Slough Borough Council: People 1st (Slough)

People 1st (Slough)

People 1st Logo

Here are a few key details about People 1st (Slough):

People 1st (Slough) was launched on 1 January 2006 taking responsibility for managing and improving Slough's council housing.
Slough Borough Council has until 2010 to make sure all the homes it owns are decent – warm, watertight and dry with modern kitchens and bathrooms. A grand total of £80 million is needed to do that job.
£45 million could be raised if the council set up its own specialist not for profit housing organisation to do the job – an Arm’s Length Management Organisation (ALMO). In this respect, extensive consultation was carried out with tenants and a vote on the issue was taken in November, 2004. A decisive 91% of tenants voted yes, on a 47% turn-out, to an ALMO for Slough. In a borough-wide survey of tenants the name People 1st (Slough) was chosen for Slough’s new ALMO.
People 1st is run by a 15 member board, appointed in January 2006. This governing body, includes tenant and leaseholder representatives, council representatives and independent members, acts as the decision and policy makers for the organisation.
While owned by the Council, People 1st is run separately from it, dedicated to housing alone. While an ALMO can raise extra government funds, it has to first prove to Government inspectors that it runs a good service, earning at least two stars for the quality of the services it provides. An inspection took place in July, 2006 awarding People 1st one star, with promising prospects for improving. In October, 2007 a second Audit Commission inspection took place. The outcome was that People 1st was awarded two stars with promising prospects for improvement.
People 1st is now able to draw on £45 million funds to bring the Council’s stock up to the Decent Homes standard enabling the organisation to embark on an accelerated investment programme.