Memorandum by Strategic Housing Services,
Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council (EMP 04)
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
With a high proportion of housing that is at
worst obsolete and best in need of significant improvement, there
is scope to see clearance and redevelopment as means to regenerate
areas and to ensure that the targets for building on brownfield
land are met before the properties become empty and targeted by
vandals. There are other potential tools available for the improvement
of empty properties such as eg Empty Property Management Orders.
However, the effectiveness of such powers is dimensioned by the
fact that many Local Authorities do not necessarily have the resources
to use such tools to the potential effectiveness in which they
were originally conceived.
Furthermore, the Government has not found effective
ways of tackling rogue and incompetent landlords, which can lead
to and perpetuate the problems found and associated with empty
homes. Greater monitoring, more community empowerment and a better
sustained housing market can lead to tackling the underlying causes
of empty homes.
Housing Market Renewal (HMR) has acted as a
catalyst for Rochdale to develop a Boroughwide Masterplan, which
sets out our seven key priorities for transforming the physical
form of the borough. This includes creating sustainable neighbourhoods
for our HMR areas. These neighbourhoods have substantial plans
for demolition and redevelopment of housing. HMR is also fundamental
in impacting and delivering change on a local and regional level
and therefore is a key priority in the local as well as regional
strategy.
(a) The scope and scale of the initiatives
proposed and underway in the Government's Housing Market Renewal
Pathfinder areas and other areas with problems of empty homes
Rochdale in common with many neighbouring authorities
has a significant problem of poor quality housing stock, some
of which is obsolete. For many homes, investment is required either
in the property or the environment to stop them becoming unpopular
and possibly empty, otherwise they may have little future value
or use.
The problems faced in Rochdale are very different
from areas such as Southern England where there is a chronic housing
need, where the older stock has under gone gentrification (eg
the South East) and where obsolete housing doesn't exist. Although
empty homes are not a significant problem yet, Rochdale does not
always find it easy to attract end uses for its empty properties
in the private sector. For instance, Registered Social Landlords
are reluctant to invest in older stock because there is a risk
of property values decreasing and the possibility of the property
being difficult to let.
In some inner urban neighbourhoods close to
Rochdale town centre there are large numbers of old, small terraced
houses that don't meet modern needs. At the same time and often
in the same areas, there is a shortage of affordable larger properties
with gardens and parking. Some of the poorer inner urban areas
of Rochdale are home to people of Asian heritage. Some of which
are original immigrants, with increasing numbers of second and
third generation descendants. Demand for homes in these areas
is artificially maintained by the desire for communities with
a common heritage to stay together. Adding to this pressure is
the increase in the size of this section of the community and
the increase in the number of new households being formed. Often
these neighbourhoods are overcrowded and densely populated. Whilst
nearby there are other neighbourhoods with relatively high levels
of empty homes. The problem is the lack of the right type and
mix of housing in the right places.
In areas of low demand initiatives have been
developed to provide community cohesion work. A good example of
this is the Community Induction Project which has been quite successful
in terms of re-housing BME groups in non traditional areas of
Rochdale by providing support before and during re-housing and
by carrying out a lot of preparatory work within the established
neighbourhoods.
HOUSING MARKET
RENEWAL (HMR)
Oldham and Rochdale were chosen as a Pathfinder
area for Housing Market Renewal (HMR) because both boroughs include
neighbourhoods where demand for homes is poor and could collapse
if no action is taken. In other areas of the country where the
housing market has collapsed, owners have been unable to sell
their homes and many properties have been abandoned, leading to
further decline.
The challenge for Pathfinders is to match the
supply of homes to the needs of local people now and in the future.
At the same time, we need to improve the quality of life in local
neighbourhoods to make them places where people choose to live
and stay, rather than having no other option.
Our aim is that in addition to high quality
housing and living conditions, local people will have access,
for example, to high quality jobs, to the education and training
that will enable them to get the jobs, and to high quality healthcare
and leisure opportunities. Everything we do needs to be aimed
at bringing communities together, building on what unites people
and breaking down barriers between them.
