By Councillor Jenny Rynn
Every day for a month we have watched with absolute horror and universal condemnation the wanton destruction of the private homes of so many ordinary Ukrainians as the unprovoked barbarity of Putin’s war has targeted residential areas across their country without mercy – a war crime committed with every shell that hits civilian areas.
Conversely, we’ve also seen the best of humanity, with the huge outpouring of compassion from people across Europe who’ve offered immediate shelter and food for the millions of Ukrainian refugees continuing to flee such brutality – and the people of Reading have been no exception in opening their hearts and their doors to them.
On Tuesday night at Reading Borough’s Full Council, the Conservatives supported a motion, not only condemning the illegality of the aggression by Putin’s invading troops but also making it clear that Reading stands ready to offer sanctuary to as many Ukrainian families as possible when they reach the UK.
Housing is in our political DNA in Reading, not just because ours is such a popular, beautiful town beside the Thames with people from all over the country wanting to live here. We also have a vibrant economy and the people of Reading are unfailingly welcoming.
Like all towns and cities, however, we also have problems with supplying long-term housing for all who apply. The criteria for joining the council’s housing list is to have lived in the borough for at least three years. At the end of January there were 4,650 families on Reading’s housing list.
We believe that people born and bought up in Reading should be the priority. If not they could be forced out of their home town to live somewhere cheaper.
People who decide to come and live in Reading can’t expect to be automatically housed by the council or otherwise the local authority would be overwhelmed.
So, the housing challenges facing Reading are immense and varied. There are currently 196 families in temporary accommodation with an average waiting time living in temporary accommodation of just under 10 months. One resident, for example, is in a bedsit with her 11-year-old son waiting to be housed. The mother works full-time. She and her son have to share the same bedroom.
RBC has a system whereby if a council property has become too large for tenants’ needs because family members have grown up and moved out, then the tenants can apply to be moved to a smaller home thus freeing up a family home for an applicant on the housing list.
Of course, people who’ve lived in their house for many years are reluctant to move as the area is all that they have known.
The council has 5,600 properties to keep in good order, with a budget of £34 million to spend over five years to update essentials such as windows, heating systems and roofing. For the benefit of these updates, all that tenants are asked is to keep the houses neat and tidy.
The council also has a monumental task in provision as only between 350-400 houses are due to be built by 2026.
We do need more affordable family homes, but land remains at a premium in Reading and, although we are fortunate to have green space surrounding us, we as a Party are opposed to unsustainable developments such as the recent approval by RBC’s Labour administration of 223 new homes in Emmer Green in the face of huge opposition by local residents.
As Conservatives we will always seek to protect our green and open spaces and argue that Reading’s brownfield sites should be prioritised for new, affordable homes notwithstanding remediation costs.
More positively, 40 modular homes have been built for Reading’s rough-sleepers, giving them access to psychiatric and medical help to assist them back into society.
It’s a great achievement by RBC’s housing department and our officers are to be congratulated over it. The Government has also awarded some councils £25,000 to help plan regeneration of their housing stock. This, too, will help make sure that houses are up to standard.
Finally, a major problem the council still faces is anti-social behaviour by those few tenants who cause absolute misery for others.
While it may sound harsh, when you have so many people desperate for a home, the council can evict nuisance tenants who then have to wait five to 10 years before applying for another council property. Personally, I don’t believe they should qualify for a council property again.
Despite all these housing issues on our own doorstep, one thing is certain; those Ukrainian refugees who are fortunate enough to make it to our town will be welcomed to their new, temporary home deep in the safety of Berkshire with the most compassionate Reading welcome.
Cllr Jenny Rynn is member for Kentwood Ward on Reading Borough Council and the Conservative spokesperson on housing
