CSR funds put Almos back on track for home repairs

10 Jan 08
Most council-owned housing companies are back on course to achieve the decent homes target after receiving £400m more than expected from the 2007 Comprehensive Spending Review.

11 January 2008

Most council-owned housing companies are back on course to achieve the decent homes target after receiving £400m more than expected from the 2007 Comprehensive Spending Review.

Before the review, some arm's-length management organisations were in danger of missing the December 2010 deadline for carrying out essential improvements, due to a government spending squeeze.

Last summer, ministers declared that Almos would receive 'at least £2bn' over the next three years.

Now they have swept away any uncertainty and granted £2.4bn to about 50 companies that are in the throes of completing their decent homes work. They have also named four councils that are the first to have places confirmed on the sixth and final Almo programme.

The extra funds mean that only a minority of existing Almos will need to delay improvements beyond 2010 – and then only to tie in with regeneration or house building schemes.

Gwyneth Taylor, policy officer at the National Federation of Almos, said most would get what they required in time.

'There won't be any compulsory reprofiling,' she said. 'We were aiming for £2.4bn but we didn't expect to get it quite so early in the day.'

Sheffield City Council, which is spending £669m on its 43,000 properties, said the extra funds would enable it to continue with planned improvement schemes.

'We are pleased with the certainty that this provides us,' said director of investment Jon Lovibond.

The latest councils with permission to set up Almos are Charnwood, North East Derbyshire, Redbridge and Stevenage. A further 12 are hoping to join the round six programme but, unlike existing Almos, will struggle to meet the decent homes deadline.

Almos have also welcomed a new review of the housing revenue account system. Taylor said the government had ignored its failings for the past decade but housing minister Yvette Cooper now seemed determined to tackle the issue.

 

PFjan2008

Did you enjoy this article?

AddToAny

Top