You are viewing 1 of your 1 free articles
Richard Blakeway starts as Housing Ombudsman
London’s former deputy mayor for housing, Richard Blakeway, has started in his role as Housing Ombudsman.
Mr Blakeway, who has also worked as an advisor in the Number 10 policy unit and at the right-wing thinktank Policy Exchange, started work yesterday.
During his time at the Greater London Authority, it was generally believed that then-mayor Boris Johnson’s housing policy came from Mr Blakeway and fellow deputy mayor Sir Edward Lister. Sir Edward is now Mr Johnson’s chief strategic advisor.
The Housing Ombudsman Service looks at complaints about housing organisations, addressing disputes involving the tenants and leaseholders of social landlords and any private landlords who are signed up to the service.
READ MORE
Mr Blakeway joins the ombudsman at the start of its three-year strategy, which aims to make “a difference on individual complaints and across the sector”, and takes over from Andrea Keenoy, who had been in the role on a temporary basis.
He said: “This is an exciting time to be joining the Housing Ombudsman Service. I am keen to build on our work to strengthen our service and create a positive culture around redress.”
The Housing Ombudsman has not been prominent in the sector for some time but drew attention to itself earlier this year when it issued a special report revealing “maladministration” by large housing association Metropolitan Thames Valley in relation to repairs at one housing block.
The government’s Social Housing Green Paper last year suggested making it easier for residents to access the ombudsman.
In July, as part of the hiring process, Mr Blakeway was grilled by MPs on the Housing, Communities and Local Government Select Committee over past comments about social tenants.
He was quoted in a 2009 Inside Housing article as saying: “Quality of life is a joke. 46% of social tenants on estates love their dog more than their neighbour. Why? Largely because of the total absence of the market.”
Conservative MP Bob Blackman asked him whether he still believed this and Mr Blakeway responded: “I really don’t feel that reflects the view I have of social tenants.”