Our initiatives are based on careful research
and consideration of local information. They have been produced
in consultation and partnership with the communities whose lives
they will change. They fit in with other local, regional and national
strategies for improving communities. Our track record of partnership
for regeneration shows we can achieve our aims.
Rochdale, in partnership with Oldham has demonstrated
the ability to improve the boroughs by using the more than £6
million already made available to start acquiring sites, to involve
the community in the development process, and to bring about practical
improvements to the environment and to the security of empty homes.
The scale of change we are proposing is huge.
For example, over the next 15 years we will clear some 6,000 homes
and replace them with 7,000 modern new homes. Achieving this major
transformation will require a huge amount of investment, not only
Housing Market Renewal funds but also of funding from other public
agencies and from the private sector, much of it prompted by the
catalyst of Housing Market Renewal action.
Within Rochdale the areas of East Central Rochdale
and Langley have been identified as areas suffering from low demand,
abandonment, over crowding and poor quality housing. The scale
and scope of initiatives through HMR renewal pathfinder areas
will be as follows:
East Central Rochdale
The East Central Rochdale HMR neighbourhood
includes the distinct neighbourhoods of Wardleworth, Hamer, Mayfield,
Cloverhall and Bellshill.
The area is predominantly residential, with
a population of approximately 9,500, housed in 2,820 properties.
However, there is also a significant proportion of land in industrial/manufacturing
use—a legacy of Rochdale's industrial past.
Proposals for transformation include:
— Clearing outdated homes.
— Providing high quality, modern housing
for sale and rent.
— Improving Council properties and
refurbishing other homes.
— Making fundamental changes to the
land use patterns in the area, including relocating some industry.
— Using the River Roch as a feature
for more housing development, including the Dale Mill site.
— Promoting high quality design standards.
— Linking developments in the neighbourhood
to the town centre.
— Improving the local environment,
especially public spaces and the provision for people and vehicles.
Langley
Langley is an estate of some 5,000 homes on
the south-western periphery of Rochdale borough in the Middleton
Township. It was built as an over spill estate by Manchester City
Council in the 1950s on garden city principles, with open spaces
and trees.
Originally all the homes were Council-owned but under
the Right to Buy some have transferred to private ownership. In
2002, ownership of the Council homes transferred to Bowlee Park
Housing Association.
The estate is isolated from the wider borough
and the township of Middleton both physically and in the perceptions
of many local people.
The problems faced by the area include low house
prices and a very high proportion of empty homes, a poor environment,
lack of housing choice and quality, an ageing population, high
levels of benefit dependency, and negative external perception
of the area.
Proposals for transformation include:
— Clearing housing association and
private homes.
— Building new high quality, modern
homes for sale.
— Improving housing association homes.
— A range of inter-connected measures
to raise quality of life, such as environmental and leisure improvements.
— Improving Langley's connections with
the rest of the Rochdale borough.
CORPORATE EMPTY
PROPERTY GROUP
(CEPG)
The problems that empty properties cause the
local authority are broad and reach across planning and building
control, environmental management, regeneration and renewal, private
sector standards and enforcement and beyond this the police, fire
brigade, youth service and quite possibly other services. Moreover
the bringing back of empty properties into use feeds in to a national
PI and enhances the councils Comprehensive Performance Assessment.
An initiative set up by Strategic Housing Services
has been to establish a group known as the Corporate Empty Property
Group (CEPG). The groups membership is open and includes representatives
from the Private Sector Team, Building Control, Environmental
Health, Planning and Regeneration, Housing Advice, the Renewal
Area managers, the Council's Legal Team, Rochdale Housing Initiative
and a consultant inspector.
Without a clear focus for work with empty properties,
the possibility of many parts of the council taking disparate
and uncoordinated action increases, conversely the opposite problem
occurs as parts of the authority assume some one else is dealing
with a property and nothing gets done. Empty properties are brought
to the group and a decision about what actions are to be taken,
and who will take those actions, is agreed upon. The group aims
to develop and use the full array of options for dealing with
empty properties. Working as a group the team has already managed
the resolution of the problems associated with some empty properties.
(b) The commitment and contribution
of all Government departments and other agencies to tackling the
underlying causes of empty homes
— The Government has introduced VAT
incentives to help with the renovation of empty properties. In
2001, zero-rated VAT on refurbishment of properties empty for
more than 10 years and 5% on those empties for more than three
years was introduced.
Although these incentives are welcomed, the
do not go far enough in terms of bringing empty properties back
into use more immediately as housing markets can change at a more
rapid rate than the timelines given.
— The ODPM has introduced a Best Value
Performance Indicator for Local Authorities on the re-use of empty
properties (BVPI 64). The number of private sector vacant dwellings
that are returned into occupation or demolished during 2003-04
as a direct result of action by the local authority.
Although this is an annual measure, we believe
that quarterly monitoring will help identify empty properties
quicker and allow positive action on such properties to be taken
before some properties become blighted.
— The ODPM has issued "Guidance
on bringing empty properties back into use" and the guidance
document "Empty Property: Unlocking the Potential-A Case
for Action". This is a comprehensive guidance on bringing
empty properties back into use.
There is currently no duty on local authorities
(LAs) to produce an empty property strategy. A dedicated empty
property officer and an empty property strategy should be set
as a requirement using the guidance document quoted above.
Within Rochdale Council and Rochdale Boroughwide
Housing (ALMO), we have managed to contain the low demand problem
in relation to the local authority stock via a number of initiatives.
These include the Intensive Housing Project and the Select-A-Home
Project which fast tracked applications for low demand properties
where no points were required. These initiatives have kept the
number of empty properties to reasonable levels and contained
abandonment.
— Local Government Act 2003, Section
85 allows authorities to use information obtained for Council
Tax purposes to be used for the purpose of identifying vacant
dwellings and for taking steps to bring empty homes back into
use.
Rochdale currently utilises council tax data
to monitor empty properties within the borough. Although such
a data set is not 100% conclusive, it is useful in helping to
maintain and monitor long-term empty properties within the borough
and highlights such properties in HMR areas were there is a need
of such properties.
— A discretionary power for councils
to change the discount on second homes and long term empty properties
became available from 18 December 2003 (Local Government Act 2003).
The power is now available for councils to decide whether to reduce
the council tax discount currently offered to second homes and
long term empty properties. Some councils have from April 2004
imposed homeowners to pay above 50% Council Tax on their second
homes.
Rochdale has a relatively small percentage of
long-term (over six months) empty homes and vacant dwellings within
the borough. This borough is one of 88 areas in the country identified
as experiencing multiple deprivation and qualifying for Neighbourhood
Renewal. Given the low percentage of empty properties coupled
with income streams being below national averages it was decided
that imposing Council Tax rates above 50% for second homes was
not worthwhile in terms of bringing those properties back into
use or long term financial gain for the council.
— The new Housing Act has seen the
introduction of Empty Homes Management Orders. The intention would
be to allow local authorities to purchase a lease on a property
where the owner will not co-operate in bringing the property back
into use voluntarily. The property would then be let for social
housing.
Rochdale acknowledges and welcomes the new Housing
Act and the CEPG are continually looking at ways of effectively
using such powers.
— A Private Sector Leasing Scheme is
a facility for a housing association (HA) to be funded to buy
a lease (for a period of two to 29 years) on a private property.
LA Empty Property Officer will identify an empty property, contact
the owner to tell them of the scheme and, if they are interested,
will notify the HA. The HA will purchase a lease and use the property
to house tenants from the council waiting list. The HA will pay
the owner a guaranteed rent throughout the period of the lease.
The property is used to house tenants from the HA's or LA's waiting
list.
The North is not traditionally good at dealing
with leasing deals as the South, it is perceived to be too risky.
In order to promote such a scheme within Rochdale and the North
West, the leasing agreement needs to be underpinned by a public
sector management agreement underwritten by a loss subsidy scheme.
Rochdale has been invited by the LGA to nominate a representative
to take part in LGA steering group on this issue.
— Each LA should have written a new
Empty Property Grant policy. A LA has the ability to give grants,
loans and even mortgages to owners of empty properties to enable
them to refurbish them and bring them back into use.
Historically, Rochdale Council has intervened
in the private sector housing market and up until the Regulatory
Reform Order 2002 had incrementally developed a private sector
policy based on the needs of that sector. The Council's approach
in this respect was to implement progressive, innovative and sustainable
strategies, including substantial clearance programmes; area based
action and individual grants policies, which played an important
role in protecting the local housing market.
With the introduction of the Regulatory Reform
Order in 2002 Rochdale Council reviewed its Private Sector Housing
policies in order to gain full advantage from the freedoms and
flexibility's it introduced. Staff from all sections of Private
Sector Housing carried out a review of the options in relation
to the private sector housing policy. The review included debates
on the need to move away from a grants policy and to develop products
like equity release, which helps people to help themselves and
ultimately allow funds to be recycled
— The Housing Bill introduces the mandatory
licensing of houses in multiple occupation (HMO's). The aim of
the licensing regime is to provide greater protection to the health,
safety and welfare of the occupants of this type of property.
Rochdale MBC welcomes the introduction of mandatory
landlord licensing and is working towards integrating this part
of the Act with other initiatives already in place at RMBC such
as our Landlord Accreditation Scheme.
(c) The availability of resources outside
the pathfinder areas and the development of strategies to deal
with weak housing markets
There are insufficient resources available outside
the pathfinder areas to deal with the scale of low demand interventions
or to develop strategies to combat weak housing markets.
Clear commitment and working protocols are needed
amongst local and regional bodies in order to deal with effective
regional strategies to stabilise and strengthen weak housing markets.
Regional Planning and Housing Boards should
develop a more robust Regional Housing Strategy, linking planning
and economic strategies with clear geographical priorities focused
on City Regions supported by consistent housing need and affordability
studies and sustainability models.
Through the development of national and regional
strategies, clearly a more structured approach outside the remit
of local governance is required in order to improve the accessibility
of resources being made available to pathfinder areas.
RMBC is also trying to maximise what small resources
we have through our CEPG.
(d) The dissemination of good practice,
innovation and co-ordinated interventions within and outside pathfinder
areas
Within the pathfinder areas, establishing cross-networked
teams such as the CEP group has allowed a more co-ordinated corporate
approach to be made by RMBC. With a single approach and vision
from all teams involved, a more established, organised and structured
advance to the problem of empty properties has been established.
RMBC has been generally good at innovation and co-ordination.
For example, the Heywood Partnership has lead to successful community
empowerment, the Dale Mill Project is innovative with cutting
edge and high design specs, supported by ground breaking research
which has allowed RMBC to make good, informed decisions which
have worked well within the borough. Bringing together these principles
and carrying forward such good practice in all we do will only
serve to continue to build upon Rochdale's success.
So far, RMBC has not seen any projects, which
disseminate good practice, or co-ordination outside the pathfinder
areas.
(e) Whether Councils have sufficient
powers to tackle the problem of empty homes in their areas
Local councils do have effective powers to tackle
the problem of empty properties. This has further been strengthened
by the new Housing Act, which has given LA's the powers to obtain
Empty Property Management Orders. However, there is limited money
and resources available within the council to use such powers.
More incentives directed at the council are needed. For example,
financial benefits wielded from CPO properties going directly
back into the area rather than the treasury would allow the council
to employ dedicated empty property officers who could use the
powers given to them more effectively.
(f) The priority given to the demolition
of homes and the consideration given to effective methods of refurbishment
Housing Market Renewal has acted as a catalyst
for the borough to develop a boroughwide masterplan, which sets
out our seven key priorities for transforming the physical form
of the borough. This includes creating sustainability neighbourhoods
of which ECR and Langley are two. Both neighbourhoods have substantial
plans for demolition and redevelopment of housing.
Specific and detailed delivery plans for 2004-05
have been developed for neighbourhoods in Rochdale which aim in
general terms to:
— Improve property values;
— Improve satisfaction with neighbourhoods;
— Improve Quality of Life.
These aims will be achieved by:
— Clearing surplus and obsolete housing;
— Making environmental improvements;
— Refurbishing existing properties;
— Funding new developments.
