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On Wednesday 28th March, the Housing Corporation published its latest ‘Assessment’ on the Orbit Housing Group, and an interesting read it is too! It would appear that in it’s wisdom the Housing Corporation has seen fit to award Orbit Housing Association FOUR ‘Green Lights’, the highest accolade it can award! On first reading the report leaves us feeling somewhat incredulous that the supposed regulator of housing associations in the U.K. view our landlord through ‘Rose Tinted Glasses’. The problems of the last few years have been well documented, problems in their service delivery, lack of any adherence to ’Best Value' practice, monitoring of it’s contractors or indeed adherence to their own mission statements. It has been just in the last few months have we have seen any effort that our landlord is trying to change things and trying to solve their problems; And that is due solely to the pressure our ‘Group has brought to bear upon them. The Housing Corporation’s ‘Assessment’ of the Orbit Housing Group is for year ending March 2006 and should have taken into account the serious failings we have witnessed, it does not! For services received for year ending March 2006 is probably the lowest point OBHA's service delivery has been! Members will be aware of the campaign we have mounted, enlisting the help of myriad persons and organisations in our effort to get our landlord to put their house in order, and of the many letters we have sent to the Housing Corporation, this latest ‘Assessment’ can only be seen as an effort to conceal the deeper problems that exist in the organisation! Having been so critical it is only fair to quote some of the passages from the report, whilst it gives Orbit FOUR ‘Green Lights’, it does offer some criticism but first let’s look at what the ‘Green Light’ system means, and to quote from the report …The ‘traffic light’ system used below illustrates our overall assessment of the association’s compliance with the Regulatory Code and development performance. A green symbol indicates no material concerns about performance, the association is either complying with the Regulatory Code or taking sufficient steps to comply with the Code within a reasonable timescale; an amber symbol indicates some material concerns about performance, resulting in Corporation action above the minimum; a red symbol indicates serious concerns about performance. This is a generic statement that will appear in most reports but what concerns us is the statement … ‘A green symbol indicates no material concerns about performance …’ Orbit’s performance for the last few years has been abysmal! For example, what about the Ground’s Maintenance contract? As mentioned above we have sent letters to the Housing Corporation, we can only imagine that our concerns have been ignored?The Housing Corporation report comments; ‘The group generally meets the standard expected given the context in which it works and the available resources’. ‘Each part of the group has developed a three year continuous improvement programme which is included in their business plans. The plans are monitored by the group audit committee and good practice is shared across the group. Orbit provides services through its subsidiaries that are regularly tested to ensure a resident responsive service. Tenant involvement is considered key in all parts of the group and Orbit's approach meets Housing Corporation requirements’. Orbit group’s performance indicators for the year ended March 2006 show weak performance in all three categories of repairs for OHA and for routine only repairs for both TCHA and OBHA. Good performance has been highlighted throughout the group in a number of areas particularly in respect of appointments made and kept, rent collection and rent lost due to voids and the number of homes meeting the DHS. Orbit is monitoring all performance indicators and is addressing poor performance’. Orbit seeks to consult and involve residents in various ways. All parts of the group have a board approved resident involvement strategy that meet the Housing Corporation’s regulatory expectations. Financial support is available to assist residents’ groups in their chosen methods of involvement’. ‘In 2006 Orbit provided a thorough self-assessment statement of each individual association’s compliance with the Regulatory Code. The group also produced a group wide assessment to comply with Housing Corporation guidance’. A number of questions are raised to some the points raised in the 'Assessment'... Q. ‘A green symbol indicates no material concerns about performance…’? R. If there are ‘No material concerns’, who is monitoring Orbit? Q,. ‘Good practice is shared across the group’; and ‘are regularly tested to ensure a resident responsive service’? R. What ‘Good Practice’? And who is scrutinising Orbit ‘to ensure a resident responsive service’? Q, ‘Orbit group’s performance’ … ‘show weak performance in all three categories of repairs’? R. Should have also included comments about weak service delivery performance Q, ‘Good performance has been highlighted ... in respect of appointments made and kept’ R, 'Good performance in keeping appointments’! … is someone taking the proverbial? The real issues are being ignored! It’s almost like passing your 11-plus exam just because you’ve turned up! Q.‘ Orbit ... is addressing poor performance’?
One comment we would make is with regard to the Housing Corporation’s note in the report … ‘In preparing this assessment the Corporation has placed reliance on the completeness and accuracy of information supplied to us by the association and other parties’. We’re not sure who the ‘other parties’ are but can the Housing Corporation believe in the ‘information supplied to them by the association’? It brings to mind the famous quote from a senior OBHA housing officer at a meeting in 2005 who at the time was commenting on annual statements of account who said “They can only audit what we give them” if this is the case can the Housing Corporation rely on the information and ‘audit what OBHA give them’? We have sent our report on this latest ‘Assessment’ on Orbit Housing Group to the Housing Corporation, we’re not sure what they will do with it but we must keep on reminding them that all is not well at West Street. We continue in our campaign to get things changed for the better and will not relent until we see a visible difference! It was also interesting to note other factors in the report, in that OHA is the largest subsidiary of the group. It is a charitable association founded in 1967. It owns and manages 17,600 homes in 85 local authority areas throughout the Midlands, East Anglia, South East and South West of England. Orbit Bexley Housing Association (OBHA) is a subsidiary group member. It is a charitable association (see below, 'Last Word') established to manage some of the homes owned by the London Borough of Bexley. Ownership of these properties was transferred to the association in February 1998, and it now owns over 4,200 homes. Since transfer, it has continued to operate exclusively in the London Borough of Bexley. Of further note that ‘Despite OBHA spending less than forecast on major repairs in the last two years the association reports that 97.3% of its properties meet the Decent Homes Standard (DHS)’. Q. If there is such a high proportion of homes meeting decent homes standard, why are we being inundated with so many unnecessary, unwanted and costly planned (Beautification) works? Last word; Being a charitable association or ‘exempt charity’ has little, if anything, to do with ‘Charity’ per se. it is a mechanism whereby housing associations and the like can benefit from tax advantages under the (business) status of an ‘exempt charity’, so don’t be confused by this title, charity begins at home! |
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