Value for Money Unit Local Government Audit Service ... for Money Unit Local Government Audit Service Management and Maintenance of Vacant Dwellings in Local Authorities Report No

Value for Money UnitLocal Government Audit Service

Management and Maintenance of Vacant Dwellings in

Local Authorities

Report No. 27 May 2011

Environment, Community and Local GovernmentComhshaol, Pobal agus Rialtas Áitiúil

Local Government Audit Service

The Local Government Audit Service (LGAS), incorporating the Value for Money (VFM) Unit, being an

external audit service, provides independent scrutiny of the financial stewardship of local authorities.

The sectoral goals of the LGAS are to:

• carry out the audits of local authorities and other bodies in accordance with the Code of Local Government

Audit Practice thereby fostering the highest standards of financial stewardship and public accountability

• promote the achievement of value for money in local authorities by undertaking Value for Money audits

and publishing reports thereon.

It is the responsibility of local authority management to ensure that value for money is achieved by

establishing and maintaining sound arrangements including procedures for planning, appraisal, authorisation

and control of resources.

Value for Money UnitLocal Government Audit Service

Management and Maintenance of Vacant Dwellings in

Local Authorities

Department of the Environment,Community and Local Government

© Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government 2011

This report was prepared on the basis of information, documentation and explanations obtained from thepublic bodies referred to in the report. The draft report was sent to the local authorities that participated inthe study. Where appropriate the comments received were incorporated in the final version of the report.

The website of the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government is the primarymeans of publishing reports of the Value for Money Unit of the Local Government Audit Service. Shouldany errata arise they will be corrected and noted in the report published athttp://www.environ.ie/en/Publications/LocalGovernment/AuditService/

Contents

PAGE

MINISTER’S FOREWORD 3

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 5

1. INTRODUCTION 16

2. QUESTIONNAIRE ON HOUSING MAINTENANCE 18

AND MANAGEMENT

3. SERVICE INDICATORS 29

4. FINDINGS 34

5. RECOMMENDATIONS 38

6. ACkNOWLEDGEMENT 43

7. APPENDICES 44

_____________________________________________________________________Local Government Audit Service, VFM Unit

APPENDICES

APPENDIX 1 - Number of Local Authority dwellings

2007 and 2008 46

APPENDIX 2 - Number of Local Authority Dwellings

not subject to major refurbishment 2007 and 2008 47

APPENDIX 3 - 2007 Vacant Dwellings 48


APPENDIX 5 - 2007 Vacant Dwellings available for re-letting 50


APPENDIX 7 - 2008 Average time taken to re-let a dwelling 52

APPENDIX 8 - 2007 and 2008 percentage of housing repairs

completed 53

APPENDIX 9 - Pre Tenancy Training Courses 54

APPENDIX 10 - County and City Manager’s Association

Submission 55

APPENDIX 11 - Northern Ireland Housing Executive 57


In the context of housing policy, the management and maintenance of local authority housing

stock is a matter for each individual local authority under Section 58 of the Housing Act, 1966.

My Department is committed to supporting local authorities in maintaining and improving the

quality of the national social housing stock through a range of measures including large-scale

urban regeneration programmes, improving the standard and energy efficiency of dwellings,

pre-letting repairs and improvement and refurbishment works to vacant properties in order to

return these to productive use as quickly as possible.

Constraints on the public capital programme and the reduction in new social housing supply

have added to the urgency of focussing on vacant stock. This is relevant both in terms of

vacancies management and rent receipts. In this regard, this Value for Money Study on

Management and Maintenance of Vacant Dwellings in Local Authorities by the Local

Government Audit Service is timely and informative. It makes a number of sound

recommendations in relation to issues such as maintenance and repairs, allocation and refusals,

tenant sustainability, information technology, documentation and resourcing – all of which will

help local authorities in implementing improvement works programmes.

Service Indicators were introduced in 2004 to monitor the performance of local authorities

across a range of services that they provide. These are published on a yearly basis by the Local

Government Management Agency (incorporating the proposed merger of the Local Government

Management Services Board and the Local Government Computer Services Board). Service

Indicators for local authority housing stock, especially the figures in relation to dwellings that

are empty and on the time taken to re-let available dwellings, highlight areas of particular

concern. According to the 2009 Service Indicators Report, over 3% of housing stock was vacant.

In addition to revenue resources for ongoing repair and maintenance works, local authorities

have direct control of internal capital receipts in order to undertake planned maintenance and

improvement works to their housing stock, including repairs to vacant housing stock for the

purpose of re-letting. A more target-driven, cost effective and administratively efficient

improvement programme is now being implemented. Making vacant stock available for re-

letting will be a priority in 2011. In view of the decline in internal capital receipts, my

Department has gradually increased the level of capital support to local authorities for

improvement works and refurbishment of long term voids. Achieving value for money is now

more critical than ever. I am confident that this VFM Study will be of significant assistance to

the local authorities in implementing their improvement programmes in the years ahead.

Willie Penrose, T.D.,

Minister of State at the Department of Environment, Community and Local Government

May 2011

Minister’s Foreword

3



4

Executive Summary

5

1. Overview

Individual housing authorities are responsible for the management of local authority housing

stock. The minimum standards to which local authority housing should be maintained are

prescribed in the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1992 and Regulations made under

this Act. Service Indicators in local authorities were introduced in 2004 to measure the

performance of local authorities across a range of services. The Local Government Management

Services Board (LGMSB) was given the task of monitoring and verification of the data as well as

the compilation and analysis of the indicators. Each local authority is responsible for submitting

and verifying data on the range of indicators. The information is collated into tables which

enable comparisons to be made across local authorities and the performance of individual local

authorities to be tracked on an annual basis. The Service Indicators were first published in 2005.

The LGMSB is required to submit an annual report to the Minister for the Environment,

Heritage and Local Government (the Minister). An independent assessment panel, appointed by

the Minister, quality assures the process.

2. The Study

The Value for Money (VFM) Unit of the Local Government Audit Service (LGAS) undertook a

study on the maintenance and management of vacant dwellings in the following eight

participating local authorities:

• Cavan County Council

• Cork City Council

• Dublin City Council

• Dún Laoghaire – Rathdown County Council (DLR)

• Galway City Council

• Kerry County Council

• Mayo County Council

• Wicklow County Council

The study was carried out through the issue of a questionnaire and structured interviews. The

Northern Ireland Housing Executive was visited and also the housing Service Indicators

published by the LGMSB were reviewed.

The areas addressed by this study were:

• The level of vacancies in local authorities at 31 December 2007 and 31 December 2008

• The identification of the main reasons for the delay in re-letting vacant dwellings

• The LGMSB Service Indicators in Local Authorities for 2007 and 2008. This report was

completed prior to the publication of the LGMSB Service Indicators for 2009.

• Recommendations to address the delays in the time period for the re-letting of vacant

dwellings.



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3. Housing Stock Statistics

The total number of vacant dwellings in local authorities at 31 December 2007 and 2008 was

6,115 and 7,045 respectively representing 5.2% and 5.75% of the total stock on hand at those

dates. The table below gives a break down of these figures by the numbers of vacant dwellings

which were:

• Subject to major refurbishment

• Available for letting and

• Unavailable for letting.

The vacant dwellings unavailable for re-letting are subject to maintenance and refurbishment

work which is necessary in order to re-let the dwelling.

Housing Stock Statistics

Source: LGMSB Service Indicators Reports

2008 2007

The level of housing stock in local authorities at 31 December 122,446 118,276

Total housing stock that was subject to major refurbishmentprogrammes in the local authorities at 31 December

3,186 1,025

% of total housing stock that was subject to major refurbishmentprogrammes in the local authorities

2.6% 0.87%

Number of dwellings that were available for re-letting at 31 December 1,425 1,529

% of dwellings that were available for re-letting at 31 December 1.2% 1.3%

Number of dwellings unavailable for re-letting at 31 December 2,434 3,561

% of vacant dwellings unavailable for re-letting at 31 December 2% 3%

Average time taken by local authorities in 2008 to re-let a vacantdwelling in weeks.

22.43 -

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4. Findings

Procurement Initiative Undertaken by Dublin City Council

Dublin City Council with the approval of the Department has embarked on a pilot project with

regard to a new type of contract for maintenance and refurbishment work. The new type of

contract is called a Term Maintenance and Refurbishment Works Contract (TMC). It is expected

that the use of this type of contract will significantly reduce the re-letting time for vacant

properties.

This new form of contract has been developed in response to a need to have in place a public

works contract that enables a contracting authority to respond to urgent maintenance and

refurbishment requirements as they arise and without having to engage in a procurement

process for each such circumstance.

Key features and principles of the TMC include;

• a competitive tendering process based on notional works as described in the pricing

document

• a contract without commitment unless activated by the issue of a Task Order to the

Contractor to carry out works and

• A contract limited by duration and/or aggregated value of Task Orders, whichever is

achieved first.

Department of Finance Circular 10/10: Facilitating SME Participation in Public

Procurement

The Department of Finance Circular 10/10: Facilitating SME Participation in Public

Procurement, dated 13 August 2010, has the intended purpose of ensuring that small and

medium sized businesses would not be hindered in competing for contracts that they could

perform effectively.

Use of the Term Maintenance and Refurbishment Works Contract, due to the aggregation of

separate works by means of Task Orders into a single contract, might be perceived as

disadvantaging the SME sector and therefore specific conditions are required to ensure that this

does not happen. Accordingly, it is a requirement for using the Term Maintenance and

Refurbishment Contract that an open tendering procedure should be used and that suitability

criteria (including economic and financial standing) be specified that would not exclude

contractors capable of performing the contract effectively. Consideration should also be given to

dividing the works into contract lots, possibly on the basis of defined geographic areas. This has

the advantage of facilitating effective competition even from smaller contractors, and helps to

sustain a competitive market into the future.