East Central Rochdale (ECR) is currently a mixed
area adjacent to the town centre consisting of private terraced
housing, medium sized social rented estates and buildings used
for retail, leisure, commerce and industry. The local housing
market is typified by the enigma of some unpopular social rented
estates existing next door to high-demand, but poor quality private
sector housing areas. The latter housing market being sustained
by the largely Asian BME population that first settled in the
town in the 1950's and 60's to work in the textile industry.
Over the last 25 years the Council has invested
in the area via its area based renewal strategies and prevented
the collapse of the housing market. However, there has never been
sufficient funds to bring about the structural change required
to create an urban neighbourhood sustainable in the long term.
The Council recognises that the clearance of
individual's homes is a particularly sensitive issue for those
individuals involved and has adopted inclusive strategies to deal
with these issues. Meetings have and will be held to all residents
affected by clearance and a property adviser has been appointed
to assist those residents affected to access alternative housing
that most appropriately meets their needs.
Whilst this is a difficult process it is important
to note that it will not be possible to achieve the fundamental
changes to transform neighbourhoods without a programme of strategic
housing clearance which will inevitably include some individual
properties that are not in poor condition.
Another major part of the ECR proposals is the
review of land-use patterns in the area. Large parts of ECR are
currently occupied by industrial businesses that are operating
from apparently outdated and outworn properties and creating amenity
problems for nearby residents. The intention is to assist these
businesses to find alternative, modern premises which would relieve
these problems. Also, when linked with the housing clearance programme
this project will help assemble large sites for residential development.
Since it is no longer feasible to refurbish
such properties, priorities are placed on demolishing, and new
build. A key strategic site has already been acquired for new
housing, the Dale Mill site and work is taking place to acquire
the Arkwright Mill site. A masterplan has been developed for approximately
80 new homes on these sites. This provides layout plans and house
types for the proposed new housing development. It is intended
that the housing development will be a mixed tenure site with
the majority of housing being available for owner occupiers to
meet the aspiration of local people identified through to consultation
process.
Langley is an estate of some 5,000 homes in
Middleton Township. It was developed as an overspill estate for
the clearance programme in Manchester in the 1950s. The stock
was predominantly three bedroom houses to rent. By the 1980s demand
for rented family accommodation had reduced and by 2000 the estate
had almost 1,000 empty properties. A variety of options to address
this problem were considered by Manchester City Council with the
favoured option being stock transfer which following a successful
ballot in 2001, took place in 2002 with ownership transferred
to Bowlee Park Housing Association. The vision for the neighbourhood
is "To Change Langley Forever".
This will be achieved by:
— Clearance of 971 HA and private homes;
— Bringing the retained HA stock up
to the decent standard;
— Building 1,302 new high quality,
modern homes for sale;
— Introducing a range of connected
measures to raise the quality of life, such as environmental and
leisure improvements;
— Improve Langley's connections with
the rest of the Borough.
(g) The availability of the necessary
skills and training to support staff promoting projects to tackle
the needs of areas with weak housing markets
Within the northwest, it has long been established
that there is a shortage of staff with the necessary skills and
expertise required to tackle such projects. Unfortunately there
are not enough suitably skilled people to take forward such tasks,
as there is a scarcity of people who have a diverse range of housing
skills required. One way RMBC is trying to combat this shortage
is by delivering training programmes to staff which will enable
them to obtain the necessary skills to carry out and promote work
within this field in the very near future. For example, we have
employed a empty property support officer who will eventually
work themselves up to become an empty property officer. Traditionally
this post has been hard to fill due to not being able to find
people with necessary skills to carry out the objectives of the
post.
(h) How housing market renewal is addressed
in other strategies including local and regional plans and other
regeneration programmes
RMBC acknowledges the fact that HMR is fundamental
in impacting and delivering change on a local and regional level
and therefore requires being integrated in strategies developed
within Rochdale and the Northwest. Housing market renewal is addressed
in the following strategies.
NEIGHBOURHOOD RENEWAL
STRATEGY
The Neighbourhood Renewal Strategy (NRS) forms
an integral part of HMR in focusing on key issues in HMR pathfinder
areas.
