Agenda item

Presentation on Covid-19 by Portfolio Holders and Questions from Members and Answers

Portfolio Holder briefing note attached.

 

Portfolio Holder for Supporting People – Councillor Morse

Portfolio Holder for Council Development and Services – Councillor Wright

 

Details of questions from Members relating to the two Portfolios above on Covid-19 issues only should be notified to the Corporate Manager Democratic and Civic Support by 10.00am the Monday before the meeting – 22 June 2020.

 

Minutes:

The Chair invited the two Portfolio Holders to present their respective briefing notes.

 

The schedule of questions from Members submitted in advance of the meeting, together with the answers provided at the meeting are set out in the appendix to these minutes. The supplementary questions and answers given at the meeting are set out below for each Portfolio.

 

Portfolio Holder for Supporting People - Councillor Morse - in presenting her briefing note referred to the necessary closure of the Customer First area and the on-going support for vulnerable people made possible by the continuing commitment and hard work of Customer First, Housing, Public Health and HMO Licensing staff.

 

Responses to supplementary questions arising from the original questions from the Committee Members indicated.

 

1              Councillor K. Mitchell - Are there any additional initiatives planned in respect of rough sleeping due to the Covid-19 outbreak?

 

Is the funding anticipated from the Government ring fenced?

·                     Regular contact is made with the Homelessness Advisory Support Team tor updates on when the additional funding recently announced, as well as the previous funding for the Rough Sleeper initiatives, can be expected, details of which will be circulated when known. Both funds are ring fenced.

 

     2     Councillor K. Mitchell - What initiatives are to be taken with regard to rough sleepers particularly in the City Centre and will other Members be involved?

            Is priority given to rough sleepers from the Exeter area?

 

·                     although every effort was made to house rough sleepers at the Great Western Hotel, not all agreed to be housed and some who were accommodated did not remain. Robust outreach work with this cohort continues to offer alternative accommodation and all Members will be appraised of progress;

·                     contact is made with the respective local authorities and their local agencies regarding those sleeping rough in Exeter who are not from this area in order to seek their return to their local connection. Regard is had to avoid unnecessary travel during the crisis and to help disease control;

·                     highly experienced staff work with the homeless, often with a detailed knowledge of an individual’s particular circumstances, including potential risks to those cases of domestic abuse. In these circumstances, contact is made with the relevant agencies to ensure the safe return of the individuals when the time is appropriate;

·                     figures will be provided on homeless numbers; and

·                     it would have been helpful for the Government to have followed its announcement on the availability of extra funding with detailed information on the scheme including the timing of the release of funds.

 

3          Councillor K. Mitchell and Councillor M. Mitchell - Should any future guidance to private sector landlords come from the City Council rather than a range of other agencies who also offer guidelines in respect of this sector?

 

Given the existence of some particularly poorly managed properties will discussions, including a roadshow, be held with the University prior to its re-opening later this year for lessons to be learnt and good practise reinforced?

 

·                     the City Council is not in a position to provide guidance on Covid-19 related matters to the University in respect of private sector landlords but regular meetings are held with those who wish to engage;

·                     the Government has prevented evictions during the present crisis; and

·                     funding for a private sector “renting minefield” roadshow came from a one-off Government grant and it is not possible to support a further roadshow from the Council’s current budget. Accept the existence of poorly managed accommodation which the City Council, through its HMO licensing powers, seeks to address.

 

4          Councillor K. Mitchell - Can local Members be regularly updated on meetings held with the University of Exeter on student related issues in the community?

 

·                     officers will be requested to ensure this occurs.

 

5          Councillor K. Mitchell - Can arrangements be made for a virtual meeting with the Exeter St. James Forum regarding issues arising from the COVID Lockdown?
 

·                     there is regular dialogue with the St. James Forum both by myself and other agencies such as the Police and the University on the issues that have arisen during the Lockdown.

 

6          Councillor M. Mitchell - Is there a specific recovery plan to assist those business tenants within the City Council’s property portfolio?

