The Housing and Regeneration Scrutiny Panel met to discuss temporary accommodation and homelessness, the housing delivery programme, and training for neighbourhood services. Councillor Nawshad Ali, Chair of the Housing and Regeneration Scrutiny Panel, was expected to welcome those present. Apologies were to be noted.

Temporary Accommodation and Homelessness

Kayt Wilson, Director of Homelessness & Supported Accommodation, was scheduled to present a report on temporary accommodation and homelessness in Enfield. The report stated that the council had ended its use of hotel accommodation, after having 336 households in hotels in April 2023, at a cost of £1.3 million per month. This was achieved through the creation of a rapid assessment and resettlement hub, and targeted interventions.

Other achievements mentioned in the report included:

• The creation of a long lease scheme, offering 10-year leases with providers.
• A reduction in the number of single people in temporary accommodation, from 423 in March 2025 to 384 in October 2025, leading to savings of £202,000 per year.
• A placement policy supporting moves out of the borough for families without pressing needs to remain in Enfield.

Despite these achievements, the report highlighted the dramatic escalation in homelessness, changes in funding, rising temporary accommodation costs, and the increasing gap between rent levels and benefits. Enfield Council had 3,125 households in temporary accommodation. The biggest drivers for homelessness were Section 21 notices¹ and host ejection.

The report noted that the Local Housing Allowance (LHA) was not keeping pace with market rents, limiting the council's ability to prevent homelessness and move households into the private rented sector. It was estimated that only a tiny minority (0.2 – 3.8%) of properties in and around Enfield were at the Local Housing Allowance rate.

The report stated that the Housing Advisory Service was working to support applicants to find alternative accommodation, mainly in the private rented sector. The report included the following graphic:

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The report stated that 37,000 households in Enfield had approached the Housing Advisory Service in the last 5 years, out of an estimated 121,000 households in the borough.

The report stated that to meet current demand and reduce overall numbers in temporary accommodation, the supply of affordable accommodation needed to increase to over 150 homes per month.

The report also detailed several service improvements, including:

• Strengthening the council's placement policy.
• Continued avoidance of expensive hotel accommodation.
• Expansion of the long lease scheme.
• Sole nomination rights to properties within Housing Gateway Ltd, the council's housing company.
• An effective process to move single people out of temporary accommodation.
• Improved working relationships with partner organisations.
• Seeking additional one-off funding to support Afghan housing and rough sleeping.
• A restructure to strengthen staff structures and improve efficiency.
• Continuing close liaison with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) to ensure the housing benefit subsidy issue remains high on the agenda.

The report stated that the cost of temporary accommodation across London had escalated to unsustainable levels, but that the Housing Advisory Service had driven down costs by £4.7 million from 2024/25 to 2025/26. However, the service was projecting a variation of approximately £3.2 million for 2025-26, in addition to the net deficit in the base budget of £14.485 million.

The report also noted that regulations for Housing Benefit represented a major cost to the service, as the council could only reclaim 90% of the 2011 rate of Local Housing Allowance for households in temporary accommodation, resulting in an anticipated gap of approximately £11 million for 2025-26.

The report mentioned the Local Government Outcomes Framework (LGOF), a new approach designed to empower councils as place leaders and introduce outcome-based accountability. The LGOF sets out 15 outcomes that the government expects to work with local authorities to deliver, including preventing and reducing homelessness and rough sleeping.

Housing Delivery Programme

Aneesh Maini, Head of Development, was scheduled to present a report providing a summary of the council's housing delivery programme. The report stated that the council was allocated circa £200 million to deliver 1,100 homes across the affordable homes programmes, which are all in contract for delivery.

The report included a table summarising schemes and homes delivered to date and to be delivered across all tenures:

*Subject to agreement of intensification of scheme and planning approval

Joyce & Snell's

The council is progressing with plans to deliver a large regeneration project on the Joyce Avenue & Snell's Park Estates in Upper Edmonton. This will include demolition of the existing buildings and delivery of 2,028 homes on the site along with significant community infrastructure and public realm improvements.

A hybrid planning application for Joyce & Snell's was submitted by the council in April 2024 and successfully received resolution to grant in July 2024. The decision notice and shadow S106² were completed in May 2025.

Hill Partnerships Ltd signed the Enabling Works and Pre-Contract Services Agreement (PCSA) contracts with the council on 31 October 2024. The enabling works scope includes:

• Demolition of a row of 15 existing garages.
• Relocation of a UKPN substation.
• Delivery of a new meanwhile playground / play space.

