Introduction

Welcome to the new Tenant Empowerment Programme framework for tenant management grants 2008-09.  Over the next six weeks these pages will be updated and developed with further details as they become available.  If you have any queries about the content of this new framework, please contact tenantempowerment@housingcorp.gsx.gov.uk.

Tenant Empowerment Programme (TEP) tenant management grants exist to help tenants and residents groups to explore the options they have available to control and manage their housing services. The options offer a choice of varying levels of control including the establishment of Tenant Management Organisations (TMOs) (either statutory or voluntary models) or Local Management Agreements (LMAs).

Detailed guidance on the new tenant management framework, published by the Department of Communities and Local Government (CLG) is available.   Residents Choice  contains further guidance on all the options supported through the TEP and the implementation of tenant management.  Local Choice, Local Control is statutory guidance setting out the expectations on parties establishing TMOs where the landlord is the local authority.

The Statutory TMO model framework accompanies the Housing (Right to Manage) (England) Regulations 2008, giving a statutory right to manage to tenants of local authorities only. 

Housing association and residents do not have a statutory right to manage.  However, from 1 October 2008, TEP funding will be available to help housing association tenants and residents set up TMOs using a voluntary framework.   Local Management Agreements are part of the voluntary framework and are available to both local authority tenants and housing association tenants and residents.

Most of the procedures and conditions which apply to the statutory Right to Manage will also apply to the voluntary route to management. However, housing associations will need to ensure that they take legal advice on setting up a TMO through the Voluntary route as EU procurement regulations will apply.   EU procurement exemption models are being explored for the voluntary Route.  Further guidance on this will be published as soon as it is available.