Customer Services
How the transfer affects you
Why did we transfer?
As part of Merton Council, the Housing Team worked hard to develop new ways to improve tenants' homes and provide them with good quality services that they deserved with the limited amount of money we had available.
Despite our efforts, it became increasingly difficult every year to keep up our previous level of services, carry out the repairs and improvements that homes need, and plan enough investment for the future. This was because we had to pay back approximately 35% of tenants’ rent to support the national housing programme. (Around 35p of every £1 of tenants’ rent went back to the Government to subsidise council housing in other parts of the country. This amounted to around £9 million a year.)
We were further limited by not being able to borrow all the money needed to improve homes, estates and services and keep them up to standard in the years to come because of the strict Government rules on local authority borrowing.
As Merton Priory Homes, we can borrow the money we need and not have to pay any of tenants’ rent back to the Government. Transfer means more money can be ploughed into the housing service to improve the standards and quality tenants receive.
£129 million makeover for tenants' homes
As Merton Priory Homes, £129 million will now be spent on tenants’ homes and services in the first 10 years to bring them up to the higher standard tenants want: the ‘Merton Standard’. And it means improvements for estates and the environment too.
This is around £78 million more than the council would have expected to be able to spend in the same period.
Investment in the homes will not stop after the first 10 years. We'll invest £379 million over 30 years to keep homes up to the ‘Merton Standard’ for the years to come.
This major investment is only possible through transfer and would safeguard the future of good quality, affordable housing for tomorrow’s generation of tenants.
Merton Council's Transfer Proposal for Tenants (3.1 MB)
What’s to come?
The new housing association, Merton Priory Homes is now part of one of UK's leading providers of affordable housing, Circle Anglia. The staff who previously provided housing services in Merton Council have transferred to the new organisation.
Circle energy savers
- Get handy energy-saving tips from our Energy Savers website >
- Watch our energy saving films >
House Exchange
Click house exchange website for details of how you can join the scheme and exchange your home.
