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Disclosures of Personal & Prejudicial Interest. Minutes: In accordance with the Code
of Conduct adopted by the City and County of Swansea, the following interest
was declared: Councillor T J Hennegan –
Minute No 81 – Council Tenant – Personal |
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Prohibition of Whipped Votes and Declaration of Party Whips. Minutes: In accordance with the Local
Government (Wales) Measure 2011, no declarations of Whipped Votes or Party
Whips were declared. |
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Public Question Time. Questions must
relate to matters on the open part of the Agenda of the meeting and will be
dealt with in a 10 minute period. Minutes: There were no public questions. |
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Pre-decision Scrutiny: Housing Commissioning Review Findings. PDF 240 KB a) Role of the
Committee b) Consideration
of Cabinet Report and Questions c) Committee’s View for Cabinet Additional documents: Minutes: The Cabinet Member for Homes, Energy & Service
Transformation / Joint Interim Deputy Leader, the Head of Housing and Public
Health, the Landlord and Community Housing Services Manager and the Strategic Housing
Customer and Service Development Manager were present for the Committee’s
consideration of the Housing Commissioning Review Findings. The Head of Housing and Public Health provided a verbal
address further to the written report provided which highlighted the following:
- · Review findings · Main aims of the review · Need to modernise the Service and adapt to the changing ways that customers are accessing the Service · Improving the application process and reducing waiting lists · Future model of District Housing Offices · Good customer satisfaction levels which could be built on · Purpose of the Service · Homelessness Prevention Service · Key priorities · Tenancy sustainment and ensuring tenants are tenancy ready · Decarbonisation · Increasing supply of affordable housing · Improvement of Information Technology · Income generation · Greater presence on Council estates · Increase of resources for the rents team · Anti-Social Behaviour and development of noise app · Empty properties and voids · Housing management costs · Tenancy consultation and stakeholder engagement- key aspects going forward Questions and discussions focussed on: - · Sheltered housing – provision of wardens · Reduction of District Housing Offices – impact and alternative provisions through technology, local housing sessions and neighbourhood officers · Concern on potential resource implications if more Officers are visiting individual homes with the reduction of District Housing Offices · Allocation / break down of money received from rent · Charges for furniture packs – recovering costs for missed deliveries · Structure of rents team / allocation of additional funding · Advice and training on benefits system · Breakdown of complaints into topics to identify recurring themes · Issues of anti-social behaviour and effect on surrounding area / tenants · Proposed changes to the Tend and Mend Service · Timescale for changes particularly on IT upgrades and the noise app The Chair thanked the Cabinet Member for Homes, Energy &
Service Transformation / Joint Interim Deputy Leader Cabinet Member and
Officers and noted that a number of suggestions from the earlier meeting of the
Committee on 1 August, when it considered progress with the Commissioning
Review and emerging findings, had been taken on board. The Committee welcomed the direction of travel proposed for
the Housing Service, but raised a number of points which should be taken into
account by Cabinet, around the visibility of an implementation plan to take
forward proposals, the introduction of new technology, and connection between
service user feedback and improvements proposed. The Committee noted the Cabinet Member’s intention to undertake formal consultation with tenants in January 2020 regarding the proposed change to the future model of the District Housing Office service, and to report findings of consultation to Cabinet in April 2020. It was clarified by the Cabinet Member that the District Housing Offices identified, would only close once new ways of working described in the report were in place. Resolved that the
Chair of the Scrutiny Programme Committee writes to the Cabinet Member
outlining the views of the Committee, with feedback to be presented to Cabinet
on 21 November ahead of decision on the cabinet report. |
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