Agenda item

The Chairman welcomed Mr. S. Shammon, Private Sector Housing Team Leader and Mr. M. Bough, Housing Development and Enabling Manager, together with Councillor S. Webb, as Portfolio Holder for Housing Strategy.

Mr. Shammon gave an overview of the briefing paper, which had been included in the agenda, which included details of the legislation that covers the Private Rented Sector.  He advised that there was limited data available on the range of enforcement which were undertaken both informally and formally.

The following areas were then discussed in detail:

·       Whether smoke alarms and CO₂ alarms were battery or hardwired.  Mr. Shammon confirmed that this was not specific, and they could be either for the private rented sector.  However, for Houses of Multiple Occupation (HMOs) they were required to be hardwired, dependant on the layout and escape routes within the property.

·       Energy efficiency rating of E which had been changed in recent legislation and the impact on private rented properties.  It was confirmed that properties with an F and G rating could not be let, although there were exemptions for example listed buildings.  The EPC assessment process was discussed and how it had improved in recent years.

·       Park homes were also discussed, and it was noted that there were specific manufacturing standards which related to them.

·       It was noted that the definition of a landlord was anyone who took money to provide accommodation. In respect of park homes, these were usually on a lease basis, with the owner being responsible for the home and renting the plot it was on.  It would be difficult to apply EPC ratings for such properties.

·       Members questioned how often this was all monitored and Mr. Shammon advised that the resources were not available to do pro-active assessment, but the team would respond to complaints or concerns about properties.  It was questioned whether people were too frightened to complain about where they lived, as it was easy for the landlords to evict people.  Mr. Shammon advised that tenants had the right to complain, and once the team were aware of an issue, they would support them as much as they could and that there was a degree of protection for them, and the landlord could not simply evict them.  He went on to explain how the team made people aware of their legal rights and how the team could help them and to encourage them to come forwards and ask for support.

·       Mr. Shammon explained that there was clear legislation in place and wherever possible the team tried to resolve tenants’ problems without the need to go to Court, as often it was difficult to get sufficient evidence to get things through the courts.  However, there had been occasions where landlords had been prosecuted, although it was a protracted process.

·       Often landlords were unaware of the legislation and standards they needed to meet, so once officers had become involved and explained this, and the landlord became aware of what was required, they would comply.

·       Details of people’s legal rights and a great deal of information was available on the website and officers would help and support them when needed.  There was also information about how to contact the Tenancy Association.

·       It was noted that information was promoted through the Council Tax leaflets, but often people did not take note of this until they needed help, the team also worked closely with the Citizens Advice Bureau, who was often the first port of call.

·       Members asked how many HMOs there were in the district and what issues there had been in the past with them.   Mr. Shammon confirmed that it was difficult to know how many there were, as this was ever changing, landlords often changed from single lets to meet the demands and what was profitable.  There was no legislation which covered the need for landlords to advise the local authority of any changes.  The current estimate in Bromsgrove was around 65 based on those officers were aware of.

The Chairman thanked officers for attending and responding to questions.  Councillor Webb encouraged Members to speak to officers with any concerns raised in their wards as they were only too happy to help.