The Croydon Council Scrutiny Homes Sub-Committee met on 29 September 2025, to discuss key performance indicators, the responsive repairs service, a private rented sector licensing scheme and the housing allocation scheme. The sub-committee also reviewed the Cabinet's response to previous scrutiny recommendations and the committee's work programme for the coming year.

Private Rented Sector (PRS) Licensing Scheme

The Sub-Committee conducted early scrutiny on the council's proposal to introduce a Private Rented Sector (PRS) Licensing Scheme aimed at improving standards and management in the private rented sector. The council is considering a borough-wide additional HMO¹ licensing scheme and a selective licensing scheme, focused on areas with poor housing conditions.

Selective Licensing Scheme The feasibility review indicated that 19 of the 28 wards in Croydon have a PRS above the national average percentage and are eligible to be considered for selective licensing. The review found that:

• 14 of 28 wards in Croydon meet the criteria for poor housing conditions
• 5 wards are in the 30% most deprived, meeting the criteria for deprivation
• There was insufficient Anti-social behaviour data available to assess ASB as a criteria for licensing
• Croydon does not have sufficient levels of migration into the borough to be an eligible criteria

It was recommended that the council proceed with a larger scheme, consisting of a single designation on poor housing conditions. The designation consists of 14 wards and would cover 32,043 properties, which is 74.4% of the total PRS in Croydon, or 72.5% of the PRS when HMO properties are excluded.

Additional HMO Licensing Scheme A review of the evidence for introducing additional HMO licensing found poor housing conditions were prevalent boroughwide with high rates of Category 1 hazards and high rates of non-decent homes. It was recommended that Croydon proceed with a boroughwide scheme.

Proposed Fees

The proposed licence fee for selective licensing is between £775- £975, with discounts offered for properties with an EPC rating of A or B (£100), EPC rating of C (£50), multiple properties in the same freeholding (£100), and accredited landlords (£100).

The proposed licence fee for additional HMO licensing is between £1,250-£1450, with discounts for EPC rating of A or B (£50) and accredited landlords (£50).

A public consultation is due to start on Monday 13th October 2025.

Repairs Deep Dive

The Sub-Committee reviewed a report providing a 'deep dive' into the responsive repairs service, two years after its mobilisation on 1 August 2023. The report detailed current performance, barriers and risks, areas for improvement, new initiatives, and what is working well.

The report noted that resident satisfaction has improved since March 2025, with overall repairs transaction satisfaction at 80% in July 2025. However, an analysis of open-ended questions in the Tenant Satisfaction Measures (TSM) survey revealed that the time taken to complete repairs and outstanding repairs were key areas of dissatisfaction.

The report also highlighted that complaints have increased, but the repairs complaints team have fully engaged with system changes and are managing more stage one cases within timescales.

The report set out service improvements including:

• Customer First training for all colleagues
• Damp & Mould training for all colleagues visiting behind resident front door
• Training in safeguarding for all colleagues/operatives visiting our homes
• Regular training for contact centre advisors to support correct diagnosis/prioritisation of repairs
• Technical Officer co-located with repair contact centre to offer advice
• Closer working with tenancy team to support reduction in 'no access' visits
• Winter resource plans in place for contact centre and repairs, D&M teams

The Sub-Committee noted the contents of the report and the proposed measures.

Housing Allocation Scheme Consultation Update

The Sub-Committee received an update on the results of the public consultation on proposed changes to the Council's Housing Allocation Scheme². The council has a statutory duty to publish an Allocations Scheme which sets out the rules that determine who can apply for and receive social housing from a local authority.

The consultation covered several proposed changes, including:

• Change in residency criteria: Extending the residency criteria from three to six years. 75% of respondents agreed with this change.
• Supporting Care Experienced Young Adults (CEYA): Offering CEYA a higher priority for housing, from Band 3 (low priority) to a Band 2 (medium priority). If a CEYA is working or in training, they will be given a Band 1 priority. 67% of respondents agreed with this change.
• Sheltered accommodation: Allocations for sheltered accommodation are made to residents who are at state pension age, without dependents and based on an assessment of the need for this type of housing. 74% of respondents agreed with this change.
• Annual lettings plan: Implementing an annual housing lettings plan to help the Council better manage homes and meet the needs of the community. 70% of respondents agreed with this change.
• Application assessment timescale: Changing the timescale to process applications to within the London average of 30 working days. 51% of respondents agreed with this change, 26% disagreed.
• Re-instatement of the annual review of the housing register: Requiring applicants to confirm annually that they wish to remain on the register. 72% of respondents agreed with this change, 17.5% disagreed.
• Choosing a property that is one bedroom less than the assessed need: Giving applicants the option to bid for or be offered properties one bedroom less than their assessed size. 60% of respondents agreed with this change, 18% disagreed.
• One offer policy: Implementing a one offer policy for all applicants. 45% of respondents agreed with this change, 35% disagreed.

Based on the outcome of the consultation, the revised Housing Allocation Policy was agreed and implemented at the end of April 2025. A 12-month review of the impact of the changes will be carried out in May 2026.

Update on Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

The Sub-Committee considered the performance of the Council's Housing Service through Key Performance Indicators (KPIs).

Key points from the Housing Improvement Board Performance Report - August 2025 included:

• Residential rent collection was at 96.3%, above the target of 95.0%.
• Current arrears were at 7.1%, above the target of 4.0%.
• Repairs Contact Centre Average call waiting time was 02:03, below the target of 05:00.
• Average re-let time for all properties (General Needs & Sheltered) was 33.5 days, below the target of 40 days.
• Vacancies % Full Time Equivalents (Rolling year) was 28.0%, above the target of 20.0%.
• Average sick days per employee (Rolling year) was 16.8, above the target of 12.0.

Tenant Satisfaction Measures (TSM) Summary:

• Overall satisfaction was 51%, below the London LA 24/25 Benchmark of 61%.
• Satisfaction with repairs was 59%, below the London LA 24/25 Benchmark of 63%.
• Satisfaction that the landlord listens to tenant views and acts upon them was 41%, below the London LA 24/25 Benchmark of 53%.

Stabilisation Plan Update

The Sub-Committee received a verbal update on the Housing elements contained within the Council's Stabilisation Plan. No further details were provided in the agenda.

Cabinet Response to Scrutiny Recommendations

The Homes Sub-Committee was presented with an up to date list of responses from Cabinet to recommendations made by the Sub-Committee for review.

The Sub-Committee reviewed the responses given and considered whether any further action was necessary.

Work Programme 2025-2026

The Homes Sub-Committee noted the most recent version of its Work Programme, as presented in the report and considered whether there were any other items that should be provisionally added to the work programme as a result of the discussions held during the meeting.