Tower Hamlets housing committee reviews 2026-27 scrutiny plans and hears updates on housing quality and repairs performance.
The Housing and Regeneration Scrutiny Sub Committee met on Monday, 05 October 2026, to discuss its work programme for the upcoming year and to receive updates on council housing quality and the performance of registered social landlords in delivering timely repairs. The committee reviewed the full pack of reports, available here.
Housing Quality Improvements
The committee heard that Tower Hamlets Council is investing £609 million over the next decade to improve its housing stock. This programme includes major works such as new kitchens, bathrooms, windows, and doors, as well as fire safety upgrades. While progress has been made in reducing overdue repairs and improving resident satisfaction, challenges remain, with 18% of homes still not meeting the Decent Homes Standard. The council is working with regulators to ensure homes meet good standards. To address the homes not meeting the standard, the council is developing a clear delivery plan with measurable annual milestones. Stock condition surveys are also being updated to provide a clearer picture of all council homes, ensuring investment is prioritised towards those presenting the greatest risk to residents.
Significant progress has been reported in safety compliance, with reductions in overdue actions related to fire safety, water safety, and communal electrical safety. The council is investing significantly to achieve good standards, with procurement underway for long-term contracts for its capital investment programme.
Registered Social Landlord Performance
Representatives from Clarion Housing Association and Peabody Housing Association presented on their repair services. Clarion reported a 15% increase in their right first time
repair rate to 90.5% and a 4% improvement in emergency repair response times to 96.5%. However, resident feedback indicated that delays in repair completion were the primary driver of dissatisfaction, accounting for 43% of all mentions. Other significant concerns included the quality of work (14%) and recurring problems after repairs (13%). Difficulty contacting the relevant department was also cited by 10% of respondents.
Peabody Housing Association reported that 96% of emergency repairs were completed within target times. Their responsive repairs spend in Tower Hamlets for 2025-26 was £5.2 million. For non-emergency repairs, Peabody completed 76% within the target time of 21 days, with an average completion time of 23 days. Clarion Housing Association's Localz feedback demonstrates consistently positive customer experience remaining around the 90% satisfaction mark throughout the year. Their Tenant Satisfaction Measures (TSM) targets are slightly lower at 88.5% satisfaction.
Both associations acknowledged challenges in recruiting and retaining skilled operatives and discussed their strategies for resident engagement. To address this, both Clarion and Peabody are investing in apprenticeships. Clarion is taking on at least two apprentices per region annually and has also recruited apprentice surveyors. Peabody has taken on 10 repair inspectors as apprentices and is exploring various routes to bring people into trades. Both organisations are also focusing on developing their existing workforce.
Work Programme for 2026-27
The committee reviewed its proposed work programme for 2026-27, which includes scrutiny of key areas such as improving council housing quality, the performance of registered social landlords, homelessness transformation, and the £609 million housing investment programme. The programme aims to ensure scrutiny adds value, improves resident outcomes, and supports the council's strategic priorities. Discussions also touched upon the importance of pre-decision scrutiny and incorporating resident feedback.
The committee's work programme will include a 'Spotlight' session on the 'Delivering Change: Homelessness Transformation Programme'. The objective of this session is to Apply critical friend challenge on Homelessness Transformation Programme and assess to what extent the council is successfully reducing demand, dependency on temporary accommodation and cost pressures.
The committee noted a vacancy for a council tenant representative on the sub-committee. This post will be re-advertised, and the Democratic Services Officer will update the committee at the next meeting on the progress of this re-advertisement. Notification will be shared with all members, including on the members' bulletin.
Further details on the committee's agenda and reports can be found in the public reports pack.