Meeting documents

Regeneration & Housing Overview & Scrutiny Panel
Monday, 19th November, 2012 10.00 am

Agenda Item

 


Agenda Item No. 6

 

Date: 19 November 2012

                  

 

 

To the Chair and Members of the

REGENERATION & ENVIRONMENT OVERVIEW AND SCRUTINY PANEL.

ST LEGER HOMES OF DONCASTER QUARTERLY MONITORING REPORT – QUARTER TWO 2012/13

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

1.        To inform the Mayor and Members of Executive Board of the latest St Leger Homes of Doncaster (SLHD) performance information. The report highlights the main areas of performance that in quarter two 2012/13 are either off target or of concern.

 

RECOMMENDATIONS

2.               That members:

·          Note the Quarter two performance information

·          Note actions to deal with performance issues

 

PERFORMANCE EXCEPTIONS QUARTER ONE 2012/13

3.               Detailed information is provided in the headline report at Appendix A, providing full details of the performance information.

At the end of Quarter 2, all 5 of the strategic priorities contained within the St Leger Homes Annual Delivery Plan (ADP) are on target (green).

Of the 14 Key Performance Indicators contained within the ADP, 2 are data only, 1 is an annual indicator, 2 are on target (green), 5 are within tolerance (amber) and 4 are out of target (red).

 

Of the 4 out of target indicators performance was as follows:

 

Theme 1: Value for Money

Performance Measure: Percentage of Current Rent Arrears against Annual Debit

Q2 Target: 2.1%

Q2 Performance: 1.88%

Commentary: The number of tenancies in arrears has increased compared to the same period last year, with a specific area of concern being an increase in cases with arrears over £1500. Work is ongoing not only to tackle these cases but also to understand why there is an increase in arrears cases.

 

Theme 1: Value for Money

Performance Measure: Void Rent Loss

Q2 Target: 0.95%

Q2 Performance: 1.08%

Commentary: Year to date void rent loss is below target however, performance month on month has improved. The West of the Borough continues to provide us with the most challenges but the introduction of a pilot scheme for multi viewings on all properties has contributed to a significant performance improvement (1.27% for September compared to 1.64% in August – West area only).

 

We are continuing to look at a number of changes to working practices, which are aimed at improving performance and will continue to further evolve the service during 2012/13, as a result, have set a stretch target to achieve void rent loss of 0.95% by the end of March 2013.

 

Theme 2: Welfare Benefit Reform

Performance Measure: Number of Evictions due to Rent Arrears

Q2 Target: 12

Q2 Performance: 20

Commentary: At the end of quarter two there have been 20 evictions due to rent arrears against a year end target of 25. This level of performance, when compared with our peers as part of the HouseMark benchmarking group, places SLHD 9th out of 22 organisations.

 

We are currently analysing individual cases to better understand how we can improve performance in this area.

 

Theme 6: Additional KPI’s

Performance Measure: Proportion of Planned Repairs against Responsive

Year End Target: 50/50

Q2 Performance: 60/40 (Responsive against Planned)

Commentary: Current performance against this KPI is 60:40 responsive against planned with a year end target of 50:50. A systems thinking review has been carried out in the area of planned repairs. Implementation of the findings is underway with expected completion by year end.

 

 

OPTIONS CONSIDERED

4.               Not applicable.

 

REASONS FOR RECOMMENDED OPTION

5.               Not applicable.

 

IMPACT ON THE COUNCIL’S KEY PRIORITIES

6.                

Priority Theme

Mayor’s Priorities for 2012/13

Implications of this initiative

1. Creating a strong, connected and inclusive economy

·       Drive forward the Doncaster economy

·       Get the balance of public and private transport right

·       Promote Doncaster as a tourist destination

·       Regenerate Doncaster’s town centres

Work of St Leger Homes of Doncaster impacts on all of these initiatives, with implications on the quality of life for Doncaster Council’s tenants and other residents and the communities they live in

3. Increasing and improving housing  

·       Raise housing standards

6. Tackling crime and anti-social behaviour

·       Reduce crime and all forms of anti-social behaviour

7. Creating a cleaner and better environment

·       Continue to protect the environment from developers, decay and architectural vandalism

8. Internal Transformation

·       Ensure local people get value for money from council services

 

Risks & Assumptions

7.               Monitoring the performance of St Leger Homes of Doncaster reduces the risk that required standards will not be achieved and services will continue to improve. 

 

Legal Implications

8.               There are no specific legal implications arising from this report.

 
Financial Implications

9.               There are no direct financial implications arising from this report. However, the report highlights areas that require attention to improve performance, and any additional costs arising from subsequent action, must be contained within the service departments available resources.

 

CONSULTATION

10.           Consultation has taken place with key managers and Directors at Performance Challenge meetings, Finance Monitoring meetings and Management Agreement Liaison Meetings (MALM).

BACKGROUND PAPERS

11.     Appendix A: SLHD 2012 - 13 Delivery Plan Headline Report

CONCLUSIONS

12.     The presentation of specific performance information relevant to each           Overview & Scrutiny Panel on a quarterly basis is a major part of ensuring           that this occurs

REPORT AUTHOR

Ian Brittain, Performance and Improvement Service Manager,

Tel: 01302 862974, E-mail: ian.brittain@stlegerhomes.co.uk

 

LEAD OFFICER

 

Susan Jordan, Chief Executive St Leger Homes of Doncaster