Newark and Sherwood District Council cabinet consider housing, health and wellbeing compliance report

Enforcement action has been taken to ensure a council’s housing stock’s compliance with gas servicing, oil heating and electrical certificates.

A housing, health and wellbeing compliance report for the third quarter of 2023-24, presented to Newark and Sherwood District Council’s cabinet, has revealed the authority has taken enforcement action through the courts to ensure compliance in a number of its properties.

Its housing service manages 5,535 individual dwellings, 341 blocks and four non-residential units.

Eighteen properties are without a current gas safety certificate, putting the authority’s gas servicing performance at 99.65% compliance.

All 18 are currently in the enforcement process to ensure contractors can gain access to carry out the servicing.

Cabinet member for housing Lee Brazier confirmed the council now has a full gas compliance order action plan going forward.

A further eight properties have not had an oil service completed, and all are again in the enforcement process.

The compliance is at 95.09%.

A total of 41 properties are without a EICR electrical certification of less than five years old, meaning compliance is 95.47%. There are 34 are going through the legal process and the remainder have appointments booked with the tenants for the necessary work to be carried out.

Paul Taylor said: “It appears to me that the courts are causing a problem.”

He questioned if there was any way to speed up the legal processes and time taken to receive paperwork allowing the council to access properties.

Officers assured the council was part of a courts user group where issues such as those had been raised.

All other works are 100% compliant, including heat pump servicing, asbestos surveys, PAT testing, legionella testing, lift, stair lift and hoist testing, play park inspections and tree surveys.

The council has written to the social housing regulator request the removal of a regulatory notice, having improved its performance and received with rating of ‘Reasonable Assurance’ in a recent audit.

It has promised the service will remain under close scrutiny and a report is scheduled for the Audit and Governance committee in April.