More than 130 homes in the south east London borough of Lewisham successfully transferred from the local authority to Broomleigh Housing Association on 26 January.
Residents on the Orchard Estate in central Lewisham and the Village Court retirement complex in Blackheath are now set to receive major investment in their homes. The work will include implementation of the Decent Homes Standard and other improvements at both locations.
The Orchard Estate comprises 60 tenanted and 47 leasehold properties. Village Court consists of 27 sheltered homes for older people.
In 2008, tenants on both estates were balloted on whether they wished to transfer their homes to Broomleigh Housing. A resounding 92 per cent of residents voted in favour of the transfer, which saw a 74 per cent turnout, one of the highest positive stock transfer ballots in the London area.
Lesley Seary, Executive Director for Customer Services, said: “Lewisham Council believes in a resident-led approach to meeting the investment needs of decent homes and residents on the Orchard Estate and Village Court have been involved in the transfer process from the very start. They chose Broomleigh because it was able to demonstrate strong commitment to resident involvement and decision making. I look forward to the works being carried out on both estates.”
Nick Dudman, Chief Executive of Broomleigh Housing Association, said: “We are really looking forward to working with residents to make the transfer a success and delivering on the promises we made. We hope that residents of Village Court and the Orchard Estate will be pleased with the services we provide.”
Jean Beckley, Chair of the Orchard Estate Resident Board, said “I am absolutely elated that the transfer is now complete. There has been a lot of hard work involved but both Broomleigh and Lewisham Council have made sure everything has gone smoothly. We just felt at home with Broomleigh from the start and are now eagerly anticipating the future.”
Not wasting any time, Broomleigh will be starting work straight away on homes in Village Court, installing new kitchens, bathrooms and double-glazed windows to all 27 flats in the retirement complex. This will be the first phase of Broomleigh’s multi million pound investment.
Ray Heard, Chair of the Village Court Tenants and Residents Association, who has lived in the complex for eight years, said: “Residents can’t wait for everything to happen. The improvement works are going to make a big difference to the people living in the complex and we have been offered a real choice and say on the work we are having done.”
Some of the improvement works planned by Broomleigh include:
- a repair and improvement programme to exceed the requirements of the Decent Homes Standard
- carrying out a series of environmental improvements in the first three years following transfer, including installing boundary fencing and railings and improving estate lighting at both locations, and installation of entry phone systems on the Orchard Estate
- consultation on a programme of security and environmental improvements including new entry phone systems, improved lighting and better boundary fencing and railings
- a new housing office and community facility to be built on the old playground site on the Orchard Estate
Broomleigh (external website) has pledged that rents will remain no higher than if the estates had remained in the Council’s ownership.
Lewisham Council believes in a resident-led approach to meeting the investment needs of decent homes, which includes exploring the possibilities of stock transfer to a Registered Social Landlord (RSL). This is the fifth successful stock transfer in Lewisham. Previous transfers include:
- Two hundred and four homes in Lewisham Park transferred to London & Quadrant in April 2007
- A landmark 5,500 tenanted and 800 leasehold homes transferred from Lewisham Council to the Phoenix Community Housing Association in December 2007
- 1,439 homes in Grove Park transferred to London and Quadrant Housing Trust in July 2008
- Seventy-seven Grade II listed homes on the Foreshore and Albemarle estate in Deptford transferred to Hyde Housing in August 2008.
There are another seven possible stock transfers, either in the process of going to ballot, or due to transfer to an RSL over the next few months.