The Holborn District Management Committee (DMC) met on 2 December 2025 to discuss a range of housing and community safety issues. The agenda included updates on the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) budget, CCTV upgrades, and short-term let enforcement, as well as the usual items such as local issues and tenant engagement. The committee was also scheduled to review the progress of actions from the previous meeting.

HRA Rent and Budget Setting 2026/27

The committee was scheduled to discuss the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) budget for 2026/27. A report from Emma Cardoso, Strategic Finance Lead - Housing, set out how the council intends to meet its strategic objectives for housing in a challenging financial climate.

The report stated that HRA's across the country are struggling to set balanced budgets due to changes to the self-financing model, which relies on income from rents and service charges without central government funding. It noted that the HRA has lost £201m of rental income since 2016 due to policy changes.

The report mentioned that the government announced a 10-year rent settlement from April 2026, permitting annual rent increases of CPI +1%. It also launched a consultation on 'Rent Convergence', which would allow rents below 'formula rent' to increase by an additional amount each year. The report noted that in Camden, 99% of properties are below formula rent, with an average gap of £19.49/week.

The report set out several budget pressures, including:

• Inflation
• High demand for repairs
• Increased capital investment
• The cost of further regulation
• Rising disrepair cases
• The cost of insourcing the gas servicing team

The report considered the possibility of increasing rents by the maximum permitted amount of CPI (3.8% in September 2025) plus 1%, which would generate £8.1m in income for the HRA. It also considered the impact of rent convergence, with potential increases of £1 or £2 per week on top of the CPI + 1% increase.

The report also considered increasing tenant service charges for caretaking, communal lighting, CCTV, communal mechanical and electrical maintenance, ground maintenance and responsive housing patrol, which would generate approximately £0.95m. It was noted that in response to feedback from residents, the Green Spaces team are insourcing horticulture work, requiring a 10% increase in tenant service charges.

The report also suggested a £2 per week increase in garage rental fees for tenants, and an 11% increase for commercial garages, generating approximately £0.1m for the HRA.

The committee was expected to be asked for their views on the council's strategy to consider rent and service charge increases from April 2026.

Short Term Let Enforcement

The committee was scheduled to discuss a report outlining the regulatory framework and enforcement challenges surrounding short-term lettings and tenancy fraud in Camden. The report from Elizabeth Beaumont, Appeals and Enforcement Manager, highlighted the impact of the Deregulation Act 2015 on planning controls, the legal limits on short-term letting, and the council's approach to tackling unlawful subletting of council homes.

The report estimated that over 6,000 entire properties in Camden are being used for short-term holiday lets. It noted that Camden ranks fourth highest in London for short-term lets, following Westminster, Kensington and Chelsea, and Tower Hamlets.

The report stated that short-term letting has become an increasingly attractive option for landlords due to its greater flexibility, fewer regulatory constraints, and potential for higher returns compared to traditional long-term rentals. It also noted that the growth of the short term let market is directly obstructing Camden's ability to tackle the housing crisis and provide homes for the people in Camden.

The report noted that the Deregulation Act 2015 allows residential properties in Greater London to be used for short-term letting for up to 90 nights per calendar year without requiring planning permission. It stated that of the approximately 6000 properties estimated to be in short term let use in 2025, 52% exceeded the 90-night allowance to date.

The report stated that Camden's planning policies strongly resist the loss of residential accommodation to create short term lets. It noted that the Planning Inspectorate has supported the council's approach in enforcement notice appeals.

The report stated that short-term letting of council-owned properties is a breach of lease conditions, and that council tenants can be prosecuted for subletting the whole of a council home.

The report mentioned that a multi-disciplinary working group has recently been established, comprising officers from Planning Enforcement, the Legal Team, the Leaseholder Team, and Neighbourhood Housing Managers, to coordinate efforts to tackle short-term letting in council-owned properties.

The report proposed a targeted enforcement trial on an estate selected due to its high concentration of short-term let activity, as well as a borough-wide communication campaign to raise awareness of short-term let restrictions and associated risks.

CCTV Upgrade Update

The committee was scheduled to receive an update on CCTV upgrades across 54 estates from Steve Harris, Facilities Management. The report stated that 37 estates (68%) have been fully upgraded, 6 estates (11%) are currently undergoing works, 2 estates (4%) are scheduled to begin works shortly, and 9 estates (17%) have not yet commenced upgrade works.

The report noted that at the start of the upgrade programme, the council had a total of 615 'known' CCTV cameras installed across the estates, and that to date, the programme has successfully installed 536 cameras, representing 87% of the original total. It was estimated a total of 900 cameras will be installed by project completion.

The report stated that the anticipated increase in the number of CCTV cameras installed is due to conversion from partial to full coverage on estates that previously had limited surveillance, and identification of additional areas within estates that now require CCTV coverage to meet operational and safety needs.

