Housing Association Guide - Part 6 (Minor works - guidance and requirements for Housing Associations)
Contents
1.01Background – this part of the Guide deals with advice and requirements for minor works to Association-owned, social housing stock for rent. This includes a number of categories of works which an Association may need to undertake for the dwelling to remain in good condition, and safe and habitable for the tenant, i.e.:
- Major Repairs;
- Miscellaneous Works;
- Adaptations;
- Decent Homes Standard; and
- Maintenance.
1.02Funding from NIHE (DPG) - not all categories of minor works will attract grant funding from the NIHE (DPG) and within the categories there may be sub-categories that attract grant (Housing Association Grant (HAG)) and some that do not. Where HAG is available, procedures and forms are included for the convenience of Associations to access this funding (see Section 2.00, General Information).
[Note: Where HAG funding is not available for specific works, the Association is responsible for any essential works and costs. Grants for energy conservation works to existing dwellings may be available to Associations from other sources. In order to access these grants, the Association may have to make a case for funding and pay a proportion of the cost of any measures undertaken.]
1.03Major Repairs – (see Appendix: 1 to Part 6) – are works to the structure of Association-owned dwellings/property that are remedial or essential for the dwelling to remain habitable for the tenant. Works can include:
- Major works arising from structural or environmental deterioration;
- Replacement of or major repairs to services or component features of a dwelling which have reached the end of their useful life; or
- Upgrading or replacement works arising from legislative changes occurring since completion of the original scheme or rehabilitation etc.
Generally, Major Repairs exclude improvement works, and day-to-day cyclical maintenance and are such that they do not justify an increase in rent.
1.04Miscellaneous Works – (see Appendix: 2 to Part 6) – are defined as remedial works to specifically identified ‘components’ or ‘areas’ of Association-owned dwellings/property where works or measures are necessary to ensure the health and/or safety of tenants/others, or to comply with new statutory requirements. Most of the miscellaneous works situations have existed since the dwelling/property was built/improved - when the problem/hazard was not known or recognised as such - and, in certain circumstances:
- May now be detrimental to the tenant’s and others health, and require work/measures to ensure the dwelling remains safe for occupation; or
- May not comply with new statutory requirements or responsibilities on the Association as a Landlord.
1.05Adaptations – (see Appendix: 3 to Part 6) – make Association-owned dwellings more suitable for tenants with physical disabilities or sensory impairments. Physical disabilities or sensory impairments have substantial and long term adverse effects on the person’s ability to carry out normal day to day living activities, and can arise as a result of injury or from birth but are more likely to be progressive and as a consequence of the person’s health or age.
1.06Decent Homes Standard – (see Appendix: 4 to Part 6) – has been introduced to promote measurable improvements to social housing in Northern Ireland. The standard was introduced in June 2004. The Decent Homes Standard incorporates four main criteria:
- The statutory minimum fitness standard for housing;
- Repair;
- Modern facilities and services; and
- Thermal comfort.
Any property that does not meet all four criteria is deemed to have failed the standard.
1.07Maintenance - (see Appendix: 5 to Part 6) this provides advice and guidance on maintenance aspects of Association-owned dwellings to ensure that the dwellings are well maintained and remain in a lettable and safe condition for occupation by tenants.
1.08Rents – generally miscellaneous works are such that they do not justify any increase in rent. In most cases, the works are cyclical repairs/replacements to components that have a normal ‘life’ expectancy - and which the Association should have set aside funds to finance repair etc. Where this is not the case, the NIHE (DPG) may provide grant funding to ensure that necessary works - such as Adaptations – can be undertaken without any financial impact on the Association and thus the rent. The one exception to this rule is Energy Conservation works, where the Association may have to fund improvements. Where, for, example, there is an improvement by replacing a partial heating system with a new efficient central heating system, a modest increase in rent may be justified.
2.01Funding for Minor Works – as stated in Para.1.01, HAG is only available from the NIHE (DPG) for certain works and in certain conditions – see the relevant Appendix for more details. Where funding is available, the Association must follow the specific guidance and requirements for the type of work. It should be noted that, in some cases, the Association will require the prior approval of NIHE (DPG) before work starts and, in other cases, the Association may proceed - within the stated parameters - and claim grant on completion of the works.
2.02Authorised Signatories – for a Miscellaneous Work or Adaptation, where grant is available for a particular project the Association is required to make Certifications to the NIHE (DPG) in respect of the scheme. These Certifications must be signed by a member of officer of the Association acting with the delegated authority of the Management Committee. To enable the NIHE (DPG) to check that certifications have been made by authorised signatories the Association must submit to the NIHE (DPG):
- Specimen signatures of the Member(s) or Officer(s) concerned; and
- The relevant extract from the minutes of the Management Committee meeting(s) showing that this authority has been given.
2.03Overdraft Guarantees – the NIHE (DPG) will not normally provide overdraft guarantees for any minor works project.
2.04Details of the Association’s Bank Account
2.05Regulation and Inspection – as part of this process the DSD will check the validity and accuracy of the Certifications given by the Association as part of the procedures for Grant. The main purpose will be to verify that all the DSD’s requirements and conditions have been met, and that the Association has properly exercised its responsibilities set out in the relevant Appendix of the Guide. This does not reduce the responsibility of the Association to ensure that the costs of any claim for Grant are appropriate and have been properly incurred.
2.06Minor Works not eligible for HAG – all such works will come under the Regulatory Framework for Registered Housing Associations in Northern Ireland 2004.
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