Housing Revenue Account (HRA) Business Plan

Name of policies to be assessed

Housing Revenue Account (HRA) Business Plan

1. What is the main purpose of the policies?

The main purpose of the policies is to:

• This HRA Business Plan sets out our strategic plan for managing and maintaining our social housing stock.
• It details our short to medium term plans and priorities for the housing and asset management services (5 years) and provides a long term (30 year) forecast on stock investment and financial planning.
• It gives an economically sustainable strategy for which to go forwards, meeting the statutory health and safety requirements, improving the decency of homes, providing more homes and starting the journey towards carbon neutrality.
• Good framework from which to make decisions on a daily basis moving forwards, aligned with the Strategic Plan and Council priorities.

2. What main areas or activities does the policies cover?

• Sets out how the housing service is delivered, including what costs and how the finances will develop in the future.
• Defines priorities for investment and summarises the key risks with actions to mitigate these risks.
• Provides a framework for prioritising the delivery of new health and safety measures, the need for meeting demand for more social housing, keeping homes decent and addressing the challenges of energy efficiency and climate emergency.
• How we will meet the challenges and changes from the Government’s Social Housing White Paper through compliance works for building safety, electrical inspections, fire risk assessments and fire door inspections.
• The plan supports improvement of the energy efficiency of our properties, tackling fuel poverty and inequality in our stock so that tenants benefit from warmer homes at a lower cost where possible.
• Sets out our strategy to invest in a “fabric first approach” to insulate the poorest performing homes, before adding ever-improving technological solutions to reduce emissions from our stock to a zero net carbon level.
• Supports the delivery of our Asset Management Strategy (2022-2027), meeting the requirements to keep the stock decent and affordable considering future changes to the Government’s Decent Home Standard.
• The delivery of new social homes through new build or acquisition to ensure the Council continues to provide as many affordable homes as it can.

3. Are there changes to an existing policy being considered in this assessment?

n/a

4. Who are the main audience, users or customers who will be affected by the policy?

The main groups who will be affected by the policy are:

• Council tenants and leaseholders
• Members of staff, CBC and CBH
• Colchester Borough Homes Board
• Councillors
• Residents of the Colchester City

5. What outcomes does the Council want to achieve from the policy?

• The housing stock represents CBC’s highest value asset(s) and repair and maintenance cost is the largest liability. The properties owned is worth many millions of pounds, either as capital assets or as revenue generating assets and therefore planning for its sustainable future is fundamental as part of the planning and investment arrangements.
• The new and revised Business Plan shows that the challenge of delivering changes to regulation and legislation following the Governments Social Housing White Paper can be delivered. There is significant new cost, these costs are all included in the revised Business Plan and include, fire safety, building safety, gas and electric safety and compliance.
• The investment priorities for keeping the stock decent over the next five years are included in the revised Business Plan. However, this may need to change when the government concludes its review of the Decent Homes Standard in Autumn 2022 and issues revised guidance

6. Are other service areas or partner agencies involved in delivery?

• Colchester Borough Homes
• Contractors delivering the programmes
• Planning Authority
• CBC finance and Legal Services
• Portfolio Holder and Members
• Building related consultancies

7. Relevant information, data, surveys or consultations

• Tenant and Leaseholder representation have been consulted through a task and finish group during the production of the strategy along with a short survey.
• Results from the STAR (Survey of Tenants and Residents) survey will be used to help formulate an action plan.
• Resident engagement to include more consultation is on-going to achieve our goals and aspirations in managing our assets.

8. The ‘general duty’

The ‘general duty’ states that we must have “due regard” to the need to:

1. eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation
2. advance equality of opportunity between people who share a ‘protected characteristic²’ and those who do not³
3. foster good relations between people who share a protected characteristic and those who do not⁴

Not all policies help us to meet the ‘general duty’, but most do.

This policy helps us to meet the ‘general duty’ by:

• The Business Plan facilitates arrangements to deliver more effectively to meet older customers and those with physical disabilities specialist needs. This could help reduce potential discrimination, harassment and victimisation by supporting adaptations within their homes and refurbishing sheltered accommodation.
• By providing housing to meet peoples needs they have the opportunity to make choices over the property they live in and where they live, promoting equality of access to housing.
• By giving people with protected characteristics choices over where they live they have the opportunity to participate in the activities of the wider community fostering good relations.