The report stated that the council is working on compiling and analysing statistical data to evidence the impact of the CCTV upgrade programme, including comparing figures before, during, and after the upgrade, with the aim of determining whether there has been a measurable reduction in anti-social behaviour and crime on estates.

Holborn DMC Budget

The committee was scheduled to discuss the Holborn DMC budget for 2025/2026. The report from Mahie Melad, Senior Engagement Officer, detailed the Holborn DMC budget allocation for 2025/2026, progress on approved bids and any new bids submitted for consideration.

The report stated that the minor revenue and major works budget for 2025/2026 is £144,760.00. It noted that all TRAs are encouraged to submit their bids as early as possible to allow enough time for assessment prior to DMC consideration, and that all expenditure must occur within the current financial year (2025/2026).

The report stated that as of the meeting date, £13,898.00 of bids had been approved in year, leaving a balance of £130,862.00 available for the financial year. It noted that there were zero new bids for consideration at the November meeting of 2025/2026.

The report provided a table listing the bids approved in-year to date, including bids from Seymour House TRA, Medway Court TRA, 25 Gresse Street, and Brunswick TRA.

Tenant Engagement Report Quarter 2, 2025/26

The committee was scheduled to receive the Tenant Engagement Report for Quarter 2, 2025/26. The report from Scot Reid, Head of Customer Service and Engagement, shared insights and recommendations from the quarterly monitoring of tenant engagement activities and forums delivered supported by Housing and Property Services.

The report gathered insights from a range of tenant engagement groups and activities, including:

• Evaluation of resident feedback from a range of engagement activities
• Applications to the Special Projects Grant
• Applications to the District Management Committee Fund
• Stories of Impact

The report included resident feedback on Neighbourhood Action Days at Peckwater Estate, St Pancras area, Holborn area, and Holly Lodge Estate, as well as Annual General Meetings (AGM) of Ingestre Rd TRA and Spencer Rise TRA, a Building Safety Consultation Event, a Sheltered Housing Forum, and the Gospel Oak DMC.

The report noted that the most common motivations for attending engagement events this quarter were to voice opinions, ideas, or concerns, to resolve an outstanding housing or repairs enquiry, and to connect with others in the community.

The report stated that an overwhelming 77% of respondents reported enjoying or very much enjoying the engagement activity they attended.

The report measured the impact which engagement activities are having on tenants' lives in 5 main categories:

• Residents feel informed about things that matter for me
• Residents have an opportunity to influence decision making
• Residents feel their views are listened to and acted upon
• Residents feel connected to services or others within the community
• Residents are encouraged to make a positive contribute to estates or neighbourhoods

The report included suggestions for improvement, such as increasing the frequency of Neighbourhood Action Days, providing access to council organisation charts online, increasing the range of services at Neighbourhood Action Days, and providing clearer information at TRA AGMs.

The report also included stories of impact, such as the development and distribution of Building Safety Information Packs and the success of the summer programme of Neighbourhood Action Days.

London Borough of Camden: TSM 2024/25 Report

The committee was scheduled to receive the Tenant Satisfaction Measures (TSM) 2024/25 Report. The report stated that Tenant Satisfaction Measures (TSMs) were introduced in 2023/24 as a regulatory requirement for all landlords in England.

The purpose of this regulation is:

• To ensure landlords focus on the customer experience
• To assess (and compare) performance against consumer standards
• To provide transparency to residents on how their landlord is performing

The report provided results for the period 2024/25, based on 1,021 responses collected by a combination of face-to-face interviews and telephone interviews.

The report stated that overall satisfaction is 71.0%, up 3.3% on the 2023/24 TSM scores. It noted that 10 of the 12 TSM scores have increased on last year, with ASB handling seeing the biggest increase.

The report stated that tenants are most satisfied with being treated fairly and with respect and the safety of the home (77.3%), and least satisfied with approach to handling complaints (28.3%) and listening to views and acting upon them (55.9%).

The report included a key driver analysis, which found that keeping the home well maintained, listening to views and acting upon them and overall handling of repairs have strongest impact on overall satisfaction.

The report analysed comments from residents, with overall themes including anti-social behaviour, communication, repairs and maintenance, safety and security, and housing quality.

The report concluded that areas for improvement include complaint and ASB handling, repairs, and engagement.

Other Business

The agenda also included standard items such as:

• Registration of Tenant and Resident Associations and Co-option of Representatives
• Election of Vice-Chair(s)
• Apologies
• Announcements
• Declarations by members of interests in respect of items on this agenda
• Notification of any items of business that the chair decides to take as urgent
• Approval of the minutes of the previous meeting
• Consideration of local issues
• Action Points Update
• Any Other Business that the Chair considers urgent