Entries tagged with “housing” from Working For Walthamstow

Iain Duncan Smith MP and Stella Creasy MP said in a joint statement:

"We are very disappointed that L&Q has rejected Bob Morton's offer without meeting him beforehand. L&Q now need to answer some very serious questions. On what grounds did they reject a bid without even meeting the bidder to discuss his proposals? Why do L&Q challenge Bob Morton's offer on the basis of its "planning viability"? How would the "planning viability" of L&Q's own proposals be different from that of Bob Morton's? L&Q state that Bob Morton's offer was "well short of the current market valuation and potential of the site". What then is the current market valuation of the site?"

"We are both committed to securing a future for the stadium and are meeting Ministers at the DCLG shortly to discuss this. We will also be seeking to make representations to the HCA about this. L&Q's conduct with regard to Bob Morton's offer - and in general - is not in keeping with the spirit of our meeting with the Chief Executive last month and is not characteristic of a housing association which is committed to the needs and wishes of the local community."

Last week we saw the Queen's speech setting out the legislative agenda for the coming Parliament. Behind the Bills which caught the headlines there were also some less well reported proposals worth noting. For example, I know from my own work with groups in Walthamstow about our need for more facilities for young adults so I was pleased that the Dormant Funds Bill will allow the use of unclaimed assets in bank accounts to support a youth facility in every constituency. It is proposed this will be administered by the Lottery, although it not clear at present whether this would be used as revenue to support outreach work, or for capital investment in buildings and premises. As these issues are resolved, its a piece of legislation and a pot of funding which I'll be watching developments around closely. I'll also be seeking to ensure young adults are involved in designing and deciding how the money is spent.

So too the establishment of the independent regulator for social housing landlords will affect many local residents who are tenants of our local social housing associations. Due to come into force in 2009, the new office will take on the regulatory powers of the Housing Corporation and could also force badly performing associations to hand over the management or ownership of their homes, trigger inspections and issue improvement notices. Having set up several tenants groups working with our local social landlords over my years as a councillor I'm keen for tenants to be given greater powers to hold these bodies to account. You can read the full text of the Queen's speech here. Let me know what you think.

The Waltham Forest Churches nightshelter has been going since 1996 and in 2005 moved to its present home at 740 Forest Road. To give you an idea of the difference it makes to some of the most vulnerable people in our borough in the last two years alone it has helped over 315 homeless people in Waltham Forest. Of those it has substantial success supporting residents to find a safe and secure place to live including returning 77 to their friends and family, 94 into private accommodation and 34 into supported housing. Whatever the weather there is always a waiting list for a place at the shelter during the night,and the day centre is often packed out. Indeed, during 2006 alone over 15,000 people made visits to the day centre. The shelter isn't just somewhere warm to go; it also acts as an access point for resources for many homeless people in our borough, offering services ranging from healthcare assistance, skills training and mental health outreach support to laundry and washing facilities. It is run mostly by volunteers, with over 200 from 25 churches across the borough, and 16 members of staff including a resettlement worker and night staff. It is funded by a range of sources including the Council and national Government, but like many local volunteer-led projects continually needs to raise funds to keep going. To give you a sense of the money they need to raise, on Saturday I took part in a fundraising quiz which raised over £600 for the shelter- enough to keep the day centre open for a weekend. Just £3 would fund a hot meal a resident for a week and £15 would pay for an hour's literacy lesson to be provided. The team are always looking for more donations either of time or money so if you can help support this project either through making a donation or through volunteering at the centre yourself please do get in touch.  

Having a safe and secure place you can call home is vital part of wellbeing. If the last ten years of a Labour Government was shaped by the need to make the case for public service investment, I believe the next ten will be dominated by questions of quality of life and equality of life chances. For me housing is at the heart of these concerns. Whether the provision of more affordable and social housing, the impact it has on our economy and family income levels or the importance it has to sustainable development and regeneration, the cost of living is fundamental to creating a more socially just future for many people in Walthamstow and the UK. 

As a politician I don't believe you can simply wait for others to come up with solutions to these issues; you have to be capable of problem solving yourself if you're to be effective.  My experience of working locally tells me still too many people  find themselves caught in the quirks of our system which put their tenancies and homes at risk so I've been exploring options to address these issues. On the campaigns pages here you'll find out details of the work I'm doing on the difficulties caused by being housed out of borough with the Citizens Advice Bureau. I'm also a supporter of the Foyer Federation's work challenging the 16 hour rule which affects many vulnerable young people. Yesterday my discussions with a local resident raised another issue. Anyone who goes on a training course finds their housing benefit automatically ends at the end of the course meaning a new claim has to be made which can take weeks to process. This can lead to rent arrears and so acts as a massive disincentive to gain training or skills yet we know that these can be critical to securing employment. I'll be meeting with Shelter soon to discuss these problems and more - if you have other examples or issues you think are relevant get in touch, I'd be interested to hear about them.