The Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) has agreed to bring forward £7 million of funding for People 1st (Slough) in order to deliver its Decent Homes programme for social housing.
People 1st (Slough) put in a request to the HCA for the funding allocated to 2010/11 to be spent in 2009/10 in order to bring homes up to the Decent Homes standard.
As a result of this decision by April, 2010 approximately 4,000 Slough homes will receive one or more of the improvements on areas such as kitchen, bathrooms, boilers, doors, electric switchboards and rewiring.
The impact of the earlier spending will mean that 36 new bathrooms and kitchens will be fitted each week. In addition, the accelerated programme will safeguard the contractors’ existing workforces and see additional, new jobs created for the town.
The funding will also go towards the programme of external works to social housing located across the borough.
Tim Knight, chair of the People 1st (Slough) decent homes working group, said: “This represents a tremendous vote of confidence from the Government with respect to our ability to deliver an accelerated programme.
“It means a substantial part of the improvement programme will be achieved ahead of schedule. Not only will Slough’s social housing stock benefit but also the local economy will receive an important boost.”
Chief Executive, Andrew Billany, commented: “We would not have made this bid if we were not certain that our contractor team – Apollo, United House and Ian Williams would be able to improve our tenants’ homes at the higher rate.”
Cllr James Swindlehurst, Slough commissioner for neighbourhoods and renewal, said: “We’re committed to improving the quality of homes for tenants in the borough. It’s fantastic that £7m of this funding has been brought forward to get more homes up to a decent standard sooner.
“The work to date has been very well received and I know many other tenants will now be looking forward to the improvements on their homes.”
Slough Borough Council
