Housing Commission
We have for many years been faced with significant challenges with regard to its council housing. Poor quality housing, a legacy of underinvestment and variable housing management has led to a situation where much of the housing stock does not meet the "decent homes" standard and the quality of housing services does not, yet, meet the expected standards of the council's political administration and senior managers.
A series of actions have, and continue to be, undertaken by us to address these issues. However due to the significant changes in housing policy announced by the Coalition Government, such as cuts in decent homes funding, proposed reforms to the HRA and changes to housing benefit, we are of the view that it needs to undertake a detailed review of our approach to housing management and housing investment. The ultimate aim of this review will be to ensure our approach to improving housing is both realistic and sustainable for the short, medium and long term.
To take forward this review our Cabinet agreed, in December 2010, to establish a time limited Housing Commission chaired by the Cabinet Member for Housing.