The Week in Housing: a settlement in sight?

Good afternoon.

In the week that we published our interview with Matt Downie , chief executive of Crisis, which highlights the dire state councils’ homelessness services are in, it emerged that social landlords may get a 10-year rent settlement in October’s Budget.

According to the Financial Times, chancellor?Rachel Reeves intends to increase annual rents in England by the Consumer Price Index (CPI) measure of inflation – which currently stands at 2.2% – plus an extra 1%.

The government remained tight-lipped about the potential plans, which are reportedly aimed at encouraging the building of affordable homes by providing certainty over cashflow, but they were widely welcomed by the sector.

It came shortly after London’s largest landlords called on the government to introduce a “minimum” long-term rent settlement of 10 years.

The G15 said a new decade-long settlement should have “cast-iron guarantees” that it cannot be changed “partway through” and should be tied to inflation.

The group is also calling for “sufficient time” to comply with new legislation ?that will allow social housing tenants to access information about the management of their homes.

It outlined its concerns in response to a government consultation launched in May. Under the plans, a tenant or their representative, such as a lawyer, can request information for free.

The group said: “While we welcome these objectives, we’re concerned that the current proposals lack the clarity and detail needed for successful implementation. To best serve residents, G15 members require clear guidance, realistic timeframes and consideration of our current capacity.”

After what feels like a long wait, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government revealed the full responsibilities for its six ministers , which includes a Lords minister for housing.

The department, which is led by housing secretary Angela Rayner, who renamed it last month , includes two ministers of state and four lower-ranking under-secretaries of state: Matthew Pennycook, Baroness Taylor of Stevenage, Jim McMahon, Rushanara Ali, Alex Norris and Lord Khan of Burnley.?

The confirmation comes around six weeks since Labour’s landslide victory in the general election and two weeks before parliament returns after the summer recess.

Elsewhere, G15 landlord Hyde said it was exploring a “business combination” with Tower Hamlets Community Housing (THCH). It comes after merger talks between Poplar Harca and THCH, which is currently non-compliant with the regulator’s standards, fell through in April.

Anita Khan, chief executive of THCH, branded the chance to join Hyde an “exciting opportunity”, while Andy Hulme, chief executive of Hyde, described THCH as a “great organisation that shares our commitment to customers and communities”.

Riverside told Inside Housing that it was not bidding on new Section 106 properties “for the foreseeable future” as it focuses on existing properties and build contracts.

While the landlord is continuing to build, Riverside said it was concentrating on schemes it was already in contract for, or regeneration projects where it had a commitment to current residents following a ballot.

It said its other priority was investment in existing properties.

In the courts, a contractor won a High Court appeal over a legal battle with a London-based housing association over late payments.

The case involved Providence, which tried to end a contract with Hexagon Housing Association over missed payment deadlines involving a ￡7.2m contract for a 37-flat scheme in Purley, south London.

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