Agenda item

Report of the Cabinet Member for Housing

The Deputy Leader invited the Cabinet Member for Housing to introduce the report.  She thanked the housing commissioner and CBH colleagues for their strong and inspiring work in preparing an  outstanding HRA business plan, which sets out to build a better future for Cheltenham by providing great homes and stronger communities, including more affordable and increasingly sustainable high-quality homes with excellent services, and well-supported communities to increase opportunities and resilience.  This is underpinned by the need to ensure the long-term viability of the HRA and the council’s ambition for Cheltenham to be carbon net zero by 2030, and is also set against the challenging backdrop of the UK economy, cost of living crisis, soaring energy costs, inflation, and interest rate increases. Developed in partnership with CBH and in consultation with tenants and a wide range of stake-holders, it has also been shaped by the council’s latest corporate plan and set in the context of significant regulatory change following on from the government’s social housing white paper and economic changes arising from the pandemic, the war in Ukraine, and subsequent cost of living crisis.

The plan sets out how we deliver an additional 450 affordable homes over the next five years, in line with our corporate plan. CBH has a record of high-quality delivery and tenant, and progress against our HRA business plan both in terms of meeting targets and key activities will be reported to Cabinet and Council annually via the HRA budget setting process. 

The housing revenue account is ring-fenced within the council, and used to maintain and invest in existing homes, build new homes, and deliver services to tenants and leaseholders.  The aims and priorities in this business plan are modelled over a 30-year term to understand the financial impacts of the investment aspirations within this plan and to ensure that the HRA remains financially viable.  The assumptions within the model are updated annually as part of the budget-setting process.  The financial model is also used to stress-test the HRA to understand the key financial risks which need to be managed in both the medium and long term to ensure that the HRA remains viable. Over the next five years the council is proposing to invest £225m into the following priorities:  £97m to increase the delivery of affordable homes, including new net zero homes; £64m to improve existing homes, including investments to make homes net zero; £30m to provide safe, well-maintained homes; £21m to provide efficient and accessible housing services; £21m to support strong and socially sustainable communities.  In order to deliver against our priorities, CBH will continue to drive value for money, deliver high performance and satisfaction levels, whilst maintaining costs and achieving tenant satisfaction measures.

The Cabinet Member for Finance and Assets was pleased to see that the interests of tenants and communities are always embedded in the HRA business plans, and that this is a fantastic testament to CBH culture to put people at the centre of everything. 

Members were invited to vote on the recommendation, and unanimously

RESOLVED THAT:

-       the strategy as set out in the HRA Business Plan 2023-28, and as detailed in Appendix 2 of the report, is approved.