8

Reasons for Delays in Re-letting Vacant Dwellings

The reasons for delays vary from one local authority to another. The main reasons for the delays

in re-letting vacant dwellings as indicated in the LGMSB service indicator returns and from site

visits during this VFM study are as follows:

• The amount of necessary pre-letting repair work that needs to be carried out in order

that the dwelling can be re-let. This work can be quite extensive where unauthorised

renovations or alterations have been carried out to the dwelling by the tenant. Some of

the dwellings are in such a state of disrepair that major refurbishment work needs to be

undertaken. Health and safety issues are a major consideration when carrying out the

pre-letting repair work.

• There is a high level of private rented accommodation available in the housing market.

This accommodation is available to some prospective local authority tenants at a

subsidised rent under the rental accommodation scheme. The accommodation is seen as

superior and available in better locations. Prospective tenants are unwilling to accept

what is perceived as inferior accommodation from local authorities.

• Budgetary constraints and a lack of internal capital receipts

• Shortage of staff resources for maintenance and refurbishment work

• The process of advertising, reviewing tenders, award of contracts and contractors

arriving on site for maintenance and refurbishment works can take a considerable length

of time to complete.

• The refusal of offers of vacant dwellings because of the following:

- Dwellings in low demand areas or areas perceived as undesirable locations

- Applicants are allowed two/three refusals of a reasonable offer of accommodation

- One of the participating local authorities stated that there are a number of Senior

Citizen bed sits that are void on an ongoing basis as prospective tenants will not

accept such accommodation and are prepared to wait for more suitable

accommodation.

- The vacant dwellings available do not match the needs of the applicants

• Risk of vandalism of vacant dwellings in certain areas means that dwellings are only

repaired on allocation

• All dwellings have to be assessed for an energy rating under Building Energy Rating

(BER)

• Planned regeneration programmes carried out by local authorities

• Time gap between the allocation of a dwelling and occupancy by the new tenant. These

properties are listed in the Service Indicators as a vacant dwelling until the first rent

debit has been raised

• On the death of a tenant, their rent account is immediately closed and the housing

system records that the dwelling is vacant. Normally the family of the deceased person

is given a period of weeks on compassionate grounds to dispose of the persons

furnishings and belongings

9

• In some cases, there is a dispute regarding the right of a family member of a deceased

tenant to succeed to the tenancy. Such cases often become the subject of legal

proceedings that can take a considerable time to bring to a conclusion.

Maintenance and Refurbishment

• Pre inspections of dwellings are not always carried out prior to the tenant vacating the

dwelling

• The eight participating local authorities used different methods of costing for in-house

maintenance and refurbishment work

• A formal inspection of all local authority dwellings is not carried out on a rotational

basis

• Different definitions were used among the eight participating local authorities for what

constituted a long term void.

Tenant Sustainability

• Responses to the questionnaire indicated best practice in relation to a) the capability of

prospective tenants for independent living, b) the measures taken in order to sustain the

tenancy and c) the measures in place to minimize the refusal of an offer of a dwelling.

• In 2008 all local authorities ran pre tenancy training for new tenants. The average

number of new tenants offered courses was 79.22% and varied from a low of 18.6% in

one local authority to a high of 100% in fourteen local authorities.

• A number of local authorities issue new tenants with a tenant handbook. However there

is no consistency on the content of these handbooks.

• A number of local authorities do not hold regular meetings with tenants or their

representative associations nor do they seek feedback from them on maintenance or

refurbishment work carried out on their behalf.

Documentation

The level of documentation held by the eight participating local authorities on various aspects of

the housing area varied considerably.

Information Technology (I.T.)

The level of I.T. systems for tracking vacant dwellings throughout the entire process from

vacation of the property to the allocation to a new tenant varied considerably among the eight

participating local authorities.

Local Authority Retrofitting Programme

To ensure that the national stock of 130,000 local authority-owned dwellings is maintained to a

high standard, achieves improved levels of energy performance, reduces emissions and yields an

important fuel poverty dividend for low income households, the Department established a

specific retrofitting programme for local authority stock in mid-2009. The programme initially

targeted the improvement of vacant local authority stock to facilitate its immediate return to

viable use. It also supported works to occupied/semi-occupied flat complexes. The retrofit



10

works aimed to achieve a BER rating of C1, where practicable, with a maximum grant per unit

of €15,000 or 75% of the total cost, whichever was the lesser. At the end of 2009, local

authorities reported works to some 1,155 units at a cost to the exchequer of almost €11 million.

In 2010 the programme funding was revised to account for the reduced availability of co-

funding resources in local authorities. The exchequer contribution increased to €15,000 or 90%

of cost, whichever is the lesser, for casual vacancies (those units vacant for less than six months),

and up to €35,000 or 90% of cost, whichever is the lesser, on void properties (units vacant for

more than six months). With a view to further assisting the local authorities, the programme was

expanded to include works to clusters of occupied units. In 2010, the first full year in

operation, the programme delivered some 3,100 improved units, 1,836 of which were vacant

units – at a cost to the exchequer of almost €37 million. The figures referred to above have been

supplied by the Operational and Management/Improvement of Housing Section of the

Department.

In light of the lessons learned over the early implementation stage and the recommendations set

out in this report, the Department has reviewed the orientation of the programme for 2011 and

placed a strong focus on refurbishment works to vacant and void properties in order to bring

these back into productive use. In the case of certain seriously deficient properties, a capital

grant of up to 60% of the replacement cost of the dwelling will be provided towards

refurbishment cost. From 2012 onwards, a specific target will be agreed with each local authority

to ensure properties are returned to use in a timely fashion, with a particular focus on void

properties.

Department Circular

The Department issued Circular SHIP 2011.05 Improving the Social Housing Stock to all local

authorities in February 2011. The circular addresses the need to improve the standard and

energy efficiency of local authority owned housing stock and, in particular, the urgency in

making vacant units available for letting as quickly as possible.

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5. Recommendations

Maintenance/Repairs

• It is essential that the pilot project being undertaken by Dublin City Council i.e. the

introduction of the TMC, be fully tested and a report produced with findings and

recommendations on the new system by the local authority and issued to the

Department within one year of its implementation. If the use of the TMC is proven to be

successful in significantly reducing the re-letting time for vacant dwellings then the

Department should develop a guidance note and a template for the use of such contracts

and issue these to all local authorities immediately following the receipt of the report by

Dublin City Council. Local authorities should then embark on the use of such contracts

for maintenance and refurbishment work. The TMC should be implemented on a

regional or shared services basis by local authorities. As well as local authorities

adhering to domestic and EU procurement guidelines when awarding contracts for

repair, refurbishment and maintenance work they should also ensure that they are in

compliance with Department of Finance Circular 10/10 Facilitating SME Participation in

Public Procurement.

• Local authorities should access the funding available through the Department’s

retrofitting programme which will assist them in carrying out refurbishment works to

vacant and void properties in order to bring these back into productive use.

• Local authorities should comply with the requirements of circular SHIP 2011.05

Improving the Social Housing Stock.

• As budgetary constraints are likely to continue there is a need for local authority

management to take a more proactive role in re-letting vacant dwellings.

• Local authorities should carry out a pre inspection of a dwelling where a tenant has

given notice to vacate. An assessment of the work needed on the dwelling should be

carried out and assigned as either the responsibility of the tenant or the council. A

second inspection should be carried out prior to the dwelling being vacated. Any

additional costs incurred by the council on carrying out works that were assigned to the

tenant should be charged to the tenant.

• Local authorities should carry out formal inspections of all its dwellings on a regular

basis. Local authorities should then take preventative measures to address any problems

that arise with regard to repairs, maintenance or alterations to the dwelling which

should reduce the time taken on repairs when a dwelling is vacated.

• Local authorities should assess the level of refurbishment work needed on dwellings

and reduce this where possible while ensuring compliance with health and safety


12

standards e.g. if alterations to a dwelling carried out by previous tenant are not to be

removed, the new tenant should be asked to sign an acceptance form for the dwelling

with the alterations included. The assessment should also take account of health and

safety and fire compliance standards.

• One standardised method of costing for in house maintenance and repair work should

be agreed through the City and County Managers Association (CCMA) and used by all

local authorities. In this way comparisons can be made between the overall costs of jobs

within a local authority and between different local authorities.

• There should be a standard definition, for all local authorities for what constitutes a

long term void e.g. a dwelling vacant in excess of six months. Long term voids are

usually the result of either the level of work needed on the dwelling or because it is in

an area within the local authority that is perceived as undesirable. As a priority local

authorities should implement measures to address the issue of long term voids by

introducing measures to deal with:

- The repair work on long term voids to make them fit for re-letting

- Environmental problems in an area of the local authority that give rise to long term

voids

- Anti social behaviour problems that make an area within the local authority low

demand or undesirable.

When compiling statistics on the length of time taken to re-let a dwelling long term

voids should be treated as a separate category. This will make the Service Indicators

more meaningful when presenting information on the average re-letting time for vacant

dwellings.

• The Department in conjunction with the CCMA should develop protocols for response

times for emergency, urgent and routine maintenance and repair requests. The record

for response times by each local authority against the standard times set should be

reported by the LGMSB in its Service Indicators. This will facilitate comparison of

performance in this area between local authorities and within a local authority over a

number of years.

Allocations/Refusals

• It is essential that local authorities allocate a vacant dwelling as early as possible in the

re-letting process. This should be done at the same time as the award of the tender prior

to the commencement of work on the dwelling. This procedure would reduce the

allocation time for a dwelling and lead to a reduction in overall time for the re-letting

process. This potential reduction in time that a dwelling is vacant will reduce the

security and shuttering costs and should result in an increase rental income.


• There should be a standard definition used by all local authorities for what constitutes

the re-letting period for a vacant dwelling e.g. the period between the last rental debit

on the occupier vacating the dwelling to the first rental debit on the new occupier of the

dwelling. The definition should give clear instructions on when a dwelling is to be

considered a vacant dwelling and when it is a re-occupied dwelling. This would

facilitate reporting on performance across all local authorities in this area.

• Local authorities should assess and maintain records of the specific needs of prospective

tenants. Offers of accommodation should only be made where the needs of the

prospective tenant match the accommodation available. This should reduce the number

of refusals of dwellings and reduce the re-letting time for vacant properties.

