星空传媒

Barbara Houghton can鈥檛 remember1933, the first time she saw her home in north Liverpool. One of her earliest memories, though, is leaving the house when she was evacuated to a village in mid-Wales to escape German bombing in 1942. 鈥淚t was a huge adventure,鈥� she says.

Barring evacuation and 10 years when she lived with her husband in Woolton, south Liverpool, Houghton has lived in the same house all her life.

In the 1930s, the rent was 18 shillings (90p) a week; by 1975, when Liverpool Housing Trust took over the management, it was 拢3 and now, it鈥檚 拢51.50p.

LHT took over its management in 1975, but, says Houghton, the identity of her landlord has never mattered much 鈥� her home has always felt like home.

鈥淯nless I have to report a repair I don鈥檛 see much of the housing officers,鈥� she says.

鈥淚 trust LHT and I鈥檝e no qualms about not actually owning this place. I鈥檓 confident that if there鈥檚 a problem, someone will help.鈥�

The trust converted her living room and dining room into one open space 15 years ago as part of a major improvement programme, and installed central heating and new windows. Less welcome, though, was the trust鈥檚 decision to change her kitchen.

鈥淚 didn鈥檛 want it and was happy with the one I had, but there wasn鈥檛 much I could do, so I gave the old one to my daughter rather than let it be sent to the rubbish tip. I still think the old one was better.鈥�

These days, of course, the trust puts much more emphasis on tenant consultation. And now, sitting comfortably in her front room with Zoe the cat on her knees, Houghton鈥檚 just happy to be in the home she鈥檚 known for so long, watching the world go by from her easy chair.

Lillian Hodd, LFHA tenant since 1975

Lillian Hodd became a tenant of Leeds Federated Housing Association in 1975, the year it formed, and still lives in the same third-storey flat in the Pepper Hills complex, south of Leeds city centre.

鈥淏ack then, we had a flat roof and it leaked very badly,鈥� she says. 鈥淚 remember my mother putting out buckets to catch all the drips. It was terrible, but it was cheap 鈥� we paid about 拢5 a week.鈥�

Hodd and her mother had moved into Pepper Hills in 1955 and for 20 years their small-time private landlord had done little in the way of maintenance.

鈥淚t got pretty cold. There was no central heating and we had coal fires. But the main problem was damp, which made the concrete crumble in places.鈥�

When LFHA鈥檚 first member of staff, housing officer Gerry Verbrugge, paid Hodd a visit in 1975 to explain that there had been a change in management, Hodd didn鈥檛 imagine things would change much.

But she was wrong. The new Housing Act had brought in grant for housing associations and then-chair Father Healey and director Jim Coulter 鈥� the latter now chief executive of the National Housing Federation 鈥� were already discussing how LFHA could use this money to improve the city鈥檚 housing.

LFHA had been formed in 1975 from a coalition of housing organisations and charities and started with fewer than 200 homes. A programme of buying pre-1919 homes and building estates in West Yorkshire meant that by the late 1970s it had 300; it now owns 4000.

Management always used to come from activists at the bottom. Those days are long gone steve garnett

Steve Garnett

By 1980 it was in a position to start making big improvements to its stock.

Hodd felt the benefit when her old flat roof was rebuilt and pitched. The walkways round the blocks were strengthened, as was the buildings鈥� structure.

Hodd says there have been many changes over the past 10 years. 鈥淲hen I first came there weren鈥檛 any cars around; now people have a job to find parking space.

鈥淎nd for years there was no tenants鈥� association. But when one was set up six years ago, I joined by accident, really. I went with a friend and they all said: 鈥楥ome on Miss Hodd, join up!鈥�

鈥淪o I did, and it鈥檚 quite nice to hear about what people need. I get talking to all different sorts.鈥�

Steve Garnett, Residential caretaker

Steve Garnett joined LFHA in 1986 as residential caretaker for the association鈥檚 Marlborough Blandford estate in central Leeds. He鈥檚 now the longest-serving member of LFHA鈥檚 120-strong team.

Garnett says he is quite happy to have been working on the same estate for the past 18 years. 鈥淚 like to get stuck into something once I鈥檝e decided I like it, and, in any case, there鈥檚 been so much change around me things never get dull,鈥� he says.

When he first started looking after the six terraced streets that make up the Marlborough estate, some of the houses were in a terrible condition. LFHA had only just taken over management of the area. 鈥淪ome of the houses were burned out and there were lots of smack users in the area,鈥� he recalls.

鈥淎nother problem was that rooms were leased individually so if, for example, one person was left in a house and others didn鈥檛 want to share with them, we鈥檇 soon have an almost empty property.

鈥淚t can be challenging: I had a strange moment a few years ago when a tenant with mental health difficulties called on me at midnight armed with a bow and arrow. He said someone was after him, so I called the police for him.

The estate became easier to manage in the early 1990s when the association started to let whole homes and exploit its location opposite part of Leeds University. Gradually all the buildings were rehabilitated and let to students.

鈥淭hey鈥檙e on short-term tenancies so we see new faces all the time, but we don鈥檛 see any of the drugs problems we once had. There鈥檚 a real multicultural community and I get great satisfaction from helping the students get settled.鈥�

He has noticed a big increase in tenant consultation over his 28 years with LFHA. 鈥淚t has made things more transparent, tenants now have a better understanding of, for example, service charges than they had 18 years ago.鈥�

Now 53, Garnett has every intention of staying with the association for many more years. 鈥淟eeds is going to continue to grow and all associations are going to get larger, like corporations. It means there could be more flexibility for tenants but I do think there will be more management from the top.

It always used to come from activists at the bottom. Those days are long gone.鈥