Lib Dems win heating help for RBC tenants

Last week I blogged about my campaign for action for RBC tenants who are still waiting for gas central heating in RBC properties.

Reading Borough Council also has a duty to act in the best interests of tenants here as the landlord.

I am pleased to say my campaign has resulted in promises of action from Southern Gas.

I took up this issue after speaking to tenants around Hadrians Walk East and Bamburgh Close who were  waiting for gas and central heating.

I wrote to the Head of Housing and the Labour Lead Member for Housing last week drawing their attention to the impact delayed installation of 'live' gas supplies was having on RBC tenants, asking them to take this up with Southern Gas at a senior level.

The fact that tenants are having to wait and services are not being delivered in a timely way by the gas provider is just not good enough.

I raised the issue as I did not feel that the Labour administration had been giving this issue sufficient priority and as we are heading for colder weather I feel strongly that RBC tenants must get gas soon.

Anyway, I have today received this response from the senior officer at RBC with overall responsibility for RBC housing:

" A meeting was held yesterday with Southern Gas and they have agreed:

a. to survey every block to ensure we have agreed information as to which flats are 'live' (i.e. have a supply) and those that don't (should be completed by early January)

b. provide greater emergency cover
c. put an additional team in to cover RBC works

This should help to resolve the immediate operational issues.

I am concerned that we may have some longer term issues e.g. Southern Gas, as a matter of policy, now wish to place meters on the exterior of the building - we have advised them this will just lead to increased vandalism and some inconvenience for customers that pay via a card system. 

However we have now established contact at the right level to enable us to move these issues forward.

Let's hope that Southern Gas now will deliver. I will be monitoring the situation to make sure they do.