Tag: housing

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NEWS: Application for 10 bedroom HMO at old Royal Oak pub refused over fears of ‘erosion’ to local area

Words & pics by Ed King

An application to convert the old Royal Oak pub on Marsh Lane has been refused by Birmingham City Council (BCC) citing the potential ‘erosion’ of the local area in its final decision.

The application was made by Keey Homes Ltd, a property management company with a registered address in Exeter – that was only incorporated in December 2022.

In further response to the planning application, which sought to covert the once popular pub into a 10 bedroom HMO (house of multiple occupancy), BCC stated that ‘future occupiers of the proposed HMO would not be afforded a suitable and satisfactory standard of living’.

In the current proposal, registered with BCC on 12 July 2023, more than one of the 10 bedrooms would only have windows facing a neighbouring wall – at less than 12 times the distance required in Birmingham – leaving an ‘unsatisfactory standard of outlook and poor access to natural light’.

Further concerns were raised as none of the ‘external amenity space’ at the property would be ‘made available for occupiers’ – leaving potential residents often cooped up min their bedrooms.

The historical significance of the building was also raised, with the proposed demolition of a boundary wall and building extension on the current beer garden viewed by BCC as a ‘loss of features of historic value’.

Furthermore, the report goes on to identify that if the application was granted it would result in nearly a third (28%) of the surrounding residential properties – stretching 100m from the Royal Oak – would be given to HMOs and Exempt Accommodation.

It continues to state that a ten bedroom HMO ‘would result in an over-concentration of non-family residential uses in the area’ and any potential ‘public benefits’ would not ‘justify the further erosion of the surrounding area’s family residential character.’

In conclusion, the planning officers report found the proposed development ‘would fail to provide a satisfactory standard of residential accommodation’ and BCC refused the application.

The halting of another HMO in Erdington will come as a welcome relief to local residents who objected to the plans, with hundreds signing petitions from local elected officials to rally against the development.

On 22 June, Erdington Ward Cllr Robert Alden, and Leader of Birmingham Conservatives, launched an online petition against the proposed HMO – citing the ‘cumulative impact of HMOs in this area’ and many of the issues eventually identified by Birmingham City Council in their final notes as to why they refused the application.

On 26 June, Erdington MP Paulette Hamilton also launched an online petition against the development, further writing to the BCC Planning Committee to ‘express my strong opposition’ to the application – referencing a ‘clear… lack of consultation with residents’ and other community stakeholders.

On hearing the Council’s decision to refuse the application, Paulette Hamilton MP told Erdington Local: “It was fantastic to learn that Birmingham City Council have refused the planning application that would have converted the Royal Oak Pub into a 10-bed HMO. I know the decision came as a relief for many local people.

“I’m also proud to have led the campaign that resulted in this decision. We urged local people to submit their concerns and I’m glad that 398 concerned residents backed our petition.

“Today’s result was good, but I remain concerned about the number of HMOs in our community and will continue to represent the best interests of my constituents.”

Erdington Ward Councillor Robert Alden (Conservative) further told: “The refusal of this application is welcome news for our community and the right decision. Thank you to the hundreds of residents who signed my petition opposing the application and wrote to the Council objecting.

“This is again proof of the difference residents can make locally by standing up to the landlords who attempt to break up our community.

“This application was totally unsuitable and would have had a significant negative impact on the area had it been approved. I call on the Council to now reject the HMO application for 120 Gravelly Lane as well.”

But Richard Bates, who lives a short walk from the proposed development, summed up the resilience of local residents in their fight against HMOs, describing them as “a community that is tough as a royal oak.”

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COMMUNITY ANCHORS: ‘They’re not just our houses, they’re your homes’ – a short walk through the history of the Perry Common Estate

Words by Steve Sharma / Pics supplied by WLCA

Perry Common dates back to the 1920’s when farmland was acquired by Birmingham City Council to re-house families from elsewhere in the city.

The development of the Perry Common Estate provided residents with a spacious 2 or 3-bedroom houses and the added bonus of a front and back garden.

But by the 1980s, these non-brick Boot Houses were in very poor condition with chunks of concrete falling from properties, dampness wreaking havoc with people’s health, and metal supporting frames becoming very weak.

In 1989 a total of 908 families received a letter from the City Council declaring their homes would have to be demolished. The implications of this were devastating but community spirit soon change the course of history,

Passionate residents, united in their fight against the demolition, established Perry Common Residents Association. Shortly after, in 1994, eight of its members became the founding directors of the new Witton Lodge Community Association (WLCA).

Twenty-eight years later, WLCA has a long and proud track record of housing and capital asset development and management across the north of the city. The registered landlord is thriving, with a portfolio of 200 homes, providing affordable, safe sanctuary to families across North Birmingham.

In 2017, the Association set up a subsidiary, Witton Lodge Community Homes (WLCH) to progress housing and community asset development aspirations. It pursues a dedicated housing agenda, namely, to provide affordable and social housing which meets the needs of the local community.

WLCH targets such empty properties to bring them back into use while working with the City Council and other stakeholders to explore opportunities for new build development which can provide affordable housing solutions.

In February 2021 there were over 17,000 applicants on Birmingham City Council’s housing waiting list; the local authority area within which we deliver our services. In addition, there are more 9,000 empty properties in the city.

Having achieved registered provider status with Homes England, WLCH can now apply directly for funding to develop and manage properties.

