Tenants join together to secure positive future for Council Housing

 

Sheffield council house tenants are joining a select group of representatives from across England on June 28 to present to politicians at the Houses of Parliament. The event is to raise awareness of the continued need for affordable community housing programmes that put tenant empowerment at the heart of their operations.

 

The event is being organised by the National Federation of ALMOs, the body which represents individual Arms Length Management Organisations managing council properties around the country. ALMOs are committed to delivering the highest quality of housing management for their tenants.

 

Tenants who sit on the Board of Directors at Sheffield Homes will be there to represent the largest ALMO in the country. They will be speaking to MPs about the benefits that the organisation has brought to the city, which includes improving Sheffield’s council homes with investment of £669million under the Decent Homes programme. At only two years old, Sheffield Homes has become the first housing organisation to achieve the top ‘3 stars’ rating in both Government inspections.

 

ALMOs, the council housing management option that empowers tenants, currently manage 895,000 council properties. This figure is set to grow to 1 million by the end of this year, which will then include half of all council dwellings in England. In the four years since they were established, ALMOs have brought over 100,000 homes up to the Government’s Decent Homes Standard. The first ALMOs have achieved this across their entire housing portfolio five years ahead of the 2010 target date.

 

Over 40 tenants from 12 of the country’s 59 ALMOs are attending the event at the Houses of Parliament. It will profile the merits of genuine tenant involvement in council housing programmes to an audience of MPs and members of the House of Lords. Yvette Cooper MP, Housing and Planning Minister will give the key note speech at the event.

 

Whilst ALMOs are accountable to their local council, day to day management of council housing stock is handed over to boards made up of tenants, who constitute at least a third and more in some cases, councillors and independent members. This ensures that services directly meet the needs and aspirations of residents and the individual needs of the communities they serve.

 

From improving the fabric and facilities of council homes, since they were introduced in 2002 ALMOs remit has grown to encompass innovative social inclusion and community safety agendas including the Government’s Respect Agenda.

 

Representatives from Stockton, Kensington and Chelsea, Hounslow, Derby, Kirklees, Rochdale, Sheffield, Carrick, Bolton, Wigan & Leigh, Brent and Solihull will be attending the event which will include speeches from tenant representatives, including the Chairman of the NFA, tenant and Chair of Derby Homes, Dennis Rees.

 

Chief Executive of Sheffield Homes, Peter Morton, said:

"ALMOs have delivered real achievements since their inception just four years ago and we want to ensure that MPs are aware of these outstanding successes. Across the country, from the larger conurbations of the North to the bustling heart of London, ALMOs have been responsible for improving the lives of over a million tenants, whilst at the same time contributing two thirds of all local authority housing efficiency savings.

"The recent positive announcement from the Government regarding the Decent Homes and Decent Communities Programme is a major step towards securing ALMOs a greater role in the long term sustainability of their local communities."

 

To ensure that ALMOs and their residents continue to have a voice in the housing debate at Westminster, an All Party Parliamentary Group for ALMOs has been proposed. Its aim will be to promote the benefits and further development of ALMOs.

 

The Group will provide a forum for discussion about issues relevant to the development of ALMOs, including securing adequate funding to further enhance housing standards after 2010, increasing the amount of social housing available after new build and improving communities and local environments through safer, cleaner, greener neighbourhoods.