 

·                     there is a specific recovery plan for businesses.

 

Responses to supplementary questions arising from the original questions from the other Council Members indicated.

 

1          Councillor J. Moore – Can a specific policy be incorporated into existing procedures to guarantee that everyone is housed in case there is another Lockdown?

 

·                     although every effort is made to support the homeless, those who are no longer in emergency accommodation and all others who found themselves in this position before this crisis, often have complex issues so it is not always possible to find suitable accommodation and, as such, a written policy would not be practical. The City Council works within its own local policy but this is in the context of national legislation. A legislative change would be necessary to seek to ensure no one is homeless in the event of a further Lockdown.

 

2              Councillor J. Moore - can all debts of those vulnerable people housed temporarily at the Great Western Hotel be written off?

Can the City Council write off any debt incurred through failure to pay the service charge?

 

·                     on providing accommodation at the Hotel, all those re-housed were advised of the nature and re-payment staging of the service charge. The charge was not backdated;

·                     all received three meals a day and the charge is in line with that for other temporary accommodation units across the city, so an exemption for those who stayed in the hotel would not have been equitable;

·                     those who remained in financial difficulties were referred to the Exeter Wellbeing Hub for support and can also avail themselves of the money management advice through the Council and its partners;

·                     any remaining debt would not prejudice future options for housing in move-on accommodation;

·                     whilst benefitting financially, the Great Western Hotel, unlike some Hotel chains, was prepared to assist. An agreement was reached with the hotel on its, and the Council’s, respective responsibilities to make good any damage etc.; and

·                     the Council has a debt recovery policy.

 

3              Councillor D. Moore - When will the additional funding be provided and when does the accommodation in the Great Western Hotel end and the move to the Junction of those accommodated there commence? As Portfolio Holder can you highlight what has gone well in response to the Covid-19 pandemic and what lessons can be learnt for the future?

·                     accommodation costs until the end of August are budgeted for within the service, thereafter other budget options will be assessed to seek to continue the housing of this cohort which may therefore impact on other areas of the service. It is hoped that there will be a smooth transition into alternative accommodation. It is hoped that the Government funding will be made available before the end of August but it is not expected to be sufficient to meet the significant additional costs incurred by local authorities during the Covid-19 crisis;

·                     a move on plan for each individual is being developed with community and voluntary sector partners and others to identify, creatively, alternative means of accommodation;

·                     this local authority has done all that has been asked of it and has responded in an exemplar fashion, developing its response even before central Government guidance had been provided. Significant additional work was taken on, particularly by the Customer Service staff who had been moved across to welfare support at the Exeter Wellbeing Hub and the private sector rental team. A greater lead in time was necessary in preparing a secure business support grant system.

 

Portfolio Holder for Council Housing Development and Services – Councillor Wright – in presented her briefing note highlighted the following:-

 

·                     continuing development work to meet the target of the 500 new homes delivery target for the Housing Revenue Account;

·                     work had commenced on the Laings development site; and

·                     good progress was being made on the Extra Care scheme/Bovemoors Lane development

 

Responses to supplementary questions arising from the original questions from another Council Member indicated.

 

1          Councillor D. Moore - Can the Council guarantee that there will be continued support to all vulnerable individuals when the Government’s current initiatives during the Covid-19 crisis such as preventing evictions by landlords are lifted?

            What is the current level of income recovery?

 

·                     the City Council remains committed to continuing its support to all those who are vulnerable at this period guided by its existing policies with clear practices to assist those who become homeless and/or fall into debt;

·                     support for the homeless needs to be considered within the context of the severe financial pressure the Council now faces to ensure that services continue as efficiently and cost effectively as possible; and

·                     the Council’s overall financial position, including rate of incoming income, will be presented at a Members’ briefing on 1 July 2020.

 

The Chair, Portfolio Holders and Committee Members asked that their thanks be passed on to staff for their commitment, hard work and significant efforts during the current crisis.

Supporting documents: