The London Borough of Waltham Forest, like all councils who own their own housing stock, must bring its homes up to the Government’s Decent Homes Standard by 2010.

To ensure that we knew which homes were decent and which were not, we undertook a stock condition survey in 2002.

The findings were that 9 out of 10 homes did not meet the Decent Homes Standard. The Council has since then used its capital money to reduce this to just less than 8.4 out of 10 in 2004, a significant change.

Using our 2004 Housing Revenue Account Business Plan, we estimate that it will cost £203.7 million of investment to make our homes decent by 2010. £113 million of investment will be granted to Waltham Forest through traditional funding arrangements leaving a shortfall of £90.7 million.

What are the Housing Options?

Most councils who own housing stock have identified that they will not have sufficient money to deliver decent homes, by 2010, therefore the Government has offered local authorities three options to bridge this funding gap.

  • An Arms Length Management Organisation (ALMO)
    This is a company set up by the Council to deliver its housing management services and improve homes to meet the Decent Homes target. Extra money is available from the Government to fund improvement works if the ALMO is able to achieve at least two stars in a best value review of its services. You would still be a Council tenant. Your home would still be owned by the Council.
  • Stock transfer to a new housing association (also called a 'Registered Social Landlord')
    The management and ownership of council housing would move from Waltham Forest Council to a Registered Social Landlord (RSL). You would no longer be a council tenant. The housing association would be able to borrow private money to improve your homes to meet the Decent Homes Standard.
  • Private Finance Initiative (PFI)
    The Government provides money through the PFI to support partnerships between the public and private sectors. The Council would enter into the PFI agreement with a private company to manage and improve homes to meet the Decent Homes Standard. The Council would still own your home. You would still be a Council tenant.

Some councils may choose to pursue a fourth option which is stay as they are. Under this option the Council would have to meet the Decent Homes Standard from its own resources as no additional Government resources would be made available.

Background to Waltham Forest’s choice Option Appraisal

Waltham Forest began its first options appraisal study in 2001. This document, The London Borough of Waltham ALMO Bid 2002, outlined the options available to tenants and residents at our Housing Strategy Stakeholders Forum.

The options are, as they were then:

  • Maintaining the status quo – no separation or change of who owns and manages the housing stock
  • Arms Length Management Organisation (ALMO)
  • Stock transfer
  • Private Finance Initiative (PFI)

Over a year long period, the authority consulted with tenants, leaseholders and a range of stakeholders on the four options, culminating in a ballot of all tenants in October 2002. In the ballot 85% voted in favour of setting up an ALMO as the vehicle to deliver Decent Homes in Waltham Forest.

Within The London Borough of Waltham Forest ALMO Bid 2002 it was estimated by HACAS Chapman Hendy, a leading financial consultant, that at least  £68 million of additional ALMO funding to deliver Decent Homes would be required.

Your choice of delivering decent homes through an ALMO resulted in Ascham Homes starting work in May 2003. Ascham Homes is a constituted company set up by Waltham Forest Council to manage its housing stock.

Constituted with its own management structure, Ascham Homes has fifteen directors:

  • Seven tenant representatives
  • Four Council members, and
  • Four independent individuals who have expertise in relevant fields

Ascham Homes (ALMO) received a two star rating from the Audit Commission after the best value review of their housing  management service in 2006. You can see a copy of the Audit Commission inspection report by clicking here.

Future management of Council housing

Through your Tenants Council, your Tenant Investment Working Party, your Area Contract Panels and leaseholder forums you have expressed a desire to remain council tenants and support Ascham Homes, your ALMO, in their drive towards delivering the national decent homes target.

The Council is committed to canvassing the views of as many residents as possible to ensure that you have the information necessary to make the right choice. All of your views will be taken into consideration when making a final decision on whether Waltham Forest in partnership with Ascham Homes should make a bid for funding under round five of the National ALMO programme.

Moving on from 2002, the Council has re evaluated the Government options available to deliver the Decent Homes Standard. It has carried out:

  • A stock condition update which shows that with works carried in the past year the authority now has 84% of its stock Non-Decent
  • A financial appraisal, by HACAS Chapman Hendy, which identified a £90.7 million gap in the resources available to the Council to deliver the Decent Homes Standard
  • This financial appraisal, also considered the viability of Waltham Forest Council transferring its stock to an Registered Social Landlord. The appraisal showed that our stock has a negative valuation and is therefore not suitable for transfer

As a result of the evaluation, the Council is recommending to you that the London Borough of Waltham Forest will continue to work with Ascham Homes to make another bid for additional ALMO funding under round five of the National ALMO programme.

