Housing Trust Shows How it is Done
A group of 20 tenants, staff and councilors from Three Rivers District Council in Hertfordshire, spent a day with Maidstone Housing Trust to learn all about transferring council homes to a housing association or trust.
Three Rivers Council based in Rickmansworth is in this year's transfer programme approved by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and they are currently in the process of establishing their shadow Board. A ballot of their tenants is planned in March 2007.
Patrick Odling-Smee the Councils Director of Housing & Health thanked the Trust for their support “Learning from the experience of Maidstone in developing a new tenant-driven organisation has been invaluable for us. Our tenants were very impressed with the innovative regeneration schemes and customers involvement with the design of new homes”
Maidstone Housing Trust received more than 6,000 council homes from Maidstone Borough Council in February 2004.
Trust Chief Executive, Peter Stringer, said the group wanted to see at first hand how the transfer was conducted, how the offer to tenants was developed and how Maidstone Housing Trust is now delivering on its promises.
“We took the party to Park Wood to see how our regeneration of the area is progressing and they also saw one of our recently completed kitchen and bathroom refurbishments. I think they were impressed with the progress we had made in two years,”
he said.
The delegation met the directors and key staff members and had informal discussions with three board members of the Trust.
“I am sure they found their day informative and useful as they approach the time when they will be developing their offer to tenants”
said Peter.