• Local authorities should operate a refusal policy whereby tenants that refuse two

reasonable offers of accommodation should suffer substantial penalties such as a

considerable points reduction (if points system in operation) or be placed further down

the waiting list for a set period of time. In order for this policy to be successful, local

authorities would need to monitor its implementation and the effect on it of the Rental

Accommodation Scheme (RAS), which may offer a higher standard of accommodation

to local authority tenants.

• Local authorities need to implement measures to counter the negative perception of

certain low demand or undesirable areas within its remit. This should include

interaction with local community groups to address any problems such as anti social

behaviour in these areas. The local authority should also implement measures to

improve the physical environment in these areas.

• Local authorities need to have clear policies in place where either legal issues, personal

factors or disputes as to the rights of relatives are affecting the allocation of a dwelling

to a new tenant. There should be a clearly defined timeframe in place which is sensible

and reasonable for the resolution of this problem.

Tenant Sustainability

• In order to ensure the capability of prospective tenants for independent living they

should be subject to a pre-tenancy interview by a housing officer. At the interview any

special or medical needs are assessed and advice is sought from the housing welfare

officer or the HSE. A second interview is carried out with the prospective tenant where

identified problems can be solved.

• The measures taken in order to sustain the tenancy should include a pre- tenancy

interview where the tenant’s responsibilities are outlined. Follow up visits should be

organized by council housing staff to ensure that the tenant is complying with their

responsibilities. There should be ongoing communication with new tenants and if

13


problems do arise the Housing Welfare Officer or a Social Worker will be involved.

Regular inspections of all dwellings should be carried out by council staff.

• The measures in place to minimize the refusal of an offer of a dwelling should ensure

that all dwellings are renovated to the appropriate standards prior to allocation. A

report should be produced by a Housing Investigation Officer in respect of the

prospective tenant and discussions take place with regard to the housing options

available. Offers are made on the basis of the local authorities system of letting priorities

and the preferences indicated by prospective tenants. Two refusals of a tenancy will

result in the prospective tenant losing points or either being suspended or being

removed from the housing list for a specified period.

• There should be an ongoing assessment by local authorities of the needs of their tenants.

• Local authorities should make pre-tenancy training courses available to all new tenants

and the new tenants must partake in the pre-tenancy courses prior to being allocated a

dwelling.

• A tenant handbook should be given to all tenants. The handbook should clearly define

the responsibilities of the local authority and the tenant with regard to routine

maintenance and repair work on a dwelling. This should enable local authority staff to

carry out emergency and urgent work on dwellings.

The handbook should cover the following areas:

- Introduction

- Tenancy and tenancy conditions

- Rents and rent assessment

- Responsibility for repairs and maintenance

- Safety in your home

- Housing options

- Housing welfare

- Combating anti social behaviour

- Waste, recycling and energy saving

- Useful contacts.

• There should be regular meetings with residents’ representatives on estate management

at district or neighbourhood level and problems raised such as anti social behaviour, the

physical environment of the area, vacant dwellings and any maintenance or repair work

required on properties should be addressed quickly by the local authority.

• Local authorities should look for feedback from their tenants on the level of service

provided by using a formal feedback form and they should provide a summary

statement on the results of the feedback received in their annual report.


14

15

Documentation

• All local authorities should produce documents in the housing area such as:

- Housing Strategy – policy on housing management, housing action plan

- Anti-Social Behaviour Policy and Procedures

- Action plan on homelessness

- Scheme of letting priorities

- Tenant Handbook

- Welcome Pack for New Tenants

- Code of Practice for maintenance and contract staff

The Department and the CCMA should issue guidance on the contents of the documents listed

above, where such guidance is not already available.

Information Technology (I.T.)

• Local authorities should use an I.T. system to track and provide management

information on vacant dwellings across the rents section, the allocations section, the area

teams and housing maintenance section. The module should track progress in the

processing of vacant dwellings across all areas of the local authority and enable the local

authority to highlight where the delays in the system arise and enable it to tackle these

areas and ensure a faster turnover of properties.

• Local authorities should use I.T. to gather information and report on housing vacancies

at 31 December each year under the following headings in their annual report:

- Level of vacancies

- Type of vacancies

- Length of time dwellings are vacant

- The stage the vacancy is at – vacated, major refurbishment, pre-letting repairs being

carried out and allocated to tenant

- Long term voids

- Dwellings subject to major refurbishment/major works


1.1 Background

The responsibility for the management of local authority housing stock resides with the

individual housing authorities concerned, in accordance with section 58(1) of the Housing Act

1966. The minimum standards to which local authority housing should be maintained are

prescribed in the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1992. The Department of the

Environment, Heritage and Local Government (the Department) made available co-funding of

€20m in 2009 and €40m in 2010 under the Social Housing Investment Programme for the

retrofitting of vacant properties both casual and planned, across local authority housing stock.

1.2 The Value for Money Study

The areas addressed by this study are:

• The level of vacancies in local authorities at 31 December 2007 and 31 December 2008

• The identification of the main reasons for the delay in re-letting vacant dwellings

• The Local Government Management Services Board (LGMSB) Service Indicators in

Local Authorities for 2007 and 2008. This report was completed prior to the publication

of the LGMSB Service Indicators for 2009.

• Recommendations to address the delays in the time period for the re-letting of vacant

dwellings.

1.3 Basis for Selection

The eight local authorities participating in the study were chosen following a review of statistics

submitted to the Department, and their geographical spread. The participating authorities were

Dublin, Cork and Galway City Councils and Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown, Kerry, Cavan, Mayo

and Wicklow County Councils.

1.4 Methodology

A questionnaire was prepared with the assistance of the social housing section of the

Department and two local authorities. Visits were carried out to the participating authorities,

where the responses to the questionnaire were validated. A visit was made to the Northern

Ireland Housing Executive where meetings were held with personnel from the housing policy

and support section and the section dealing with performance indicators. Among the topics

discussed were the awarding of contracts for maintenance and repair of dwellings, the level of

vacancies, the type of reports produced and their interaction with tenants. A review was

undertaken of the housing Service Indicators submitted by the local authorities to the LGMSB.

1.5 Advisory Group

As part of the study process an advisory group was established comprising representatives from

the local authorities housing directorates and Departmental officials.

1.6 Local Authority Retrofitting Programme


high standard, achieves improved levels of energy performance, reduces emissions and yields

an important fuel poverty dividend for low income households, the Department established a

1. Introduction


16
















Department.








properties.

1.7 Department Circular






17

2.1 General

A questionnaire was prepared with the assistance of the Department (Social Housing Supply,

Regeneration and Management Section) and two local authorities. This questionnaire, issued to

eight local authorities, covered the following areas:

• Procedures for monitoring of vacant dwellings

• Management of Vacant Dwellings

• Finance and Staffing

• Maintenance Requests

• Contract/In House maintenance

• Performance Indicators.

Seven of the eight local authorities have a written policy on housing management. The policies

varied and were contained in a number of documents provided by the authorities:

• The local authority corporate plan

• Statement of policy on housing management

• Housing action plan

• Housing strategy

• Anti social behaviour

• Traveller accommodation

• Scheme of letting priorities

• Action plan on the homeless

• Tenant handbook.

2.2 Vacant Dwellings Procedures

In the normal course of events dwellings are subject to a thorough inspection when vacated.

These inspections are used to assess the level of work that needs to be carried out on the

dwelling before it can be re-let. Some local authorities have introduced a pre inspection of the

dwelling prior to the tenant vacating. This inspection is used to highlight to the tenant the level

of work that needs to be carried out on a dwelling by the tenant prior to vacating. A post

vacating inspection is also carried out to ascertain if this work has been completed. All eight

local authorities indicated that Building Energy Rating (BER) as required by regulation now

forms part of the refurbishment of vacant dwellings. Local authorities are statutorily required to

provide BER to new tenants.

There is no consistent definition in the eight authorities as to what constitutes a long term void.

From the responses received it varies from a dwelling vacant for three months to in excess of a

year. One local authority has no classification and another determines a long term void as a

dwelling subject to major refurbishment. Table 1 gives details of the number of long term voids,

dwellings abandoned by the tenant and illegally occupied dwellings in the eight local

authorities at 31 December 2008.


18

2. Questionnaire on Housing Maintenance and Management

19

Table 1 – Voids, Abandoned and Illegally Occupied Dwellings at 31 December 2008

Source: Questionnaire issued to the eight participating local authorities and the LGMSB Services

Indicators

* 34 dwellings vacant in excess of 12 months

# all dwellings subject to major refurbishment

2.3 Management of Vacant Dwellings

Each local authority has set out its own scheme of letting priorities. In most of the local

authorities if a tenant refuses two reasonable offers they are penalized in the letting scheme. A

reasonable offer of a dwelling excludes offers in low demand or undesirable areas or of the

wrong type of accommodation.

Dwellings are classified occupied in the following scenarios:

• Tenancy agreement signed – 6 local authorities

• Keys Collected – 1 local authority

• First rent debit – 1 local authority.

Two important initiatives introduced by local authorities in recent years are pre tenancy training

courses and the introduction of tenant handbooks to make tenants aware of their

responsibilities. The eight participating local authorities offer pre tenancy training to new

tenants. Three of the local authorities issue the tenants with a handbook which sets out their


Local AuthorityDefinition of

Long Term Void

Level ofHousing

Stock

No. of Long Term

Voids

% ofHousing

Stock

No. ofAbandoned

andIllegally

OccupiedDwellings

Cavan County CouncilMajor

refurbishment1,792 4 0.22 2

Cork City Council > 6 months 8,514 104* 1.22 3

Dublin City Council > 6 months 27,066 163 0.6 None

Dún Laoghaire-RathdownCounty Council (DLR)

> 6 months 4,153 7 0.17 6

Galway City Council No classification 2,137 None Zero None

Kerry County Council > 6 months 3,931 12 0.31 None

Mayo County Council > 3 months 2,054 40# 1.95 9

Wicklow County Council > 1 year 4,188 7 0.17 None

responsibilities. One local authority ensures that the tenant signs a pre tenancy agreement. The

level of take up of tenancy training in 2008 was supplied by each local authority to the LGMSB

as part of their Service Indicators. The Service Indicators for the eight local authorities surveyed

are shown in Table 2.

