NOW GRENFELL ECHOES EVERYWHERE

      Sadiq Khan and an arrogant Riverside

The fall-out from the Grenfell tower disaster goes on with the public inquiry and now action by the Mayor of London  aimed to ensure that  everywhere in the country - even here in Carlisle - the voices of social housing tenants are heard.

At Grenfell these tenant voices warned of danger ahead. But they were  were ignored - with the terrible consequences we all now know.

 Today with the action by the Mayor, Sadiq Khan (above) future warnings of danger ahead will do much to prevent further disasters. And equally important, the action by the Mayor will give tenants everywhere a democratic right to be heard.

For too long  social housing tenants have been denied that democratic right. That is particularly  the case in Carlisle where Riverside Housing Association runs a dictatorial regime  to govern its 6,OO0 tenants.

Sadiq now proposes that the Prime Minister appoint a Commissioner for Social Housing Residents which he believes should be independent of Government whose job will be to  act as a watchdog.

Here in Carlisle - 300 miles away - there has also been moves to help tenants. But -very fortunately-  there has been no Grenfell disaster to  give impetus to  efforts to reform. And there is no powerful Mayor with access to Downing Street to ensure that any reforms are underway.

What we have in Carlisle is  long-stamding dissatisfaction with the Riverside regime. The dissatisfaction rumbled on until city councillors became involved.

The councillors took up the challenge but found that Riverside was not only intransigent but also accountable to no one but itself.

However after a struggle, councillors did manage to get dialogue going with Riverside and set up a workshop of councillors to work out a way forward.

This workshop reports its proposals on Thursday at a meeting of the council`s Economic Growth Scrutiny Panel.

The workshop wants the Riverside governing board in Liverpool in future to discuss with the council any major plans for Carlisle before implementing them. They do not expect councillors to read about Riverside plans in the press after  they have been implemented. (This has been the infuriating Riverside practice up to now).

The workshop also wants a  strong relationship  between the council and Riverside with regular joint meetings, a council liaison officer and a special email address for council enquiries. (In the past councillors have been greatly annoyed by the Riverside habit of not responding to phone enquiries.)

The workshop says that local representation is important but makes no mention of reviving  local tenant groups or other democratic bodies- the sort of groups that existed before Riverside took over in Carlisle 15 years ago.(One of the first acts of Riverside in Carlisle was to abolish these groups and any other sort of democratic representation.Under Sadiq`s proposals, these silent voices may now be heard again).

Fifteen years later, Riverside`s attitude to democracy hasn`t changed. This  can be seen in Riverside`s arrogant obfuscation in  its response to the workshop`s assertion that local representation is important.

 Riverside said: ”We will maintain a tenants’ scrutiny panel or other arrangement for the same purpose locally to ensure that Carlisle residents can scrutinise and influence services.

“ Riverside will make reasonable efforts to recruit residents in Carlisle to get involved in customer involvement opportunities – Riverside will engage with involved customers on any changes in services.”

Compare  that Riverside drivel with what Sadic Khan proposes, as reported by the trade newspaper, 24 Housing:

“The proposal for a new Commissioner is one of a package of measures for social housing residents – alongside opening up access for residents to the housing ombudsman and social housing regulator – that Sadiq will begin consultation on when he publishes his draft London Housing Strategy later this month.

As a minimum, the Mayor believes the system for regulating social housing must be genuinely responsive to the concerns of tenants and leaseholders on social housing estates.

Sadiq is concerned the regulator – a statutory body with oversight of standards in social housing – fails to give sufficient attention to issues such as tenant involvement. Of more than a thousand complaints from residents to the regulator in the last two years, just 10 triggered regulatory action.

He is keen that City Hall and Government consult residents and work together to develop key reforms to ensure the voices of social housing residents are heard.”


 Carlisle Tenants` and Residents` Federation publishes this blog. Information about the Federation is available on 01228 522277 or 01228 532803