WLCA Homes and Assets Development Manager, Gareth Hopkins, said: “We have invested in our homes to make them more energy efficient. Solar Photovoltaic panels have been installed on 93 of our properties (the remaining properties are not eligible for the SPV Panels) ensuring that our tenants benefit first hand from savings with electricity consumption costs.

“As a renewable source of power, solar energy has an important role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and mitigating climate change, which is critical to protecting humans, wildlife and eco systems.

“We have also installed 132 A Rated Boilers. This has helped our tenants save up to £500 a year on their energy costs. The new boilers are also more energy efficient and help cut carbon footprint. We have also installed new doors and windows to 86 of our properties meaning our homes are more energy efficient.

“We have aspirations to do even more using our planned maintenance programme to replace more boilers (non-gas), doors and windows. When we purchase new properties we will retrofit them with new windows, boilers but also consider improvements such as solar water heating, floor and wall insulation where this is possible.

“We are proud to be investing in our properties and working towards local and national carbon zero targets and helping our Tenants save money on their energy bills.”

For more information on Witton Lodge Community Association visit www.wittonlodge.org.uk

For press and media enquiries call Steve Sharma on 0121 382 1930 or email: [email protected]

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NEWS: Church Road almshouses to be sold and residents given orders to vacate by March ‘23

Words & pics by Erdington Local editorial staff

Church Road’s distinctive almshouses, which were built in 1930 to give the needy a place to live, have been put on sale for £1.6 million. Residents who thought they had a home for life have been told they have to vacate the premises by March 2023.

The ten almshouses were built by The Sir Thomas Holte Trust in 1930 but ownership switched to the Sir Josiah Mason Trust in 2019.

Tommy Swaine, aged 71, has lived in his almshouse for 13 years.

He told Erdington Local: “I thought I had a house for life but then get a letter telling me I have to be out by March. I don’t know what I’m going to do. I’ve not even had anyone round to talk about it. There are about seven of us here who are in the same position.”

He added: “These lot (Josiah Mason Trust) have only had the almshouses for three years and now they are selling them from beneath us, it’s shocking.”

Paul Cunningham, aged 77, has lived in his almshouse for 17 years. He said: “I could not believe what I was reading. Everywhere we have been offered is way more expensive and as far away as Solihull.

“I pay £128 a week and do not have to pay bills, but the places they have offered me are over £160 and will have to pay bills. I don’t know what I am going to do; I don’t want to move to Solihull.

“I’ve been here for 17 years and thought I was here for life, we all did. These houses were built to give people a safe and secure home.”

He added: “They are trying to say the almshouses are not up to their standard, but I am perfectly happy with my home.

“As they are listed, I cannot see what their plan is because they cannot build on the gardens or mess with the front of the houses – and there is no space in the back. I wouldn’t be surprised if they are just left to rot and then demolished. It’s such a shame as they were built for a reason, to give people a home.”

Almshouses date back to the 10th Century when churches and local landowners began building homes for needy parishioners to live in. Many of the 1,600 almshouses in the UK now date back to the Victorian era when prominent industrialists began building them for the poor of rapidly growing cities like Birmingham and Bristol.

The Church Road almshouses, just of Erdington High Street and near St Barnabas Church, were built in 1930 by the Bracebridge and Holte Trust, to replace almshouses built from the proceeds of the will of Sir Thomas Holte, who built Aston Hall, in 1650. Sir Holte, who lived on Church Road, was the former Sheriff of Warwickshire wanted to provide homes for ‘ten poor, old people, including five men and five women’ in the then Aston parish.

Ownership of the almshouses changed in July 2019 when the Sir Josiah Mason Trust took over the Bracebridge and Holte Trust. Sir Josiah Mason was a prominent Victorian industrialist who built further almshouses and an orphanage in Erdington, with a trust founded in his name in 1868.

After taking over the Church Road almshouses three years ago, the new owners Sir Josiah Mason Trust posted on Facebook when the deal was done.

They said: “The Trust is delighted to welcome Holte and Bracebridge Charity in Erdington to our family today. The charity was founded in 1650 as instructed by the will of Sir Thomas Holte, the founder of Aston Hall. The charity provides 10 almshouses, just half a mile from our original site and one mile from Mason Cottages and our former orphanage and is also a relief in need charity.

“We look forward to supporting residents and to continuing the valuable work of this very old charity.”

Estate agents Knight Frank is selling the ten Church Road almshouses on behalf of the Sir Josiah Mason Trust together as one sale, for £1.6 million.

The online listing said: “The development comprises 10 individual Almshouses set within communal gardens, erected circa 1930. Constructed of brick with Flemish detail to the end gables and single glazed windows. Locally listed Grade B.”

Still listed on the Sir Josiah Mason Trust website, the Church Road almshouses are referred to being ‘a short walk away from the High Street and set in attractive grounds.’

There is also a Wellbeing Support Worker ‘offering individual personal support’, with residents given access to the ‘communal facilities and meetings at Mason Cottages’ on Orphanage Road.

Chief Executive David Healey told Erdington Local: “The Trust are committed to providing quality housing and as people live longer, we want to provide homes that enable older people to age and remain living in the comfort of their own home.

“The current Holte and Bracebridge Almshouse are not suited to the needs of older people.”

He added: “Sir Josiah Mason Trust, which was founded in Erdington, is currently in the process of identifying a site to build new purpose-built Almshouses.

“The charity said that it is required to relocate the site to a location within the ancient Parish of Aston.”

