Two star housing £137 million only 'sticking plaster' (From Enfield Independent)

Two star housing £137 million only 'sticking plaster'

7:50am Friday 31st July 2009

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MPs have warned that the £237 million available for housing improvements will fall far short of what is needed to bring Enfield's council housing stock up to a decent standard.

The funding, in the form of £137 million loans from the Government and £100 million from Enfield Council, has been made available since Enfield Homes, which runs the council's housing stock, achieved a two star or "good" rating from the Audit Commission.

The organisation has seized on the money as a lifeline to help it achieve the Government target of getting all 11,578 council-owned properties up to a decent standard by 2014.

Chief Executive Bob Heapy told residents at a meeting last week that the money would improve a string of serious problems with their accommodation.

But Enfield's MPs are sure it will not go far enough.

Edmonton MP, Andy Love, is meeting Mr Heapy this morning to express his concern that it will not.

He said: “What I'm looking for from Bob Heapy is some reassurance that they're going to achieve the decent homes standard.

“I need to know what are they doing, what am I going to tell my constituents?”

Mr Love said that for example Enfield Homes has a lift programme in which it intends to spend £5 million each year for the next four years.

“I'm not convinced that's going to solve all the issues we've got with them,” Mr Love said.

“Most of them are at least 30 years old they need to be taken out and replaced and that will cost a lot more I get a lot of complaints about lifts, it's a big issue.”

Other big problems are communal central heating systems, which either do not come on when needed, or cannot be turned off, and windows.

Mr Love said too many Enfield Homes tenants still have 1950s Crittal window frames which are made of metal.

These are notorious for creating condensation on the inside of the windows which causes damp inside properties and ices over when it is cold. “Every so often the council goes round and fixes them when they start to buckle and the more that is done they buckle quicker.

“It would be much cheaper to get rid of them all completely.”

Enfield suffers from a high proportion of tower blocks, 50 in all, which in some cases are literally falling apart.

Enfield Southgate MP, David Burrowes, who has campaigned on behalf of residents in New Southgate, said: “It's extra to have got the extra money but expectations have to be realistic.

“The money that we have isn't going to provide that standard of housing that tenants want and expect and that's why we have to be careful how we spend it.

“It's a sticking plaster and we can't really patch up some of the biggest problems.”

Mr Burrowes said he hoped money would not be allocated on the basis of “who shouts loudest” but on need.

“What's important is that places like the Ladderswood Estate get new buildings they don't miss out on what they need now. They shouldn't be shivering away over Christmas because they might get a new building next year.”

Mr Burrowes said the solution for tenants was to look to the private sector for help, as the council was doing with the borough's place shaping agenda.

He said: “You need to come up with these deals, public money is going to fall short of what everybody wants.”

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