This funding would be dependent on Ascham Homes achieving a Two Star (good) rating for its housing service – a target the Council believes it can reach. If successful, money would be invested into improving homes and communities.

The Council believes that the culture change which has taken place in Ascham Homes since the last inspection will help to secure funding needed to reach the Decent Homes standard and give all tenants the quality of homes and housing service they have a right to expect now and in the future.

What is the Decent Homes Standard?

A decent home is one that is wind and weather tight, free from disrepair, warm and has modern facilities.

A Decent Home in Waltham Forest meets the following requirements:

  • Is in a satisfactory state of repair. This includes, wall, roofs, windows, doors
  • Have reasonable modern facilities. This means that the property should have a modern kitchen OR bathroom
  • The home should have reasonable thermal comfort. This means that the home should have effective insulation and an efficient heating system. The target for Waltham Forest is to ensure all homes are centrally heated.

You can find more information on the Decent Homes Standard on the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's website.

What does Decent Homes mean for leaseholders?

Council Tenants and leaseholders have and will be again asked to support the Council’s proposal to make another bid for additional ALMO funding under round five of the National ALMO programme. The council will seek additional consultation with leaseholders through the leaseholder forum.

The value of any home is affected by its location. A home occupied by a leaseholder on an estate that has benefited from investment and that is well managed would be worth more than on a run down estate.

What would happen to service charges?

Service charges would not be adversely affected and your lease would stay with the Council.

How would the management of estates be improved?

  • Quality housing services
    Ascham Homes with Waltham Forest Council are working in partnership to deliver a quality housing service to all residents; the key elements we are aiming to deliver are outlined in the Housing Management Service Plan
  • More and better resident involvement
    Ascham Homes is managed by a Board made up of equal numbers of tenants/leaseholders, Councillors and includes independent people chosen for their specialist skills. Tenants and leaseholders can stand for election and directly influence the way estates are managed. Please visit the Ascham Homes web site for details of its governance structure and its Tenants Compact
  • Stronger partnerships
    Ascham Homes will partner with leading contractors to deliver a cost effective procurement strategy to residents. They will also work closely with a wide range of statutory and community organisations to deliver better co-ordinated services

Rents, rights and entitlements

What would happen to your rents?

As with the previous bid and providing tenants and leaseholders agree with the proposal to re bid for ALMO funding under round five in partnership with Ascham Homes. The Council would still be your landlord, so your rent would continue to be set by the Council.

Currently your rent levels are set by the Council in line with Government guidelines and would continue to be set by the Council even though Ascham Homes manage your homes. Also, the Council can guarantee that tenants and leaseholders would not be charged extra rent for any of the improvement work carried out to homes.

Would my rights and entitlements remain protected?

Yes. you would have the same rights and entitlements you have now – you would remain a tenant of the Council, with a secure tenancy.

You would still be entitled to claim Housing Benefit and, as your home would still be owned by the Council, you would still have the same Right to Buy entitlement as you do now.

Will Ascham Homes still provide the Housing service in a round five ALMO bid with council staff?

The housing staff that provided the service have already moved across to Ascham Homes to deliver improvements to homes and service. Employees’ rights and entitlements have been fully protected. Millions of pounds of extra money to spend on Council homes could lead to the creation of more local construction jobs.

What does this all mean for sheltered schemes?

Tenants can rest assured that their sheltered scheme would be safe, so they would still see the same familiar faces they know and trust.

The sheltered Scheme Managers, who provide such a valuable lifeline to older tenants, would continue to be employed by the Council.

Ascham Homes would be responsible for the management of and improvements to the sheltered schemes, and therefore any repair works that need to take place.

In 2002, staff visited sheltered schemes to talk through the Ascham Homes proposal face-to-face and to giving the opportunity to ask any questions you may have had.

Would improvements be made to sheltered schemes themselves?

If the proposal goes ahead, improvements would be made to those homes in sheltered housing schemes which do not meet the Government’s Decent Homes Standard.

What would stay the same?

If the proposal goes ahead the Council would still be the landlord – the difference is, your homes and sheltered schemes would be managed as they are now by Ascham Homes.

Tenants can rest assured that their sheltered scheme would be safe, so they would still see the same familiar faces they know and trust.

Choice 1: Stay with the Council

What does this mean?
This option was not considered financially viable to achieve decent homes. However as with the Governments requirements to consult tenants and residents on the options available to you, the stay with the council option would probably mean that the Government will not give the additional amount of money needed to fund the Gap to improve your home.

Who will be my landlord?
You would remain with the Council (collecting rents, doing repairs, etc).

How will it affect my tenancy agreement?
Tenancies will remain secure for existing tenants. New tenants will be granted a secure tenancy.

