Thousands of Sandwell council homes to be revamped under £10m project
Thousands of council homes across Sandwell will be revamped as part of a new £10 million project.
The work will include improvements to kitchens, bathrooms, central heating systems and electrical re-wiring as well as new roofs and windows.
Finance bosses at the council – which is facing up to crippling Government cuts – have pledged to invest around £10 million into council housing this year.
This is on top of £60m spent in recent years to refurbish around 4,500 properties. Thousands more will be updated around the borough during the next 12 months.
More than £20m will also be spent on building dozens of new homes and buying properties on new developments from house builders.
Deputy leader Councillor Steve Eling said: "In Sandwell we have a housing turnover of a couple of thousand a year, and there continues to be a high demand for council housing, as a lot of people aspire to be a tenant due to rent prices being affordable.
"We have our own investment programmes and the council has already delivered upon its promise, an example being the three tower blocks built on Windmill Lane.
"Other plans for new houses to be built are all part of this package and we will look to further refurbish a number of other high rise blocks.
"Although the government are squeezing the housing account, it is still very important in Sandwell that we continue to invest and build new council properties alongside attracting new housing developers.
"Britain is in a mess housing wise, but it is a priority that this borough has new housing, and there is considerable demand for decent quality housing.
"Our strategy is a critical part of investment for the long-term, we have new developments every year and will continue to invest."
The Express & Star reported in January that more than 6,000 people are currently waiting for a council house in Sandwell, with 36 having been on the list for more than a decade.
A total of 6,199 households are currently registered on Sandwell Council's house waiting list. Figures obtained through a Freedom of Information request show 1,455 of these have been waiting for more than a year to be housed – 1,888 for more than two years and 297 for more than five years.