For more on Sir Josiah Mason Trust visit www.sjmt.org.uk

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NEWS: Castle Vale development honours ATA women and girls at launch of 123 new homes

Words by Ed King / Pics by Christine Kitaka & Ed King

123 new homes have been officially launched on Castle Vale this week, at an event honouring the Air Transport Auxiliary (ATA) women and girls that supported the WWII war effort at Castle Bromwich Aerodrome.

The Point, a new housing estate built on the old Greenwood Academy site, has been delivered through a partnership with Birmingham City Council, The Pioneer Group, and commercial property developers Lovell Homes.

Selected roads on the new estate have been named after the ATA women and girls who bravely flew the Spitfires, bombers, and fighter planes from Castle Brom during the Second World War – often learning to fly each new plane from basic training and pilot notes handed to them on the way to the aircraft.

Those honoured include Mary Ellis – one of the last surviving British women pilots from the Second World War, who flew over 1,000 planes of 76 different types, including Harvards, Hurricanes, Spitfires, and Wellington bombers.

Eleanor Wadsworth – one of the RAF’s ‘Spitfire women’, who became a member of ATA at 25 and flew 22 different types of aircraft, including the Hawker Hurricane and Spitfire, amassing 590 flying hours, 430 of which were solo.

Also remembered was Joy Lofthouse – who flew Spitfires and bombers for the Air Transport Auxiliary and learnt to fly 38 different types of aircraft after joining ATA in December 1943.

In honour of these brave women, whose long unrecognised role in the WWII war effort changed the face of the UK’s modern military, roads on The Point estate have been named: Ellis Crescent, Wadsworth Knoll, and Lofthouse Vale.

The late Robin Corbett, Baron Corbett of Castle Vale, was also remembered with Corbett Boulevard named in his honour.

Friends and families attended a special event at The Point’s marketing office, on School Close, off Farnborough Road, Castle Vale – joined by Squadron Leader Chris Wilson (RAF Cosford), and representatives of the Air Cadets, Royal Airforce Association, and the partnership organisations responsible for delivering the development.

Opening the launch event, Birmingham Municipal Housing Trust Principal Housing Officer Gill Beveridge was joined by Castle Vale Cllr Ray Goodwin (Lab) – handing flowers to the first BCC and Pioneer Group residents, Antoinette Thompson and Aston Russell, and celebrating the “heroes” of WWII and “what they did to bring peace to this world.”

Speaking on behalf of Mary Ellis, who “started to learn to fly whilst she was still a schoolgirl”, her family further recalled how: “The Spitfire was Mary’s favourite plane, it was beautiful for her to fly and she had wonderful memories.

“She used river and roads for navigation, and it’s wonderful that we’ve used roads (named after the ATA women and girls) to come here and see this development.”

In a message from Joy Lofthouse’s daughter, read by a family friend and representative of the Fly to Help charity, people at the launch event heard how the 18 year old Lofthouse answered a call out for female pilots despite having “never been near an aeroplane in her life.”

Her daughter’s message continued: “Joy was an inspiration to me; her motto was ‘I can, I must, I will’ – and into her mid 90’s she did just that.

“I hope that if a young gild sees the street name, she might be curious as to who Joy Lofthouse was, and when she reads the story she might look up into the skies, see an aeroplane, and think – I can do that.”

Squadron Leader Chris Wilson, whose base at RAF Cosford would have fitted many of the planes coming off the Castle Bromwich Aerodrome, told the crowd:

“During the Battle of Britain we were always short of pilots, so what we needed to do is find other people who could fly the aircraft but who maybe couldn’t fight on the front line.

“So, the Air Transport Auxiliary came into being… and these amazing women would get in these aircrafts and fly them wherever they were told to fly them.

“They would walk to that aircraft with the pilots notes for that aircraft type – telling them things like stall speed, handling characteristics, what did it tended to like to do on take off. How would it bite you… and potentially kill you.

“So, to be here today and to know that you are taking the steps to keep recognising these people, is really, really, really good and I’m glad to be a part of it.”

The Point is a partnership development of 123 new homes on Castle Vale, with over 50% of the houses allocated to address the city’s growing social housing crisis.

Out of the 123 new homes at The Point, 64 will be made available for social housing – addressing the waiting lists held by both Birmingham City Council (BCC) and The Pioneer Group. The remaining 59 will be sold on the commercial market.

The Pioneer Group Chief Executive Officer, Simon Wilson, told Erdington Local: “We all know social housing is in huge demand – Birmingham City Council’s waiting list is mirrored by our own – so to provide beautiful new build homes in the heart of Castle Vale feels fantastic.

“We’ve got an allocation policy which does prioritise local people; we recognise people on Castle Vale want to stay on Castle Vale.

“But equally we know there’s a huge demand and need, and we’re really happy to get this development over the line.”

Squadron Leader Chris Wilson at launch of The Point, Castle Vale

For more information on The Point from Lovell Homes visit www.lovell.co.uk/developments/the-point

For more information on The Pioneer Group visit www.pioneergroup.org.uk

For advice and guidance around housing from Birmingham City Council visit www.birmingham.gov.uk/housing

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NEWS: Castle Vale residents “devastated” and face “being homeless” after 60% rise in service charge

Words by Ed King / Pics supplied by residents

Castle Vale residents in the Redrow development are facing a rise of around 60% in their yearly service charge, adding potentially hundreds of pounds onto their monthly bill.

Managed by HLM Property Management, the drastic increase has been attributed to utilities costs, but some residents are now facing monthly fees even bigger than their mortgages – to be paid directly to HLM.

In a letter issued to residents around Yatesbury Avenue and Merlin Way/Walk, HLM told: ‘We understand this is going to be a difficult time for leaseholders, however in order to ensure that services at the property continue we would ask that prompt payment is made.’

