‘Vote for us, not transfer,’ Blackpool council tells tenants

Blackpool council is to ballot tenants on the future of its housing stock – but will be recommending they stick with council ownership and management.

In what is believed to be a first, the authority will tell tenants they should reject transfer to a registered social landlord or an arm’s-length management organisation.

A private finance initiative deal has also been ruled out because Blackpool council believes it will have enough cash from the government to meet the decent homes standard by 2010.

To meet the target, £9.4m needs to be spent on the local authority’s 5263 homes.

Earlier this month, the Labour-controlled council, with support from the authority’s Liberal Democrat opposition, voted to ballot tenants and a vote is expected to take place in the next six months.

Councillor Eddie Collett, portfolio holderfor regeneration and tourism, said: “Having looked at large-scale voluntary transfers in other areas, we don’t feel they have been any better for tenants than stopping with the council. The council housing is not in such an awful state that we can’t afford to bring it up to the decent homes standard ourselves.”

Blackpool got two stars out of three in an Audit Commission inspection of its repairs and maintenance service in October 2004.

The council faces opposition to its policy from Conservative councillors and from the Blackpool Tenants’ Steering Group, which was set up as part of the options appraisal.

Members are disappointed that the local authority has not taken up its proposal to recommend transfer to an RSL.

Some are said to doubt that the council has the money to carry out the necessary refurbishments and repairs.

Gwen King, chairman of the Queen’s Park Tenants’ and Residents’ Association, said: “I’m worried tenants will be asked to vote on a very important issue without having the full facts.”

But the council insists the consultation process will give tenants all the information.

Collett said: “We want the tenants to have as much information as possible before they make their mind up. We want this to be seen as a proper and valid consultation and we wouldn’t want to jeopardise that by only putting one side of the argument to them.”

He argued that tenants were tired of being given a mixed message by councils on which way to vote. “We’re absolutely not going to do that,” he said. “We’re going to say ‘we do want you to stay with us. There are things we can do better but we aren’t convinced the housing association option is the best deal for you.’”

The council would obviously respect tenants’ decision, Collett said. But he added: “The sense I get from tenants is that they don’t want to leave the council – they are quite happy with us as the landlord.”