Table 2 – Pre-Tenancy Training in 2008

Source: 2008 LGMSB Service Indicators

Best practice as indicated by the responses to the questionnaire in relation to the capability of

prospective tenants for independent living, the measures taken in order to sustain the tenancy

and the measures in place to minimize the refusal of an offer of a dwelling are detailed below

and should form part of all local authorities strategy in these areas.

- Tenants are subject to a pre tenancy interview by a housing officer. At the interview any




- During a pre tenancy interview the tenant’s responsibilities are outlined. Follow up

visits are organized by council housing staff to ensure that the tenant is complying with

their responsibilities. There is ongoing communication with new tenants and if




20

Local Authority

Number ofnew localauthoritytenants

% of newtenantsofferedcourses

Cavan County Council 277 96.8

Cork City Council 413 18.6

Dublin City Council 902 51.4

Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council 112 43.8

Galway City Council 193 35.8

Kerry County Council 295 80

Mayo County Council 146 100

Wicklow County Council 246 67.1

- All dwellings are renovated to the highest standards prior to allocation. A report is

produced by a Housing Investigation Officer in respect of the prospective tenant and

discussions take place with regard to the housing options available. Offers are made on

the basis of the local authorities system of letting priorities and the preferences indicated

by prospective tenants. Two refusals of a tenancy will result in the prospective tenant

losing points or either being suspended or removed from the housing list for a specified

period.

2.4 Finance and Staffing

The expenditure in the eight local authorities surveyed on the maintenance and improvement of

local authority housing units including service support costs is shown in Table 3 below.

Table 3 - Overall Maintenance Expenditure 2008

Source: VFM Questionnaire issued to the eight participating local authorities

21


Local AuthorityOverall Expenditure

€000

Cavan County Council 1,386

Cork City Council 11,684

Dublin City Council 51,824

Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council

12,034

Galway City Council 2,500

Kerry County Council 1,096

Mayo County Council 430

Wicklow County Council 889

The total number of full time equivalents employed by the eight local authorities on housing

maintenance is shown in Table 4 below.

Table 4 - Number of Full Time Equivalents

Source: VFM Questionnaire issued to the eight participating local authorities

The average cost of refurbishing a dwelling varies considerably between local authorities.

The cost of repairs to a dwelling depends on the extent of pre-letting repair work to be carried

out, the extent of renovations or alterations that have been carried out to the dwelling and if the

property is to be fitted with new windows, boiler or a central heating system. Local authorities

use different methods for calculating the cost of maintenance jobs which makes it difficult to

compare costs and ensure that value for money is achieved.

In relation to a question on the cost of security for unoccupied dwellings, the four rural local

authorities Cavan, Kerry , Mayo and Wicklow County Councils stated that these costs were

either nil or were not applicable to the local authority. The four urban local authorities stated

that costs related to security were as follows:

Cork City Council - Total cost €226,444

Dublin City Council - Total cost €312,000

DLR County Council - Average cost of €145 per unit per month

Galway City Council - Average cost €1,000 per unit.

2.5 Maintenance Requests

Details are contained in the tenant handbook used by a number of local authorities of how and

to whom a request for maintenance work can be made. The handbook contains contact names

and numbers and the times when a request can be made. When making a request for


22

Local Authority Number of Full Time Equivalents

Cavan County Council 9

Cork City Council 169

Dublin City Council 711.5

Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council

42

Galway City Council 43

Kerry County Council 9

Mayo County Council 5

Wicklow County Council 23

maintenance work to be carried out on a dwelling a tenant may communicate with the local

authority by phone, in writing, by e mail at the public counter or through a public

representative. Requests can be made to the customer services section, customer care, to the

housing liaison officer or revenue collector. All requests are logged electronically. Local

authorities use different systems for logging requests. Requests are categorized as Emergency,

Urgent and Routine.

Emergency requests can be made on a twenty four basis in three of the eight local authorities

surveyed. A further two local authorities provide a limited emergency request service outside of

normal office hours. Three local authorities do not provide a service outside of normal office

hours. Only one local authority provides a written acknowledgement of maintenance requests

received to all its tenants. A second local authority does so in certain cases.

Table 5 shows the percentage of housing repairs that were completed during 2008 by the eight

local authorities and the percentage outstanding at 31 December 2008.

Table 5 – Housing Repairs at 31 December 2008

Source: LGMSB Service Indicators

Each local authority has a preventative maintenance programme in place. The programmes vary

to a great extent and are dependent on the availability of funding and internal capital receipts.

All local authorities should have a defined five year preventative maintenance programme in

place.

23


Local Authority% Housing

RepairsCompleted

% HousingRepairs

Outstanding

Cavan County Council 78.38 21.62

Cork City Council 93.24 6.76

Dublin City Council 85.53 14.47

Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council 99.83 0.17

Galway City Council 99.88 0.12

Kerry County Council 97.03 2.97

Mayo County Council 85.42 14.58

Wicklow County Council 94.92 5.08

2.6 Contract / In House Maintenance

All eight local authorities surveyed employ contractors to carry out repair and maintenance

work on their housing stock. Contractors are mainly used for major refurbishment works such

as:

• Renovation of void properties

• Planned maintenance including replacement of doors, windows, facia, sofit and

guttering

• Refurbishment of badly damaged properties where the level of repair work required is

outside of the capacity of direct labour staff

• Improving the energy efficiency of properties

• Installation and maintenance of central heating systems

• Shuttering to secure vacant properties

• Large scale remedial works.

The participating local authorities stated that they complied with domestic and EU procurement

requirements. The participating local authorities also stated that they adhered to the financial

limits which apply when seeking tenders or quotations for contracts. They have established an

approved panel of contractors.

• In five of the local authorities all approved contractors for particular jobs are invited to

tender.

• In three of the local authorities selected contractors are invited to tender for the various

contracts with work spread throughout the entire approved panel of contractors.

• Specified tender documentation is used by all eight local authorities.

All eight local authorities employ their own maintenance staff to carry out routine maintenance

and repair work on the housing stock. The staff employed are qualified craftsmen. One local

authority surveyed stated that they did not cost this work but the other seven participating

authorities do cost the work carried out by their internal maintenance staff. The following are

the methods used:

• Time and materials used to complete repair and maintenance work on particular

projects

• Local authority maintain a rates schedule for maintenance and repair work

• Maintenance and repair work coded to individual dwellings

• Maintenance and repair work coded against local area budgeted costs

Six of the local authorities surveyed stated that they have a general customer charter. There are

procedures in place for dealing with complaints by the local authorities tenants. Seven local

authorities stated that they had procedures in place to allow tenants give feedback on

maintenance and repair work carried out. The systems varied between local authorities and

encompassed the following:

• Comment cards available at the housing office

• Phone, letter and public counter


24

• Depot Clerks

• Local area office

• Tenant Liaison Officer

• Rent Collectors

• Estate Management Officer.

2.7 Performance Indicators

The questionnaire issued to the eight local authorities dealt with some performance indicators

relating to housing. The responses to the questionnaire were verified with the LGMSB Service

Indicators.

Table 6 shows the level of housing stock and the number of dwellings subject to major

refurbishment for the eight local authorities surveyed.

Table 6 – Housing Stock and Dwellings Subject to Major Refurbishment at

31 December 2008


25


Local AuthorityHousing

StockMajor

Refurbishment

% ofHousing

Stock

Cavan County Council 1,792 16 0.89

Cork City Council 8,514 198 2.33

Dublin City Council 27,066 2,103 7.77

Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council 4,153 80 1.93

Galway City Council 2,137 0 0

Kerry County Council 3,931 54 1.37

Mayo County Council 2,054 40 1.95

Wicklow County Council 4,188 59 1.41


26

Table 7 below shows the percentage and number of dwellings that were empty and the

percentage and number of those dwellings that were unavailable for letting as maintenance or

refurbishment work needs to be carried out excluding those subject to major refurbishment in

the eight local authorities at 31 December 2008.

Table 7 – Vacant Dwellings/Unavailable for Letting at 31 December 2008


* includes newly purchased properties

The level of vacant dwellings varied from 1.57% to 8.9% in the eight local authorities surveyed.

The average for the 34 local authorities is approximately 3.5%. The numbers of dwellings

unavailable for re-letting is mainly due to the level of pre-letting repair work that has to be

carried out.

Local AuthorityVacant

Dewllings%

Number ofVacant

Dwellings

Unavailablefor Letting

%

NumberUnavailablefor Letting

Cavan County Council 8.9 158 44.94 71

Cork City Council 4.64 386 86.14 332

Dublin City Council 3.08 769 53.19 409

Dún Laoghaire-RathdownCounty Council

1.57 64 59.38 38

Galway City Council 5.9* 126 39.68 50

Kerry County Council 4.98 193 57.12 110

Mayo County Council 4.67 94 58.51 55

Wicklow County Council 2.39 99 65.99 65

Table 8 shows the average time taken to re-let a dwelling in the eight local authorities surveyed.

Table 8 – Average Time (Weeks) Taken To Re-Let a Dwelling


There are a number of reasons for the long delays in re-letting a dwelling such as:

• Budgetary constraints due to the reduction in internal capital receipts and the shortage

of staff resources due to the moratorium on recruitment

• The high levels of refusals by applicants

• Dwellings in low demand areas

• The level of pre-letting repair work carried out

• Dwellings subject to major refurbishment or perceived as undesirable

• The matching of housing needs with housing stock.

These areas need to be tackled if the period for re-letting a property is to be reduced. As

budgetary constraints are likely to continue there is a need for local authority management to

take a more proactive role on the prevention of the causes of the delays in re-letting vacant

dwellings.

