Tenant Participation Compacts (Hansard, 23 June 1999)

§ Ms Armstrong

On 25 January 1999 we published the consultation paper, "Tenant Participation Compacts". This put forward the Government's proposals for increasing tenant involvement through negotiation of local agreements (tenant participation compacts) between local authority landlords and tenants on how tenants are involved in local decisions relating to their homes.

The consultation paper flowed from the work of the Best Value in Housing Steering Group, whose work also informed the consultation paper Best Value in Housing Framework on which I made a separate announcement on 25 May 1999.

Consultation on the framework for tenant participation compacts ended on 31 March 1999. We received 386 responses from across a wide range of local authorities, tenant and resident associations, housing associations, housing groups and individual tenants.

These responses have been considered and have informed the "National Framework for Tenant Participation Compacts" which is being launched today.

The consultation showed overwhelming agreement with the principle of developing tenant participation through compacts, building on existing good practice. Respondents also identified the links between best value in housing and tenant participation as fundamental to giving tenants a real say in local decision making. However, tenants, officers and elected members would need to work together to make compacts successful.

In supporting the principles behind compacts, a number of respondents raised resource, staffing and budgetary concerns relating to the implementation of compacts. We accept that there are likely to be some initial set up costs in implementing compacts properly, and I am making available £12 million to local authorities over the next two years, specifically to help them and their tenants to implement compacts.

The national framework for tenant participation compacts is a toolkit to help local authorities and tenants develop, implement and review their local compacts, including the standards considered necessary to ensure meaningful and sustainable tenant participation.

It will allow compacts to be tailored to meet the needs of the local area and to reach specific groups of tenants such as the elderly, young people, or ethnic minority tenants. (Compacts can also be developed to involve the wider community or to extend beyond housing services where tenants and local authorities wish). The framework also takes account of respondents' concerns that new tenants' groups should be encouraged and that demands on existing organisations should be reasonable. However, tenants' organisations with a role in decision-making will be expected to be accountable, democratic and open to all tenants.

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The framework does not impose particular structures. It will allow compacts to de developed at a pace at which tenants are comfortable and which they can sustain; and tenants can choose how they will be involved and what they will be involved in.

We recognise that not all tenants and councils will be able to implement compacts that meet the full needs of tenants by 1 April 2000. Nonetheless, by that date, we will expect all tenants and local authorities to have agreed the final outcomes expected from compacts and have in place a clear, measurable action plan, matched by resources, to bring these about. Tenants and local authorities should be working towards this.

The published framework is being sent to all local housing authorities, and to tenant and other interested organisations, and copies are available in the Library of the House.

I am placing a list of the respondents, excluding any who requested confidentiality, in the House Library together with a report providing an analysis of the responses. The list and specific responses are available in the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions Library, Ashdown House, 123 Victoria Street, London SW1E 6DE, telephone 0171 890 3039.