MANAGERS TO GO BACK TO COLLEGE

 

Gove`s new law to tame rogue housing

Congratulations to Housing Minister Michael Gove (pictured) for introducing a new law that will require managers and executives employed by social landlords to obtain professional qualifications. This is the biggest reform to professional standards in the social  housing sector’s history.

 The changes will mean about 25,000 housing staff going back to college, and will change the way staff are trained and recruited in the social housing sector.

Carlisle Tenants` and Residents` Federation which publishes this blog has campaigned for nearly a quarter  of a century to get better professional standards in social housing,

particularly the Liverpool based giant organisation, Riverside Housing Association.

Better standards seemed to be the last thing Riverside has  sought to achieve over the years.  Complaints about these standards by tenants and by the federation achieved nothing because Riverside  had no care about such things. . Riverside is accountable only to itself

The  planned  law is primarily a response to the Grenfell Tower fire in 2017 and concerns that the building was not adequately managed by its landlord, the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea , and its management body, the Kensington and Chelsea Tenant Management Organisation .. 

But then came the inquest into the death of two-year-old Awaab Ishak in a housing association home in Rochdale. The verdict  was that his death was caused by serious damp and mould in his home which went unaddressed for two years.

The verdict led to a significant hardening of the rhetoric from Michael Gove, the housing secretary towards rogue housing in the sector. 

This, of course, follows two years of revelations about poor repairs performance, and an increasingly active Housing Ombudsman publicising the failures it investigates.

  Community Voice Carlisle is the blog of Carlisle Tenants` and Residents`Federation. Information about the Federation is available on 01228 52

THE UNCARING WORLD OF AUTOMATIC MACHINES

 No charity

 in this big bank

account

Today`s callous disregard  for people by big business seems to be much worse than the uncaring  world of automatic machines that newspaper reader Ina Grassie oulines this week in the Cumberland and Westmorland Herald.

 Another  Herald reader says:”One of the high street banks recently sent me a form to complete saying they  had a string of questions needing answers about a charity account I help to run. It comprised several sheets and was a bit like an income tax form. It took nearly half a day to complete.

“More  than a month later they contacted me  again by letter saying they needed more information and would I ring them.

“Then came a bossy Big Brother bit.

 “Not only did they want me to ring them, they insisted on my ringing them within a week otherwise they would close the account..

“Charming, I thought.

“Naturally, I wanted to keep the account open so I wasted no time in trying to get in touch. Little did I  realise the  impossibility of getting in touch . I spent an hour on the phone but there was no reply.

“The following day I spent another hour on the phone and there was still no reply This went on for a week and while I can say that I have had dozens of recorded messages  from the bank  apologising  for what they called “delays in answering” I have still not had a  single reply to what I estmate  must have been something like seven hours on the phone.

“Meanwhile  my phone bill must have shot up to goodness knows  how much,  the bank account has been closed and I am furious.

“ Of course I have complained by letter and I shall contact  the bank ombudsman and possibly  put the story on Facebook.

“But who cares?

“I am sure the bank doesn`t.”

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