27


Local Authority

From date ofvacation ofdwelling to

the datewhen allnecessaryrepairs arecarried out

From worksbeing

completed to date offirst rent

debit

Totalnumber of weeks

Cavan County Council 5 5.12 10.12

Cork City Council 18.32 7.03 25.35

Dublin City Council 21.77 6.05 27.82

Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council 7.49 14.87 22.36

Galway City Council 3.91 2 5.91

Kerry County Council 8.92 27.56 36.48

Mayo County Council 17 3 20

Wicklow County Council 13.14 3.19 16.33


28

Six of the eight local authorities surveyed set their own target times for responding to

repair/maintenance requests and kept records of their response times. These are published by

the LGMSB in the service indicator report. It is important that response times for maintenance

be set independently for all local authorities if the statistics relating to response times are to be

meaningful. The percentage of maintenance requests carried out on target in 2008 was as

follows.

• Cork City Council - 90%

• Dublin City Council - 85.5%

• Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council - 98%

• Kerry County Council - 92.9%

• Galway City Council - 90%

• Mayo County Council - 85%

Source: Questionnaire issued to the eight participating local authorities

3.1 Introduction

Service Indicators were introduced in 2004 to measure the performance of local authorities

across a range of services. Each local authority is responsible for submitting and verifying data

on the range of indicators. The information is collated into tables which enable comparisons to

be made across local authorities and the performance of individual local authorities to be

tracked on an annual basis. The Service Indicators were first published in 2005. The Local

Government Management Services Board (LGMSB) was given the task of monitoring and

verification of the data as well as the compilation and analysis of the indicators. The Board is

also required to submit an annual report to the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and

Local Government (the Minister). An independent assessment panel, appointed by the Minister,

quality assures the entire process.

When reviewing the Service Indicators it is important to be aware that each local authority is

different although providing a similar range of services. Some of the key differences that need to

be taken into account are:

- Geographical size

- Population density

- Demographic change

- Levels of poverty, unemployment and deprivation

- Levels of inward investment.

This report was completed prior to the publication of the LGMSB Service Indicators for 2009.

3.2 County and City Managers’ Association (CCMA) Submission

The 2008 service indicator report includes details from a submission made by the CCMA to the

Department on some of the factors affecting the time taken to re-let a dwelling together with

actions taken by local authorities to ameliorate the situation (See Appendix 10).

3.3 Current Housing Stock

Table 9 (See Appendices 1 and 2 for detail by local authority) gives details of the level of

housing stock and the level of stock not subject to long term refurbishment at 31 December.

Table 9 - Level of Housing Stock


3. Service Indicators

29


2007 2008

Housing stock at 31 December 118,276 122,446

Houses subject to long term refurbishment 1,025 3,186

% of housing stock subject to long term refurbishment 0.87% 2.6%

Stock not subject to major refurbishment 117,251 119,260

The increase in the figures for 2008 is caused by a number of factors including a regeneration

scheme in one local authority and a major refurbishment project carried out by another local

authority.

3.4 Level of Vacant Dwellings

Table 10 gives the number and percentage of empty dwellings excluding the stock subject to

major refurbishment at 31 December.

Table 10 - Vacant Dwellings


(Appendices 3 and 4 give details of vacant dwellings for all 34 local authorities)

The level of vacant dwellings can be affected by the number of new properties that come on

hand towards the end of the year and the level of maintenance work that needs to be carried out

on vacated properties.

3.5 Available Dwellings

Table 11 gives the number and percentages of dwellings available for re-letting at 31 December.

Table 11 – Dwellings Available for Re-letting


(Appendices 5 and 6 give details for all 34 local authorities)


30

2007 2008

Number of vacant dwellings 5,090 3,859

Average percentage of vacant dwellings 4.34% 3.24%

Highest percentage of vacant dwellings 9.33% 8.9%

Lowest percentage of vacant dwellings 1.00% 1.08%

2007 2008

Number of dwellings available for re-letting 1,529 1,425

Highest percentage of dwellings available for re-letting 65.1% 77.78%

Lowest percentage of dwellings available for re-letting 1.8% 6.67%

The level of dwellings available for re-letting is affected by routine maintenance work, pre-

letting maintenance work, refurbishment of dwellings and newly purchased dwellings towards

the end of the year.

3.6 Average time taken to re-let dwellings

For 2008 the performance indicator for the average time taken to re-let dwellings was broken

into two categories as follows:

• Category 1 - The average time taken in weeks from the date of vacation of dwelling to

the date when all necessary repairs are carried out, which are deemed necessary to re-let

the dwelling

• Category 2 - The average time taken in weeks from the works being completed to the

date of first rent debit

Table 12 (See Appendix 7 for detail by local authority) gives a summary of the average number

of weeks taken for category 1, category 2 and the combination of both in 2008.

Table 12 - Average number of weeks taken to re-let dwellings


Table 13 below details the number of local authorities by three categories of the time taken to re-

let dwellings

Table 13 – Time taken in weeks to re-let dwellings



31

Category 1 Category 2 Combined

Average time taken 16.56 5.87 22.43

Longest time taken 55.96 27.56 64.84

Shortest time taken 1 1 2

Number of local authorities

1 Week to 15 Weeks 12

16 Weeks to 30 Weeks 13

> than 30 Weeks 9


32

The time taken for re-letting a dwelling varied from 2 weeks to 64.84 weeks with an average

time taken of 22.43. There were 9 local authorities where the time taken to re-let a dwelling was

in excess of 30 weeks. This is a cause for serious concern in the context of meeting social housing

needs, effectively utilising capital assets and generating revenue income. One local authority

stated that it took an average of 2 weeks to re-let a dwelling. This figure is much lower than any

other local authority and would need to be investigated by the Department and the LGMSB.

The problems identified by local authorities for causing delays in both categories 1 and 2 which

are listed below need to be addressed by the sector if the time taken to re-let dwellings is to be

reduced:

• Budgetary constraints – lack of internal capital receipts

• Multi refusals by applicants of dwellings

• Dwellings in low demand areas or in perceived undesirable locations

• The extent of pre-letting repair works that need to be carried out

• Problems with particular properties which require extensive refurbishment work to be

carried out

• Shortage of staff resources

• Re-letting in certain urban areas

• Refurbishment of long term voids. In one case dwellings vacant in excess of three years

• Risk of vandalism in certain areas means that dwellings are only repaired on allocation.

3.7 Housing Repairs Completed

Table14 (See Appendix 8 for detail by local authority) gives details of the number of repairs

completed as a percentage of the number of valid repair requests received.

Table 14 – Repairs Completed as a % of Repair Requests Received


The average percentage for completion of repairs was 87.12% in 2007 and 90.41% in 2008. There

was an improvement in the recording and tracking of repair requests in 2008 due to the use of

on line systems.

% Repairs Completed2007

No. of localauthorities

2008No. of localauthorities

> 90% 17 21

>80% < 90% 12 9

< 80% 5 4

3.8 Tenant Training

A new performance indicator on Pre-Tenancy Familiarisation Courses was introduced in 2008.

These courses were introduced by local authorities for new tenants. The average number of new

tenants offered courses was 79.22% and this varied from a low of 18.6% to a high of 100%.

Twenty one local authorities offered courses to in excess of 90% while fourteen of these achieved

a figure of 100%. In future all local authorities should ensure that courses are offered to all new

tenants. (See Appendix 9 for detail by local authority)

33


4.1 Procurement Initiative Undertaken by Dublin City Council

Dublin City Council with the approval of the Department has embarked on a pilot project with

regard to a new type of contract for maintenance and refurbishment work. The new type of

contract is called a Term Maintenance and Refurbishment Works Contract (TMC). It is expected

that the use of this type of contract will significantly reduce the re-letting time for vacant

properties. If the pilot project is successful it is the intention to draft a template for this type of

contract for issue to all local authorities.

Background to TMC

The Term Maintenance and Refurbishment Works Contract is a new addition to the suite of

public works contracts under the Capital Works Management Framework. It is different to the

other forms of contract in that it is not based on the general principle of ‘fixed price lump sum

fixed price tenders for clearly defined scope of works’.

This new form of contract has been developed in response to a need to have in place a public

works contract that enables a contracting authority to respond to urgent maintenance

requirements as they arise and without having to engage in a procurement process for each such

circumstance.

The underlying principles are,

• a competitive tendering process based on notional works as described in the pricing

document, and

• the issuing of a Task Order to the Contractor to carry out works.

The key features of the Term Maintenance and Refurbishment Works Contract are,

• a competitive tendering process based on notional works,

• a contract without commitment unless activated by the issue of a Task Order, and

• a contract limited by duration and/or aggregated value of Task Orders, whichever is

achieved first.

As noted above, this contract is unique in that it is not based on the principle of ‘fixed price lump

sum fixed price tenders for clearly defined scope of works’, and therefore should only be used in

limited circumstances, i.e., where the works are of a response maintenance nature that are

required to be executed without incurring the delay associated with a separate procurement

process. Note that works of a planned maintenance nature by definition must be undertaken by

means of one of the other public works contracts.

4.2 Department of Finance Circular 10/10: Facilitating SME Participation in Public

Procurement

The Department of Finance Circular 10/10: Facilitating SME Participation in Public

Procurement, dated 13 August 2010, has the intended purpose of ensuring that small and

medium sized businesses would not be hindered in competing for contracts that they could

perform effectively.

4. Findings


34

Use of the Term Maintenance and Refurbishment Works Contract, due to the aggregation of

separate works by means of Task Orders into a single contract, might be perceived as

disadvantaging the SME sector and therefore specific conditions are required to ensure that this

does not happen. Accordingly, it is a requirement for using the Term Maintenance and

Refurbishment Contract that an open tendering procedure should be used and that suitability

criteria (including economic and financial standing) be specified that would not exclude

contractors capable of performing the contract effectively.

Consideration should also be given to dividing the works into contract lots, possibly on the

basis of defined geographic areas. This has the advantage of facilitating effective competition

even from smaller contractors, and helps to sustain a competitive market into the future.

