ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½

At least 36 of the 208 neighbourhood and street warden schemes in England and Wales could be scrapped due to lack of funding, Housing Today can reveal.

Government cash for the massively popular initiative will be withdrawn next March and councils and housing associations are scrambling to find other sources (see factfile, below).

The schemes under threat include Bermondsey, south London, which has nine wardens; Bournemouth, which has two; Wolverhampton, which has 10 wardens; and three others Housing Today spoke to.

The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister introduced the scheme in late 2000 and invested £68m in its first three years. The initiative has since become a key element in the government's drive to combat antisocial behaviour. The money funded 50% of schemes, with landlords making up the rest.

However, ODPM minister Barbara Roche told a London conference on wardens this Monday: "We did the scheme with the view that the councils would take over once funding ran out. Now, it is time the Local Government Association and the councils built on the success and decide on how they are going to fund it in the future."

Tom Mann, secretary at the North West Neighbourhood Warden Network, said that, of the 45 schemes the network represents, up to 30 could be at risk.

Mann admitted that little thought had been given to future funding. He said: "People have been too busy getting the schemes up and running, and perhaps they've taken their eyes off the ball a bit."

A spokesman for one of Mann's members – Willow Park Housing Trust in Manchester – said rents would rise to fund seven wardens.

He said: "We asked tenants if we could raise rent to pay for them. Fortunately, the scheme has been a great success, so they said yes to a rise of 25p each per week."

Mark Lupton, policy analyst at the CIH, criticised the ODPM's decision to stop funding the scheme. "The government keeps starting schemes which are successful, then pulling the plug. The councils are not prepared when the funding is finished and the scheme falters," he said. "They are facing trouble over getting funding from the Housing Revenue Account in particular, because it will have to be prioritised and that could mean deflecting funds from other sources."