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Council signs agreement with 10 housing associations to tackle housing issues
London’s biggest housing associations are among those to have signed a joint agreement with a council to find more “cost-effective” ways of managing the homes in the borough.
London landlords agree to help under-fire council tackle housing issues #ukhousing The 10 landlords – including L&Q and Hyde – have signed a three-year memorandum of understanding with Lambeth Council this week – which affects around 60,000 residents.
The council said the agreement, believed to be the first of its kind in the capital, aims to find more “cost-effective and efficient ways of providing housing services”.
The memorandum is also aimed at building new homes, tackling homelessness, safety on the estates and boosting “youth opportunities”, the council said.
Among the priorities are “sharing expertise and knowledge” and “developing shared strategies” to make work more “joined up and efficient”, a council spokesperson said.
The agreement comes two months after it emerged that Lambeth Council had breached the regulator’s Home Standard over failures related to fire safety, gas safety and asbestos management.
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The 10 associations to sign up, all of which already operate in the borough, are: The Guinness Partnership, Hyde, Network Homes, Optivo, Wandle, Peabody, Ekaya Housing Association, L&Q, Notting Hill Genesis, and Metropolitan Thames Valley.
Lambeth Council’s borough plan, which the agreement is based on, states: “Lambeth has experienced sustained growth over the past five years and the need for both new market and social housing has increased in line with this.
“We need to increase the amount of housing in the borough and deliver high-quality, affordable and sustainable homes to those most in need.”
As part of this, the council will focus on “improving stewardship and management (of housing) – both financial and environmental.”
The document also notes that part of the plan is to “improve the quality of housing in the social and rented sector”. No further detail of the memorandum was given by the council.
Paul Gadsby, cabinet member for housing at Lambeth Council, said: “This is an exciting new partnership between Lambeth and local housing associations that will provide a platform for us to tackle, with residents, the big housing issues facing our borough.”
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