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From the archive – housing sector slams audit commission
Inside Housing looks back at what was happening in the sector this week five, 15 and 25 years ago
25 years ago
The government’s homelessness review was in danger of being undermined by the Department of Social Security’s suggestions that there should be a clampdown on housing benefit.
The review of homelessness legislation was reliant on encouraging councils to offer homeless families short-term private lets. But landlords were thought to be unlikely to offer properties to homeless tenants without guaranteed benefit payments, according to campaigners.
A Department of Social Security spokesperson said nothing had been ruled out of social security secretary Peter Lilley’s spending review, but the department could not confirm reports that families would be forced to move to cheaper accommodation if their rents were judged to be too high.
15 years ago
The credibility of the Audit Commission’s inspection process was questioned after an unprecedented attack on it from a housing association.
Presentation Housing Association hit out after the commission published a critical inspection report before an ongoing complaint had been resolved. Presentation, now part of Notting Hill Genesis, slated the commission’s methodology and judgement, accusing it of being “fundamentally flawed”.
It also claimed that the report, published 16 months after the original inspection, was out of date.
In a statement, Presentation said: “The Audit Commission urgently needs to review its methodology and processes for inspection so that it can work effectively with housing associations and provide added value through its inspections.”
James Tickell, deputy chief executive of the National Housing Federation, agreed that the delay in publication was a concern and called for greater clarity.
Roy Irwin, chief housing inspector at the Audit Commission, said it was “taking action to address this matter as part of our methodology review”.
Five years ago
The English housing regulator warned around 160 landlords to improve their value for money self-assessments or risk a governance rating downgrade.
The Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) wrote to the chairs of those housing associations that had met some, but not all, of the requirements under the English regulator’s Value for Money Standard introduced two years previously.
The HCA wrote to chairs to warn that they could face ratings reviews if they did not improve in areas in which they were found to be failing.
Tony Stacey (above), then chair of PlaceShapers, said there had been “consternation” about the number of landlords receiving letters. “A lot of our members feel that there don’t seem to be very clear reasons for an awful lot of these decisions,” he said.