4.3 Reasons for Delays in Re-letting Vacant Dwellings

The reasons for delays vary from one local authority to another. The main reasons for the delays

in re-letting vacant dwellings as indicated in the LGMSB Service Indicators reports and from site

visits made during this VFM study are as follows:

• The amount of necessary pre-letting repair work that needs to be carried out in order

that the dwelling can be re-let. This work can be quite extensive where unauthorised

renovations or alterations have been carried out to the dwelling by the tenant. Some of

the dwellings are in such a state of disrepair that major refurbishment work needs to be

undertaken. Health and safety issues are a major consideration when carrying out the

pre-letting repair work.

• There is a high level of private rented accommodation available in the housing market.

This accommodation is available to some prospective local authority tenants at a

subsidised rent under the rental accommodation scheme. The accommodation is seen as

superior and available in better locations. Prospective tenants are unwilling to accept

what is perceived as inferior accommodation from local authorities.

• Budgetary constraints and a lack of internal capital receipts

• Shortage of staff resources for maintenance and refurbishment work

• Delays in the tendering and award of contracts for maintenance and refurbishment

• The refusal of offers of vacant dwellings because of the following:

- Dwellings in low demand areas or areas perceived as undesirable locations

- Applicants are allowed two/three refusals of a reasonable offer of

accommodation

- One of the participating local authorities stated that there are a number of

Senior Citizen bed sits that are void on an ongoing basis as prospective tenants

will not accept such accommodation and are prepared to wait for

accommodation with suitable facilities.

- The vacant dwellings available do not match the needs of applicants

• Risk of vandalism of vacant dwellings in certain areas means that dwellings are only

repaired on allocation

• All dwellings have to be assessed for an energy rating under BER

• Planned regeneration programmes carried out by local authorities


35

• Time gap between the allocation of a dwelling and occupancy by the new tenant. These

properties are listed in the Service Indicators as a vacant dwelling until the first rent

debit has been raised

• On the death of a tenant, their rent account is immediately closed and the housing

system records that the dwelling is vacant. Normally the family of the deceased person

is given a period of weeks on compassionate grounds to dispose of the persons

furnishings and belongings

• In some cases, there is a dispute regarding the right of a family member of a deceased

tenant to succeed to the tenancy. Such cases often become the subject of legal

proceedings that can take a considerable time to bring to a conclusion.

4.4 Maintenance and Refurbishment

• Pre inspections of dwellings are not always carried out prior to the tenant vacating the

dwelling

• The eight participating local authorities used different methods for costing in house

maintenance and refurbishment work

• A formal inspection of all local authority dwellings is not carried out on a rotational

basis

• Different definitions were used among the eight participating local authorities for what

constituted a long term void.

4.5 Tenant Sustainability

• Responses to the questionnaire indicated best practice in relation to a) the capability of

prospective tenants for independent living, b) the measures taken in order to sustain the

tenancy and c) the measures in place to minimize the refusal of an offer of a dwelling.

• In 2008 all local authorities ran pre tenancy training for new tenants. The average

number of new tenants offered courses was 79.22% and varied from a low of 18.6% in

one local authority to a high of 100% in fourteen local authorities.

• A number of local authorities issue new tenants with a tenant handbook. However there

is no consistency on the content of these handbooks.

• A number of local authorities do not hold regular meetings with tenants or their

representative associations nor do they seek feedback from them on maintenance or

refurbishment work carried out on their behalf.

4.6 Documentation

The level of documentation held by the eight participating local authorities on various aspects of

the housing area varied considerably.

4.7 Information Technology (IT)

The level of IT systems for tracking vacant dwellings throughout the entire process from

vacation of the property to the allocation to a new tenant varied considerably among the eight

participating local authorities.


36

37


4.8 Local Authority Retrofitting Programme


high standard, achieves improved levels of energy performance, reduces emissions and yields

an important fuel poverty dividend for low income households, the Department established a
















Department.








properties.

4.9 Department Circular





5. Recommendations


38

5.1 Maintenance/Repairs

• It is essential that the pilot project being undertaken by Dublin City Council i.e. the

introduction of the TMC, be fully tested and a report produced with findings and

recommendations on the new system by the local authority and issued to the

Department within one year of its implementation. If the use of the TMC is proven to be

successful in significantly reducing the re-letting time for vacant dwellings then the

Department should develop a guidance note and a template for the use of such contracts

and issue these to all local authorities immediately following the receipt of the report by

Dublin City Council. Local authorities should then embark on the use of such contracts

for maintenance and refurbishment work. The TMC should be implemented on a

regional or shared services basis by local authorities. As well as local authorities

adhering to domestic and EU procurement guidelines when awarding contracts for

repair, refurbishment and maintenance work they should also ensure that they are in

compliance with Department of Finance Circular 10/10 Facilitating SME Participation in

Public Procurement.

• Local authorities should access the funding available through the Department’s

retrofitting programme which will assist them in carrying out refurbishment works to

vacant and void properties in order to bring these back into productive use.

• Local authorities should comply with the requirements of circular SHIP 2011.05

Improving the Social Housing Stock.

• As budgetary constraints are likely to continue there is a need for local authority

management to take a more proactive role in re-letting vacant dwellings.

• Local authorities should carry out a pre inspection of a dwelling where a tenant has

given notice to vacate. An assessment of the work needed on the dwelling should be

carried out and assigned as either the responsibility of the tenant or the council. A

second inspection should be carried out prior to the dwelling being vacated. Any

additional costs incurred by the council on carrying out works that were assigned to the

tenant should be charged to the tenant.

• Local authorities should carry out formal inspections of all its dwellings on a regular

basis. Local authorities should then take preventative measures to address any problems

that arise with regard to repairs, maintenance or alterations to the dwelling which

should reduce the time taken on repairs when a dwelling is vacated.

• Local authorities should assess the level of refurbishment work needed on dwellings

and reduce this where possible while ensuring compliance with health and safety

standards e.g. if alterations to a dwelling carried out by previous tenant are not to be

removed, the new tenant should be asked to sign an acceptance form for the dwelling

with the alterations included. The assessment should also take account of health and

safety and fire compliance standards.

• One standardised method of costing for in house maintenance and repair work should

be agreed through the City and County Managers Association (CCMA) and used by all

local authorities. In this way comparisons can be made between the overall costs of jobs

within a local authority and between different local authorities.

• There should be a standard definition, for all local authorities for what constitutes a

long term void e.g. a dwelling vacant in excess of six months. Long term voids are

usually the result of either the level of work needed on the dwelling or because it is in

an area within the local authority that is perceived as undesirable. As a priority local

authorities should implement measures to address the issue of long term voids by

introducing measures to deal with:

- The repair work on long term voids to make them fit for re-letting

- Environmental problems in an area of the local authority that give rise to long

term voids

- Anti social behaviour problems that make an area within the local authority low

demand or undesirable.

When compiling statistics on the length of time taken to re-let a dwelling long term

voids should be treated as a separate category. This will make the Service Indicators

more meaningful when presenting information on the average re-letting time for vacant

dwellings.

• The Department in conjunction with the CCMA should develop protocols for response

times for emergency, urgent and routine maintenance and repair requests. The record

for response times by each local authority against the standard times set should be

reported by the LGMSB in its Service Indicators. This will facilitate comparison of

performance in this area between local authorities and within a local authority over a

number of years.

5.2 Allocations/Refusals

• It is essential that local authorities allocate a vacant dwelling as early as possible in the

re-letting process. This should be done at the same time as the award of the tender prior

to the commencement of work on the dwelling. This procedure would reduce the

allocation time for a dwelling and lead to a reduction in overall time for the re-letting

process. This potential reduction in time that a dwelling is vacant will reduce the

security and shuttering costs and should result in an increase rental income.

• There should be a standard definition used by all local authorities for what constitutes

the re-letting period for a vacant dwelling e.g. the period between the last rental debit

on the occupier vacating the dwelling to the first rental debit on the new occupier of the


39

dwelling. The definition should give clear instructions on when a dwelling is to be

considered a vacant dwelling and when it is a re-occupied dwelling. This would

facilitate reporting on performance across all local authorities in this area.

• Local authorities should assess and maintain records of the specific needs of prospective

tenants. Offers of accommodation should only be made where the needs of the

prospective tenant match the accommodation available. This should reduce the number

of refusals of dwellings and reduce the re-letting time for vacant properties.

• Local authorities should operate a refusal policy whereby tenants that refuse two

reasonable offers of accommodation should suffer substantial penalties such as a

considerable points reduction (if points system in operation) or be placed further down

the waiting list for a set period of time. In order for this policy to be successful, local

authorities would need to monitor its implementation and the effect on it of the Rental

Accommodation Scheme (RAS), which may offer a higher standard of accommodation

to local authority tenants.

• Local authorities need to implement measures to counter the negative perception of

certain low demand or undesirable areas within its remit. This should include

interaction with local community groups to address any problems such as anti social

behaviour in these areas. The local authority should also implement measures to

improve the physical environment in these areas.

• Local authorities need to have clear policies in place where either legal issues, personal

factors or disputes as to the rights of relatives are affecting the allocation of a dwelling

to a new tenant. There should be a clearly defined timeframe in place which is sensible

and reasonable for the resolution of this problem.

5.3 Tenant Sustainability

• In order to ensure the capability of prospective tenants for independent living they

should be subject to a pre-tenancy interview by a housing officer. At the interview any




• The measures taken in order to sustain the tenancy should include a pre- tenancy

interview where the tenant’s responsibilities are outlined. Follow up visits should be

organized by council housing staff to ensure that the tenant is complying with their

responsibilities. There should be ongoing communication with new tenants and if




40

• The measures in place to minimize the refusal of an offer of a dwelling should ensure

that all dwellings are renovated to the appropriate standards prior to allocation. A

report should be produced by a Housing Investigation Officer in respect of the

prospective tenant and discussions take place with regard to the housing options

available. Offers are made on the basis of the local authorities system of letting priorities

and the preferences indicated by prospective tenants. Two refusals of a tenancy will

result in the prospective tenant losing points or either being suspended or being

removed from the housing list for a specified period.

• There should be an ongoing assessment by local authorities of the needs of their tenants.

• Local authorities should make pre-tenancy training courses available to all new tenants

and the new tenants must partake in the pre-tenancy courses prior to being allocated a

dwelling.

