Missing information and the service charge maze: how one email built a residents’ association By SHAC member David Woodrow Our residents’ association was born from an accident. In August 2024, our building manager at Peabody emailed every resident about window cleaning — and accidentally used CC instead of BCC. What followed was a week of… Continue reading Missing Information and the Service Charge Maze
By Mary Pimm, SHAC member and Victoria Park Community Association Chair In November 2024, the Mayor of London initiated a consultation about devising a Key Worker Living Rent (KWLR) plan. It ended early in the spring last year. The Deputy Mayor for Housing, Tom Copley, has recently reported on its findings to those who, like… Continue reading London Rents A Blow to Key Workers
New research carried out by SHAC shows that across all the cases of service charges challenged at the First Tier Property Tribunal (FTT), more than 63% of landlords were found to be overcharging for services. This figure rises to more than 66% for housing association landlords. The overcharges in many of the cases were replicated… Continue reading SHAC Research Finds Overcharging in More Than 63% of Tribunal Cases
By Jess Owen A major Social Landlord has claimed that housing associations are not bound by some provisions of the 2010 Equality Act. Peabody Trust, which operates over 100,000 Social Homes and “provide care and support services to around 25,000” people in England, claims that, as they are not listed in a schedule of the… Continue reading Housing Associations and The Equality Act 2010
More than 100 activists gathered in person and online on the 11th October to plan a national tenants and residents (housing) union. The event was organised by SHAC as the basis for forming an independent action group that can transform the vision into reality. Attendees included those leading local action on their estates, regional groups… Continue reading Conference Agrees to Build a Housing Union
Or: The passive optionalisation of the Equality Act 2010 and the need for proactive Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED) compliance and enforcement. By Carl Davis The passive ‘optionalisation’ of the Equality Act 2010 within social housing is a subtle but dangerous form of regulatory failure. It occurs where laws designed to protect disabled residents are… Continue reading The Equality Act: Option or Obligation?
With great fanfare in the dog-days of the last government, Tenant Satisfaction Measures (TSMs) were introduced amid claims that they would improve "the transparency, influence and accountability" of social landlords. The TSMs have been around a while now, but where is the promised increase in accountability? Measuring Performance The TSMs require all social landlords to… Continue reading So Housing Association Tenant Satisfaction Scores Are Terrible – Now What?
Housing campaigners began occupying a four bedroom house in Hastings to prevent it being sold at auction by housing association Southern Housing. Southern withdrew another family home from auction earlier this year after a similar protest by members of Housing Rebellion. Protestors are demanding that Southern Housing stop selling off homes and instead rent this… Continue reading Housing Protestors Occupy Southern and Peabody Homes
During the King’s Speech on 17 July 2024, we learned of numerous impending legislative changes for the housing sector. Perhaps most relevant to SHAC’s new antisocial behaviour (ASB) campaign is the Hillsborough Law. This law will place a duty of candour on public servants and authorities. It is expressly designed to ‘address the unacceptable defensive… Continue reading ASB and the AntiSocial Social Landlord
In the last week, SHAC has resisted three attempts at censorship by housing associations indicating that the sector increasingly feels threatened by organised tenant and resident groups. We found out that we are not alone. Tweets Get Hearts Fluttering The first attempt was by landlords unhappy at a series of SHAC Tweets naming senior executives… Continue reading SHAC Uncensored