The letter also included a note explaining the national property management company had budgeted ‘a contribution from the reserves to reduce the impact of the utilities cost increase’ totalling £75000.’

Over 100 residents received the letter, issued at the end of last month, leaving many feeling “devastated” and worried about “being homeless” if they can’t make ends meet.

Paul White, Merlin Walk, told Erdington Local: “I have just bought my first property and within a month it (service charge) has gone from £300 to £460 a month, way above mortgage and inflation level with wages not being increased.

“I am worried that even though I own my property I could be faced with being homeless.”

Another resident, Amber Batt, said: “I’m a 23-year-old, first time buyer. Initially I was advised the service charge would be around £300 and of recent I have been told it is going to be upwards of £450.

“I am not able to go out and live the normal life of a 23 year old as I have the impending responsibility of paying over £400 a month to be able have a functioning house in addition to my mortgage and council tax.

“It feels there is no choice in the matter and no consideration is being given to people’s individual circumstances.”

Christine Pascoe said: “I moved in to my flat in February of this year and got my first service charge bill, whilst buying the property.

“I was told the service charge would be £250 approximately per month, but it’s come out at £412 per month. I live alone and a pensioner.”

Sarah Garfield, who has lived on Castle Vale since the houses were built in 2006, added: “My service charge has risen by £160 a month which I find absolutely criminal. I live alone so therefore only have my wage to live on and this rise will have a massive impact on my day-to-day living.

“It’s time HLM were confronted and provide us with a decent management service instead of the abysmal one we’ve had to put up with for the past 16 years.”

One resident, Matthew Bowler, saw his monthly service charge jump from £195 to £318.5 due to increased energy costs, despite living alone in a studio apartment.

He explained: “I’m paying more for my energy than many families in three bedroom houses. It’s just shocking.

“These flats are well insulated; I don’t have the heating on that much – even in winter. There’s no way that the energy I’m using correlates with the price I’m paying for it.”

After individually trying to challenge the home wrecking increase with HLM, a group of residents have now banded together to fight the hiked-up service charge – which is scheduled to begin being paid to the company on 1 July.

At the time of writing, over 40 people had joined a special WhatsApp group to challenge the utility costs and get a “fair deal” from the property management company.

Matthew Bowler continued: “(We want) a fair deal in proportion to inflation because this is way above inflation.

“It’s reached a tension point now where things have got to be addressed and we’ve got to sit down with them (HLM) and say ‘look we’re really unhappy and this price that you’re trying to put on us is going to be devastating. You need to work with us to get a solution.’

“If they don’t act, people could lose livelihoods; there’s families that live here, there’s pensioners, and we won’t be able to cope. There’s going to be people made homeless by it – they’re not going to be able to pay the mortgage and the service charge.

“If HLM aren’t prepared to do anything then we’ve got to bring into question their reputation as a company – it’s completely not acceptable.”

After being contacted by residents looking for help, newly elected Castle Vale Councillor Ray Goodwin (Lab) began organising a public meeting to hear concerns directly and seeking legal advice from colleagues at Birmingham City Council.

Cllr Goodwin told Erdington Local: “Having been approached by residents living in the Redrow development on Merlin Way/Walk and the surrounding roads, I’m deeply concerned by the disproportionate increase in relation to utility costs. In some incidents this appears as high as a 300% increase.

“I will be supporting the concerned residents – who are angry, worried, and very stressed by this – to find a way forward which ensures they pay fair utilities costs.

“It simply unacceptable to estimate such figures, especially during the ongoing cost of living crisis.”

HLM Property Management were approached for comment which they replied would be issued “in due course.”

If you have been affected by a rise in service charges, imposed utility bills, or landlord/lettings agent fees, we want to hear from you – email in confidence: [email protected]

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NEWS: Over a hundred new homes set for old Greenwood Academy site on Castle Vale

Words by Ed King

Castle Vale could see over a hundred new homes being built on the old Greenwood Academy site, after a deal has been struck between Lovell Partnerships, The Pioneer Group, and Birmingham Municipal Housing Trust (BMHT) – Birmingham City Council’s housebuilding arm.

The new housing development, to be called The Point, will see 123 new homes on the Vale, with over 50% being earmarked for social housing and subsidised rentals.

Lovell Partnership will be looking to build 59 two, three, and four bed homes for sale on the open market.

40 homes will be rental properties for Birmingham City Council, whilst the remaining 24 will be rental properties for Vale based The Pioneer Group, managed under its Castle Vale Community Housing (CVCH) social housing brand.

Tenants in The Pioneer Group properties will benefit from affordable rents, with rates set at 20% below current market rent levels.

The Pioneer Group’s homes will include ten 1-bedroom apartments, eight 2-bedroom houses and six 3-bedroom houses. These properties will be allocated to CVCH applicants from its waiting list.

For more information on CVCH allocation scheme and a link to the application form click here.

Greenwood Academy (previously Castle Vale School) opened the doors of its new school building on Farnborough Road on 13 March 2018, with an official ceremony attended by the late MP for Erdington Jack Dromey.

The previous building was sanctioned for demolition, with a tender put out by Birmingham City Council stating the ‘estimated value of the works is in the region of £400,000 to £600,000’.

The work tendered included ‘safe demolition and site clearance’, but the site itself has stayed undeveloped for over four years – with previous concerns over infrastructure and access.

With a deal now agreed between Lovell Partnerships, BMHT, and The Pioneer Group, Castle Vale could soon be welcoming over a hundred new families on to the North Birmingham estate.