• A tenant handbook should be given to all tenants. The handbook should clearly define

the responsibilities of the local authority and the tenant with regard to routine

maintenance and repair work on a dwelling. This should enable local authority staff to

carry out emergency and urgent work on dwellings.

The handbook should cover the following areas:

- Introduction

- Tenancy and tenancy conditions

- Rents and rent assessment

- Responsibility for repairs and maintenance

- Safety in your home

- Housing options

- Housing welfare

- Combating anti social behaviour

- Waste, recycling and energy saving

- Useful contacts.

• There should be regular meetings with residents’ representatives on estate management

at district or neighbourhood level and problems raised such as anti social behaviour, the

physical environment of the area, vacant dwellings and any maintenance or repair work

required on properties should be addressed quickly by the local authority.

• Local authorities should look for feedback from their tenants on the level of service

provided by using a formal feedback form and they should provide a summary

statement on the results of the feedback received in their annual report.


41

5.4 Documentation

• All local authorities should produce documents in the housing area as follows:

- Housing Strategy – policy on housing management, housing action plan

- Anti-Social Behaviour Policy and Procedures

- Action plan on the homeless

- Scheme of letting priorities

- Tenant Handbook

- Welcome Pack for New Tenants

- Code of Practice for maintenance and contract staff

The Department and the CCMA should issue guidance on the contents of the

documents listed above, where such guidance is not already available.

5.5 Information Technology (I.T.).

• Local authorities should use an I.T. system to track and provide management

information on vacant dwellings across the rents section, the allocations section, the area

teams and housing maintenance section. The module should track progress in the

processing of vacant dwellings across all areas of the local authority and enable the local

authority to highlight where the delays in the system arise and enable it to tackle these

areas and ensure a faster turnover of properties.

• Local authorities should use I.T. to gather information and report on housing vacancies

at 31 December each year under the following headings in their annual report:

- Level of vacancies

- Type of vacancies

- Length of time dwellings are vacant

- The stage the vacancy is at – vacated, major refurbishment, pre-letting repairs

being carried out and allocated to tenant

- Long term voids

- Dwellings subject to major refurbishment/major works.


42

The LGAS would like to thank the following for their co-operation and advice during the course

of this VFM study:

- The eight local authorities that participated in the study

- The Nortern Ireland Housing Executive (NIHE) and the Local Government

Management Services Board (LGMSB)

- The VFM Advisory Group for this study.

6. Acknowledgement


43

APPENDICES

APPENDIX 1 - Number of Local Authority dwellings

2007 and 2008 46

APPENDIX 2 - Number of Local Authority Dwellings

not subject to major refurbishment 2007 and 2008 47





APPENDIX 7 - 2008 Average time taken to re-let a dwelling 52

APPENDIX 8 - 2007 and 2008 percentage of housing repairs

completed 53

APPENDIX 9 - Pre Tenancy Training Courses 54

APPENDIX 10 - County and City Manager’s Association

Submission 55

APPENDIX 11 - Northern Ireland Housing Executive 57

45

Appendix 1

46

Housing Stock StatisticsNumber of Local Authority Dwellings

2007 Stock 2008 StockIncrease /Decrease

Carlow County Council 1,488 1,515 27

Cavan County Council 1,692 1,792 100

Clare County Council 2,081 2,318 237

Cork City Council 8,168 8,514 346

Cork County Council 5,937 6,325 388

Donegal County Council 4,034 4,134 100

Dublin City Council 26,658 27,066 408

Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council 4,140 4,153 13

Fingal County Council 4,098 4,190 92

Galway City Council 1,977 2,137 160

Galway County Council 2,205 2,284 79

Kerry County Council 3,824 3,931 107

Kildare County Council 3,012 3,248 236

Kilkenny County Council 1,770 1,953 183

Laois County Council 1,727 1,891 164

Leitrim County Council 941 962 21

Limerick City Council 2,884 2,889 5

Limerick County Council 1,916 1,975 59

Longford County Council 1,662 1,735 73

Louth County Council 3,160 3,344 184

Mayo County Council 2,034 2,054 20

Meath County Council 2,509 2,430 -79

Monaghan County Council 1,188 1,276 88

North Tipperary County Council 1,652 1,675 23

Offaly County Council 1,413 1,593 180

Roscommon County Council 1,138 1,202 64

Sligo County Council 1,938 1,998 60

South Dublin County Council 8,276 8,570 294

South Tipperary County Council 2,551 2,646 95

Waterford City Council 2,744 2,914 170

Waterford County Council 1,508 1,602 94

Westmeath County Council 1,579 1,622 43

Wexford County Council 2,404 2,320 -84

Wicklow County Council 3,968 4,188 220

Totals 118,276 122,446 4,170

Source: LGMSB Service Indicators Reports 2007 and 2008

Number of Local Authority Dwellings 2007 and 2008


Appendix 2

47

Number of Local Authority Dwellings not Subject to Major Refurbishment 2007 and 2008

Number of Local Authority Dwellingsnot subject to major refurbishment

2007 Stock 2008 StockIncrease /Decrease

Carlow County Council 1,488 1,515 27

Cavan County Council 1,669 1,776 107

Clare County Council 2,046 2,273 227

Cork City Council 7,980 8,316 336

Cork County Council 5,885 6,269 384

Donegal County Council 4,034 4,102 68

Dublin City Council 26,461 24,963 -1498

Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council 4,027 4,073 46

Fingal County Council 4,098 4,190 92

Galway City Council 1,967 2,137 170

Galway County Council 2,205 2,284 79

Kerry County Council 3,755 3,877 122

Kildare County Council 3,012 3,240 228

Kilkenny County Council 1,746 1,924 178

Laois County Council 1,721 1,891 170


Limerick City Council 2,884 2,824 -60

Limerick County Council 1,913 1,973 60

Longford County Council 1,661 1,731 70

Louth County Council 3,143 3,320 177

Mayo County Council 2,001 2,014 13

Meath County Council 2,508 2,402 -106

Monaghan County Council 1,163 1,247 84

North Tipperary County Council 1,638 1,662 24

Offaly County Council 1,412 1,521 109

Roscommon County Council 1,107 1,168 61

Sligo County Council 1,905 1,893 -12

South Dublin County Council 8,276 8,570 294

South Tipperary County Council 2,542 2,631 89

Waterford City Council 2,689 2,878 189

Waterford County Council 1,503 1,599 96

Westmeath County Council 1,551 1,586 35

Wexford County Council 2,359 2,320 -39

Wicklow County Council 3,961 4,129 168

Totals 117,251 119,260 2,009



Appendix 3

48

2007 Vacant Dwellings

Dwellings that are vacant excluding those subject to major refurbishment

2007 %

2007Number of Houses

Carlow County Council 1.60 24

Cavan County Council 7.15 119

Clare County Council 3.66 75

Cork City Council 3.68 293

Cork County Council 3.76 221

Donegal County Council 2.40 97

Dublin City Council 9.33 2,469

Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council 1.11 45

Fingal County Council 2.20 90

Galway City Council 2.62 52

Galway County Council 4.00 88

Kerry County Council 4.49 169

Kildare County Council 2.20 66

Kilkenny County Council 5.31 93

Laois County Council 3.69 64

Leitrim County Council 2.12 20

Limerick City Council 1.00 29

Limerick County Council 3.25 62

Longford County Council 3.04 51

Louth County Council 1.47 46

Mayo County Council 3.46 69

Meath County Council 3.96 99

Monaghan County Council 2.24 26

North Tipperary County Council 2.75 45

Offaly County Council 6.46 91

Roscommon County Council 4.17 46

Sligo County Council 4.39 84

South Dublin County Council 1.00 83

South Tipperary County Council 4.76 121

Waterford City Council 1.83 49

Waterford County Council 3.91 59

Westmeath County Council 3.09 48

Wexford County Council 1.26 30

Wicklow County Council 1.72 68

Number of Houses 5,090

Percentage of dwellings that are empty 4.34

Source: LGMSB Service Indicators Reports 2007


Appendix 4

49

2008 Vacant Dwellings

Dwellings that are vacant excluding those subject to major refurbishment

2008 %








Dublin City Council 3.08 769





























Percentage of dwellings that are empty 3.24



Appendix 5

50

2007 Vacant Dwellings Available for Re-letting

Empty dwellings available for lettingexcluding those subject to refurbishment

2007 %




Clare County Council 20 15





Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council 32 14



Galway County Council 44 39






Limerick City Council 73 21



Louth County Council 4 2

Mayo County Council 39 27

Meath County Council 51 51




Roscommon County Council 37 17

Sligo County Council 21 18

South Dublin County Council 40 33








Percentage available for re-letting 30.05



Appendix 6

51

2008 Vacant Dwellings Available for Re-letting

Empty dwellings available for lettingexcluding those subject to refurbishment

2008 %





































Percentage available for re-letting 36.93



Appendix 7

52

2008 Average Time Taken to Re-let a Dwelling

Average time taken in weeks to re-let dwellings in 2008

RepairsPeriod

LettingPeriod

Total

Carlow County Council 13.84 4.51 18.35

Cavan County Council 5 5.12 10.12

Clare County Council 23.78 8.13 31.91

Cork City Council 18.32 7.03 25.35

Cork County Council 9 3 12

Donegal County Council 18 9 27

Dublin City Council 21.77 4 25.77

Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council 7.49 14.87 22.36

Fingal County Council 14 6 20

Galway City Council 3.91 2 5.91

Galway County Council 45 2.6 47.6

Kerry County Council 8.92 27.56 36.48

Kildare County Council 14.3 4 18.3

Kilkenny County Council 55.96 8.88 64.84

Laois County Council 9 2 11

Leitrim County Council 15.67 1.99 17.66

Limerick City Council 1.62 1.93 3.55

Limerick County Council 27.12 6.05 33.17

Longford County Council 1 1 2

Louth County Council 8 3 11


Meath County Council 12.39 4 16.39

Monaghan County Council 10.9 3.79 14.69

North Tipperary County Council 17.33 2.98 20.31

Offaly County Council 6.65 3.42 10.07

Roscommon County Council 25.5 17.34 42.84

Sligo County Council 54 3 57

South Dublin County Council 15.43 1.4 16.83

South Tipperary County Council 4.8 5.06 9.86

Waterford City Council 33.65 1.76 35.41

Waterford County Council 12.46 21 33.46

Westmeath County Council 6.17 3.95 10.12

Wexford County Council 12 3 15

Wicklow County Council 13.14 3.19 16.33

Average 16.56 5.87 22.43



Appendix 8

53

2007 and 2008 Percentage of Housing Repairs Completed

Number of repairs completed as a percentage ofthe number of valid repair requests received