The NRS sets out a long-term vision for changing
the borough of Rochdale, enabling residents to take greater control
of their neighbourhoods and creating greater opportunities across
the borough. It is built upon the development of neighbourhood
action plans across the borough which link in to key objectives
within HMR areas.
The Neighbourhood Renewal Strategy acknowledges
there is a fundamental danger that if economic regeneration and
housing market renewal do not take place then housing low demand
problems will increase. Therefore in line with the visions enlisted
in Oldham and Rochdale's HMR prospectus, the NRS works upon and
details key action points which link back to the HMR strategy.
NEW DEAL
FOR COMMUNITIES
Our New Deal for Communities strategy promotes
cohesion within and between our most deprived neighbourhoods.
This is achieved through promoting better understanding of cultural
diversity whilst trying to increase cross-cultural activities.
Community cohesion, acceptance, tolerance and understanding form
the bases of integrating different communities across the borough
through working with different groups in Rochdale. This links
in well with work on transformation and cohesion, which is a key
aim addressed within our HMR strategy.
HMR STRATEGY
Oldham and Rochdale were chosen as a Pathfinder
area for housing market renewal because both boroughs included
neighbourhoods where demand for homes is poor and could collapse
if no action is taken. The challenge for Pathfinders is to match
the supply of homes to the needs of local people now and in the
future.
The HMR strategy focuses upon bringing communities
together, building on what unites people and breaking down barriers
between them.
The strength of the strategy lies in enabling
to bring about wide-ranging changes. This is being run by the
Local Strategic Partnerships (LSPs) for Oldham and Rochdale, working
together as "Partners in Action" and representing the
whole community, rather than solely including organisations concerned
with housing.
Proposals are based on careful research and
consideration of local information. They have been produced in
partnership with the communities whose lives they will change.
They fit in with other local, regional and national strategies
for improving communities.
COUNCIL'S
HOUSING STRATEGY
Rochdale's Housing Strategy for 2004-07 sets
out the key issues in relation to housing in the town, what action
has been taken to address these issues so far and the priorities
for future action to enable the above vision to be realised.
Rochdale's Housing Strategy has been developed
within the complex range of housing issues that are apparent within
the borough. It is important to acknowledge that Rochdale's Housing
Strategy is closely integrated with the HMR prospectus because
the latter outlines the problem areas of housing market weakness
within the borough that need to be addressed. It also provides
one of the funding streams to enable the transformation required
in these neighbourhoods to achieve a balanced housing market in
the borough as a whole. There will, therefore, be a certain amount
of overlap between the two documents and it is important to remember
that the work carried out in the HMR neighbourhoods ultimately
contributes to the achievement of the aims and vision of the housing
strategy.
SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES
PLAN
The sustainable communities plan is integral
part of RMBC core strategy. We aim to deliver a transformation
in the housing market renewal areas that will create sustainable
communities and lead to greater community cohesion. This again
will be delivered through HMR nested and linked inherently to
RMBC's service and corporate strategies.
NORTH WEST
REGIONAL HOUSING
STRATEGY (NWRHS)
Housing Market Renewal is one of the key priorities
of the NWRHS. It promotes the understanding of housing markets,
and the development of strategies to prevent and/or deal with
the occurrence of low demand.
(i) How Pathfinders are seeking to
involve the private sector in their long term planning and programmes.
We have a range of programmes in which we will
involve the private sector on long term planning programmes. Below
are a list of ways in which we are involving the private sector.
— Public Private Partnership—Procurement
of Strategic Partnership
The council has approved progress towards a large-scale
partnership between Rochdale Council and a private company and
preparations are well advanced with three short-listed bidders.
Once the public/private partnership process is finalised a very
high priority for the partnership will be the regeneration of
the borough.
— HMR Procurement
The Council in partnership with HMR is well advanced
in procuring a neighbourhood development partner. Seven major
development consortia have been short-listed to enter into a seven
year development framework agreement to deliver all major redevelopment
work in ECR. This will include the development of the Dale Mill
site mentioned earlier. The partner is expected to develop a long
term relationship and contribute fully to the future planning
of the neighbourhood. The Langley neighbourhood partnership has
already procured a major housing partner; Lovells who are currently
developing new housing for sale, leading to an estimated input
of over £30 million.