Simon Wilson, CEO The Pioneer Group said:

“This exciting new development at Farnborough Road supports our strategic aim to close the gap in the shortage of high quality and affordable housing in a high-demand area.

“The homes will be on the old Greenwood School site and the whole development will provide a range of rented and home ownership opportunities for local residents. This is a great example of working together with the City Council and Lovells to deliver opportunities in the Vale.”

With a population of over 20,000, Castle Vale has been a hotbed of housing and regeneration since becoming one of the UK’s first Housing Action Trusts in April 1993.

Lovell Partnerships have previously delivered over 230 new build homes on a site adjacent to Farnborough Road.

Stuart Penn, regional managing director at Lovell Partnerships, added:

“We have a strong history of work in Castle Vale and the wider Birmingham area which spans more than a decade and look forward to developing this former school site into much-needed, homes, both for the open market and affordable tenures.

“This development is yet another example of our expertise in bringing brownfield sites back into use.

“This particular location has a really interesting history, and the development will pay homage to the past while also looking to the future.”

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NEWS: Housing boost for Erdington as Witton Lodge CIC becomes official Registered Provider

Words by Steve Sharma / Pic of refurbishment supplied by WLCA

Hundreds more homes could now be refurbished and built across Erdington, as Witton Lodge Community Interest Company (WLCIC) has successfully become a Registered Provider.

The official status will allow the Perry Common based WLCIC to apply for funding to refurbish derelict properties, as well as to build new affordable and social housing – helping to address the city’s ongoing housing crisis.

According to the Birmingham City Council, Birmingham is facing a population increase of around 156,000 people by 2031 – leaving a housing shortage of nearly 90,000 homes.

Gareth Hopkins, Homes and Assets Manager for Witton Lodge, said: “Achieving Registered Provider status enables Witton Lodge CIC to progress its housing development aspirations.

“There are currently around 17,000 housing applicants on Birmingham City Council’s waiting list (May 2021) and over 9,000 empty properties across the city (August 2019)

“Homes England (the national government agency for development and regulation of affordable housing) has a national funding pot to address the housing shortage.

“By becoming a Registered Provider we can now apply directly for funding to develop and manage properties.

“We can now pursue the refurbishment of even more empty properties, those which have become a blight on local communities and can cause issues such as anti-social behaviour.”

Before/after refurbishment by WLCIC

Witton Lodge Community Interest Company was formed in 2015 as a subsidiary of Witton Lodge Community Association (WLCA) to progress housing and community asset development goals.

WLCA is a charity with a successful track record of community-led housing and capital asset development across North Birmingham – established by local residents in 1994, in response to plans to demolish the Perry Common estate.

Since then, WLCA have built and manage 187 properties, as well as developing other community assets such Perry Common Community Hall and Perry Common Library.

The Association organises and delivers a rolling programme of community support and engagement activities – tackling issues from employment and digital poverty to health and wellbeing, many of which became crucial lifelines during lockdowns.

WLCA are also currently running special employment support services from Perry Common Library as part of the Ignite Aspirations initiative, to help people over 29 get back to work after Covid.

Chief Officer, Afzal Hussain, said: “We’re delighted that Witton Lodge CIC has achieved Registered Provider status. The team and Board have worked hard to get us to this stage, however, in many ways the real work starts now as we know there is huge demand for good quality, affordable homes.

“Another important feature is the ‘community-led’ element, where we are able demonstrate that there is a different model to developing new housing, which works with the grain of local communities.

“The work of the CIC will also complement the charitable activities of the Association which provides health, employment and community support services to hundreds of local residents.”

For more on Witton Lodge Community Association visit wwwwittonlodge.org.uk

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EXPLOITED: Part 3 – The unchallenged rampage of HMOs and shared houses, wreaking havoc for a profit across our community

Words by Adam Smith

In the third instalment of EXPLOITED, Adam Smith looks at the oversaturation problem in the HMO and supported living sector – hearing from the top of two housing associations and going right down to the root cause of the misery.

“It’s a license to print money,” one former employee of a housing association tellingly revealed.

And it stands to reasons where there is easy money on offer there will be a queue of people ready to take it.

On the Birmingham City Council website there is a list of HMOs where landlords can charge the benefits system £900 for a room, which often can be more than £500 over the private rented market value. And the list runs into the thousands.

Across Birmingham there are 2345 HMOs with six or more people living in them, with applications pending for another 758 properties – including houses in Mere Road, Queens Road, Chester Road, Hillaries Road, Norfolk Road, Kings Road, Slade Road and George Road in Erdington.

As well as the licensed HMOs there are thousands more smaller HMOs and shared houses which fall into the category of ‘exempt’ or ‘supported’ accommodation. There are hundreds of companies which can apply for an HMO license in Erdington, many of which have been arguably set up just to take advantage of the system.

Spring Housing Association (SHA) is a Birmingham based Housing Association which operates HMOs, hostels and social housing – an organisation that has been referenced in previous Exploited articles. SHA has close links to Birmingham City Council and is one of the biggest housing associations in the Midlands, managing or owning more than 700 properties.

SHA, which has Edgbaston MP Preet Gill on its board of directors, has lobbied the Government to tighten up regulations and is now even turning shared houses into family homes.

SHA group chief executive and founder, Dominic Bradley, told Erdington Local there should be tighter regulations on the mushrooming number of companies which can run HMOs and shared accommodation.

