Wiltshire Council slams housing providers for shocking conditions

Wiltshire Council has criticized housing associations for the living conditions in their properties.

A motion calling for better standards from Aster and GreenSquareAccord, one of the country’s biggest providers of social housing, was passed.

It comes after reports of poor maintenance, excessive fees and residents being evicted from properties for sale on open markets.

Both providers say property sales can help fund reinvestment and improve housing stock.

Co-author of the motion and Cabinet Member for Planning Nick Botterill described GreenSquareAccord’s behavior as “appalling and unprofessional” and accused them of “playing with people’s lives”.

Wiltshire Council Lib Dem leader Ian Thorn said: “I’ve seen residents in GreenSquareAccord properties where you certainly wouldn’t keep animals.

“We’ve all seen it — where residents have water, literally constantly, running down their walls, who have waited years to have some kind of thing that could fix the problem.”

Councilor Lisa Farrell from Marlborough City Council said: “They are using bullying tactics, which I find very upsetting, on very vulnerable elderly people.”

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, a spokesperson for GreenSquareAccord said: “Investing in our existing homes to ensure they are of a high standard for our customers is a top priority for us.

“In 2023/24 we have invested £71.2 million in repairs and improvements. We have a legal and ethical responsibility to ensure that our homes are… energy efficient and as cheap to run as possible.

“To achieve this, we need to make sensible and sustainable decisions about our investments.

“In some cases the cost of investment to bring a property up to the required standards cannot be justified and in those cases the responsible decision is to sell that property.

“When this happens, we offer tailored support and compensation to affected customers and help them transition to suitable alternative accommodation.”

Aster Group said in a statement: “In a very small number of cases, we will sometimes sell a property that is unsustainable.

“This allows us to reinvest the money from the sale into building more modern, more energy efficient, affordable homes that better meet the needs of our customers.

“We are supporting any customer affected by this throughout the process, providing them with suitable alternative accommodation and support to move into their new home.”

Wiltshire Council unanimously passed the motion calling for better standards at a full council meeting on July 24.