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Paradigm is in talks to buy nearly 3,500 properties from L&Q, a deal which would be the UK’s largest ever association-to-association stock transfer.
Wooburn-based housing association Paradigm is also in discussions with the Settle Group to merge into one organisation, which would be the largest housing association in the region, responsible for almost 30,000 homes.
However, some tenants of L&Q, officially called London and Quadrant, have expressed doubts about its stock transfer and the looming Paradigm-Settle merger.
Julie Harris-Cohen lives in Gerrards Cross and has been an L&Q tenant for around 25 years, as well as serving on its residents involvement committee.
She told the Bucks Free Press: “The main problem is L&Q and Paradigm both have big problems with repairs and maintenance.
“So, for Paradigm to take on 25 per cent extra, how are they going to cope with that extra capacity when there are already residents that already don’t have a good service with repairs and maintenance. What are they going to put in place to cope with that?”
Paradigm already has 17,000 homes, mainly in Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire, while Settle has over 10,000 homes across Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire and South Cambridgeshire.
Julie said: “If you’re in a position like we were two years ago with water coming through the roof and leakages everywhere and people living with damp and mould, if you’re living in an L&Q property at the moment, you have got no idea when that is going to be part of major works.”
The tenant said she and others have not been getting any response from Paradigm and have had ‘no answers’ to their questions.
Fellow L&Q tenant Carl Shillito told the Free Press he was also worried by the merger of Paradigm and Settle.
The former member of the association’s residents involvement committee and resident services board said L&Q had promised residents ‘a lot of investment and improvement in their homes’.
He told the Free Press: “They are looking forward to new kitchens and bathrooms. What is going to happen now?”
The tenant also said he doubted Paradigm’s experience of managing sheltered accommodation, which is part of the stock being transferred from L&Q.
He said: “There is a lot going on and we just feel like little houses on a monopoly board being pushed around from one place to another.
“I am rather afraid that residents will be confused about where they go for sorting out problems with repairs and anti-social behaviour.
“I think that they will not be getting the improvements that have been promised. Or they certainly won’t be getting them as quickly as might have happened.”
Nicola Ewen, Paradigm’s chief financial officer, said the association was ‘committed to delivering a strong service for all our residents’ and would make sure it was ‘informed of the needs of residents’ during the hand-over of housing stock.
She told the Free Press: “We will be working with L&Q to ensure that repairs are up to date, and where they couldn’t be delivered before transfer, Paradigm will carry out necessary repairs as per our existing property standards and customer service offer.
“Throughout this process, our focus will always be on enhancing the homes and services we provide. We believe that by forming a larger, unified organisation, we will be better positioned to focus on the things that matter most to our residents.
“In the long term, we are confident that the partnership and acquisition would not only improve our services but also create a better overall experience for everyone we serve.”
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