He said: “We believe that there is over saturation of exempt shared housing provision in Birmingham. This is not to say that this type of housing doesn’t have an important part to play in the prevention of homelessness in all of its forms. In fact it’s essential.

“However, we have long recognised that in parts of the city we are over saturated with this style of housing – which is disruptive to local communities. Stockland Green is an obvious example of this.”

Dominic added: “It’s one of the reasons we are about to purchase a shared house in Erdington and convert it back to a family home. We are aiming to do something similar in Edgbaston, which has had similar community issues to Stockland Green.

“Whilst this is a start and one we are keen to develop further there are wider more systematic issues that need to be tackled around strengthening existing regulations about what we mean about care, support and supervision and work with providers to curb the current unmitigated growth and target provision linked to local strategy which we know Birmingham City Council are very keen to achieve.”

In the last article, Exploited – Humans Must Obey,  we outlined the rules tenants have to follow whilst living in supported housing and HMOs.

In the housing sector the term used is ‘Exempt Accommodation’ because in 1996 Housing Benefit regulations were changed to include ‘non-commissioned EA’ which were defined as ‘accommodation which is…provided by a non-metropolitan country council, a housing association, a registered charity or a voluntary organisation where that body or a person acting on its behalf also provides the claimant with care, support or supervision.

‘If a provider or landlord meets these criteria, they are exempt from rent restrictions within the private rented sector and are able to yield rent levels, paid for from housing benefit, far in excess of ‘general needs’ social sector rents and, often, market rents.’

These two paragraphs provided the starter of the sector gun, as landlords and housing associations realised they could charge more rent without the hassle of tenancy agreements – and the introduction of Universal Credit in 2012 massively increased the sector. The Conservative government’s change of rules, that the tenant received the housing benefit and not the landlord, meant it made sense for landlords to claim their houses were ‘exempt’ so they could get the cash directly as had been the case for decades.

The last Parliamentary research into HMOs, published in 2019, revealed there were more than 497,000 HMOs in England in Wales in 2018. And that number is growing.

Spring Housing Association, the University of Birmingham, and Commonweal Housing combined to produce a 60 page report – Exempt from Responsibility? Ending Social Injustice in Exempt Accommodation – which detailed the shocking state of housing provision and detailed how thousands of people were stuck in negative housing situations across the city.

Ashley Horsey, chief executive of Commonweal Housing, a charity formed to ‘implement housing solutions to social injustice’, described the damage exempt housing is doing to tenants and communities.

He said: “The findings of this report are stark. That over 11,000 people in Birmingham – and many thousands more across the country – are living in potentially unsafe and unsuitable ‘exempt’ accommodation should concern us all.

“Residents interviewed for this report described feelings of ‘entrapment’ in financial instability; exclusion from decision-making processes; lack of control over where, and with whom, they are housed.

“At the same time, the nature of too many of the business models involved in this space are causing some concern, not least inflation linked leases from property owners requiring ever rising rents.

“In addition, the deficit-based tenant modelling – talking up your tenant’s weaknesses to justify your income stream – is all too common, and a tricky place to be morally. Especially where there remains little oversight.”

Ashley added: “The ‘don’t ask don’t tell’ nature of some of the governance and regulation of this sector is alarming. Of course, everyone accommodated in the exempt accommodation sector is in need of a home. But asking no questions simply because this sector is putting a roof over a head is not good enough.

“In particular, the exempt accommodation sector is too often the only housing available for the marginalised, the overlooked, the undervalued and the de-valued in society. They are the women who find themselves here after fleeing domestic violence, as their only housing option.”

The next instalment of EXPLOITED will reveal the shocking stories of women who have either lived in, live in, or have been affected by HMOs, exempt, or shared housing.

To read Exempt from Responsibility? Ending Social Injustice in Exempt Accommodation, visit www.springhousing.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Spring-Housing-Final-Report-A4.pdf

To read the 2019 Parliamentary briefing paper on HMOs, visit www.commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/sn00708 

For more on Spring Housing Association, visit www.springhousing.org.uk

For more on Commonweal Housing, visit www.commonwealhousing.org.uk

If you have been affected by HMOs or any of the issues mentioned in this article, we want to hear your side of the story – email Erdington Local on [email protected]

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EXPLOITED: HMOs – the cruel rules that Humans Must Obey

Words by Adam Smith / Pics by Ed King

Erdington Local continues its investigation into the frightening world of HMOs (homes of multiple occupancy) shining a light on the cruel rules and regulations thousands of tenants are forced to live under.

Chief reporter Adam Smith talks directly to the tenants living in uncertainty and fear across Erdington and the UK, wading through the inhumane bureaucracy behind HMOs – in his next article for EXPLOITED.

It took centuries for tenants to get legal rights so ruthless landlords could not evict them on a whim.

After a string of slum landlord scandals in the 1960s and 1970s several acts of parliament safeguarded renters rights – preventing enforced evictions, rent hikes, intrusion and intimidation.

However, right now thousands of Erdington HMO tenants are living as if the 20th Century never happened, in fear of being made homeless at any time.

HMO companies force tenants to sign license agreements, which leave them at the mercy of a raft of rules – many of which are vague and subjective, but which if broken can lead to eviction.

Three HMO tenants have shown Erdington Local their license agreements – relating to properties from Three Conditions Housing Association (3CHA), Green Park Housing (GPH), and Spring Housing (SH).

All three agreements are remarkably similar in their authoritative tone and demands on the tenant; the multiplicity of rules needed to be adhered to might as well see Houses of Multiple Occupancy redefined to Humans Must Obey*.

