Section: Best Practices & Standards

Triple Star Report: Kensington & Chelsea TMO

This is the latest in our series, where we invite organisations awarded three stars in an Audit Commission inspection to discuss their accreditation and to look ahead. The following is submitted by Kensington & Chelsea TMO.

Established in 1996, Kensington & Chelsea TMO is a forward-thinking and unique organisation, managing council homes in one of the most diverse areas of London.

As the country's only borough-wide tenant management organisation, the TMO embodies the ideal of putting residents in the driving seat. When we became the first tenant-led ALMO (Arms Length Management Organisation) in September 2002, we began moving from resident involvement to resident control.

And resident control works - we're proved it! Our tenants and leaseholders form the majority on the Board, ensuring residents are involved in managing their homes and setting the company's strategic direction.

We pride ourselves on placing tenants and leaseholders at the centre of our operations - not only by arranging exciting training and fun days, but by involving residents in procuring, assessing and developing services.

In 2006, we celebrated our tenth anniversary. We firmly established our reputation as a quality service provider when we were awarded 'Three Stars with Excellent Prospects for improvement' by the Audit Commission.

Our success has also been recognised by accreditation, commendations and good practice citations from the Housing Corporation, Charter Mark, Investors in People and the Audit Commission.

We were also proud to win the Audit Commission's prestigious Excellence Award in July 2007, given to only eight ALMO's nationwide.

But what next? Where do we go from here?

The TMO's focus is now on cementing our successes and securing our future. We are working with the Council to consider how we can invest in our housing stock when our Decent Homes programme comes to an end in 2008/09.

The programme brought in over £43 million of extra funding in 2003 and the average resident satisfaction rate with works is 98%.

However, when the work is finished we will need to maintain the standard. For this reason, we are considering the range of ways we can bring in additional investment to create improved homes and better neighbourhoods.

A decision on our options will not be made for several months, but we continue to look for ways to generate income, increase our efficiencies and redefine excellence.

As well as achieving the 'Gershon efficiencies,' the TMO, like all London local authorities and ALMOs, is also faced with managing a reduction in our management and maintenance allowances. We have, however, risen to the challenge and continue to deliver improved services for less.

The TMO is a founding member of the trailblazing procurement consortium, LAPN (London Area Procurement Network). LAPN currently consists of 10 London ALMOs.

LAPN's groundbreaking projects will achieve better quality housing maintenance at lower costs for council homes across London through revolutionary Framework Agreements. These are a new way of entering into contracts with consultants and construction firms, and they replace the old tendering system. A Framework Agreement is simply an agreement between the LAPN and a contractor or consultant that lasts for four years.

During that four-year period, the contractor's overheads and profits or the consultant's fees are fixed and they agree to have their performance monitored.

In August 2007, LAPN signed its first Framework Agreements with over 25 contractors. At the signing ceremony, the Communities & Local Government department also announced approval of an implementation grant of over £300,000 to fund further development of LAPN's activities.

The TMO is also involved in an innovative venture with Brent Housing Partnership (BHP). Grand Union Homes Ltd (GUHL) is a joint venture company formed between the two three-star Audit Commission rated ALMOs.

This is an opportunity to generate income and reduce costs, which is important in order to support the Government's Value for Money agenda.

The company's aims are to:

The GUHL Board comprises eight directors: three Board members from each of KCTMO and BHP and the respective Chief Officers of each ALMO. GUHL is a private company limited by shares and is a not-for-profit social enterprise.

GUHL has capacity ranging from housing and leasehold management, to peer review, performance management, residents' involvement and self-assessment against key lines of enquiry, to technical specification writing and so forth.

Currently, we have undertaken interim management services in two other London Boroughs. Depending on the nature of the work, we draw our resources from either or both parent organisations (through staff secondments) and/or by employing our own staff.

The TMO also offers its own consultancy services. We have been working with organisations at various stages of development, from new ALMOs who need help developing ideas to fully-established housing department's that are looking to review their services.

As a unique and dynamic resident-led organisation we are best placed to assist others with improving their governance arrangements, developing their residents' involvement programmes and achieving increased value for money.

Our board training programme, which was endorsed by Jon Rouse, former Chief Executive of Housing Corporation, has proved particularly popular.

We also offer training to staff and residents to ensure they are able to work effectively and efficiently in order to build successful businesses and create decent neighbourhoods.

Building decent neighbourhoods for our residents is what it's all about. That's why, as well as identifying opportunities to increase our income and develop services, one thing will remain the same at the TMO: we will continue to keep residents centre stage and ensure they continue to drive development. Because resident control works - we've proved it!

Short Notice Inspection Pilot Update

The Audit Commission's new short notice inspection programme for housing associations is set to start this autumn, following overwhelming support for the proposals.

The deadline for associations volunteering to take part in the pilot was 27 July and the Commission is now preparing its first round of short notice inspections, which give associations only a few days' notice to prepare for an inspection.

Consultation on the Commission's proposals for the pilot programme closed earlier in July. In addition to the positive response to the pilot programme, the Commission received comments about the amount of inspection work that can be carried out in three days; the importance of inspectors focusing on current performance; suggestions on how the Commission scores short notice inspections; and how inspectors will be able to obtain feedback from residents.

The Commission is now considering how to deal with all of the points raised in its response to the consultation, and how they can be reflected in new procedures. Proposals for evaluating the pilots are also being developed and information on these will be included in the Commission's feedback on the consultation.

The Commission is planning to include a broad mix of associations in the pilot programme, and, as set out in the consultation paper, it welcomes volunteers from organisations regardless of whether they have previously been inspected and irrespective of their star rating.

ALMOs Win Corporation Accreditation

For the first time, arms length management organisations (ALMOs) have been accredited by the Housing Corporation under its Housing Management Accreditation Scheme.

Northwards Housing, Carrick Housing and Derby Homes received accreditation under the Housing Corporation's housing management framework. They were the first ALMOs to undergo the Housing Corporation's robust accreditation process, which involved a detailed analysis of how services of exceptional quality will be delivered to residents of social housing. The three ALMOs now have the opportunity to manage social housing - meaning more choice for tenants.

Housing Corporation Acting Chief Executive, Steve Douglas, said:

"This is fantastic news for both residents and the sector and means real progress in accrediting a range of bodies to manage affordable housing. The announcement confirms our intention to work with organisations that demonstrate the highest standards of housing management.

"It will also widen choice for residents and help develop a mixed market for management - where the key question is not what type of organisation you are, but rather what services you offer. We look forward to working with Northwards Housing, Carrick Housing and Derby Homes and hope that this will encourage other bodies, including local authorities, to follow suit in seeking accreditation."

Earlier in the year, Pinnacle PSG became the first private sector organisation to be accredited by the Housing Corporation under its Housing Management Accreditation Scheme.

Illustrating the emphasis of creating a mixed economy, and with the Government's increasing focus on home ownership, the Housing Corporation has also launched a tailored affordable home ownership version of the accreditation framework to enable better management. The Affordable Home Ownership Housing Management Accreditation Scheme is now available on the Housing Corporation website: housingcorp.gov.uk.

LA Stars

Local authority inspection reports issued by the Audit Commission during July included the following:

www.audit-commission.gov.uk

RSL Performers

Registered social landlord inspection reports issued by the Audit Commission during July included the following:

www.audit-commission.gov.uk

KeyFacts

Housing Monthly Diary



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Reporting on July 2007

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