Date

24^th July 2002

Reporting Area

Housing

Lead Director

Jane Ashman

Progress Made

Issue to be addressed

Status/Who ?

Leadership

Following David Trethewey's secondment to the PARIS Project and Jane Shayler's appointment as Acting Strategic Housing Manager, management arrangements for the Service have been reviewed and temporary arrangements put in place.

Temporary management arrangements have resulted in additional responsibilities for Jane Shayler and two remaining Group Managers as Jane Shayler's substantive post has not been filled. Workload pressures are being monitored on an ongoing basis and the temporary management arrangements will be revised if necessary.

Jane Shayler

People Management

The move of non-operational staff to new office accommodation at Plymouth House is still planned for September.

Arrangements for movement of operational staff to and within Lewis House are still to be finalised.

Colin Keane

Housing Options & Advice Service restructuring and relocation went ahead in April. The team is working generically at Lewis House. Training is on-going.

Due to delays with the new IT system needed for the Choice-Based Lettings pilot, some staff are working from Somer's offices at The Maltings. This means they can access the computer-held records needed to nominate applicants for vacant properties.

Advice surgeries will be piloted during the next few months. The pilot will be monitored over a six-month period and reviewed in Spring 2003 with arrangements then being revised as appropriate in light of experience and service user feedback.

Work is on-going on implementing the new IT system.

Lesley Mower-Hill

A decision on closure of the Spa Careline monitoring service is awaited. Co-location of the monitoring service with Action Line and the Revenue & Benefits Call Centre is therefore on hold.

Steve Wakefield

Policy and Strategy

A Housing Strategy workshop was held with stakeholders in April. The draft Strategy is currently out for consultation and will go to the Executive at the end of July for agreement for referral to full Council in September. The Stragegy has to be submitted to GOSW (subject to approval by Council) by the end of July.

Ann Robins

The Draft Supporting People Shadow Strategy Summary is now out for consultation with a deadline of 6 August for written feedback. A full strategy document is available. An Open Day is to be held on 1 August for anyone who wishes to find out more, ask questions or give feedback. Service-users are being encouraged to participate.

Supply mapping is complete, but work continues on identifying services which are providing support on a cross-authority basis. Applications for pipeline funding are also being prepared to ensure that services which will not be operational before April 2003 are costed into the Bath & North East Somerset Supporting People pot.

The Shadow Strategy is to go to the Executive for agreement in September.

Agreement will have to be reached on which services are to be delivered if extra funding were to be made available by ODPM.

Accurate mapping of funding streams is fundamental to the continuing delivery of Supporting People

Sarah Shatwell

The Single Homelessness Strategy for Bath & North East Somerset attracted £145,000 funding, which has been allocated to local services.

Formal contracts will be drawn up with service-providers in July.

Ann Robins

Resources

Capital expenditure on affordable housing development is on target. (Approx. £3.5m in 2002/02) The target of 100 units in the year should also be achieved.

The housing market in Bath & North East Somerset remains very strong which impacts upon affordability and housing needs. It also means that developments can become more expensive and the average cost per unit of providing new affordable housing rises.

Colin Keane

The move to Plymouth House should go ahead in September 2002.

Negotiations are on-going to appoint a trainee through CEED to look at the housing support needs of service-users and carers, especially in the black and other ethnic minority community.

Sarah Shatwell

Processes

New Housing Options & Advice procedures have been drawn up and are available on the Housing web-site.

Lesley Mower-Hill

Performance Targets

No.

%

RED

1

11

AMBER

2

22

GREEN

6

67

NOT KNOWN

0

0

Origin

Ref.

Indicator

2000/01

Actual

2001/02

Actual

Current

2002/03

Target

2003/04

Target

Status*

Comment

BVPI

62

Proportion of unfit private sector dwellings made fit or demolished as a direct result of action by B&NES

1.1%

1.4%

0.3%

1.5%

1.75%

Green

A housing fitness survey is required to provide a more accurate baseline figure for number of unfit properties - deferred due to financial situation.

BVPI

64

The number of private sector dwellings that are returned into occupation or demolished during 2002/032 as a direct result of action by the local authority

5.2%

6.1%
(10 dwellings)

3 dwellings

8 dwellings

8 dwellings

Green

Origin

Ref.

Indicator

2000/01

Actual

2001/02

Actual

Current

2002/03

Target

2003/04

Target

Status*

Comment

BVPI

67

Percentage of homelessness applications on which B&NES makes a decision and issues written notification within 33 working days

76.5%

79.4

73.1%

85%

90%

Red

Reorganisation, work on implementing a new IT system & preparation for inspection have all impacted on performance on this target.

BVPI

183

Average length of stay (in weeks) of homeless households with children in:
a) B&B
b) hostel

-

-

10
4.5

-

-

Green

New indicator - no targets yet.

Local

New affordable housing units

136

107

-

100

-

Amber

Local

Percentage of new affordable housing units on brownfield sites

95%

86%

0

60%

60%

Green

Local

Percentage of new registered social landlord homes achieving `lifetime' standards

86%

39%

0

60%

60%

Green

2001/2 target not met due to high % of refurbished property

Local

Number of new call alarms provided to elderly and vulnerable people so they can raise help if needed

306

311

83

250

250

Green

FP

HP3

Provide 600 additional social housing units by 2005

136

(running total 196)

115

(running total 311)

-

100

100

Green