Ladderswood Estate

The council entered into an agreement with New Ladderswood LLP and Mullaley & Co Ltd in December 2011. To date, Phases 1-4 have been successfully delivered, with Phases 5 & 6 due to commence. Discussions on the intensification of Phases 5 & 6 continue with the NLLP with their planning consultants. The proposed intensification includes 359 additional homes to the current planning for 517, bringing a total of 876 homes, subject to financial viability which is underway.

Alma Estate

Enfield Council and Countryside Partnerships have been working together on the regeneration of the Alma Estate to create a mixed-use neighbourhood. To date the project has successfully delivered 679 homes, 444 of which are affordable homes as well as numerous community facilities. Phases 2b and 3 of the Alma Estate regeneration will provide Enfield with 723 high-quality new homes, including 187 affordable homes.

New Avenue

The council appointed Countryside Properties as its Development Partner in 2014. A revised planning application was approved in March 2022 which increased the number of homes delivered to 502 homes. All the original estate properties have been demolished and Phase 1 is complete. Phase 2 is around 97% complete with the first affordable units already handed over. All original blocks of Phase 3 have been demolited, with the site currently paused due to the design of blocks impacted by 18m second staircase requirements.

Meridian Water

The council entered into a development agreement in 2019 with Vistry to deliver 242 affordable homes at Meridian Water. Phase 1a delivers 119 homes, 113 homes have been delivered to date with the remaining homes to be delivered by Q4 2025. Phase 1b currently delivers 123 affordable homes and is currently at planning stage following re-design to include a second staircase.

Upton & Raynham

The scheme at Upton & Raynham, located off Fore Street, will provide 135 new affordable homes, including 46 three beds and 8 four beds. Homes will be delivered as 42 Social Rent, 66 London Affordable Rent and 27 Shared Equity. Cabinet approval for Main Contractor Award was successful in September 2025 with the homes due to be complete in 2028.

Dendridge Close

The proposal is to deliver a high-quality planning compliant scheme of 27 homes on the two former garage sites at Dendridge Close, part funded by the GLA. The Main contractor has been appointed to start on site from January 2026 with completion over a 24 month period.

The Shires Estate

The Regeneration Team is actively assessing future opportunities for regeneration projects, with the Shires Estate identified as a key site as part of a future programme. The Shires Estate is situated in the wider Lee Valley Opportunity Area identified in the London Plan. The Estate is in need of regeneration, with the two existing high-rise blocks (Cheshire and Shropshire House) to be demolished due to its poor condition.

Training and Development of Neighbourhood Services

Neil Wightman, Housing Director (Council) Housing & Regeneration, was scheduled to present a report providing an update on the training needs and plan for Council Housing front line neighbourhood and estate services teams. The report stated that the programme had started for some of the skills and mandatory training, whilst the culture programme was being developed. This will also involve discussions, training development and involvement in delivery from members of the Enfield 500.

The report also made the committee aware of the new Competence and Conduct Standard which will be enforced by the Regulator of Social Housing (RSH). The Standard came into force in October 2025 and applies to all registered providers, including local authorities and housing associations.

The objective of the customer care training is to build empathy amongst all staff and a better understanding of the resident experience to deliver an enhance service. A range of resources have been developed for managers to use in team meetings to make the customer experience an everyday conversation, rather than a one-off training event. The approach will also be to 'train the trainer' creating in-house champions to deliver and support training.

The report included the following table outlining the Estate Services Skills Training Framework:

The report also included a table outlining the Council Housing Management Skills Training Framework:

The report stated that all council staff are required to undertake mandatory training including:

• Information Rights and Cyber Security
• Display Screen Equipment (DSE)
• Fire Safety
• The Principles of Risk Assessment
• ACT Awareness (Action Counters Terrorism)
• Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion in the Workplace

The report stated that senior management posts are identified as being in scope and the post holder must hold a leadership and professional qualification. The Competence and Conduct Standard has been introduced from October 2025 to be enforced by the Regulator of Social Housing (RSH). It applies to all registered providers, including local authorities and housing associations. The purpose of the standard is to ensure staff have the skills, knowledge, experience, and behaviours to deliver quality services.

Work Programme

The Housing & Regeneration Scrutiny Panel Work Programme for 2025/26 was scheduled to be noted.