Will my rent be affected?
No. Rents will continue to increase above the rate of inflation, in line with the Government's requirements to equalise rents across voluntary and public sector landlords such as housing associations and councils.

Will I still have the right to buy my property?
Yes. The right to buy will remain the same for both existing and new tenants.

Will tenants be involved in the management of their homes?
The Council will remain committed to improving the level of involvement of tenants in the management of their homes.

Will tenants be involved in the management of their homes?
The Council will remain committed to improving the level of involvement of tenants in the management of their homes. Through the Tenants Investment Working Party and The Tenants Council.

Is this choice reversible?
There is no change to current arrangements for the management of properties.

What will be the impact of Choice 1 on council housing for future generations?
The Council will not have the additional cash it needs to carry out much-needed improvements to The London Borough of Waltham Forests council housing stock. In time, this will also restrict the Council keeping its housing stock in good condition.

Choice 2: The preferred option in 2002
To Arms Length Management Organisation (Ascham Homes)

What does this mean?
The Council does still own your property, but it is managed by a new organisation owned by the Council called an Arms Length Management Organisation (ALMO), or Ascham Homes.

Who is my landlord?
You will remain a Council tenant, though your home will be managed by a new organisation run by a board made up of tenant representatives elected by tenants, local councillors and other independent people with appropriate professional skills.

How will it affect my tenancy agreement?
Tenancies will remain secure for both existing and new tenants.

Will my rent be affected?
No. Rents will continue to increase over the rate of inflation in line with the Government's requirements to equalise rents across voluntary and public sector landlords such as housing associations and councils.

Will I still have the right to buy my property?
Yes. The right to buy will remain the same for both existing and new tenants.

Will tenants be involved in the management of their homes?
The Council will remain committed to improving the level of involvement of tenants in the management of their homes. Through the Tenants Investment Working Party and The Tenants Council.

Ascham Homes has its own governance arrangements where at least a third of the representatives on the board would be tenant representatives periodically elected by tenants.

Ascham Homes will develop consultation through it’s re launched Tenants Compact.

What about repairs and improvements?
There should be more money for repairs and improvements to homes - but only if the new arms length management organisation performs well and meets the required Government standards. Extra money will depend on the organisation delivering improved service.

Is this option reversible?
Yes, but only if the arrangement does not work. However, the Council is not under a legal obligation to ask tenants to vote for this choice.

What will be the impact of this choice on Council housing for future generations?
The new organisation should have the additional cash to reduce the level of outstanding repairs and to carry out improvements to homes, but only if it performs well.

Where do we go from here?

The Government must approve our Options Appraisal during January 2005. The Council will then submit its bid document by 28 January 2005 for ALMO funding.

For the Options Appraisal to be approved, the ODPM must be satisfied that the Council:

  • Has a clear understanding of the condition of its housing stock
  • Has undertaken a financial analysis to identify the cost of making the housing stock decent by 2010 and maintaining it over a 30-year period
  • Has empowered and consulted with tenants, leaseholders and other stakeholders over the options for delivering Decent Homes and for meeting future aspirations
  • Is clear about it’s future needs for affordable housing and how the choice of options will impact upon this

The table below sets out the timetable:

Future timetable of events

  • Options Appraisal
    Presented to Tenants Investment Working Party for approval on 10 January 2005

    Presented to Tenants Council for approval on 12 January 2005

    Approval by Housing Cabinet Member on 20 January 2005

  • ALMO bid
    Submitted to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister by 28 January 2005

  • Assessment of bid
    February–May 2005. Successful bids likely to be announced in May or June 2005 – If successful the authority will get provisional agreement to spend an additional £90.7 million on the stock by 2010

  • Audit Commission Inspection of Ascham Homes
    Summer 2005 – Assuming Ascham Homes is successful in achieving at least two stars in their Best Value Review, then the Council can draw down on the first part of the £90.7 million allocation

  • Start spending the £90.7 million
    If all the stages above are successful, then the Council in partnership with Ascham Homes can start spending the additional resources in September 2005. However this will depend on whether there are sufficient resources left over in the Government’s 2005/6 ALMO programme

    If there are insufficient resources, we can officially start spending in April 2006

  • All homes up to the Decent Homes Standard
    Must be completed before the end of 2010

Useful links

You might find these links provide useful background information

For more information

For more information about Waltham Forest Council's Housing Options Appraisal please contact:

You can download a leaflet about the Housing Options Apprasial by clicking here. The leaflet is a 221Kb Adobe Acrobat file.

This document is produced in PDF format. To view it you may need to download a free copy of Adobe Acrobat Reader.