Housing Using old office block not an ideal option, admits city council
BRISTOL City Council has admitted that the use of a former council office block in south Bristol for housing is “not an ideal option” – but has defended doing so, saying it has provided homes for more than 200 people.
It comes as people living in the former Parkview office complex in Hengrove express concerns for their safety and complain about a lack of maintenance.
Police revealed last week they had been called more than 200 times in just over a year to the site, now known as Imperial Apartments. Crimes linked to the apartments include one rape, two incidents of the possession of weapons and one drug trafficking offence.
The council revealed in summer last year that it was planning to house people in the complex, which was being redeveloped by Caridon – a firm that was the subject of a Newsnight investigation after residents in one of its London developments complained of overcrowding and violence.
At the time, city council housing chiefs admitted they had concerns about teaming up with a developer accused of creating “human warehousing”, but said they were “determined to make this development a success and thriving community in which to live”.
The council has now issued a statement, saying: “Helping to prevent people from rough sleeping and securing suitable, affordable move-on accommodation are key priorities for the council.
“It is important to recognise the council has very few options to tackle the homelessness crisis, which is exacerbated by continual failings at the top of government to devolve the funding and powers needed to accelerate local housebuilding.
“Whilst the use of Imperial Apartments is not an ideal option, it has provided housing for more than 200 people with a history of, or who are at risk of, homelessness.
“Although Caridon are the landlords and responsible for delivering safe and secure accommodation at the site, we take any issues raised very seriously.
“Weekly meetings with staff on site and monthly meetings with senior managers are held to discuss and address any emerging issues. Members of our Community Development team are at the site on most days also.
“Caridon have a procedure in place for dealing with antisocial behaviour and other cases of concern and to discuss these issues with us as part of this process.
“Staff are on site at all times, including security at night and over the weekend, to respond to any issues around antisocial behaviour.
“We review these arrangements regularly and remain open to discussions with the landlord and residents about their effectiveness.
“Strict referral criteria are in place for the building to ensure we only refer people with low or no support needs who are assessed as able to live independently with minimal ongoing resettlement or floating support.”
In the council’s lettings plan for Imperial Apartments, it states: “This Lettings Plan will be in place for the entire period of the contract term with Caridon and will be periodically reviewed every 12 months to ensure we are sustaining the community at Imperial Apartments and meeting the objectives of the plan”.
Caridon has previously said it has worked hard with the council to develop a safe and thriving community at the site, adding there is no temporary accommodation at the site so no one has been forced or placed into Imperial Apartments and everyone lives there out of choice.
The developer said the vast majority of tenants were happy in the building. When complaints arose, they were dealt with as quickly as possible as part of strict policies to ensure all complaints
were thoroughly investigated and the appropriate action was taken.
The local authority struck a deal last year with Caridon Property Group to give hundreds of people who are homeless or in temporary accommodation a permanent roof over their heads.
Caridon turned the building into homes without the need for planning consent under permitted development rights, which meant regulations stipulating minimum sizes did not apply.
In March, the council agreed to take on a further 100 flats under phase two of the project to house more families, despite members admitting they remained “wary” of the situation and an officers’ warning that no child over five should live at the twobed units created in the first phase. In total, the project will see 465 units of private rented accommodation, with the city council renting 316 units (just under 68 per cent).
Even though the council is letting the flats, Caridon is the overall landlord and is responsible for ongoing management of the site, building and tenancies.
At the time the council made the decision to let the properties, it said the aim was to “create a diverse and successful community, ensuring that the development is a positive and safe environment for people to live”.
In other statements, the council said it aimed to create a “mixed community” at the site and wanted to make the development “a success and thriving community”.
Whilst the use of Imperial Apartments is not an ideal option it has provided housing for more than 200 people with a history of, or who are at risk of, homelessness.
Council statement