December 2002, pages 368-70 Homestamp, a consortium that aims to improve housing standards in the private rented sector across the West Midlands, is still in its infancy. But by bringing together public and private sector partners, it is working towards sustainable solutions to the region's housing problems. Nick Warburton reports

Sitting in his office at Walsall MBC, listening to Chris Miller, environmental enforcement officer, describe the housing problems facing the region, the enormity of the task facing Homestamp soon becomes apparent. But so too does the potential of this initiative, which, in its two-year existence, has seen the concept develop into a powerful consortium consisting of five West Midlands councils, West Midlands Police, the West Midlands Fire Service and the Association of Midland Landlords.

Directed mainly at the low-end of the private rented sector, Homestamp targets the most disadvantaged groups. By identifying the key problems, the consortium seeks to achieve and maintain a uniformity of standards which meet minimum housing requirements. Read this first, a free guide to renting in the private sector, is its vehicle for raising standards.

Supporting the consortium's mission is a broad range of private and public sector partners, including the West Midlands Local Government Association, West Midlands Ambulance and the homelessness charity, Shelter. Homestamp has also attracted interest from other councils across the UK, which face similar housing problems.

The idea behind Homestamp emerged in the late 1990s, when Walsall MBC investigated two deaths from carbon monoxide poisoning in private rented accommodation. Although the persons in question were friends of students at Wolverhampton University, the incident took place in accommodation within the Walsall borough. Determined to improve housing standards for students, Walsall MBC began working with the university to establish an accreditation scheme. Though still in its early stages, the collaboration emphasised how important partnership working is in improving housing that has failed to meet minimum standards.

The scheme sparked the interest of neighbouring Wolverhampton City Council, which also had concerns about the safety of student accommodation in its own area. As the two councils began consulting on wider housing issues, the partnership attracted the interest of other councils across the region - Dudley MBC, Sandwell MBC, and later Solihull MBC - which all faced similar problems.

In each case, there was a recognition that those in the community that were at most risk from crime, drugs, violence and burglary were also most likely to live in poor housing conditions, suffer from ill health, and be at greatest risk from the dangers of fire. By working together in partnership with all sectors of the community, the councils saw an opportunity to improve housing standards and the environment in general.
Through his day-to-day work, Mr Miller and his colleagues recognised that many of the housing problems they encountered could be eased by providing basic information on legal requirements. When officers asked tenants why they had taken on properties that did not meet minimum standards, tenants often said that they were either unaware of what these standards were or had been told by landlords that the repairs would be done after they had signed the lease. In addition, it was apparent that while the majority of landlords did not have the intention to do harm, often they were not aware of their legal responsibilities.

During 1998, Walsall MBC published the first version of Read this first, which was revised by Homestamp in 2000 and launched regionally by the consortium in March this year. Aimed at those intending to let or rent a property, the booklet informs both tenants and landlords about their obligations and responsibilities and provides a useful risk assessment checklist that needs to be followed as well as advice about gas and fire safety.

The concept behind the housing checklist is straightforward. The potential tenant is presented with a list of statements relating to both the exterior and interior of a property that they are interested in. Next to the statement is a choice of three faces, a happy (ok) face, a straight (not sure) face and a sad (unhappy) face. As the potential tenant looks round the property, they are asked to go through each section of the checklist and to decide whether they feel at risk from any of the scenarios raised by the questions.
The checklist also includes a section titled "questions to ask your landlord/agent", which requires the tenant to respond to a list of questions covering gas and electrical installation, rent, repairs, furniture and insurance. The section provides useful additional information, which a tenant may not already know, for example, it tells the tenant to ask to see a CORGI gas safety record as this is a legal requirement.

Read this first also contains an important housing advice section, which tells the tenant what they can expect from the landlord (particularly in relation to houses in multiple occupation) and, equally important, what is required of them. The section includes information on what to look for when finding suitable accommodation and (in the revised booklet) refers to the proposed introduction of the housing health and safety rating system.

In addition, there is a fire safety checklist, which Walsall MBC put together with the West Midlands Fire Service. This section follows the same format as the housing checklist and asks important questions such as "is there a fire alarm or smoke detection system fitted and if so, is it working?" and "are there fire extinguishers, fire blankets, provided?"

According to Gary Callaghan, sub officer for fire safety at the West Midlands Fire Service, the service was interested in contributing to the booklet because it "gave us the opportunity to be effective in domestic premises, and enabled us to get the fire safety message across to the most vulnerable groups."
The aim of the fire section checklist is to raise tenants' awareness of the importance of protecting the escape routes from fire and keeping them relatively smoke free. Towards the back of the booklet is a useful, fire safety advice section which offers valuable information about taking safety precautions and what to do if there is a fire.