— Landlord Accreditation Programme
Landlords will qualify to join the scheme if each
of their properties is of a decent standard, is in a reasonable
state of repair, has a gas safety certificate, and is subject
to a tenancy agreement. The scheme is based on a successful pilot
project that was started in the Derker neighbourhood of Oldham
last year. This again will raise the quality and standard of homes
within Rochdale. This is a way of involving the Private Sector
in contributing to making Rochdale a better place to live.
— Private Sector Forum
The Private Sector Forum undertakes empty property
surveys and there has also been major surveys on tenant satisfaction.
The Private Sector Forum has structures in place for regular consultation
with local interest groups. These include residents groups on
regeneration schemes, the private sector forum with landlords;
estate based tenants groups and compacts.
(j) Any Other Comments—Community
Involvement
The process of developing our proposals for
action to improve the housing market in our neighbourhoods has
involved wide consultation with local residents and other stakeholders
through a variety of processes integrated with other regeneration
initiatives.
Formal decisions on what action to take have
been made by the Pathfinder Executive, made up of representatives
of the Oldham and Rochdale Local Strategic Partnerships, taking
into account the outcome of this extensive public involvement.
Examples of how the community has contributed
to the process include:
— Every household in the two boroughs
was given the opportunity, through a MORI survey, to feed their
views and wishes into the process. The information gathered through
that process will be used not only to help with decision-making
on Housing Market Renewal but also to help local organisations
make decisions on other spending.
— Local people in the first neighbourhoods
for action have been involved in extensive consultation. Their
views have been taken into account in developing proposals for
action. Consultation events and "planning for real"
type exercises, using maps and simple three-dimensional models,
have been held in places where communities already meet and feel
at ease, including mosques, schools, shops and pubs.
— Computer technology has been used
to show how a neighbourhood could change for the better. For example,
a virtual reality tour of the ECR neighbourhood in Rochdale included
examples of how outdated terraced homes to be demolished could
be replaced with modern homes in a variety of possible layouts.
— Local people have been on visits
to other areas to see successful schemes (eg for housing, traffic
management etc) that might be applicable locally.
— Local councillors have contributed
to the development of the proposals, representing the views of
the community.
COMMUNITY REPRESENTATION
ON TOWNSHIP
COMMITTEES
Rochdale has a well-established democratic process
based upon the our Townships of Heywood, Middleton, Pennines and
Rochdale, which make up the borough of Rochdale and fall under
the remit of RMBC. Since 1992 the Council has had Township Committees
for each area, with wide decision-making responsibilities. They
also form the focus for community engagement. Within each Township
there is a variety of groups dealing with many important issues.
Several partner organisations—such as the Police and Primary
Care Trusts—also base their structures on Township boundaries.
Our Cabinet and Township structures enable us
to balance priorities between geographical areas within the borough
and between key service areas, a key factor in maintaining community
cohesion. We are further developing our Township structures to
ensure that local issues are considered and agreed at an appropriate
local level.
The Council uses a variety of ways of understanding
the needs, priorities and aspirations of local people. We have
many consultation mechanisms but are always trying to improve
these to make sure that we understand what matters most to local
people.
TENANT EMPOWERMENT
Within the Arms Length Management Organisation,
the Tenant Participation Unit is responsible for promoting and
supporting tenant participation generally and also, for consulting
tenants on the capital programme and capital works on individual
estates. Ways in which we to involve and empower tenants are by:
1. developing, agreeing and supporting housing
compacts with individuals;
2. providing advice, information, funding,
training and other support to new and existing tenants;
3. support for establishing and developing
community bases and centres for tenants groups;
4. formal liaison and recognition of tenant
group to support them in meetings;
5. consult with tenants to seek agreement
and understanding on housing policy;
6. dissemination of other related information;
7. work on policy issues relating to raising
the quality and standard of life;
8. support to the voluntary sector, including
involvement in funding agreements.
We are committed to involving local people in
its work throughout the borough through effective consultation
on a continual basis.
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