8:35am Thursday 20th December 2007
By Mike Foster
At this time of year, as we celebrate Christmas, perhaps we should get people to think about the Christmas story and how it might apply to Worcester.
We know about the journey of Mary and Joseph, and no room at the inn. And, quite rightly, we do need to pay extra attention to the plight of those looking for a home – be they on the housing
waiting list, homeless, in bed-and-breakfast or first-time buyers hoping to get on to the property ladder.
So how do we do in Worcester? With house prices nine times the level of an average salary, it is difficult to get into home ownership, so social and affordable housing have a major part to play in
helping local people.
I see on a regular basis families who are desperate for a suitable home. All too often, the only answer they get is to wait. Listening to their stories at first generates sympathy then anger when you
know more should and could be done.
So I was appalled when the recent Audit Commission’s report into the Conservative-run city council was concluded. Of course, the council cut out the bad bits, but I thought it right to share
some of them with you as we settle down for a nice Christmas in front of a warm fire.
Paragraphs 56, 57 and 79 of the report show that receipts from sales of former council houses by Worcester Community Housing were deliberately not used to help build more affordable houses. It
condemns the council for taking three years from the transfer of council houses to a social landlord before they came up with a strategy for delivering more affordable homes.
Paragraph 142 shows how badly the council performs in key areas such as in the relatively high use of bed-and-breakfast accommodation and limited number of empty homes returned to use. The number of
new affordable homes delivered is also low when compared with other councils, and having limited impact when compared with the annual affordable housing shortage in the city.
And perhaps paragraph 160 is the most telling. It describes how within the council “there is a resistance to cross-party engagement – even of members with extensive housing knowledge
– or involvement of other stakeholders such as registered social landlord representatives, despite the obvious relevant expertise that could be utilised.”
So I plead guilty to being angry with my local council for its attitude towards those who are in housing need.
If you feel the Christmas story in Worcester means something to you as well, e-mail me at fosterm@parliament.uk or drop me a line.
Together, I think we can make them do better.
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