Thursday, 02 September 2010

Channels are open for tenants to use

25/07/2008

In his letter John Marais (Inside Housing, 11 July) writes that he is concerned that tenants are being sidelined in the council housing finance review.

He is, of course, right that tenants must be able to make their voices heard in this review and there are a number of ways, in addition to the Defend Council Housing event at Parliament, that they can do this.

The Communities and Local Government department is hosting a workshop on 30 July, where the civil servants leading the review will discuss options for reform with tenants.

There has already been extensive tenant-focused engagement in the review and the National Federation of Tenant Management Organisations, the Confederation of Co-operative Housing, the Tenants’ and Residents’ Organisations of England and the Tenant Participation Advisory Service have all been instrumental in developing this important aspect. Sessions have been held at the NFTMO and CCH national conferences and a further interactive session is planned with TPAS next month.

The national organisations have worked closely with the review team to develop a tenant-focused questionnaire and focus groups will gather evidence and test proposals later in the year. The Housing Corporation is also conducting research on behalf of the review through its residents’ consultation panel. Tenants can write to or email the review team and share their thoughts on the Chartered Institute of Housing discussion forum on council housing finance (see http:// moodle20.cih.co.uk).

This forum is being run by the Chartered Institute of Housing for the CLG, and responses will be summarised and fed into the review later in the year. The CLG is currently developing a resource pack that local authorities will be able to use to lead discussions with tenants on what should happen to the housing revenue account in their area, and this will soon be available on the CLG and CIH websites.

I would urge anyone reading this to find ways to spread the word about these options and to ensure that as many tenants as possible know that they can have their say, in a way that suits them, about the future of council housing finance.

Abigail Davies, head of policy, Chartered Institute of Housing

Have your say

You must sign in to make a comment

sign in register

Related

Articles

  • Election rules silence NTV

    23/04/2010

    Four national tenants’ organisations are planning to create an independent committee that will be more outspoken than the National Tenant Voice.

  • Right pickle

    17 May 2010

  • Growing the big society

    20/08/2010

    Everyone’s talking about the big society, but what does it mean in practice? Four local authorities are testing the ground with pilot housing projects. Chloë Stothart reports.

  • The smell of burning

    20/08/2010

    First it was the Tenant Services Authority and now the Audit Commission is ‘toast’. Martin Hilditch asks what housing regulation and inspection will look like once the smoke has cleared

  • Tenants cut loose

    23/07/2010

    Grants Shapps’ critics say his axing of the National Tenant Voice is unfair and misguided. Chloë Stothart reports.

Resources

  • The view across the fence

    28/05/2010

    Employment tribunals are on the rise. Here two specialist lawyers in the field explain the process for both the employer and the employee

  • All in the name

    30/10/2009

    Confusion over the status of Local Housing Companies has stopped them from aiding development, says Helen Meyler

  • Green guru

    07/05/2010

    Jon Broome goes against the grain with simple, cost-effective suggestions of where to spend and where to save

  • Put it in the diary

    28/05/2010

    The Labour government passed a record 4,300 laws between 1997 and their defeat in this month’s general election. And there are a few more in the pipeline, still to be passed. Here is the key legislation to look out for alongside some important cases that could have serious legal implications for housing in the UK

  • A room with a view

    27/11/2009

    Could social housing developments be stopped if deemed ‘annoying’ to neighbours?

Most popular

Most commented

Most emailed