Agenda item
Brent Housing Partnership's Responsive Repairs Service Void Management and Capital Programme
The report describe the reasons why the Lean Fundamentals review of Responsive Repairs was undertaken, covering the period since the start of the Linbrook contract in 2006 what was found during the review with recommendations as to how system changes could be rolled out to cover all responsive repairs across the borough. Current performance levels and details of complaints performance are found on page 21. The report also describes from page 22 how BHP’s currently manages the Voids process since this service was reviewed in 2005. The last part of the report from page 24 onwards describes BHP;s management of the Capital Programme.
Minutes:
Gerry Doherty (Director of Technical Services, Brent Housing Partnership) gave a presentation on this item, stating that as a result of the Lean Fundamentals review of responsive repairs, a new Responsive Repairs system had been introduced in September 2008. Under the previous system, many repairs were delegated to sub contractors, however the number of directly employed operatives had now increased from 11 to 59. The new Responsive Repairs system also meant that operatives would not move onto another job until they had completed the one they had been allocated. The changes had led to a number of performance improvements, with failure demand, where a tenant calls more than once about the same job, reduced from 50% to 20%. Percentage of appointments made and kept was 99%, percentage of jobs completed on first visit 91%, percentage of jobs resulting in complaints at 1.5% and percentage of stage one complaints answered in target 94%. The new responsive repairs system complemented the Council’s objective to reduce unnecessary customer contact. Overall satisfaction of tenants satisfied with the Repairs Service was 97% and this was not just based on telephone surveys but also through other means such as receiving thank you letters.
Turning to management of voids, Gerry Doherty advised that a dedicated Repair and Void Team was set up in 2006 on a 10 year contract following a Void Service review in 2005. The average days taken to re-let a void property had reduced from 31days in 2006/07 to 28 days between April to September 2009, slightly over target, however this was expected to be attained by the end of 2009/10. Members noted that the average days to repair a void was 23 days during the period April - September 2009.
With regard to the Brent Housing Partnership (BHP) Works Programme, Gerry Doherty stated that a budget of £25 million was available for 2009/2010. This was larger than usual, due to £5.2 million being brought forward from 2010/11 after the Council had successfully applied for earlier access to funds as part of a Government initiative to boost the construction industry during the recession. However, Gerry Doherty warned that the budget for 2010/11 would only be £8.5 million. The Select Committee heard that customer satisfaction with major works had risen from 89% in 2005/06 to 94% in 2008/09. Twenty major works contracts were being undertaken for 2009/10 and would commence in the next month following tendering. The relevant ward councillors would be informed of these works. It was noted that over 4,000 homes needed to be updated to receive digital television before the switchover in 2012, with 1,000 having already been so. Following delays to the South Kilburn Regeneration Scheme, priorities at had been identified for South Kilburn Capital Works. This included concrete testing and repairs, window repair and redecorations, electrical safety testing, lift refurbishments and communal heating repairs. An additional £3 million had been set aside to undertake these and to date concrete testing and repairs had been undertaken for six blocks. Gerry Doherty advised that a capital gap of £10 million per year over 30 years had been estimated and that Tribal were assisting the Council in the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) review. HRAs were also being reviewed nationally by the Government and a report was due to be submitted to the Council in June 2010.
Helen Evans (Managing Director, Brent Housing Partnership) added that the Government was consulting nationally on proposals to abolish the current HRA and if Councils were able to agree on how to manage or pass on debts, which were considerable for Brent, then progress could be made. However, she advised there was little prospect of this and that a further review was more likely. Brent, along with a number of other authorities, had a particularly strong housing demand and some capital projects were already being reviewed for possible cancellation. The present economic situation provided a further challenge and increased the risk of some housing falling below the Decent Homes standard.
During discussion, Councillor Moloney reported that he was receiving complaints concerning standards and he enquired if the number of complaints received could be broken down into seasonal figures. He also asked if ten year light bulbs were being installed and whether buildings from the 1950s, 1960s and the 1970s met fire safety standards. He commented that filling voids promptly could sometimes be difficult, such as when an occupier died. With regard to unpaid bills by leaseholders, Councillor Moloney suggested that a charge could be made to the property when it was sold. Councillor Van Kalwala sought details of the response in the consultation over leaseholder contributions and what was the success rate of recovering payments due from leaseholders.
The Chair enquired what the main issues were with regard to complaints being received. He commented that the new repairs system delegated power across the entire structure including the repair operatives, which helped improve standards of work carried out and increased job satisfaction. With regard to voids, the Chair asked how this compared with other Arms Length Management Organisations (ALMOs) and Registered Social Landlords (RSLs). The Chair acknowledged the scale of the financial pressures facing the Major Works Programme.
In response to the issues raised, Gerry Doherty confirmed that approximately 200 complaints had been received to date for 2009/10. Only 40 of these complaints had been made in customer satisfaction surveys out of a total return of approximately 1,600 returned which represented a significant improvement. The previous repairs system presented too many opportunities for failure, however under the new system the fact that repair operatives would not move onto another job before completing the one they were doing was a major factor in reducing complaints. Complaints were not particularly affected by the seasons and usually concerned time or process issues and rarely were due to quality of work. Gerry Doherty advised that he could not be certain that ten year light bulbs were being installed, however 95% of properties now had smoke alarms. Tenants and leaseholders were also being educated with regard to fire safety issues.
Helen Evans added that some clients still wanted fixed appointments for repairs which would try and be accommodated. Members noted that the new repairs system did not require such high monitoring as the previous one and the call centre identified the type of repair requested, whilst the operative would decide what specific work was necessary. In respect of voids, Helen Evans advised that BHP was in the top quarter of performers with only a handful performing better, however she added that other housing associations in Brent had different ways of measuring performance. She advised that leaseholders had consulted over the legislative process concerning leaseholder contributions which could be larger in some places, such as conservation areas. A balancing of the needs of tenants, who tended to want more works to be undertaken, as compared to leaseholders who wanted lower costs, needed to be struck. Approximately 45-50% of leaseholder payments had been received to date and it was expected that this would be close to 100% by the end of 2009/10. Interest free payments over a period of time and 5% off total costs were also offered as incentives, and decisions of leaseholder tribunals rarely ruled against the Council.
The Chair asked that the Select Committee be updated concerning voids, the repair service and the situation concerning the HRA at a future meeting.
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