Unitas to move back under control of Stoke-on-Trent City Council

A repair and maintenance company which looks after 17,500 homes and around 600 public buildings in Stoke-on-Trent is being moved back under the control of Stoke-on-Trent City Council.

Unitas, which was established in 2018 as a wholly-owned subsidiary of the city council, has been operating independently – with its own board and director – for the past six years.

In that time, it has delivered 535,148 responsive repairs, brought 7,579 void properties back up to standard ready for re-letting and invested an average of £21 million per year in maintenance work to properties throughout the city.

Now, after being agreed by Stoke-on-Trent City Council’s Cabinet last month (July), Unitas is set to be brought back in-house.

An internal team has now been appointed to manage the sensitive transition of Unitas staff and its operations, while ensuring the housing repairs and maintenance service can continue as normal.

While the project is in its very early stages, both Unitas employees and Stoke-on-Trent City Council staff have been informed of the Cabinet decision and will be kept up-to-date throughout the transition process.

Leader of Stoke-on-Trent City Council, Councillor Jane Ashworth, said: “Since we were elected in May 2023, we have made it our priority to listen to residents on issues which are important to them as part of our commitment to improving people’s lives and making the city a wealthier, healthier and safer place for all.  

“Tenants have told us that they want to see improvements in our housing repairs and maintenance service which has been managed by Unitas Ltd since 2018. While the arrangement with Unitas has been broadly successful, new government regulation, which outlines landlords’ responsibilities to meet new, higher standards and be accountable for all aspects of service delivery, has resulted in challenges relating to investment which has put even more pressure on our over-stretched budget.

“The decision has now been made to bring these services back into the council where we can exercise more direct oversight and ensure that tenants get the service they deserve. We know people are waiting too long to get the phone answered and for jobs to be done but we are committed to improving the quality of our housing service.

“Going forward we will be taking a ‘repairs done right, first time’ approach, coupled with improved customer service and a proactive maintenance program that means common housing issues are fixed before they become a problem for residents including damp and mould.”

Mark Freeth, Interim Director of Unitas, will also be helping to oversee the transition. He added: “Our commitment is always to provide a high-quality service that meets the needs of tenants and other customers. We will work closely with the council over the coming months to ensure a smooth and successful transition and look forward to engaging with colleagues, tenants and other stakeholders at all levels.” 

The decision to bring the council’s repair and maintenance service in-house follows the introduction of new government legislation, introduced on the back of the Grenfell Tower tragedy in 2017.

The legislation outlines a landlord’s responsibility to meet new, higher standards and be accountable for all aspects of service delivery when it comes to housing repairs and maintenance. The new regulations have led to an increase in demand for services and resulted in increasing budgetary pressures.