Winter tenants’ conference online hit!

This year’s event had an environmental theme with many presentations covering how we’re tackling climate change and looking towards a more sustainable future.

The annual winter conference is a chance to find out the latest news about the housing service and our plans for the future that could benefit your home or council neighbourhood.

If you missed the online event, don’t worry. Here’s a taster of what was discussed on the evening and you can read all the presentations in full on our conferences website.

A presentation on the housing budget gave an insight into how your rent and service charge money is spent. These bills paid by tenants and leaseholders are paid into the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) to fund repairs and maintenance of council homes. The HRA is ring-fenced for housing costs and cannot be spent on other council services like waste collection, social care or planning.

Residents who live in blocks pay a service charge which covers things like the concierge and door entry system, block cleaning, wardens, and grounds maintenance. In supported housing the service charge covers community alarm, support and Telecare.

Both rent and service charges will be frozen this year and will see no increase, meaning the average rent for 2022/23 remains at £86.81. However, tenants who are on the landlord-controlled heating system will see a rise in this cost, which reflects significant energy price rises from our suppliers. Despite the rent freeze we have committed to spend an additional £2 million on routine maintenance costs and to ensure we meet forthcoming fire and building safety legislation.

A presentation on the Greener City explained how we plan to work with local communities to create 25 new meadows over the next five years. The urban wildflower meadows will not only look beautiful, but will provide sustainable habitats for wildlife, encouraging more birds and insects into the city. One of the new mini meadows is already taking shape in Harefield where local residents have lent a hand to plant wildflowers on the verge in Somerset Avenue.  The new meadows are just one of the ways we are working to tackle environmental issues in Southampton as part of our plan to create a Greener City.

Staying on the issue of tackling environmental issues, our contractor Travis Perkins gave a presentation about their commitment to sustainability. The organisation is working with us to lower carbon emissions and use more sustainable products in repairs carried out in council properties.  We’re also looking to make properties more energy efficient by improving insulation which will help keep homes warmer and lower fuel bills.

Other presentations on the evening included information on our bid to become UK City of Culture in 2025 and plans for the Queens’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations this summer. Watch the video of the event in full online on our conferences website.

Our next tenants’ conference will take place in the summer.