Sandwell council homes scheme held in the balance with fund woes
A scheme to invest £42 million into improvements to council homes has been put on hold as Sandwell Council can no longer afford them.
The council had hoped to plough the cash into council houses and flats in the borough that were missed out when the Government's Decent Homes scheme was scrapped.
But now as more people are buying their council homes – leading to less rental income – the authority is no longer in a position to fork out the money.
The council has around 30,000 properties in the borough, most of which were improved under Decent Homes.
Borough deputy council leader, Councillor Mahboob Hussain, said: "The council was looking at investing £42m because the Decent Homes money was taken away.
Fellow deputy leader and finance boss Councillor Steve Eling said the improvements the council were funding would have to be financed from rental income.
"What we are seeing is quite a significant drop in rent income because of houses being sold," he said.
