Sheltered Housing is there another Option?
Barnet Homes employ 18 people within the Sheltered Housing service both in the schemes and in Barnet House. If the judicial review is not successful then these members of staff will either be TUPE’d to whoever gets the bid for this provision or they will be made redundant.
Barnet Homes is currently cutting its workforce and year on year staff will be being made redundant. Because of this there are no positions available for redeployment. These members of staff represent a large number of our workforce.
Other providers of Sheltered Housing schemes are already looking at employing their own staff by funding allocated from Housing Benefit. This option is not available to Barnet Homes but as they already have a contract with LBB this service could be added to this and could be extended to include not only the schemes now covered but residents living in their own and private rented properties.
Barnet Homes currently manages a small bock of flats for Homes for Islington and has set up new business to Barnet residents not living in council property. This is run by Assist, our Lifeline Service.
If Barnet Homes do not have to bid for this service it will save unnecessary tendering and redundancy costs for our staff that will otherwise have to be met by LBB. This is not against procurement rules because Barnet Homes is owned by the council and they are the only shareholder.
Quality and Accountability
Staff have the expertise for the job, they are used to working with vulnerable people and working with our partners such as social services and housing.
They have the extra capacity to provide a good service. Barnet Homes has Councillors and residents on their Board it has to be more accountable because it is owned by LBB and has to report directly to them.
Workers know the area well and we are based in Barnet.
Costs
There will be a saving of the tendering costs and the costs of redundancy for the Sheltered Housing staff which will have to be provided by LBB. Most of the Sheltered Housing staff have worked for LBB and Barnet Homes for many years and costs for redundancy will be high. There will not be costs for setting up a