It is fixed-term tenancies that are from a bygone era. They are costly, stigmatising and unnecessary

We arrived at this decision after consulting our tenants who were very clear that they really valued the security provided by lifetime tenancies – using words and phrases such as “home, not just a house”, “access to health and education services”, “security”, “family stability” and “not worried about having to move on”.

Our tenants felt that fixed-term tenancies stigmatised those who had them. Indeed, those who did have them told us that they felt stigmatised – they felt that some people in their communities didn’t have a proper stake in those communities and that their presence in those communities was transitory.

“We feel that fixed-term tenancies are stigmatising, unnecessary, costly and contribute neither to the security of our tenants or the strength of the communities in which we work”

They felt that the uncertainty surrounding fixed-term tenancies was harmful for them and their families, and negatively impacted on their mental health. We want to work with our tenants to create strong communities and, in this context, fixed-term tenancies were completely counter-productive.

And in business terms, there was no benefit for Grand Union. We carried out an analysis of the time and costs associated with fixed-term tenancies and found that the cost in officer time alone was £36,000 a year, for no discernible benefit.

Not one single tenancy was ended at the end of a five-year fixed term. All of them ‘rolled over’ and we’re now in the process of converting them into lifetime tenancies. If we’d ended a tenancy then there would be other costs associated with this, such as void re-let costs and lost rent.

Our team was clear that if action was needed in respect of a tenancy, then they wouldn’t wait until the last months of fixed-term tenancy to act. If rent arrears and anti-social behaviour happen, it’s dealt with at the time.

In terms of helping us know our tenants better, we think there are better ways. Most of our tenants want us to provide services when they need them but leave them alone the rest of the time, to live their lives and enjoy their homes.

Adding an annual hour-long visit and a two-hour visit towards the end of a fixed-term tenancy doesn’t do much for us or them. What helps us know our tenants is being present on our patch, dealing with issues promptly and managing neighbourhoods proactively.

There’s more to be gained by investing in services that our tenants actually want, rather than those that don’t add value.

For example, we have a well-used benefits and money advice service that last year helped our tenants claim over £3m in benefits that they were entitled to; and we have a fully embedded tenancy sustainment service that works to help keep people in their tenancies. It’s these services that make a real difference for those that want or need them.

As if all these reasons weren’t enough, our average length of tenancy is 10.2 years. So fixed-term tenancies were largely unnecessary.

“It’s not the social housing sector’s role to compete with the private rented sector in a race to the bottom”

The argument that fixed-term tenancies help us make best use of a scarce resource is fundamentally flawed. Putting one set of tenants into a crisis situation by ending their fixed-term tenancies in order to make way for others that are actually homeless is like rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.

The private rented sector may well use fixed-term tenancies (for now). But the biggest reason for homelessness is those tenancies coming to an end; leading to a temporary accommodation bill of nearly £1bn and, more importantly, untold havoc and misery in people’s lives. It’s not the social housing sector’s role to compete with the private rented sector in a race to the bottom.

Our job is to stop the ship from sinking by lobbying government to invest significantly in homes at social rents and doing what we can to provide them. And we should do that now.

Aileen Evans, chief executive, Grand Union Housing Group