Issue - meetings

Purpose of report

To consider the updated Tenancy Agreement for tenants living in Council owned properties.

Decision

That Cabinet:

1.    Approve the revised tenancy agreement.

2.    Delegate authority to the Director of Housing and Projects in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Housing to make minor changes to the Policy (such as grammar and formatting).

Other options considered

Not reviewing the tenancy agreement would have led to updates such as the domestic abuse and safeguarding chapters not being included. Opportunities such as the proposed change to the rent collection period would have also been missed.

Reasons for the decision

The resolution to approve the proposed revised tenancy agreement was made to ensure it complied with legislation. It also ensured that SKDC were managing tenancies, properties and neighbourhoods effectively, and ensured the tenancy agreement was easier for tenants to read and understand.

The agreement was last reviewed in 2020. Several changes were included to ensure compliance with current legislation.

Residents would often refer to ‘free weeks’, which in practice meant that their yearly rent was divided by 48/49 weeks, meaning there were approximately three weeks of the year where no rent was paid. This could have been an issue for people on Universal Credit, which was paid weekly. The new agreement meant that weekly payment amounts would reduce but would be due every week of the year.

All SKDC residents had been consulted on these changes, and further additions to the agreement had been made because of feedback. A letter would be sent to all tenants detailing the agreed changes.

The 52-week rent year would be implemented from April 2027. SKDC was obligated to give residents 28 days’ notice of this change.