Finally, the booklet contains two useful chapters covering harassment and trading standards advice. The first section covers illegal eviction and offers information about what legal action can be taken, what the law says and what help they can get. The trading standards section provides guidance on furniture and furnishings relating specifically to fire safety regulations.

Once the potential tenant has completed the checklists, they are asked to look back over their answers. If, for instance, there are a lot of ticks in the unhappy column, they are advised not to move into the property. If this is the case, they are also encouraged to notify the local council so that it can investigate the property in question and if necessary, take further action. For this reason, Read this first includes a "Let us know!" tear-off section at the back, which asks potential tenants to fill in the property's details explaining why they felt it was unsatisfactory and send it back to the council.

Because the process behind putting the first version of Read this first had been so resource-intensive, Walsall MBC only distributed a few thousands copies across the borough, targeting drop off points where potential tenants were likely to visit - doctors' surgeries, health clinics, social services and housing benefit offices.

Nevertheless, continued support from the West Midlands Fire Service and from the other local councils encouraged Walsall MBC to update Read this first, and a revised booklet was compiled during 2000. While Mr Miller was updating the booklet, West Midlands Police lent its support, recognising its potential to tackle crime-related issues. The police subsequently helped Walsall MBC put together a personal safety checklist, which asks tenants important questions such as "do you have outside lighting?", "does your potential home have an intruder alarm?" and "do the windows have locks?"

The section follows the same format at the housing and fire safety checklist and asks the potential tenant to tick under the relevant column depending on how secure they feel in the property. The police also contributed an advice section that provides useful information about home security.

It was at this point that Mr Miller floated the idea of a Homestamp consortium, which would bring together all of the interested parties to talk about common problems and work towards consistent standards across the region. As Mr Miller explains, "we're not trying to reinvent the wheel. We are taking what is already there, identifying the problems and moving forward. We want to talk to as many people as possible and achieve common standards. The targets have to be reasonably achievable otherwise it won't work."

Buoyed by the response, Mr Miller decided to "step up a gear" and in March this year launched the revised booklet on a regional basis, with 100,000 copies distributed across the consortium area. Nick Beacock, customer business relations manager at Shelter, was present at the launch and praises the initiative for its potential to assist homeless and disadvantaged groups. "[Homestamp] is trying to bring as many partners together in local communities," says Mr Beacock. "By raising awareness of problems in private rented accommodation, it is trying to arrive at solutions that can be sustained."

One of the most important partners in the community is the Association of Midland Landlords, one of the largest landlord associations in the region, and now a member of the consortium. Mary Latham, chairman of the association, sees Homestamp as an extension of the work carried out by the association, which was originally set up to improve housing standards among its members. She argues that most landlords that fail to meet their legal requirements do so because they are ignorant of what is required of them rather than through malice. "We work on the basis that unless you know what to do you cannot be expected to do it," she says. "Homestamp works," she adds because "it condenses language down into a simple form so that landlords know what is expected of them."

That may be the case, but one of the main challenges for Homestamp is to win round those landlords that deliberately fail to carry out their legal duties. Mr Miller envisages a carrot and stick approach. He argues that the consortium could put together a package, offering specific benefits to landlords (for example discounts for gas checks and financial support for installing fire safety equipment) if they signed up to Homestamp. All that the landlord would be required to do would be to ensure that their properties met the minimum standards, as laid out in Read this first. Once they had achieved these standards, they would be given the Homestamp stamp of approval.

Homestamp targets the most disadvantaged groups and is focusing more on the pre-tenancy determination route, working with rent officers in housing benefit offices to raise awareness of the issue. According to Mr Miller, by targeting this area, Homestamp hopes to stop tenants on housing benefit from falling into the trap of signing up for properties that they cannot afford.

However, while Homestamp undoubtedly has the potential to bring significant improvements, a shortage of resources remains a major obstacle and prevents its members from carrying it out on a full-time basis. As Mr Miller explains, the consortium needs dedicated staff and needs to be suitably financed to realise its full potential. He adds: "[Homestamp] meets the requirements of central government regarding the development of partnership working and now is the time for the Government to recognise these achievements and offer adequate support."

In the meantime, a regional office has been established to deal with enquiries and a working party has been set up to discuss a range of issues, including common standards for student accommodation and integration and "move on" initiatives for people seeking asylum. The next step, according to Mr Miller is to "establish a Homestamp executive that will develop ideas with the consortium and then rubber stamp it so that it becomes regional policy".

As Mr Miller concludes, the success of Homestamp "depends on people having the ability to see down the road and round the corner." The consortium has already taken the first few steps down this road. With proper funding, staffing, recognition, and future projects, which will include accreditation, Homestamp is another step closer to achieving better housing standards across the region.

To find out more about Homestamp, contact the regional office on tel: 01922 725 965.