Agenda item

The Committee received a Resolution from the meeting of the RCC on 27^th September in respect of the Car Park Concierge Service.   Members noted that the Assistant Director and officers had been working with residents, in a Task and Finish Group, in order to seek a mutually agreeable solution in respect of the future of the concierge service in the car parks.  This work had resulted in the Resolution before Members today.

The Chairman thanked the Task and Finish Group and gave an assurance that, as representatives of the City of London Corporation, Members of the BRC would do their utmost to support the services paid for by residents.  Members also thanked the Chair for his considerable personal effort in this matter.

During the debate and discussion, the following points were noted:

a)      There was some challenge of the approach taken and a perceived lack of clarity in respect of the remit of the Task and Finish Group.

b)      Whilst here had been consultation on the resolution before the Committee, this had not been the case for any alternative proposals.  Achieving an acceptable solution within the next 6 months might be overambitious.

c)       There was a possibility that some leaseholders might not want to pay the additional amount and the City Solicitor’s advice had been sought. 

d)      The concierge parcel service was highly valued and significant in terms of bringing the service into the 21^st Century.  It was suggested that there might be a lack flexibility or innovation across the wider City of London Corporation in respect of savings proposals.

e)      The 12% savings target had been required to close the budget deficit, and should not have strayed into something that was service chargeable.

f)        Whilst communications had been received from less than 10% of the terrace block residents it was also suggested that, as this had been unsolicited, it was still significant.

g)      Residents do not pay for the parking service but they make a contribution.   The comparison to a commercial car park had been challenged, as had the valuation of the car park. 

h)      Retaining just 2 of the attendant points, with the others being automated, represented a saving to the City Fund of approximately 800k pa, and a saving to house block residents of approximately £700 pa each.  Therefore, further Estate-wide consultation might present a different perspective. The Deputy Chairman proposed, and it was agreed, that an estate wide consultation should take place with residents given the cost of maintaining the Car Park Attendants/concierge service at its current level and the cost of reducing the number of Car Park Attendants/concierges to the level that would be have been adopted had the estate been constructed in the 2020s and not 1970s so residents could make an informed decision on the future level of concierge service they wished to have.

i)        An officer/resident Service Charge Working Party was looking at how service charges could be contained in the future and the outcome of this work would be reported back the RCC/BRC.

The Assistant Director advised that the Director of CCS had provided a full response to Members, in respect of the consultation process, and earlier committee reports had acknowledged that the decision would be controversial.  The most recent report had been explicit in that the level of service would not be cut, despite the closure of one and a half car park offices.  Members also noted that any suggestion of a reduction in management costs would be null and void, as they are fully service chargeable and would not have any impact the 12% savings target. 

In concluding, the Chairman advised that there would be a public meeting with the Barbican Association on 21st October at 7.30pm, and all residents would be invited.   The Chairman would address the residents to provide an update on the current position and the proposed way forward, giving assurance of a full consultation.  The invitation would be extended to BRC Members and the venue would be confirmed shortly, noting that a high attendance was expected.  The Assistant Director advised that feedback from the meeting would be considered as part of the decision making process.  It was also expected that the advice of the City Solicitor would have been received by then.

RESOLVED, that –  the following resolution of the Barbican Residential Committee be accepted as a gesture of goodwill, noting the issues set out above, and on the understanding that legal advice would be required before any service models could be reviewed and/or proposals actioned.  

NB. acceptance is not an absolute assurance of an outcome but there is a will for seeking a solution before 1 April 2022. 

The Barbican Residents’ Consultation Committee note that the terrace block representatives on the Barbican Residents’ Consultation Committee (RCC) have voted in favour of retaining the current number of Estate Concierges. 

‘We will support the City of London Corporation in levying a one-off surcharge on terrace block service charge payers, to cover the pro-rata share (for the remainder of the 2021/2022 financial year) of the direct costs of employment of the 6 Estate Concierge roles scheduled to be removed, pending more detailed negotiations between service charge payers and the City Corporation. These costs were estimated by the Barbican Estate Office to be approximately £232,000 per year.

This is being offered as a matter of goodwill and is not an acceptance that the City Corporation would be entitled to reduce services in this way, or of the calculation of the terrace block car park inputs and outputs used to arrive at service charges. If an agreement is reached with the City Corporation, service charge payers will ask for a commitment (from the City Corporation) to that agreement in writing.

In consideration of accepting the one-off surcharge, service charge payers would ask City Officers to work flexibly and imaginatively with the RCC to find a longer term solution to this issue, within the structure of the current lease and freehold transfers, and to assist the RCC Service Charge Working Party in finding ways to significantly reduce service charges, without materially affecting the level or quality of front line services offered by the Barbican Estate Office’.