Decent homes award

SOCIAL housing stock in the borough has met the “decent homes standard” for the second year running.

Created by the government, the measure includes general repairs, heating and thermal comfort as well as having reasonably modern facilities such as kitchens and bathrooms.

“Meeting the decent homes standard for two years in a row is a real reflection of the effort put in by the council’s housing team,” said Simon Price, assistant director for neighbourhoods and communities at the council.

“It’s impressive considering it’s been done despite Covid-19 restrictions during the past year.

“However it doesn’t stop here as this is about an ongoing programme of works, continuing to replace things like kitchens and bathrooms as they come to the end of their life or upgrading windows to help keep tenants warm.”

The council said is has a rolling programme of annual works to identify improvements needed in the coming year.

When Covid restrictions allow, the council plans to carry out new condition surveys of all of its properties.

Mr Price added: “We want to make sure our tenants have great places to live so understanding the condition of our homes is incredibly important.

“While achieving the decent homes standard for all our homes this year is a good indicator we are doing well, we believe there is much more to be done and want to take a proactive approach to making our local homes even better.”

He said in the past five years, the council has invested more than £20 million on “improving council housing” and £15 million on “maintenance and repairs”.