Green Park Housing and 3CHA warn tenants they could be evicted in a ‘REASONABLE’ amount of time. Although ‘REASONABLE’ is spelled put in capital letters on the official documents, an actual unit of time is not mentioned.

In the first EXPLOITED, Erdington Local revealed how social housing giant Spring Housing could evict tenants within seven days.

However, a whistle blower from another housing association, which has homes in Kingstanding, contacted Erdington Local to say: “Our housing association could evict within three hours if they wanted, the rules  people sign up to are vague so the housing associations can use them to evict immediately – if they say the person is in danger or other tenants they can remove them in three hours. That is what reasonable means.”

A consistent feature with all the HMO licence agreements is the stress on the importance of tenants paying a weekly service charge. Despite housing benefit covering the rent, often in the region of £800 to £900 a month for one room, housing providers demand a further weekly fee – Spring Housing £12, 3CHA £15, and Green Park £13.

Which the tenant has to pay, meaning tenants on benefits have to stump up 20% of their monthly money.

Unscrupulous landlords have realised the money spinning benefits of turning their house into an HMO, so now rooms are advertised for ‘£15’ per week and can only be rented to benefit claimants. Tenants sign up for ‘supported living’ in their licence and then Birmingham City Council will pay in the region of £900 a month for a room.

All the licence agreements are explicitly clear, if the weekly service charge is not paid then the tenant will be evicted.

What’s more, HMO tenants are forced to live under rules which means their house can never feel a home. Rules include: ‘no pictures can be hung on the walls.’ They cannot drink alcohol, smoke, or even swear in their own home.

3CHA‘s licence agreement says in bold black letters: ‘You cannot have anyone stay with You at the House overnight’ which bans adults from having the comfort of sleeping with another human being.

Spring Housing‘s agreement states: ‘You will not allow any visitors on site’ – meaning tenants in their properties cannot invite friends, family members, partners, or anyone in for a cup of tea or chat.

Even prisoners are allowed visitors, a right that is seemingly not extended to you if you live in an HMO.

A female HMO tenant, who did not want to be named for safety reasons, said: “I’ve lived in several HMOs and it always feels like they are trying to isolate me. I can’t even have my friends round for a laugh; I can’t decorate my room. The only time I hear from the support worker is when they demand the service charge.

“And the rules are vague and open to interpretation, if they come up with a scenario which they say I am in danger or a danger to others then I have three hours to vacate. I’m old enough to remember when tenants had rights, but HMOS are different, they are evil. HMO for me stands for Humans Must Obey.”

Shamir Hussain, who was evicted by Spring Housing during the COVID-19 lockdown, said: “I just signed what they wanted me to when I got the room, but Spring used the small print rules to evict me during the pandemic. 

“They used the fact that the kitchen was messy to evict me because of some rule they said I was breaking.”

The lack of privacy is another feature of living in a HMO, staff can enter a room whenever they want. Erdington Local has obtained a recording of a ‘landlord’ and ‘support worker’ entering a house at 11.30pm – demanding residents names, despite having no identification and refusing to give their own names.

GPH‘s licence agreement explicitly says on the first page: ‘This licence does not confer exclusive possession. GPH and its staff have the absolute right to enter Your Room at any time without notice.’

And even more disorientating is the fact that tenants can return their rooms and find them altered, as Spring Housing states: ‘Spring may change Your Room from time to time without notice or Your agreement. This can be done for any reason.’

Housing charity Shelter gives advice to tenants and tells them what they should legally expect.

Shelter states: ‘Landlords must let you live in your home without unnecessary interference. Your landlord should not let themselves into your home without your permission. Your landlord should not harass you or make it difficult for you to live in your home.’

However, thanks to the introduction of the HMO into the housing market these basic rights that tenants should expect have been removed.

3CHA boasts on its website: ‘It is a 21st century social landlord for 21st century customers.’

Which, sadly, is true – in the 20th Century tenants had more rights than the 21st Century. Because of HMOs.

*Humans Must Obey is copyrighted by Napier Productions – pertaining to the name of a forthcoming documentary about HMOs.

If you have been affected by HMOs or any of the issues mentioned int his article, we want to hear your side of the story – email Erdington Local on [email protected]

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EXPLOITED: HMOs – when greed meets vulnerability, carving up communities for a profit

Words by Adam Smith / Pics by Ed King

Erdington Local launches a series of articles investigating the devastation caused by the mushrooming number of HMOs (homes of multiple occupancy) in Erdington and Kingstanding.

Chief reporter Adam Smith spent the last year living in HMOs and has seen first-hand how housing associations and rogue landlords are ripping off taxpayers – whilst exploiting the most vulnerable people in society.

Do you pay tax?

If so, then your hard-earned money is lining the pockets of ruthless housing associations and rogue landlords – whose greed is wrecking the lives of Erdington residents, tenants, and the most vulnerable people in society.

Nationally the taxpayer shells out billions of pounds for eye-wateringly inflated rents for benefits claimants’ rooms in HMOs – which get planning permission, despite Erdington residents and politicians bitterly complaining they are destroying the very fabric of the local community.

Hundreds of Erdington houses, including historic and beautiful Victorian properties, have been turned into HMOs – creating a living hell for both tenants and local residents who watch helplessly as the area they love becomes blighted.

Stockland Green is one of the worst examples in the country for the negative effect of HMOs and supported accommodation.

