Agenda item

7.1

Choice Based Lettings

7.1.1

Sharon Schonborn, Allocation Policy Review Manager, Communities Portfolio, gave a presentation on the subject of Choice Based Lettings.

7.1.2

Members of the Scrutiny and Policy Development Committee raised a number of questions and the following responses were provided:-

·               The new ICT system would not only produce cost savings and efficiencies, but would also provide other benefits, such as full-site language conversion, an amended website which would be easier to navigate and for customers to manage their own applications.  The new system, which was currently used by a number of other local authorities, had proved to be very beneficial. 

·               Support would be put in place for those people who either struggled with, or had no access to ICT facilities.  They would still be able to submit bids for properties using the phone, mobile, digital TV or internet.  In addition to this, the new ICT system included a facility for building up a profile in terms of tenants’ needs, and would be able to submit a bid automatically, on their behalf, when a suitable property became available.  It was envisaged that due to the improvements the new ICT system would bring, this would free up resources for officers to provide assistance for those tenants who struggled with, or did not have access to ICT facilities.

·               As part of the Communications Strategy, every tenant would receive details of the new system in writing. Information would also be available electronically.

7.1.3

RESOLVED:  That the Scrutiny and Policy Development Committee:-

(a)

notes the information contained in the paper now submitted, together with information reported as part of the presentation and the responses provided to the questions raised; and

(b)

Requests officers to (i) pursue Option 1 – Keep Choice Based Lettings as the advertising and matching mechanism, using the new ICT system to manage the process more effectively, and for officers to commence working on developing this option with immediate effect and (ii) attend a future meeting of the Scrutiny and Policy Development Committee to report in more detail on the Communications Strategy.

7.2

Bidding

7.2.1

Sharon Schonborn gave a presentation on the subject of Bidding.

7.2.2

Members of the Scrutiny and Policy Development Committee raised a number of questions and the following responses were provided:-

·               At the present time, there was nothing in the Lettings Policy to say that those tenants who had refused a large number of offers should be penalised.  Tenants were able to bid based on their waiting time, therefore there were no limits in terms of the number of bids they could make.

·               Findings from other local authorities had indicated that limiting the number of bids had not brought any major problems.  It had made tenants more focused in terms of their bids.

·               Offers had not included details of penalties in this paper, but would bring other suggestions to the Committee’s Policy Development meeting to be held on 18^th September 2012, which will be included in Banding and Registration documents for this Committee’s consideration at a future meeting.

·               In terms of penalties for tenants who refuse a number of properties under the new Policy, whilst there were to be further discussions on this issue, one possibility would be to reduce their priority.

7.2.3

RESOLVED:  That the Scrutiny and Policy Development Committee:-

(a)

notes the information contained in the paper now submitted, and the  information as part of the presentation and the responses provided to the questions raised; and

(b)

requests officers to pursue Option 3 – Extend the restriction to apply to all applicants, therefore restricting all applicants to three bids per cycle; retain the facility for staff to place additional bids, where necessary, for priority applicants in order to fulfil the Council’s duty to applicants with urgent housing needs.

7.3

Adaptations

7.3.1

Sharon Schonborn gave a presentation on the subject of Adaptations.

7.3.2

Members of the Scrutiny and Policy Development Committee raised a number of questions and the following responses were provided:-

·               When tenants were bidding for properties that had been adapted, consideration would be given to the needs of all the applicant’s family members.

·               There were approximately 5,000 properties in the City which had been the subject of some level of adaptations, with the vast majority being at such a level that could easily be amended or removed.  There were no records to indicate where all these properties were. Approximately 200 of these properties had received major adaptations and the location of such properties was known to Sheffield Homes. The introduction of the new ICT system should provide an improved level of detail in terms of advertising the location/features of properties which had been adapted. 

·               Under the new proposed Policy, heavily adapted properties could be taken out of the Choice Based Lettings system, with that flexibility worked into the wording.

·               The newly improved website would not only be easier to navigate, but would contain more details to enable tenants to make more informed choices.

·               Properties that had been adapted would be let in their present condition, but arrangements may have to be made to amend or remove any adaptations if they were proving difficult to let.  Such properties would be dealt with on a case by case basis.

·               Any adaptations undertaken to properties have to be agreed by the landlord.

7.3.3

RESOLVED:  That the Scrutiny and Policy Development Committee:-

(a)

notes the information contained in the paper now submitted, together with information reported as part of the presentation and the responses provided to the questions raised; and

(b)

requests officers to (i) pursue Option 2 – Retain and develop the adapted features already in the Policy, building in the additional flexibility to take highly adapted properties out of Choice Based Lettings and match manually, and (ii) (A) include reference in the Policy to the needs of tenants with children in the household who have disabilities, and (B) develop the register by taking steps to identify the locations of those properties which had received adaptations, including the nature of such adaptations, and to report back on both these issues at the Committee’s Policy Development meeting to be held on 18^th September 2012.