21 MCa/22/8 THE APPROVAL OF THE HOUSING REVENUE ACCOUNT BUSINESS PLAN PDF 278 KB
Cabinet Member for Housing
Additional documents:
Decision:
It was RESOLVED: -
1.1 It is recommended that Cabinet approve the proposed HRA Business Plan along with the overarching aims as set out in this report.
1.2 It is recommended that an annual review of the HRA Business Plan takes place, and any amendments, changes, or updates are reported to Cabinet as part of the annual budget setting process.
REASON FOR DECISION
To ensure Mid Suffolk have an HRA Business Plan, which will be meet the Councils overarching Housing aims over the next five years
Alternative Options Considered and Rejected:
2.1 To continue with the current version of the HRA Business Plan, which was adopted in 2017. However, it is felt this would prevent us managing the HRA effectively as many changes have occurred since 2017, including the Climate Emergency declared by both Councils in 2019.
Any Declarations of Interests Declared: None
Any Dispensation Granted: None
Minutes:
21.1 The Chair, Councillor Richardson, invite the Cabinet Member for Housing, Councillor Hadingham, to introduce the report.
21.2 The Cabinet Member for Housing provided Members with an outline of the final business plan and its key aims. Councillor Hadingham moved the recommendations, as detailed in the report and this was seconded by Councillor Flatman.
21.3 The Director for Housing responded to questions from other Members attending the meeting regarding future rent increases and advised that the percentage increases would follow guidelines set by central government. Final decisions would be made over the forthcoming months as part of the budget setting process. The Assistant Director then provided clarification with regard to the scenarios outlined in paragraph 6.3 of the report, confirming that seven scenarios had been scoped. However, these had been distilled down to the two scenarios detailed in the report.
21.4 The Director for Asset and Investments responded to further questions from other Members attending the meeting and outlined how new build schemes and acquisition schemes were assessed to ensure that they achieve best value for the authority. The Director went on to provide clarification of the commitments and aspirational criteria detailed in the design guide and explained that the Council would strive to achieve all of the aspirational criteria however, a degree of flexibility would be required.
21.5 Councillor Whitehead commented that it was vital that a business plan was adopted.
By a unanimous vote
It was RESOLVED: -
1.1 It is recommended that Cabinet approve the proposed HRA Business Plan along with the overarching aims as set out in this report.
1.2 It is recommended that an annual review of the HRA Business Plan takes place, and any amendments, changes, or updates are reported to Cabinet as part of the annual budget setting process.
REASON FOR DECISION
To ensure Mid Suffolk have an HRA Business Plan, which will be meet the Councils overarching Housing aims over the next five years
22 MC/22/7 THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE HOUSING REVENUE ACCOUNT BUSINESS PLAN PDF 650 KB
Cabinet Member for Housing
Additional documents:
Minutes:
22.1 Councillor Hadingham introduced paper MC/22/7 and proposed the recommendations detailed in the report.
22.2 Councillor Eburne commented on the hard work which had been put into the development of the plan. Councillor Eburne enquired whether the intention was to move the housing stock from social rent to affordable rent which would be more expensive, and requested more information with regard to the seven scenarios referred to in the report.
22.3 The Assistant Director for Housing confirmed that there was no plan to move from social rent at this time and provided additional details of the scenarios referred to in the report. The Assistant Director advised Members that the plan would be an ongoing process and would be reviewed and developed regularly.
22.4 Councillor Scarff referred to scenario two detailed in the report and asked how ambitious the Council would be in seeking opportunities to achieve grant funding from central government to decarbonise the existing housing stock.
22.5 The Assistant Director for Housing advised that the Council had been successful in applying for grants through the Suffolk Climate Change Partnership, and work with the Energy Saving Trust has provided clear data regarding the current housing stock which will ensure the Council is well placed to apply for funding opportunities.
22.6 In response to a question from Councillor Field regarding benchmarking data relating to void properties, the Assistant Director for Housing advised that the Council has recently joined the data comparison provider Housemark and provided details of the data collected which is currently being validated and scrutinised.
22.7 The Assistant Director for Housing responded to a further question from Councillor Field regarding possible rent increases and commented that this would be a decision which would need to be made over the course of the budget setting process.
22.8 Councillor Stringer asked why the issues of minimum space standards, access to public transport services, and wider benefits to the community within in the built form and uses had been identified as issues to aspire to and not which will be done. The Assistant Director for Assets and Investments advised that the details of each situation had to be considered and this would mean a degree of flexibility would be required when considering housing delivery.
22.9 Councillor Geake queried the graph on page 40 of the report and asked why there was a future reduction in the number of social units in the stock figure. The Assistant Director for Housing explained that the graph allowed for future sales of council housing but did not allow for stock being built and therefore showed an overall reduction.
22.10 The Assistant Director for Housing went on to outline the various tenant satisfaction surveys being undertaken and the work which would be carried out as a result of these.
22.11 In response to a question from Councillor Mellen, the Assistant Manager – Strategic Properties provided clarification that the approach to building would be a fabric first approach to build properties which are energy efficient and less costly ... view the full minutes text for item 22