Councils that transfer their stock to housing associations are often guilty of neglecting their strategic housing role, an Audit Commission report said this week.
The report, entitled Housing After Transfer: The Local Authority Role, said councils commonly failed to consider how key housing responsibilities – such as the rehousing of homeless people and the development of a housing strategy – will be fulfilled after transfer.

The findings came as councils were digesting last week's announcement, as part of the Local Government Bill, that they would have to draw up detailed annual housing strategies in order to focus more on their statutory housing role.

The plans to establish such a duty – which will force local authorities to look at both public and private sector housing – have been interpreted by the sector as a sign of housing's growing political importance at local government level.

Audit Commission controller Sir Andrew Foster said: "In the run-up to stock transfer, councils tend to invest a great deal of their energies in planning the new housing association and thinking about the council's ongoing housing role can often fall by the wayside.

"Councils should view stock transfer as a beginning, not an end."

Councils should view stock transfer as a beginning, not an end

Sir Andrew Foster, controller, Audit Commission

The report also said councils should be better prepared for the changes in their relationship with the new housing association after transfer.

It said local authorities should adjust their working practices to improve cooperation with transfer housing associations, which often become the largest local social housing providers following stock transfer.

Gwyneth Taylor, programme manager for the Local Government Association, said: "Problems can arise between councils and the transfer association over homeless nominations.

Source

Housing Today