The government has published its consultation on implementing self-financing for council housing. It sets out the framework for the new system and gives councils their draft settlement figures.
The Secretary of State, under section 173 of the Localism Act 2011, is required to consult each affected local authority before making
determinations to implement self-financing for council housing. The government has set out five draft determinations:
- Settlement Payments Determination – sets out the amount each local authority will either pay the government or receive from the government in order to exit the current subsidy system.
- Limit on Indebtedness Determination – places a cap on the amount of housing debt each council may hold.
- Housing Revenue Account Subsidy Amendment Determination for the year 2011/12 – adjusts the subsidy entitlement for this financial year in order to take account of the interest costs or savings arising from the settlement payments.
- Item 8 Credit and Debit Amendment Determination for the year 2011/12 – enables the appropriate charges to be made between the Housing Revenue Account and a council’s General Fund to reflect the borrowing costs or savings in this financial year arising from the settlement payments.
- Item 8 Credit and Debit Determinations for 2012 onwards – provides a framework for the Housing Revenue Account ring-fence to continue to operate under a devolved system of funding.
Alongsidethese draft determinations, the government has published the spreadsheet models which have been used to calculate the self-financing valuations, settlement payments and debt limits.
As part of the consultation the government is also asking for local authorities to consider whether the data and calculation for their authority is correct.
Any responses to the consultation must be submitted to the Department for Communities and Local Government no later than 5pm on 6 January 2012.