Agenda item

This report provides information to support the approval and adoption of the Damp, Mould, and Condensation (DMC) Policy v1.4, in response to the Regulatory Notice issued by the Regulator of Social Housing on 6 March 2024

Contact:  Neil Hutchinson, Interim General Manager Assets, Homes and Neighbourhoods Tel: 01484 221000

Cllr Moses Crook introduced the item, advising the Panel that the issue around damp, mould and condensation is a well-publicised national issue. The report being presented, outlines the new Damp, Mould and Condensation (DMP) Policy which will further improve the councils approach to service needs and resolve issues within housing stock, in addition to responding to the Regulatory Notice to Improve, which was issued by the Regulator of Social Housing on the 6th March 2024.

The policy prioritises resident safety and demonstrates the new strategy to address damp, mould and condensation within the housing stock. This is by properly reacting to, and resolving root causes by proactively addressing repairs to prevent future instances of damp, mould and condensation from emerging. Ensuring a consistent timely and a well managed approach including positive and clear communication with residents. This policy has been developed in consultation with tenant voice. This policy outlines how the improvement journey will be accelerated in compliance with the regulator’s consumer standards.

Naz Parkar, Service Director Homes and Neighbourhood, informed the Panel that this policy has at its heart, the tenant and their safety and wellbeing. It is also a policy that enables residents to become clearer about what they can expect from the council as their landlord in response to damp, mould and condensation. It has been informed and heavily influenced by the tenants voice, using the complaints handling information, feedback from responding to certain cases, taking learning from others in terms of some of the Housing Ombudsman reports, all these have influenced how this policy has been shaped and designed to ensure that the tenants voice is heard loud on it.

It is a policy that takes a fragmented approach because currently, damp, mould and condensation responses are held within the repairs policy which covers a multitude of repair responses and responsibilities. The aim was to have a standalone policy to ensure there is a more co-ordinated approach to the way things are done and this enables the design of a much more defined approach in two key areas.

1)      In terms of reactive, all cases are prioritised by the household circumstances, but also resolves existing open cases, whilst dealing with new ones that are coming through.

2)      In terms of the proactive approach, it enables the identification of cases that might not be known about, referred to by the Housing Ombudsman as ‘finding your silence.’  There may be tenants who for one reason or another do not want the council to enter their property, they may have vulnerabilities such as hoarding for instance. 

Currently, the response has been on a responsive repair basis, responding to the situation by asking a contractor to go out and carry out a damp and mould treatment and it has not always addressed the real issue.  The approach now being adopted is that it is surveyed first, identify the root causes, the response still might end up being a DMC treatment, however it may point to something more fundamental such as a roof repair because there is a leak or there is rising damp or a structural issue. 

This approach enables the issue to be addressed at its root cause and it also enables a response to Awaab’s Law, which will be enacted through secondary parliamentary legislation at the appropriate time.  It also enables a response to the regulatory notice and the consumer standards that the regulator has introduced.

The policy then also shapes the process that is designed around the response and the way work is undertaken.  It allows a three month phone call to be built in, once the work has been undertaken, to ensure that the resident has had no further issues.  Following that,  there will be a six month post work inspection through a surveyor to ensure that the case has been resolved finally and that it is not returning in any way before the job is closed down on the system.

Once the process is designed it also allows thinking around the type of data that will need to be captured, therefore the next steps are to complete the redesign of that process.  Rolling out and embedding training to enable staff to see what their role in this looks like and also at the same time as upgrading the systems to ensure that data is captured in a co-ordinated way.  Reporting consistently and understanding future trends to be able to respond to them.

It is important to note that when the council reported itself to the regulator and the notice was received on the 6^th March 2024, there were 1,800 open cases. Work has started in this new way and that has enabled a reduction to the number of cases, down to 1,280 with a target to get to 800 cases before the winter season, before Christmas.  Through better monitoring and trend analysis, it will help shape how that is undertaken. 

Whilst in the longer term, it is important to note that there are no quick fixes to this, there does need to be a long term approach, to ensure that the asset strategy priorities,  invests into properties where there are these sorts of cases. It is important how data is collected in the future to get a better understanding of the council’s housing stock, by doing stock condition surveys and then collecting more data, as this will help identify where to prioritise asset investment in the longer term.

In response to the information presented, the Panel made comment and asked questions including some of the following:-

-      Cllr Armer stated that in his case work experience he had noticed a marked difference this year, where there has been a much better response, it is moving in the right direction, and it is impressive.  There is still a large backlog, however housing are aware and are working on it

-      With regard to incorrectly identifying problems that are causing DMC, does this happen quite frequently, because it then takes a long time to resolve the problem?

-          With regard to access issues and some of the difficulties accessing some properties, what improvement has there been in terms of resolving those problems?

-          There has been an improvement in terms of how housing officers contact residents, and it is key to building good relationships and communication with residents

RESOLVED:

That Cllr Moses Crook and Naz Parkar be thanked for providing an update on the Damp, Mould and Condensation Policy.