06 January 2006
An attempt by a London borough to transfer its homes to new landlords on a piecemeal basis has run into trouble after tenants on five estates voted against any change.
While most councils that hope to transfer housing to registered social landlords hold a single ballot, Tower Hamlets is a third of the way through running 66 separate ones.
To date, 15 estates have supported transfer. Tensions have been running high for the past year, especially after one estate voted in favour by a majority of just seven. A ballot due to take place on the Ocean estate in Stepney in November was postponed until next summer.
The council argues that it needs to transfer all its 24,000 homes to RSLs to raise £436m and meet the 2010 decent homes target. A spokesman said it was committed to providing decent homes for all tenants, regardless of how they vote. 'We are not ruling out other options for improving estates,' he said.
Elsewhere, Edinburgh, Waverley and West Lancashire voted against transfer but tenants in Sefton, Merseyside, backed it — less than six months after turning the idea down.
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