettings Scheme which gives people some choice about the type of property they can move to.  We also make sure that people are told the type and size of property they are eligible for so that they are realistic about what they are likely to be able to move into.
• The Council wants to use the housing that is available through the Council, Housing Associations and in the private sector. We therefore offer four schemes to encourage our tenants to move out of their existing homes so that they are available to be used by other people:

• Paying a grant of up to £1500 to tenants who are prepared to move to a smaller property. Last year we successfully re-housed 23 tenants and families, freeing up larger properties for overcrowded and homeless families.
• Paying tenants a grant to buy a property in the private sector which can act as a deposit. In 2010/11 only one family was helped in this way because of funding restrictions. However in the previous year this was 10.
• Helping tenants to move into a shared ownership (part-buy, part-rent) property.
• Helping tenants to move into private rented homes by offering a loan for the deposit and rent in advance. We have carried out six of these moves in the last year.
• We support people in finding a mutual exchange through ‘Homeswapper’, an internet based exchange scheme. The service is free to tenants.

Looking Forward

• We will continue to review our allocations and lettings policies to make sure that our homes are best used to meet the local needs.
• We will look at the way we deal with mutual exchanges to encourage people to take responsibility themselves for finding accommodation that best suits their needs.
• We will look at what further role the private sector can take in housing people in need.

Conclusion The Council continues to take an innovative approach to letting its accommodation to those in need.

Tenure

How are we doing?

• The Council is letting its property on secure lifetime tenancies.

Looking Forward

• Working with tenants, those who need housing and local Housing Associations, the Council will develop a Tenancy Strategy to deal with possible changes to the law being proposed by the Government.

Conclusion The Council offers maximum security for its tenants and will work with them to assess any proposed changes

The Neighbourhood and Community Standard  relates to  not only the Housing Service but also the way that it works with other council services and other organisations such as the Police, other landlords, the NHS and the voluntary sector.

Our Local Offer promises that the Council will:

• Give any resident who receives a caretaking service a choice about the way it is delivered, including whether they receive a weekend service. This will include ensuring that residents understand how much each service option will cost to allow informed choices to be made.
• Agree caretaking service standards that will ensure that residents have a clear understanding of when they can expect a caretaker to be on their estate, how long for and the standard of service that they should expect. They will also understand any other jobs that the caretaker will carry out, for instance changing light bulbs or carrying out minor repairs.
• The Council will work with other organisations working in neighbourhoods, and as part of other One Kingston initiatives, to target resources to deal with wider issues such as health, poor educational attainment and low levels of employment.
• Participate in a local crime audit

Neighbourhood Management and Local Area Co-operation

How are we doing?

• We offer a quality cleaning service on our estates, including the use of specialist cleaning equipment.
• The caretaking teams carry out work such as clearing and cleaning chutes, changing light bulbs, checking time clocks and other minor repairs that were previously carried out by contractors – this is one of our money-saving initiatives
• Clearing all graffiti in three working days and offensive graffiti within 24 hours.
• We ensure that fly tipping is cleared within 24 hours on all our estates.
• We keep key parts of our estates and in particular areas around sheltered blocks clear of snow and ice during bad weather.
• We have worked in partnership with the Council’s waste contractors to introduce a new recycling scheme for flats on our estates.
• We work with the grounds maintenance contractors to ensure that the service is delivered against the agreed specification.
• We carry out a risk based estate inspection regime so that areas at highest risk of fire are inspected on a more frequent basis. We ensure communal areas are kept free from obstruction and necessary repairs carried out.
• We work in partnership with other Council services such as the Highways Team to ensure that similar standards are applied throughout.
• We work with the police, especially Safer Neighbourhoods Teams, to deal with crime and anti-social behaviour.
• We work with a wide variety of services in order to deliver a comprehensive service to our tenants. This includes working with the health authority, local charities, churches and other faith groups, resident groups, the Police, local schools, other Council departments and many other organisations.
• We are an active partner in the One Norbiton programme to ensure that Council tenants and leaseholders are able to fully participate in the shaping of the project. (Kingston was chosen as one of only thirteen pilots across the country to lead on a Local Integrated Services (LIS) project to provide and commission public services that are designed with, and by, the community.)

Looking Forward

The Council will:

• Work with residents to carry out a full review of the way in which caretaking and other services are delivered in the common parts of the Council’s Housing estates. This will ensure that value for money is generated by maximising the use of shared services.
• Work with residents to develop Service Standards to cover the caretaking service both across Kingston and locally through EMA’s.
• Work with residents to develop Service Standards for grounds maintenance across Kingston and locally through EMA’s.
• Enable residents to make active and informed choices about the service they receive and the cost of providing it through service charges.
• Participate in One Kingston initiatives to ensure that Council Housing residents fully benefit from economies and improved service delivery that arise from them.

Conclusion Proposed initiatives will allow residents more choice in receiving a locally tailored service.

Anti-Social Behaviour (ASB)

How are we doing?

• We have recently reviewed our Anti-Social Behaviour Policy with help from residents, and this is now available online at www.kingston.gov.uk/housing or by writing to 5-8 Tadlow, Washington Road, Kingston upon Thames, KT1 3JL. We work closely with the police and other professional bodies in order to deal with and prevent problems, and we also offer support to our tenants in order to help sustain their tenancies.
• Our tenancy agreement clearly sets out tenants’ responsibilities in relation to anti-social behaviour including the way in which they, their families and visitors should behave.
• We make residents aware of their rights and responsibilities from the start of their tenancy.
• We work in partnership with many other agencies, including the Police and in particular the Safer Neighbourhood Teams, as well as with professional bodies offering support to vulnerable tenants and their families.
• We offer support to our tenants to sustain their tenancy through co-operation with other statutory and non statutory agencies as well as our own specialist support staff.
• We use a variety of approaches to deal with anti-social behaviour. In doing so we define anti-social behaviour and seek to categorise it according to its severity. We are therefore able to offer the appropriate solutions by encouraging neighbours to talk about any problems, and we offer mediation, using Acceptable Behaviour Contracts and Anti-Social Behaviour Orders. We will also, where appropriate and where there is sufficient evidence, take legal action either through seeking an injunction or through seeking a possession order through the Courts.
• We make sure that witnesses are given advice and support by their Housing Officers and are kept updated about the progress of the case. We will also ensure their safety through the use of injunctions or, in extreme situations, a transfer to another property.
• We have commenced a review of our Anti-Social Behaviour Procedures and information leaflets, working jointly with residents to make sure that we meet their expectations.

Looking Forward

The Council will -

• Complete the review of ASB.
• Ensure that the limits of the Council’s ability to take action on complaints of ASB are understood by residents and that these are clearly understood by those people making a complaint.
• Work with the University to raise awareness with students of the effect that their behaviour can have on their neighbours.
• Identify leaseholders who are subletting their homes to ensure that they are aware of their ongoing responsibilities in relation to the behaviour of their tenants and the affect this could have on their lease.
• Undertake a review of the Tenancy Agreement to ensure that it continues to reflect best practice.
• Publicise all cases where successful legal action has been taken by the Council against its tenants.
• By using the information available to it and through the use of tenancy audits identify cases where properties have been sublet or where they have been passed onto people who are not entitled to live there.

Conclusion The Council takes a robust approach to dealing with anti-social behaviour by its tenants where it is possible to do so. The launch of the new procedure and supporting information will emphasise that robust approach and also set out a realistic view of what can be achieved.