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Tenants must have a say in how homes are run
• COUNCILLORS Julian Fulbrook and Roger Robinson seem to share a view that this administration is hell-bent on undermining council housing and tenant participation in the borough.
Did neither of them read my report to full council in January where I express yet again our commitment to a “strong positive council housing sector”? Both councillors should know very well that we do not plan to “sell off” our council homes.
On the issue of tenant participation, Cllr Fulbrook is quite wrong to suggest we want to “start again” by scrapping our current participation structures.
I have spent many months talking of building on and strengthening existing structures and it was this approach that has received greatest support.
Personally I see a positive valuable role for District Management Committees in helping to set our priorities in housing and feeding into policies at an early stage. The committees would focus on a management role to support council officers locally.
I also see an important new role for a Strategic Housing Group. I think these should meet more regularly, taking on some of the work of the old policy forums. I also think that we need something simple that reaches the people who for whatever reason do not use existing systems.
Perhaps a simple residents’ email group, such as a sounding board as used in other boroughs is worth considering.
Where this has worked there is no doubt it has broadened and strengthened existing housing groups.
All these suggestions were outlined at our recent Town Hall meeting. They are up for further discussion by the District Management Committees and by small working groups if need be.
Cllr Chris Naylor
Executive Member for Housing
Camden Council
• STAFF working in frontline jobs in the housing offices are increasingly worried they will be unable to continue to provide the kind of service that tenants deserve because of the proposed cuts.
Members of the trade union Unison met to discuss the threatened cuts, which will mean jobs being lost in an important frontline service.
They were very angry that tenants have been told that no frontline jobs will go, yet there will be five fewer people working on reception in the busy housing offices.
The staff will be joining a march and lobby of councillors on February 28 at the budget meeting where these cuts will be voted on, and hope the tenants who want to keep a valuable service will be there too.
Liz Wheatley
Camden Unison
• IN regards to Councillor Julian Fulbrook’s letter (Housing Under Threat, Feb 22).
As a District Management Committee representative, I feel that the particular Joint DMC meeting that Julian Fulbrook mentioned was absolutely absurd. Each and every DMC representative was there on their own free time and the council didn’t even supply suitable notations about the information that was being given to us.
Overall, the meeting was a joke and I left as soon as soon as I could find a moment to escape. It was a waste of time because some DMC representatives were taking particular statements too personally and the council didn’t seem to be taking the meeting seriously anyways. I realise that Chris Naylor tries to hear everybody’s point of view, but it ended up getting slightly out of hand.
Joint DMC meetings should have a centralized Chair to keep the meeting sensible. Joint DMCs need organization and letting everyone have a voice causes chaos and disorder, considering everyone wanted to go off-topic every five to ten minutes. I respect the opinion of every single DMC representative, but we all know how our own local meetings operate, why should a Joint meeting be any different?
Lastly, on behalf of the Leighton Crescent TRA, I would like to wish Francis Bazil the best. We’re going to miss him, but am glad that we’ll still be able to see him around our locale. Have a good time, Francis and good luck!
David Morgan
Leighton Crescent TRA
DMC Representative
• IT was interesting to read that Frank Dobson was campaigning for the government of which he is a member and of which he has been a minister to build more council houses (Build some homes, Frank tells Brown).
Surely I am not alone is asking why he – on an MP’s salary and the allowances – needs to occupy a council property himself? I thought the whole point of social housing was to provide homes for those who cannot afford to buy their own.
Perhaps Mr Dobson might care to write to your paper explaining why he is a council tenant.
MISS F TURNER
Lyncroft Gardens, NW6
• OPEN letter to government Ministers and Camden councillors.
The undersigned re-affirm our determination to win the ‘Fourth Option’ of direct investment to improve our homes and estates and secure a long term future for first class affordable, secure and accountable council housing.
We note the decision of the Labour Party conference, for the third consecutive year running, to support the ‘Fourth Option’ of direct investment in council housing and the expectation that the Policy Forum working group would respond before the Comprehensive Spending Review this spring.
We remind the government of their 2005 Manifesto Commitment “By 2010 we will ensure that all social tenants benefit from a decent, warm home with modern facilities” – and give notice that we intend to make them keep it.
We totally reject calls from the Smith Institute and others for secure, life-long tenancies to be ended and tenants forced into the private market. We will actively oppose all attempts to undermine the future of council (public) housing, divert public subsidies to the private sector and increase the domination of market forces in housing.
We are concerned that two reviews on the ‘role of social housing’ and ‘regulation of housing’ are intended to drive forward the government’s privatisation and marketisation agenda. We call for a full public debate on these issues – putting council tenants at the centre – before any recommendations and/or decisions are made.
At a local level we remind the new Camden Council administration of their election commitment to oppose stock transfer and Almo and their promise to join with tenants to win the ‘Fourth Option’.
We demand the council reject the various privatisation options discussed by the Housing Scrutiny Committee last December and agree to actively campaign against any attempt by the council to pursue an estate by estate strategy to privatise council housing.
We further call on the council to sponsor with Camden tenants organisations a London wide conference of council tenants, local authorities, trade unions and others to bring together all those with a common interest in securing the ‘Fourth Option’ to maximise pressure on government to change policy.
Tenant and Resident Associaton Chairs: Larraine Revah, Fran Heron Alan Walter Beryl Allen Ellis Hillocks Wendy Taylor Margaret Downing Alan Spence, Albert Beale, Carmen Vilarelle Fabienne, Gimenez Maggie Swindells, John Murphy, Kim Morrissey S Bartle, Meric Apak, Lawrence Wahlund, Alan Patterson, Bill Abbs, Lenny Rodgie, Margaret Stobs and 56 others.
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