2007 2008

Carlow County Council 94.4 94.27

Cavan County Council 71.7 78.38

Clare County Council 91 94.95

Cork City Council 99.3 93.24

Cork County Council 75 87.81

Donegal County Council 95 93.2

Dublin City Council 83.2 85.53

Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council 84.8 99.83

Fingal County Council 98.9 98.15

Galway City Council 84.7 99.88

Galway County Council 65 70.02

Kerry County Council 94.8 97.03

Kildare County Council 93 98.92

Kilkenny County Council 60.7 65.54

Laois County Council 92.9 92.22

Leitrim County Council 92.7 92.95

Limerick City Council 96 88.3

Limerick County Council 80.4 85.24

Longford County Council 90.7 94.86

Louth County Council 95 96.19

Mayo County Council 85.9 85.42

Meath County Council 89.7 94.54


North Tipperary County Council 89.6 92.48

Offaly County Council 90.9 95.06

Roscommon County Council 62.7 79.42

Sligo County Council 86 89.95

South Dublin County Council 96.4 97.78

South Tipperary County Council 89.5 88.65

Waterford City Council 96.3 94.52

Waterford County Council 82.3 91.72

Westmeath County Council 90.6 91.85

Wexford County Council 95.6 90.18

Wicklow County Council 84.8 94.92



Appendix 9

54

Pre Tenancy Training Courses

2008 Pre-Tenancy Familiarisation CoursesNumber of NewTenants

PercentageOfferedCourses

NumberOfferedCourses

Carlow County Council 87 51.7 45

Cavan County Council 277 96.8 268

Clare County Council 229 100 229

Cork City Council 413 18.6 77

Cork County Council 544 90.3 491

Donegal County Council 318 94.7 301

Dublin City Council 902 51.4 464

Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council 112 43.8 49

Fingal County Council 329 100 329

Galway City Council 193 35.8 69

Galway County Council 202 100 202

Kerry County Council 295 80 236

Kildare County Council 204 100 204

Kilkenny County Council 392 100 392

Laois County Council 168 43.5 73


Limerick City Council 97 100 97

Limerick County Council 194 63.4 123

Longford County Council 213 63.9 136

Louth County Council 406 100 406


Meath County Council 255 100 255

Monaghan County Council 122 88.5 108

North Tipperary County Council 135 91.9 124

Offaly County Council 145 93.1 135

Roscommon County Council 131 64.9 85

Sligo County Council 185 100 185

South Dublin County Council 542 55.2 299

South Tipperary County Council 267 95.9 256

Waterford City Council 400 100 400

Waterford County Council 153 100 153

Westmeath County Council 183 100 183

Wexford County Council 88 94.3 83

Wicklow County Council 246 67.1 165

Average 255 79.22 202

Source: LGMSB Service Indicators Reports 2008_____________________________________________________________________Local Government Audit Service, VFM Unit

County and City Managers’ Association (CCMA) Submission

1. Issue: Difficulty in locating contractors to complete refurbishment/repairs to

dwellings. Up until very recently, local authorities were experiencing acute

difficulty in getting contractors to carry out refurbishment/repairs to dwellings.

Action: Given the downturn in the construction industry, contractors are now more

readily available and repairs are being completed in faster timeframes. This will

have a positive impact on the situation.

2. Issue: Refusal to accept a dwelling -for some dwellings there may be a number of

refusals before a tenant is found.

Action: As already indicated, many local authorities now operate a refusals policy, so

that, if a potential tenant on the waiting list refuses two or more dwellings

offered to them, they are then relocated down the waiting list for a period of

time, usually one to two years.

3. Issue: Expectations of prospective tenants: second-hand dwellings are expected to be

of the standard of a new-build.

Action: Where possible local authorities carry out refurbishment/repairs to ensure that

the standard of the dwelling compares well with a new unit. However local

authorities report that expectations among those on the waiting lists mean that

many will not accept a “second-hand unit”. This may lead to refusals and thus

lengthens the time taken to re-let the dwellings. Prospective tenants may be

aware of the plans of the authorities for new houses or indeed even in relation

to houses coming on stream under Part V, and this may influence their

behaviour. Again, in this situation, authorities may enforce a refusals policy,

similar to that mentioned above.

4. Issue: The extent of work that may be required to bring the dwelling up to standard.

Action: Local authorities try to improve the standard of houses prior to letting. This can

involve:

• Repainting walls;

• Cleaning out rubbish;

• Cleaning the property internally;

• Replacing fixtures, fittings and white goods which may have been

removed/damaged by previous tenants e.g. kitchen and bathroom

units;

• Changing locks;

• Replacing doors;

• Replacement of sanitary facilities.

In addition, the opportunity may be taken to:

• Install central heating systems and /or fire safety systems;

• Service boilers/ranges.

Appendix 10

55


Appendix 10 contd.

56


5. Issue: Transfers for tenants -Local authorities have identified what might be regarded

as unnecessary transfers, i.e. discretionary moves of tenants from one dwelling

to another as quite costly in money and time.

Action: Some local authorities do not allow transfers, except in certain circumstances

e.g. tenants fearing for their safety, disability needs, etc.

6. Issue: Significant damage from vandalism can occur where a dwelling has been

refurbished but before a tenant has taken up occupation.

Action: Dwellings are only refurbished once a tenant has been identified by the local

authority and this means that the tenant will move in immediately the work is

completed.

7. Issue: Personal factors affecting the length of time to re-let.

Action: Where the death has occurred of a tenant, the family of the deceased is normally

given a short period of time e.g. four to six weeks to dispose of the deceased

person’s furnishings and belongings. In some cases, the family may be reluctant

to hand back the keys and this requires sensitive but firm pressure from the

local authority to resolve the matter. Again, this may take some weeks to

resolve, but is handled appropriately by authorities.

8. Issue: Dispute regarding automatic right of tenancy for family of deceased tenants.

Action: Family members may feel that they have automatic rights to tenancy where a

deceased relation has been tenant. This can often result in legal proceedings

which can take a considerable time to bring to a conclusion.

9. Issue: Designated housing for the elderly can be vacant on an ongoing basis as

prospective tenants are not inclined to accept certain such accommodation and

are prepared to wait for one-bed units: again this is an example of prospective

tenant having legitimate increased expectations.

Northern Ireland Housing Executive

As part of the research a visit was undertaken to the Northern Ireland Housing Executive

(NIHE). The NIHE is a non-departmental public body established by the Housing Executive Act

(Northern Ireland). Under the Act the NIHE took over the housing responsibilities of 65 separate

authorities and became Northern Ireland’s overall housing authority. The NIHE has a budget of

£600m and a staff of over 3,000. The work the NIHE carries out with communities on housing

services and the issues that affect local neighbourhoods adds real value to decision making,

service development and higher standards. The level of vacant dwellings under the jurisdiction

of the NIHE at 31 March 2008 and 2009 was as follows.

Table 16 NIHE level of Vacant Dwellings

The NIHE put in place a number of measures to address the problem of vacant dwellings and

these include:

• Estate strategies which involve improvement, sale and/or selective demolition

• Marketing community safety and anti-blight measures in public sector estates, including

use of alarm systems, the appointment of neighbourhood wardens and other security

measures

• More intensive management such as the implementation of caretaker services where

necessary

• An information pack is issued to tenants setting out :- their rights and responsibilities, a

customer charter and the general conditions of tenancy

• The 35 local district councils which are located throughout the province operate a 24

hour 7 day repair response service and they can be contacted by phone, online or by a

visit to a district office.

During the meetings held with the NIHE personnel they stated that there is a great deal of

interaction between the NIHE and local community groups and tenants representatives.

Meetings are held at local, district and national level where problems identified on the ground

can be tackled with the help of the local community.

Repair work for the NIHE is carried out on a contract basis. The NIHE is responsible for the

tendering process and the award of the contracts. Contracts are awarded for particular districts

and last for four years. A schedule of costs is agreed with the contractor and all invoices are paid

on this basis. Tenants are surveyed following the repair work and the results of these surveys

are published annually.

Appendix 11

57

YearNo. of

DwellingsVacant

Dwellings% Vacant

Dwellings

31 March 2008 90,551 1,150 1.27%

31 March 2009 90,500 1,152 1.27%


58

Appendix 11 contd.

Key performance and management information is published on a monthly basis. Performance is

assessed under the following:

• Housing sales

• Total rent/rate arrears

• Housing applications - % processed within target

• Voids by category

• Maintenance performance statistics

• Maintenance KPI summaries

• Customer perceived service failure statistics.

Key management information is produced on the following:

• Homelessness

• Response to maintenance requests

• Anti social behaviour cases recorded by district.

Statistics are also produced annually comparing all housing authorities in the United Kingdom

over a range of performance measures.

The NIHE also produce an annual report called “Continuous Tenant Omnibus Survey” which

gives details of the result of surveys of tenants under the following headings:

- Characteristics of Housing Executive Dwellings

- Household Characteristics

- Housing History and Satisfaction with Home

- Tenant Contact with the Housing Executive

- Home Repairs

- Anti Social Behaviour/Formal Complaints Procedure

- Housing Executive Services

- Attitudes to Home and Estate

- Standards of Service Delivery

- Religion and Service Delivery

- Client Response.


Documents

Value for Money Unit Local Government Audit Service ... for Money Unit Local Government Audit Service Management and Maintenance of Vacant Dwellings in Local Authorities Report No