Decision details

Members were updated on the improvements to the Housing Repairs Service from the Head of Housing.  The Committee received a comprehensive report on how the service has been improved since the review.  The report in 2022 provided key finding including: the number of employees in Housing Repairs was not sufficient to meet the needs of the service, the involvement of two teams in the repairs booking process was one of the main reasons for increased tenant dissatisfaction and inefficiency, there was a need for a more senior role with responsibility for compliance matters and that the structure would benefit from a number of specialist roles instead of a generic role under the Senior Maintenance Officer. Since 2022 there had been two restructures, the first restructure to support the Housing repairs calls and the second was to build on the compliance and repair inspectors along with operatives to cover the skills gaps required. Further roles had been created including Voids Surveyor, Disrepair Inspector and Assistant, and Change Delivery Manager.

Members queried how long void properties were vacant for and the reason for the target being missed was due to new software being implemented It was hopeful, going forward, the target would be met with both general needs and Independent Living. It was confirmed to Members that the historic backlog of housing repairs had been cleared and some of the repair issues was due to data in the system being incorrect. This information has now been data cleansed and that 71% of tenants were pleased with the repairs carried out including positive feedback received to the operatives.

The Chair would like to see a further spotlight review on Housing Repairs to monitor the changes in the next six months.