9. Disproportionate impacts

This section helps us to identify any disproportionate impacts. We will indicate whether the policy is likely to particularly benefit or disadvantage any of the 'protected characteristics'.

The Business Plan sets out how the council will provide well managed, maintained and safe social housing according to legislation and government policy which helps to improve and reduce health inequalities for tenants and leaseholders.

Age - older people (60+) and younger people (17-25)

Positive impact

Through investment and ongoing improvements to housing stock and urban environment, providing housing that meets their needs.

Age - those who are typically in the age group 45-55

Positive impact

Through investment and ongoing improvements to housing stock and urban environment, providing housing that meets their needs.

Disability – physical, sensory, learning, mental health issues, other

Positive impact

Through investment and ongoing improvements to housing stock and urban environment, providing housing that meets their needs.

Ethnicity - White; Mixed or Multiple ethnic groups; Asian or Asian British; Black, Black British, Caribbean or African; Other ethnic group

n/a

Language – English not as a first language

n/a

Pregnancy and maternity - Women who are pregnant or have given birth in the last 26 weeks

n/a

Religion or belief - People with a religious belief (or none)

n/a

Sex – Men and Women

n/a

Gender reassignment - Transgender/Transsexual

n/a

Sexual Orientation – Straight/Heterosexual, Gay or Lesbian, Bisexual, Other sexual orientation

n/a

Marriage and Civil Partnership - People who are married or in a civil partnership

n/a

10. How negative impacts be minimised or removed?

No areas of potential negative impact have been identified.

11. Could the policy discriminate⁵ against any ‘protected characteristic’ either directly or indirectly?

No

Summary and findings of Initial Equality Impact Assessment

12. Confirmation of findings

There are four options to describe the finding of the EqIA:

1. No negative impacts have been identified – Action is to sign off screening and finish.
2. Negative impacts have been identified but have been minimised or removed  - Action is to sign off screening and finish.
3. Negative impacts could not be minimised or removed – Action is to sign off screening and complete a full impact assessment – Section 2.
4. There is insufficient evidence to make a judgement - Action is to sign off screening and complete a full impact assessment – Section 2.

The findings and action are confirmed as (A). No negative impacts have been identified – Action is to sign off screening and finish

13. Name and job title of person completing this form

Suzanne Norton, Housing Client Co-ordinator

14. Date of completion

January 2022

15. Date for update or review of this screening

The Business Plan will be reviewed in five years, January 2027

• [1] National Census 2021 ethnicity categories are: English, Welsh, Scottish, Northern Irish or British; Irish; Gypsy or Irish Traveller; Roma; Any other White background (White); White and Black Caribbean; White and Black African; White and Asian; Any other Mixed or Multiple backgrounds (Mixed or Multiple ethnic groups); Indian; Pakistani; Bangladeshi; Chinese; Any Other Asian background (Asian or Asian British); Caribbean; African; Any other Black, Black British or Caribbean, Any other Black, Black British or Caribbean background (Black, Black British, Caribbean or African); Arab, Any other ethnic group (Other ethnic group).
• [2] The Equality Act’s `protected characteristics’ include age, disability, gender reassignment, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief and sex and sexual orientation. It also covers marriage and civil partnerships, but not for all aspects of the duty. 
• [3] This involves having due regard, in particular, to the need to (a) remove or minimise disadvantages suffered by persons who share a protected characteristic that are connected to that characteristic; (b) take steps to meet the needs of persons who share a relevant protected characteristic that is different from the needs of persons who do not share it, and (c) encourage persons who share a relevant protected characteristic to participate in public life or in any other activity in which participation by such persons is disproportionately low.
• [4] This involves having due regard, in particular, to the need to (a) tackle prejudice, and (b) promote understanding.
• [5] The Council has a general duty to ‘eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation’. Direct discrimination occurs when a person is treated less favourably than another in a comparable situation because of their `protected characteristic’ whether on grounds of age, disability, pregnancy and maternity, ethnicity; religion or belief; sex (gender), sexual orientation, or marriage and civil partnership. Indirect discrimination occurs when an apparently neutral provision or practise would nevertheless disadvantage people on the grounds of their `protected characteristic’.