THE FORMER leader of Redditch Borough Council has hit out at the standard of social housing across the borough after it was given the lowest possible rating from the Regulator of Social Housing.
The inspection found the repairs service had nearly 3,000 overdue jobs and a back-office admin clean-up had closed 1,200 of those as already-completed job tickets, removing 40 per cent of the nominal backlog.
The council received a C3 consumer grade indicating serious failings in some tenant services and the need for significant improvements.
The Regulator also found tenants were not sufficiently involved in decision-making and lacked access to performance information.
Coun Matt Dormer said the judgement confirmed Redditch Borough Council’s housing service was failing to meet even the most basic standards,
He said: “Let’s be clear, these are not new problems, but the result of 18 months of Labour mismanagement since they returned to power in 2024.
“In that short time, the service has deteriorated rapidly, with thousands of overdue repairs, a growing fire safety backlog, and tenants being left completely in the dark.
“When Labour last ran the council, they left the housing department in a terrible state — no gas safety checks, outdated IT systems, a broken internal culture, and non-existent tenant engagement.
“Housing was placed into emergency measures when the Conservatives took over in 2018.
“Tenants were beginning to see the benefits of a safer, fairer and more professional housing service. But Labour has now let that progress slip away. The Regulator’s C3 judgement reflects a collapse in basic service delivery, and that cannot be ignored.”
Coun Dormer confirmed that the Conservative Group would be pushing for immediate remedial action on fire and water safety, published performance data on repairs and compliance and tenant involvement in scrutiny and service planning.
Coun Bill Hartnett, portfolio holder for housing, said the issues had not cropped up overnight.
He said: “Councillors and especially our tenants know the council’s housing services have been on this improvement journey for some time.
“Years of progress under previous Labour and Conservative administrations alike, continues today.
“While that is getting better all the time, the Regulator’s report confirmed we still have work to do, just as we said in July when we announced the findings.
“We are proactively engaging with the Regulator and our improvement plan goes well beyond those identified failings to set out the next stages of the journey and even more improvements, from the quality of our housing to the say that our tenants have with relation to their homes.”
Visit redditchbc.gov.uk/ROSH for the complete report.
