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Residents celebrate news of the stock transfer

RESIDENTS in a run-down tower block estate are set to benefit from a £6m investment programme to spruce up their homes.

The news comes following a ballot by tenants on the Lewisham Park estate, Rushey Green.

Residents overwhelmingly voted yes to a stock transfer from Lewisham Council to the London and Quadrant Housing Trust (L&Q).

Play the video - click here

It is the first of five proposed stock transfers to be agreed in the borough as part of the Government's Decent Homes strategy, which aims to bring council properties up to standard by 2010.

Following the ballot, council chiefs last week gave the green light for negotiations to begin with L&Q over the terms of the stock transfer.

The trust is a not-for-profit housing association which manages around 43,000 homes across London and the south east.

Lewisham Park is one of the most run-down council estates in the borough, with all 204 dwellings currently classed as "non-decent" by Government standards.

There are 164 rented homes on the estate.

Within the next two years they will have their kitchens and bathrooms refurbished and double glazing installed.

Forty leaseholders will have to pay for improvement works but L&Q has pledged to charge favourable rates.

A consultation programme is also under way between the council and L&Q about improving security with on-site wardens, CCTV and lighting.

Resident Sam Kennett Feagan, who also heads the estate's steering committee for the transfer, has welcomed the news.

The dinner lady and mother-of-two, who has lived in the flats for 11 years, said: "At the moment I pay £83 rent a week, which is not value for money "The single-glazed windows mean my gas and electric bills are sky high.

"My kitchen and bathroom are also in desperate need of a makeover."

Lewisham Mayor Steve Bullock said: "This decision is a vital step towards delivering huge improvements to homes in Lewisham Park."

l Residents had to agree to the stock transfer before council chiefs set the deal in motion l Out of the 164 rented properties on the estate, 126 people were eligible to vote. Ninety-two people voted - 77 in favour of the deal with L&Q and 15 against it.

The council currently receives £438,000 in rent per year from the estate and spends £331,000 on staff wages and general maintenance. This means it will lose £107,000 from its housing budget each year.

5:13pm Friday 20th October 2006

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