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pjjnn)mTede I N BOROUGFTCOUNCIL ^ Housing Committee Wednesday 14 March 2018 at 7.30pm Council Chamber Runnymede Civic Centre, Addlestone Members of the Committee Councillors Ms C M Simmons (Chairman), Miss J Sohi (Vice-Chairman), J R Ashmore, Miss E Bancroft, T Dicks, Mrs J Gracey, N M King, Mrs G Warner, N Wase-Rogers and J J Wilson. In accordance with Standing Order 29.1, any Member of the Council may attend the meeting of this Committee, but may speak only with the permission of the Chairman of the Committee, if they are not a member of this Committee. AGENDA Notes: i) Any report on the Agenda involving confidential information (as defined by section 100A(3) of the Local Government Act 1972) must be discussed in private. Any report involving exempt information (as defined by section 100I of the Local Government Act 1972), whether it appears in Part 1 or Part 2 below, may be discussed in private but only if the Committee so resolves. ii) The relevant 'background papers' are listed after each report in Part 1. Enquiries about any of the Agenda reports and background papers should be directed in the first instance to Miss C Pinnock, Democratic Services, Law and Governance Business Centre, Runnymede Civic Centre, Station Road, Addlestone (Tel: Direct Line: 01932 425627). (Email: [email protected]). iii) Agendas and Minutes are available on a subscription basis. For details, please ring Mr B A Fleckney on 01932 425620. Agendas and Minutes for all the Council's Committees may also be viewed on www.runnymede.gov.uk. iv) In the unlikely event of an alarm sounding, members of the public should leave the building immediately, either using the staircase leading from the public gallery or following other instructions as appropriate. - 1 - v) Filming, Audio-Recording, Photography, Tweeting and Blogging of Meetings Members of the public are permitted to film, audio record, take photographs or make use of social media (tweet/blog) at Council and Committee meetings provided that this does not disturb the business of the meeting. If you wish to film a particular meeting, please liaise with the Council Officer listed on the front of the Agenda prior to the start of the meeting so that the Chairman is aware and those attending the meeting can be made aware of any filming taking place. Filming should be limited to the formal meeting area and not extend to those in the public seating area. The Chairman will make the final decision on all matters of dispute in regard to the use of social media audio-recording, photography and filming in the Committee meeting. - 2 - LIST OF MATTERS FOR CONSIDERATION PART I Matters in respect of which reports have been made available for public inspection Page 1. FIRE PRECAUTIONS 6 2. NOTIFICATION OF CHANGES TO COMMITTEE MEMBERSHIP 6 3 MINUTES 6 4. APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE 6 5. DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST 6 6. HOUSING AND PLANNING ACT 2016 – INTRODUCTION OF CIVIL 6 PENALTIES, RENT REPAYMENT ORDERS AND BANNING ORDERS AND CHANGES TO MANDATORY LICENSING OF HOUSES IN MULTIPLE OCCUPATION 7. HOUSING BUSINESS CENTRE PLAN 2018/19 13 8. KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS – QUARTER 3 2017/18 16 9. CREATION OF A SUSTAINMENT AND PREVENTION OFFICER POST 18 AND ADDITIONAL FUNDING TO SUPPORT THE DEVELOPMENT OF MAGNA CARTA LETTINGS 10. EXTENSION OF THE TENANCY STRATEGY 2015/17 AND 21 HOMELESSNESS STRATEGY 2014/17 11. BATHROOM REFURBISHMENT CONTRACT 25 12. STAIRLIFT CONTRACT 27 13. EXCLUSION OF PRESS AND PUBLIC 30 PART II Matters involving Exempt or Confidential Information in respect of which reports have not been made available for public inspection. a) Exempt Information 14. HOUSING MAINTENANCE RESTRUCTURE 31 15. FARM CLOSE CONTRACT 39 b) Confidential Information (No reports to be considered under this heading) - 3 - GLOSSARY OF TERMS AND ABBREVIATIONS TERM EXPLANATION 1-4-1 receipts A proportion of RTB sale receipts that must be used by the authority to help provide new affordable housing. Affordable Housing Affordable housing includes social rented, affordable rented and products such as shared ownership and is provided by local authorities and registered providers such as housing associations. Benefit cap A Government limit on the total amount of benefit, including Housing Benefit, payable to people aged 16 to 64 who are not working. CBL Choice Based Lettings system allows housing applicants to ‘bid’ for available council and housing association properties online. CHaRMM Community Harm and Risk Management Meetings Decent Homes Standard A standard which aims to provide a minimum standard of housing in the social sector. DFG Disabled Facilities Grants are mandatory, means tested grants to provide adaptations such as shower rooms, ramps and stair lifts to disabled people who can be owner occupiers or private or social tenants. DHP Discretionary Housing Payments are funded by the Government and can top up the housing costs of Housing Benefit claimants, for example to make up a rent shortfall due to the ‘benefit cap’ or ‘spare room subsidy.’ DWP The Department for Work and Pensions. HCA The Homes and Communities Agency, the Government’s housing, land and regeneration agency, and the regulator of social housing providers in England. H-CLIC Homelessness Case Level Information Collection HMO House in multiple occupation. HoRA Homelessness Reduction Act HRA Housing Revenue Account. The statutory account that sets out expenditure and income arising from provision of social housing by the local authority as a landlord and is ring fenced from other council activities. IRL Independent Retirement Living is the brand for Runnymede’s sheltered accommodation for older people. LHA Local Housing Allowance is the Housing Benefit entitlement for private sector tenants, based on a household’s bedroom requirements. It is applied to areas known as Broad Rental Market Areas and determined by calculating the 30th percentile of market rents for each area (i.e. 3 in 10 properties should be at or - 4 - below the LHA level). MHCLG Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government formerly The Department for Communities and Local Government. New Homes Bonus The New Homes Bonus has been paid each year by Government, based on the number of new homes within an area when the Council Tax extract is submitted in October with additional payments for new affordable homes and a reduction for long term empty properties. PSL Private Sector Landlord. PRC Pre-reinforced concrete (non-traditionally built) properties. PRSMO Private Rented Sector Management Officer RCRA Runnymede Council Residents Association. RP Registered providers of social housing including; local authority landlords; private registered providers such as not-for-profit housing associations and for-profit organisations. RTB Right to Buy legislation and regulations giving secure tenants of councils and some housing associations tenants the right to buy the home they are living in, at a discount. S. 106 Section 106 agreements are a legally binding agreement between the Planning authority and a landowner or developer in association with the granting of planning permission, often requiring a contribution to infrastructure and sometimes affordable housing – which can be on site or by way of a commuted sum. SHMA The Strategic Housing Market Assessment provides an evidence base for assessing the need and demand of future housing supply. Shared Accommodation The level of LHA (Housing Benefit) that applies to single people Rate in the private rented sector who are aged under 35 years. It will apply to social tenancies from April 2018. Social Sector Size Also colloquially known as “the bedroom tax” which was Criteria introduced in 2013 and which reduces Housing Benefit to working age claimants who are assessed as having a spare room. Universal Credit This benefit is gradually replacing a number of benefits including Job Seekers Allowance, Income Support, Housing Benefit etc. and in most cases is paid four weekly in arrears direct to the applicant. - 5 - 1. FIRE PRECAUTIONS The Chairman will read the Fire Precautions, which set out the procedures to be followed in the event of fire or other emergency. 2. NOTIFICATION OF CHANGES TO COMMITTEE MEMBERSHIP 3. MINUTES To confirm and sign, as a correct record, the Minutes of the meeting of the Committee held on 10 January 2018 which were included in the March 2018 Council Minute Book and previously circulated to all Members of the Council in February 2018. 4. APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE 5. DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST If Members have an interest in an item, please record the interest on the form circulated with this Agenda and hand it to the Legal Representative or Democratic Services Officer at the start of the meeting. A supply of the form will also be available from the Democratic Services Officer at meetings. Members are advised to contact the Council’s Legal Section prior to the meeting if they wish to seek advice on a potential interest. Members are reminded that a non pecuniary interest includes their appointment by the Council as the Council’s representative to an outside body and that this should be declared as should their membership of an outside body in their private capacity as a director, trustee, committee member or in another position of influence thereon. Members who have previously declared interests, which are recorded in the Minutes to be considered at this meeting, need not repeat the declaration when attending the meeting. Members need take no further action unless the item in which they have interest becomes the subject of debate, in which event