Beleaguered and battle-weary Tower Hamlets Community Housing (THCH) residents have been joined by concerned Hyde residents in opposition to a merger between their landlords.
Merger talks were prompted by a £90 million black hole in THCH’s accounts. The deficit has thrown the landlord into chaos, prompting changes in leadership, and a grilling by local councillors. Work to repair and maintain homes appears to have ceased despite soaring service charges.
The THCH homes were originally built and owned by Tower Hamlets council. The transfer to the housing association created THCH. It was a decision that would return to haunt the council, and cause misery to the tenants whose homes were removed from local authority control.
In 2023, after a catastrophic decline in THCH’s ability to maintain the homes, the council considered buying them back, but found itself unable to absorb THCH’s debt. A merger was subsequently considered between THCH and Poplar HARCA, but this also fell through. Last month, THCH announced that a further attempt at merger would take place with Hyde Housing Group.
Delusional Claims Over Merger Benefits
The glowing statements from both landlords extolling the virtues of merger crumble into dust against the evidence of their ineptitude. Hyde resident, Sonya*, described the partnership statements as “delusional” after reading the Hyde announcement which said:
“With Hyde’s local approach and dedication to community, this partnership will bring stability and the opportunity to do more of what matters to residents – safe and decent homes, great services, and strong communities, all tied together with a real voice in how things work.”
If Hyde has such a dedication to decent homes and great services, it has not been witnessed by its own tenants and residents. This is demonstrated by the multiple complaints by Hyde residents that have been upheld by the Housing Ombudsman Service (HOS).
Hyde Housing tenants and residents have long protested to highlight their landlord’s failings
In the summer of 2023, the HOS published a damning report on Hyde’s complaints handling processes which left a resident without redress for nearly a year; a situation only too familiar amongst Hyde tenants and residents. It led the HOS to issue a finding of severe maladministration against the Hyde.
The initial complaint was made in relation to antisocial behaviour by neighbours, but it was the handling of the complaint that the Ombudsman found particularly objectionable. Hyde failed to respond to the initial complaint for four and a half months, breaching its own policy and the HOS Complaint Handling Code. When the resident escalated her complaint Hyde took a further five and a half months to respond and only did so when the Ombudsman issued the landlord with a Complaint Handling Failure Order.
At the end of the year, The HOS included Hyde in a special investigation prompted by rising and severe maladministration rates. They found persistent failures to address damp and mould, make necessary repairs, and effectively handle complaints from residents. Hyde admitted to wrongdoing saying:
“We’re sorry that we’ve let some of our customers down and we’re taking every complaint we receive extremely seriously … we’re listening to customers, and working with them to improve their services, by putting their needs first.”
But the failings persisted. The Hyde leadership’s ineptitude subsequently led to a public naming and shaming in the form of a letter from the then Secretary of State for Housing, Michael Gove, who ordered the landlord to make improvements. Yet even with this pressure, Hyde was unwilling to comply. It ignored Gove’s first letter and received another chastising them for failing to act. In December 2023, Gove wrote to chief executive Andy Hulme saying:
“Dear Mr Hulme,
I write to you again following two findings of severe maladministration by the Housing Ombudsman due to your inaction on damp and anti-social behaviour.
In the first case, you left an elderly resident with health problems in a damp and mouldy property for 18 months which left her without the use of her living room. You did not communicate with the resident throughout the process, which caused several delays. This is unacceptable.
When a resident reports an issue, it should be acted upon swiftly and effectively, especially when vulnerable people are involved. The tragic death of Awaab Ishak has shown that we must not be complacent about issues that have the potential to damage residents’ health.
In the second case, you failed multiple times to handle a resident’s reports of anti-social behaviour by her neighbour. You did not adequately support your resident when the noise nuisance affected her mental health … These failings made the problem worse, causing distress for your resident and her children.
Your failings cannot continue …”
Original emphasis. Secretary of State for Housing letter to Hyde Group, December 2023
Despite the two open letters from central government and multiple findings of severe maladministration by the HOS, Andy Hulme and the Hyde executive continued to neglect their responsibility for keeping tenants and residents safe from harm.
In May 2024, the HOS once again declared Hyde guilty of maladministration in its handling of damp, mould, and drainage issues within a tenant’s property, and for being ineffective in handling the resident’s complaint.
Hyde Tenants Get No Satisfaction
With such a track record, it is little wonder that Hyde tenants and residents score their landlord poorly when responding to the landlord’s Tenant Satisfaction Measures (TSM) survey. Around 40% of Hyde’s tenants were dissatisfied with its repairs service, and over 37% declared their homes to be unsafe. A staggering 70% of those who raised a complaint did not receive a satisfactory resolution. Indeed, Hyde scored worst on repairs satisfaction out of all the 21 largest housing associations.
Hyde Housing Group and THCH Tenant Satisfaction Scores
- See THCH TSM scores
- See Hyde TSM scores
The THCH announcement on its partnership with Hyde claimed that the marriage would
speed up investments in homes, community spaces, and building safety works, provide a more personalised support and advice service, and give residents a stronger voice in decisions.
Yet while the propaganda points in one direction, the evidence points to the exact opposite. Hyde tenants and residents ask why, if it is possible for their landlord to offer this to THCH residents, they are not doing so for them. The spin cannot conceal the cracks, and THCH residents have no confidence that Hyde as a new landlord will manage their homes any better than their current landlord.
Hyde Risks Financial Destabilisation
For more than 3,000 tenants and residents of THCH, there has been months of stress and uncertainty. Gaz, a THCH resident said:
“It’s not just the £90 million debt. The leaders at THCH have destroyed our homes over the last three years through neglect and disrepair. It would take another £50 million to get them up to standard. Hyde have already loaned money to THCH so I can only conclude that the Hyde tenants are already paying for our landlord’s neglect.”
THCH’s reports on Tenant Satisfaction Measures (TSMs) show that like Gaz, three-quarters of residents reported that their homes were not well-maintained, more than two-thirds felt unsafe in their homes, and the same proportion remain dissatisfied with the time taken to complete repairs.
Considerable investment is urgently needed to make THCH homes habitable, and to restore decent living conditions for tenants and residents. This will not happen if Hyde is destabilised by the debt inherited from a merger with THCH.
Hyde’s financial statement suggests that it does not have the additional cash needed to rescue THCH. It’s core operating surplus, the money available after all necessary expenditure has been met, is just £64.6 million. This falls well below the £90 million needed to rebalance THCH’s books, let alone the £50 million needed to embark on major repairs for THCH homes.
Seeking Viable Solutions
The tenants and residents of both Hyde and THCH are now linking up to oppose the merger which seems to offer no more than a continuation of their current misery on both sides. The THCH group is petitioning government to fill the gap in their finances and find an alternative solution, including exploring the possibility of self-management by tenants and residents once the financial situation has stabilised.
SHAC is providing a voice for tenants and residents of both Hyde and THCH and supporting their endeavours. SHAC@Hyde members are also petitioning to prevent the merger. Please sign and support the petition.
* Not her real name.
21 September 2024
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- Recorded meeting of Tower Hamlets council’s Housing & Regeneration Scrutiny Sub Committee meeting, Monday, 16th September 2024 at 6:30pm. THCH Chief Executive admits that Hyde had made a loan to THCH.
The Secretary of State Michael Gove’s letter to the Chief Executive of Hyde Housing, 16 August 2023
The Secretary of State Michael Gove’s letter to the Chief Executive of Hyde Housing, 8 December 2023