Those classed as ‘vulnerable’ and living in HMOs and/or supported accommodation are locked in a vicious circle; landlords charge the taxpayer £900 a month for a single room, leaving the tenant no motivation to get a job as the rent will be too high on a low wage. This investigation will explore examples of housing association staff actively discouraging tenants to work.

Tenants in ‘supported accommodation’ should get an hour of professional support a week, which qualifies their extortionate rent from benefits – but instead of proper psychiatric help, staff often only see tenants to demand a weekly ‘maintenance charge’, usually between £12 and £20, out of their benefits.

Instead of tenancy agreements which offer some protection to renters, those living in HMOs are forced to sign ‘licenses’ containing pages of draconian rules and potential infringements – which if broken can see the tenants made homeless with just a week’s notice.

Staff can enter rooms when they like and there have even been examples of male staff bursting unannounced into women’s rooms after 11pm.

HMOs radically changed the rental market in Erdington, with landlords now preferring benefits claimants and even advertising rooms for the price of the maintenance charge. Meanwhile, working people are trying to find somewhere to live from a dwindling amount of properties – which are increasing in price due to their scarcity.

This scandal crosses political lines too.

Legislation from the Conservative government has allowed ruthless companies, landlords, and housing associations to exploit the benefit system – whilst Birmingham’s Labour administration has allowed thousands of HMOs to be created in the city, without the ability to scrutinise the conduct of those organisations running them.

This investigation will unveil the close links between Birmingham City Council  and to the companies profiting from the system.

During the Government’s ban on evictions during the coronavirus crisis, housing associations in Birmingham have been quietly evicting people during the deadly pandemic.

Recently, Edgbaston MP Preet Gill called on the Government to extend the evictions ban. However, Gill is on the board of Spring Housing Association, which works extremely closely with Birmingham City Council – but which also evicted vulnerable tenants during COVID-19 lockdown.

One evicted Spring Housing tenant, Shamir Hussain, told Erdington Local: “I was evicted during lockdown by Spring Housing, just when I thought I was as low as I could they made it worse. They made me homeless during a pandemic where people were dying all around us, I will never forget that.

“They (Spring Housing) were getting £900 a month for me to live in a room; I could have paid a mortgage on a nice house for that obscene amount of money for one room. And when I did put a claim in for a much cheaper rent amount, for a whole flat, I was refused. It seemed like they were happy to pay £900 to Spring Housing but not a fraction of that to sort my life out.”

The area’s two most powerful politicians, Labour’s Erdington MP Jack Dromey and Erdington Councillor and leader of Birmingham’s Conservatives Robert Alden, both recognise the damage being done to the area by the scourge of bad landlords.

Dromey said: “I know how angry residents are about this issue, I went to a meeting on Frances Road two years ago expecting six people to be there and 70 residents turned up. And the problem has worsened in that time not got better.

“Stockland Green is where the problem is at its most acute, where the most prosecutions of landlords in Birmingham have been due to work with the police, and with the disproportionate dumping of vulnerable tenants into the area by landlords who do not give a damn about them and not give them any help.

“Some of these landlords let their tenants live in squalor in Erdington whilst they live in the lap of luxury in Sutton Coldfield. However, there are some very good landlords out there, which is all the more the shame when the bad ones undercut them to cram an extra person in.”

In the 1980’s Dromey helped residents in London fight a bitter dispute with slum landlords and even created a ‘Hit Parade of Bad Landlords’ with help from Radio 1 DJ Alan Freeman – who would regularly do a run down on television of the worst offenders.

The MP said: “We have use imaginative ways to fight these type of people but in Erdington we also need proper joined up action with the police, council, probation and mental health services working together to solve the problems created in the last five years in the housing sector which coincides with the Tories being in power.”

Councillor Robert Alden laments the changing face of the area’s housing stock, which used to be the envy of the rest of the city in years gone by.

He said: “Erdington has been blighted by HMO’s run by bad landlords.

“Erdington’s large stock of larger Victorian family homes have sadly often been taken over and turned into swathes of HMO’s – in many places seeing whole rows of housing turned from the purpose they were built for, to provide housing for families, into a collection of substandard and often below even minimum standard room size bedsits.”

He added: “Often quiet residential streets have suddenly found themselves besieged by bedsits acting under exempt housing placing drug addicts, alcoholics, and ex-offenders into our local community.

“Sadly, those rogue landlords have used loopholes in the system to convert houses far and beyond the scope they were designed for, often seeing three bedroom homes turned into six or seven room bedsits.

“Sometimes they also claim for alleged support provided to people while failing to provide anything like that – in the process taking huge amounts of tax payers money for services barely provided, failing their tenants, while also leaving communities like Erdington to suffer from the fallout.”

As well as the co-operation of all relevant agencies in Erdington, there also needs to be strong political leadership to stop the situation getting worse – but to also undo the systemic problems caused by five years of loopholes being exploited by those who had the most money to gain from flooding Erdington with high profit dangerous housing.

Throughout this series of stories, a light will be shone on some very murky corners and shocking practices – and this investigation will follow the money.

This investigation will explore how neighbouring HMOs crammed full of men have created ‘no-go roads’ for women and teenagers fed up of cat calling, sexual harassment, and threatening acts of misogyny.

There will also be stories from the female perspective, from suddenly having men moved into your safe space, as well as the unique HMO experiences of trans refugees.

This investigation will challenge those responsible on their behaviour – reporting them to the appropriate authorities if any laws were broken. Expect explosive revelations and, as readers, you have the right to demand resignations.

If you have been affected by HMOs or any of the issues mentioned in this article, we want to hear your side of the story – email Erdington Local on [email protected]