Decision
Analysis
outcome: The Cabinet agreed to secure additional grant funding, use capital reserves for match funding, delegate authority for contract completion, and update the Capital Investment Programme.
summary: The decision involves securing funding to retrofit council homes in order to reduce energy bills for residents, meet energy efficiency standards, and acquire new homes for temporary accommodation.
topline: The Cabinet has decided to secure funding for retrofitting council homes and acquiring new homes for temporary accommodation.
reason_contentious: This issue may be contentious as it involves using public funds for housing projects, which can be a sensitive topic for some stakeholders.
affected_stakeholders: ["residents", "Council", "Government"]
contentiousness_score: 5
political_party_relevance: There are no mentions or implications of political parties in the decision.
URL: https://democracy.southend.gov.uk/ieDecisionDetails.aspx?ID=1569
Decision Maker: Cabinet
Outcome:
Is Key Decision?: Yes
Is Callable In?: No
Purpose: To agree the next phases of Council’s retrofit programme and resettlement acquisitions programme
Content: The Cabinet considered a report of the Executive Director of Environment and Place which outlined the funding parameters and additional co-funding required to match two funding opportunities to support the outcomes of the Housing Pressures Action Plan; the Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund Wave 3 and the Local Authority Housing Fund (LAHF) Round 4. Reasons for Decision(s) Retrofitting properties reduces energy bills for residents. The upgrades delivered through this funding are likely to deliver annual fuel savings to residents of around £321 on average (drawn from modelling work on Parity), although actual savings could be higher depending on use and tariff choice. This will lead to an average combined yearly saving of £29,853. Retrofitting 93 council homes will assist the Council in meeting its longer-term energy efficiency obligations including adherence with the proposed Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) which requires all social homes to meet EPC C standard by 2030. Carbon reduction: Improving a property to EPC C for a local authority will deliver on average a 0.8t CO2 saving per year. This is approximately a third of the annual average emissions of 2.4t CO2 per household. This means that across this project there will be an average 74.4t CO2 saving per year. Acquiring new council homes including temporary accommodation is a key outcome of the Housing Pressures Action Plan. Attracting grant from Government will help to ensure that the previously agreed budgets can be stretched further and enable the Council to purchase more homes than originally planned, providing the potential to bring more families out of expensive nightly lets and into settled, better value accommodation with better outcomes for them. Resolved: That it be agreed that Cabinet: 1. Notes the ongoing application for up to £930,000 of additional grant funding through the Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund Wave 3. 2. Agrees to use up to £550k from the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) Capital Reserves for 2026/27 for match funding and contingency costs in order bring the project forward and retrofit 93 council homes. 3. Delegates authority to the Executive Director for Environment and Place to sign, or authorise completion of contracts for delivery of the 2026/27 additional grant funded activity. 4. Agrees to use £951k from the existing Housing Pressures Action Plan budgets from 26/27 – 29/30 for match funding Local Authority Housing Funding to acquire 6 new Council homes for temporary accommodation and resettlement purposes. 5. Agrees to update the Capital Investment Programme at Full Council in September in line with the above investment.
Date of Decision: July 13, 2026