Agenda item - Residents Question Time

Responses to items raised at the Tenant Only Meeting held on 24 March 2015 (copy attached as ‘blue pages’).

4.1         (item 1- Oxford Street Housing Office) Bob Spacie asked if a decision had been made on a facility for cash payments but residents in the city centre.

4.2         The Head of Income, Involvement & Improvements clarified that that Housing Committee had made a decision to close cash desks earlier in the year and this had been reported to Area Panels. The decision was made on the basis that cash desks were expensive to operate; less people were using them, the high cost of security to transit cash deposits and the introduction of Universal Credit. The Head of Income, Involvement & Improvement added that residents could still use the Paypoint facility and telephone the council to make payments.

4.3         Bob Spacie stated that Housing Offices were useful not only to make payments but also to report issues and make complaints.

4.4         The Head of Income, Involvement & Improvement stated that only Oxford Street Housing Office had closed due to emergency structural risk. Manor Street Housing Office had moved to the Whitehawk Hub, Victoria Street Housing Office was now based in Portslade Town Hall and services from Oxford Street Housing Office were now based at Bartholomew House. The Head of Income, Involvement & Improvement supplemented that across its services the council now received many more enquires via telephone than in person.

4.5         Heather Hayes stated that she had found that elderly residents were increasing using tenant representatives to resolve issues due to Housing Office closures and because they didn’t have internet access.

4.6         The Head of Income, Involvement & Improvement stated that she was sorry to hear tenant representatives time was increasingly pressured and asked that residents be reminded that Housing to arrange to visit residents to discuss any problems and the customer service team via telephone.

4.7         RESOLVED- That the responses provided to the items raised at the Tenant Only meeting be noted.