END THIS FAILURE OF TENANTS SAYS MICHAEL GOVE

 

Rishy attack on rubbishy housing 

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New Year 2023 and a new start for social housing is getting underway as the Rishy Sunak government  is on the attack

There is a warning for rubbishy housing associations that their failures must end. There is new hope for tenants getting together. And there is optimism for the future of social housing from the author of a new book tracing past successes of  council estates.

The warning follows criticism by the Housing Ombudsman of Clarion, the UK’s largest housing association, for its “unacceptable” handling of a resident’s request to be removed from a tenancy.

Maladministration was also found in the landlord’s complaint-handling.

Clarion was also handed severe maladministration notices in April, May and July this year and was the subject of a wider investigation by the ombudsman.

In response to the latest findings,Michael Gove the housing secretary said: “Once again, Clarion has failed its tenants and refused to treat people with respect.

“This must end. After four maladministration notices in one year, I am now considering appropriate action.

”The new hope for tenants came when more than 250  from across England met last week for the launch of a panel to improve the quality of social housing

The new panel will ensure social housing tenants will no longer be “denied a voice”, according to  Michael Gove, speaking ahead of its first session .

The government said in March that it was launching the Social Housing Quality Resident Panel.

It forms part of a series of reforms, including the newSocisl Housing Regulation Bill to improve tenant engagement and the regulation of the social housing sector in the wake of the Grenfell Tower fire.

 Optimism about the future comes from the social housing historian,Mr John Boughton (pictured) speaking about his new book, A History of Council Housing in 100 Estates.

Having tracked this history, how does Mr Boughton feel about the future?  He  told the social housing magazine Inside Housing:”There are reasons for optimism, but also – when you consider how far we have fallen from the days when one in three people lived in secure council housing and the stilted progress in so many areas despite a century of work – reasons for despair.

 “It’s easy to be caught in the immediate political moment when there’s no reason to be positive whatsoever. But councils want to build. And I do think we are moving forward, moving to an era where public housing is going to be more important, more valued, better understood as a necessary component of a mixed economy of housing.”

"One of the best ways to understand this is to simply look around at the estates that have risen from the ground over the past 100 years and the enormous role they played in increasing the living standards of the millions who have passed through them in that time".

Mr Boughton’s  book is a vital record of that.

 Community Voice Carlisle is the blog of Carlisle Tenants` and Residents`Federation. Information about the Federation is available on 01228 5222