Borough Total (nearest hundred/thousand) 100,000 (addresses) 700 (complaints) 94,000 (calls) 6,500 15,000 (crimes) HMOs as per cent of borough total 0.3% 1.0% 0.08% 1.27% 0.6% Table 2: Total number of records for noise complaints, police calls for service, police calls for domestic violence and total crime and crime-related incident records for HMO venues.
Table 3: Number of properties affected (%) Category No. Addresses Complaints 2014-15 Number of properties affected (%) Police Calls (exc. Domestic Violence) 2014-15 Number of properties affected (%) Police Domestic Violence Calls 2014-15 Number of properties affected (%) Crimes Recorded 2014-15 Number of properties affected (%) HMO Public Register 31 2 (6%) 4 (13%) 6 (19%) 9 (29%) Benefits List 35 - 4 (11%) 6 (17%) 8 (23%) Council Tax List 66 - 9 (14%) 5 (8%) 8 (12%) HM1 HMO Bedsits 52 - 8 (15%) 9 (17%) 9 (17%) HM2 HMO Section 257 7 - 1 (14%) 1 (14%) 3 (43%) HM3 HMO Shared House 27 1 (4%) 2 (7%) 3 (11%) 11 (41%) Liberty Housing 15 3 (20%) 2 (13%) 7 (47%) Suspected 32 4 (13%) 2 (6%) 2 (6%) Total 194 7 (4%) 24 (12%) 27 (13%) 49 (24%) Of all HMOs identified, 15% had made calls to the police about domestic incidents or domestic abuse. There was a higher incidence of such calls from properties whose residents were in receipt of Housing Benefit (38% of these properties reported domestic abuse to the police) and where the HMO was either on the Public HMO Register (19%) or classed as a bedsit (17%). Of all crimes and crime-related incidents recorded at HMOs, 45% related to domestic disputes or domestic abuse (46 of 102 offences reported and recorded). This correlates with domestic violence calls. Rates of burglary per 100 households were one and a half times higher at HMOs than the borough average, though this amounted to just 6 offences. Other types of crime were generally reported at a lower than average rate for Havering.
Equality Impact Assessment (EIA) Document control Title of activity: Private Sector Landlord Licensing Type of activity: Strategy Lead officer: Laybourn, Senior Private Sector Housing Strategy Officer Regulatory Services/Neighbourhoods Directorate Approved by: Patrick Assistant Director of Regulatory Services/Neighbourhoods Directorate Date completed: 21 November 2016 Version Number V4 Saved in: W:\Dat03\Public Protection\PPDir\Selective Licensing\master documentsEqIA V4.doc Scheduled date for review: TBC (Spring 2017) -following completion of full public consultation The Corporate Policy & Diversity team requires 5 working days to provide advice on EIAs. Did you seek advice from the Corporate Policy & Diversity team? Yes Does the EIA contain any confidential or exempt information that prevent you publishing it on the Council’s website? No
Action Plan In this section you should list the specific actions that set out how you will address any negative equality impacts you have identified in this assessment. Protected characteristic Identified negative impact Action to be taken to mitigate impact* Intended outcomes and monitoring** Sex/Gender Males, particularly those under the age of 35 may be negatively impacted by the implementation of Additional HMO licensing as bedsit unit numbers may reduce as a direct result of licensing and enforcement of standards leading to a consequential rise in the number of evictions The implementation of a Selective Licensing scheme alongside HMO licensing in with high concentrations of HMO’s should dissuade landlords from reverting shared houses back to single household accommodation by removing the ability for landlords to avoid licensing altogether Wherever possible, displaced private tenants to be supported by rehousing within existing stock of privately leased shared accommodation managed by the Housing Department Numbers of homeless declarations from young males resulting from closure of HMO’s due to licensing requirement to be monitored. of and Ethnicity/Race Migrant households with no entitlement to public or social housing may be displaced due to their inability to afford potential increases in rent or reduction in availability of shared accommodation Licensing will prevent lawful eviction of tenants from premises which are required to be, but not licensed, so should provide additional protection from eviction in some cases. Early bird discounts and other incentives to reduce license fee to be incorporated into fee structure in order to minimise the risk of rent Numbers of households presenting as homeless to be monitored by housing department of and
increases for tenants. Pregnancy Maternity & Paternity Pregnant and new mothers may face eviction from HMO accommodation as a result of licensing and enforcement of licence conditions limiting occupancy Housing authority to exercise homelessness duties to eligible tenants by assisting tenants to secure alternative suitable accommodation either in private rented or social housing sector Housing Department to exercise homeless duties to vulnerable residents of and status Low income/benefit dependant households Licensing will be beneficial in the longer term as housing standards should improve and greater security of tenure will discourage landlords from exploitation of vulnerable tenants. Licence fees will be set at a level designed to cover costs in order to minimize the burden on landlords and minimize the likelihood that the charges will be passed onto tenants through increased rents. There is also a proposal to offer an early bird discount so that landlords can benefit from reduced fees if they apply early. Private tenants to be supported if there are negative consequences arising from the Council’s enforcement approach of and Review The EIA will be reviewed by the Project Manager following completion of the full consultation exercise in order to incorporate informed information. Following implementation of the licensing scheme(s) a further review will be carried out after 12 months of the schemes operation and annually thereafter in order to ascertain if there has been any significant negative impact upon groups with protected characteristics.