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.… Continue reading THCH and Hyde Merger: The Road to Ruin?
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?
Workers at homeless charity and housing association St Mungo's have been told that their Harrow Road Assessment Centre is to be shut down after being sold to luxury private developer Lodha. It is safe to assume that the site will not be used for low cost housing or homelessness services. Lodha proudly boasts of being:… Continue reading St Mungo’s Creeping Corporatisation
SHAC activists can be rightly proud of their campaigning on service charges which has forced one of the biggest associations in Britain to change the way they charge tenants (renters) and residents (leaseholders and shared owners) for services. But the battle is not over yet. Voluntary reform is always unstable and easily eroded. We need… Continue reading SHAC Activists Force Southern Housing Service Charge Reform
By Anne Jones* Ten years ago I used to catch an evening bus to go from the city to my village. I had this new bus driver for the first time. I had asked him for a single to my destination. It was cash and a paper ticket in those days as opposed to the… Continue reading The Service Charge Scam – An Insider Speaks
By Carl Davis Fiona Fletcher-Smith, chief executive of London and Quadrant (L&Q), who also chairs the G15 group of large landlords, recently wrote to Michael Gove, the UK's Secretary of State for Housing, to address concerns about the alleged widespread misuse of service charges in social housing. (Inside Housing 10/05/24 and Housing Today 10/05/24). Her… Continue reading G15 Chair wags finger at Michael Gove over service charge abuse
A petition launched by the SHAC Secretary calling for measures to end service charge abuse has received a reply from Michael Gove's department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (LUHC) after exceeding the first target of 10,000. See the Petition and government reply. At the present time, the petition has gathered 16,100 signatures and has… Continue reading Gove’s Lame and Lying Reply to Service Charge Abuse Petition
The Housing Ombudsman, one of the council and housing association regulators, has declared Tower Hamlets Community Housing (THCH) guilty of severe maladministration in relation to service charges and disrepairs over a significant period of time. THCH is a troubled and failing housing association. It has a £90 million deficit and is due to be taken… Continue reading Ombudsman: THCH Guilty of Severe Maladministration
Residents on The Rise estate have notified their landlord MTVH that they are embarking on a service charge strike over disputed charges and their failure to engage. The Rise estate comprises three blocks near Wembley, west London. Residents had requested a statement of their charges and the invoice pack, and were legally entitled to receive… Continue reading MTVH: Rise Residents on Service Charge Strike
By Rona Jones* Residents in shared ownership flats in the new Circus Street development, Brighton have found themselves trapped in properties that they can no longer afford due to unexplained service charge increases of up to 170%. The block of flats that I live in are new builds, consisting of a mix of flats that… Continue reading Clarion Housing’s Circus Street: Unaffordable Housing
