Decision details

Date of Decision:

28 November 2023

Housing SMT – 25 May 2022

ASC, Housing & Public Health DLT – 30 August 2022

Title:

10 Properties leased to South Yorkshire Housing Association (SYHA), subleased to Rush and Roundabout

Decision Maker:

(Including Job Title)

Simon Moss

Assistant Director, Planning, Regeneration and Transport

Details of Specific Committee Delegation

or Delegation contained in the relevant Sub-Scheme of Delegation.

Section 42 of Financial Procurement Procedurals.

Decision:

To end 10 leases with South Yorkshire Housing Association, 5 of which are sub-leased to Rush and 5 are sub-leased to Roundabout.  Re-issue new leases directly with Rush and Roundabout

Reasons for the Decision:

South Yorkshire Housing Association would like to terminate these leases. 

All parties would prefer not to evict the existing tenants who are vulnerable young people at risk of homelessness.

Where the decision is made under specific delegation from a decision making body, the names of any member of the relevant body who has declared a conflict of interest in relation to the decision and name of the body granting the specific delegation and the date when it did so:

None.

Reports or parts of reports considered

The report of the Directorate Leadership Team, Adult Care, Housing and Public Health.

10 Properties leased to South Yorkshire Housing Association (SYHA), subleased to Rush and Roundabout.

30 August 2022

SYHA wishes to withdraw from the lease arrangements with the Council and asked if it would be possible for the Council to lease these properties directly to Rush and Roundabout.  This would prevent Rush and Roundabout serving notice on their tenants prior to handing the vacant properties back to the Council.

SYHA’s role is to collect rent from Rush and Roundabout (currently paid one year in advance) and carry out repairs.

All organisations involved would prefer not to displace the properties’ existing occupants.

Legal

Conversations with Legal Services have confirmed that terminating the leases, which expired in 2014, is straightforward and should be carefully coordinated with issuing new leases to Rush and Roundabout. 

If new leases are issued with Rush and Roundabout, they would;

·       Charge the equivalent of social housing rent, and increase annually in line with the Council’s annual increases of social housing rent

·       Ask Rush and Roundabout to pay the rent either monthly or annually, in advance, whichever is preferred by the Council (they currently pay SYHA annually, in advance)

·       State that the Council would retain responsibility for capital works - responsibility for revenue works/day to day repairs would sit with Rush and Roundabout

·       Include provision for RMBC staff to inspect the properties annually, and prior to handover

Procurement and Commissioning

Colleagues in Commissioning have confirmed that Rush and Roundabout currently provide commissioned services to the Council through Adults Housing Related Support Services (Roundabout) and the Children and Young People’s Flexible Purchasing System (Rush and Roundabout).

·       Rush is commissioned to provide support with accommodation and uses the five properties they lease from SYHA to meet that commissioned service.

·       Rush and Roundabout have the opportunity to provide support services/ accommodation and support through the Children and Young People’s Flexible Purchasing System.

·       Both Rush and Roundabout have confirmed that they would like to go ahead and directly lease from the Council even if they were not successful in continuing to provide services for the Council in the future.

Risks

Not issuing leases with Rush and Roundabout

If the leases are not issued directly to Rush and Roundabout, SYHA will give notice to Rush and Roundabout who will vacate the properties prior to SYHA returning the properties to the Council.

There would be a negative impact on the young people living in the properties if the properties were to be returned to the Council.  The people living there receive support from Rush and Roundabout and are not yet ready to live independently.  There is high probability that taking the properties back from SYHA would lead to the young tenants re-presenting as homeless as the required number of homes with support into which they could move, is unlikely to be available.

Seamless transfer of leases

The transfer of the leases from SYHA to Rush and Roundabout must be seamless to avoid the occupants becoming tenants of the Council as this would significantly change the Council/tenant relationship and the tenants’ rights.

The new leases would be agreed and signed well in advance of the lease transfer date.

Rush and/or Roundabout are not successful in delivering further support services/ accommodation for the Council

It is envisaged that the Children’s Flexible Purchasing System will be used for 10 years, but the length of the contracts awarded may vary. 

Providing a service through the Children’s Flexible Purchasing System does not guarantee future work but the listed providers are expected to provide support and accommodation when called upon – this applies to Rush and Roundabout.

Losing the five properties they each lease from SYHA could result in Rush and Roundabout not having the accommodation needed to provide the requested support to the borough’s young residents.

In the unlikely event of Rush and Roundabout not providing support and accommodation through the Children’s Flexible Purchasing System, they will continue to provide support and accommodation to the borough’s young, vulnerable people, at risk of homelessness.