d=3,4I have two very naughty words for you: stock transfer.

It means local authorities disposing of their council housing. Once such housing was the very cornerstone of local government activity, certainly for a Labour authority.

Councils made it a top priority to move as many people as possible into council homes.

This was for the high-minded reason they wanted people to have decent homes. And the low-minded reason that if they got enough people living in heavily subsidised council accommodation, a Labour administration would be voted back into power for ever.

Times have changed. Council housing can no longer be subsidised and today the vast estates of poorly-built, ageing housing are proving cripplingly expensive to maintain.

So ways to offload these responsibilities are being developed. The Government looks kindly on the idea of stock transfer. Indeed changes in the way housing is financed means that tenants may be warned that if housing stays with local authorities there will be no money to pay for repairs.

But it is an emotive subject, and few red-blooded politicians can contemplate getting rid of the housing stock, at least not in public. After all, Labour fiercely condemned the sell off of council homes that took place in the Tory years.

A useful word to cover the new approach is partnership'. Spin doctors use such fancy phrases as "ground-breaking partnership deals" it sounds so much nicer. You may recall we've already had a partnership deal for Barnet Council's care homes for the elderly and handicapped.

The partner is the Ealing Family Housing Group. Its annual report spells out the position with some clarity:

"During March 2001 we took over responsibility for all 11 of Barnet Council's care homes for older people involving 370 residents and 350 staff...Ealing Family owns the homes and will be carrying out redevelopment."

I think this is a clearer statement of the position than some of the publicity from the council.

In fairness I should add the report goes on to say Barnet Council will continue to be "involved", but the fact remains the council no longer owns or runs the homes.

Bearing this in mind we must look at what is happening to Barnet's housing stock.

It is a small tribute to Barnet Council's long term record as a landlord that there is such concern among tenants over the ownership of their homes. There is also a sense of security in being council owned. Housing Associations can run into serious problems, as the West Hampstead Association has just done.

Many tenants fear larger rent increases under new ownership but they should brace themselves for significant rises whatever happens.

The Government has set up a voluntary list of authorities wanting to transfer stock. Barnet has not applied to go on this list.

But there is much activity surrounding Barnet's housing stock at present. While no formal decisions have been made, it seems that any new or rebuilt housing will not be council owned.

All councils must bring their housing stock up to a good standard within ten years. The Government is offering some additional help to pay for this. Last year Barnet got £8.5million and a similar sum is expected this year.

No doubt this is welcome, but it is not enough.

Barnet is now preparing partnership deals (how did you guess?) to tackle some of its major estates.

In June this year three regeneration partners were short-listed to work on plans for the Stonegrove/Spur Road estate, Edgware. They are: the Guinness Trust, Family Housing Association and Metropolitan Housing Trust.

This weekend there is to be what the council rather patronisingly describes as a fun Your Choice Your Voice event when residents can see the three schemes and express a preference. After costs have been worked out, the cabinet is due to make the final choice later this month.

Notebook was particularly keen to discover who will own the housing after all these changes.

The town hall says the intention is that existing properties will be retained by the council while the new and rebuilt properties will be owned by the partner housing association. But the statement adds that the housing associations "may identify other options".

The council is in the early stages of developing regeneration schemes for Dollis Valley and West Hendon, but says it is too early to know what the options will be.

At Grahame Park the council has been consulting tenants over five schemes, most include demolishing some tower blocks.

I'm told it could be a ten-year programme that will change the housing mix, with fewer one bedroom flats and more houses.

One resident has complained that attempts are being made to win tenants' support with hints of a new home and a garden. She adds: "The whole scheme relies heavily on demolishing as much of Grahame Park as possible, to sell off to housing association, thereby releasing the council from its responsibility of managing the estate."

Council leader Alan Williams responds that the drive behind the regeneration of Grahame Park has nothing to do with avoiding management responsibilities.

"It has everything to do with modernising and improving living conditions of the many families who live in the area and are totally dissatisfied with their environment."

The council will retain ownership of the existing housing blocks those that survive. The new homes built by a housing association will be for rent or for full or shared ownership. Under the most radical scheme, the number of homes on the estate will increase from 1,800 to 2,400 units.

One aspect of the Grahame Park planning which does not seem to have been well handled concerns the future of the Flightways Centre. It is the only council-run centre in the borough for adults with physical disability. Two of the five alternative plans for the estate include the demolition of the centre.

Not having been informed about this, there is understandably considerable concern among people who rely on Flightways. In fact a Flightways service users action committee (FACT) has been hastily set up. In its manifesto FACT says: "Users were shocked and angered to suddenly discover, by accident, that the two redevelopment plans preferred by the council housing department both involve demolition of the block in which Flightways is housed".

They seek assurances about the future. Some comfort comes in a statement from the cabinet member for social inclusion, Phil Yeomans.

He says: "The council has absolutely no intention of changing the service it currently provides from the Flightways Day Centre.

"As there are flats above the current location, it is possible that a regeneration partner will put forward plans that will affect it.

"If this happens, Flightway users will be fully consulted on options for re-providing the service."

He adds that as many users of the centre live on the estate they should have seen the plans during the general consultation about Grahame Park.

One man watching the developments in Barnet's housing with great interest is the Conservative housing spokesman, Brian Salinger. "Such is the pressure coming from the Government that in the medium term the transfer of council housing to another owner is inevitable," is his verdict.

November 7, 2001 20:44

BILL MONTGOMERY