GLERA
Press Statement
The contents of this report will be no surprise to City of London tenants who have for years had to suffer in cold damp flats with no clarity on when promised improvements will happen, if ever. The report points to the appalling fact that it will take another nine years to bring the failed 18% of homes up to Decent Homes standard, something that should shame nearly every member of the Court of Common Council.
The disinterest of all but a handful of councillors has meant that there has been no scrutiny and accountability of the Corporation’s housing department. Whilst the Corporation will now be closely monitored we have little faith that the culture of ‘procrastination and report producing’ will change.
The need for a separate Housing Committee was one of the recommendations of the Lisvane report in 2020. This was kicked into the long grass and when, in 2024/5, it became obvious that the HRA was failing, the response was the establishment of yet another working group to report sometime in the future. Proper governance is needed today.
The Corporation must understand that, as a local authority, it has a duty to its tenants, to listen to and work with them and to escalate their programme of improvements so that everyone can have a safe, warm and dry home.
BGLNF
“Serious Failings” on City Social Housing Estates
25 FEBRUARY 2026
The Social Housing Regulator’s latest report identifies “serious failings” in the City’s stewardship of its social housing estates, including the Golden Lane Estate.
City of London Corporation (00AA) – Regulatory Judgement: 25 February 2026It makes sobering reading, and of course the under-investment over many years applies not just to the social housing but also to the landscape and environment of our two remarkable estates.
The Forum’s position is as follows:
The Golden Lane Estate and the Barbican Estate are not only home to thousands of people, they are also internationally recognised Listed Buildings and prized heritage assets. We profoundly regret that the Corporation of the City of London, with all its wealth and experience, has not been able to look after its own buildings properly over years and years and years; and we have serious concerns about its ability to make things right now without proper funding.
This report, which only covers social housing, recognises that there have been “longstanding issues” including health and safety “high-risk actions that have been overdue for over a year”. On planned maintenance the “slow pace of completing some planned improvements” also comes in for severe criticism, as does the lack of transparency and scrutiny. Such sluggish performance demands a step-change that the City of London has so far proved unable to achieve.
The City has not secured enough funding yet to cover all the work it should have been doing but hasn’t, as well as all the work it needs to do for the future. It isn’t just people’s homes that have seen under-investment; the Highwalks, Exhibition Halls, gardens and spaces in community use are also leaking and in a poor state of repair. The Barbican and Golden Lane Neigbourhood Forum calls for the fully-funded package of works that these two remarkable estates deserve.
press
25 FEBRUARY Council told to ‘significantly improve’ by housing regulator over ‘serious failings’
MyLondon | Ben Lynch
