Up to £1 million could be spent by Caerphilly County Borough Council on housing repairs for a single street.
Residents living in numbers 1 to 46 in George Street, Cwmcarn, will have their rear retaining walls replaced – at no cost to them.
Of the properties, 30 are council-owned, while the remaining 16 are privately-owned.
What is Caerphilly County Borough Council’s cabinet?
A council’s cabinet is made up of councillors in charge of different policy areas – such as education, environment, local economy, etc – and a leader.
It is separate to the council’s corporate management structure, which is headed up by its chief executive and various directors. Cabinet is made up of councillors, who are elected and have the ultimate say.
Typically, cabinet members are councillors from the party with the most elected council members.
Caerphilly County Borough Council’s cabinet is made up of:
- Cllr Sean Morgan (Nelson) – Leader
- Cllr Jamie Pritchard (Morgan Jones) – Deputy Leader; Prosperity, Regeneration and Climate Change
- Cllr Nigel George (Risca East) – Corporate Services and Property
- Cllr Eluned Stenner (New Tredegar) – Finance and Performance
- Cllr Carol Andrews (Gilfach) – Education and Communities
- Cllr Shayne Cook (Morgan Jones) – Housing
- Cllr Elaine Forehead (Van) – Social Care
- Cllr Philippa Leonard (Risca East) – Planning and Public Protection
- Cllr Chris Morgan (Machen and Rudry) – Waste, Leisure and Green Spaces
Corporate management is made up of unelected employees of the council and has responsibility for day-to-day management of services, such as making sure the bins are collected. Corporate directors work with cabinet members to come up with policy which is then agreed upon by the cabinet.
Last updated October 13, 2023
A report presented in a cabinet meeting on Wednesday, November 10, said: “The design and condition of the rear of the properties means that many families with very young children are not able to use the rear gardens at all.”
The repairs will include the renewal of rear retaining walls, steps and other works and are expected to cost £44,000 for every pair of houses. The money will come out of the council’s Housing Revenue Account, which is made up of rent from council tenants, and its Private Sector Housing Capital Programme – a pot of money the council can spend on improving private properties.
The repairs may not end up costing as much if residents agree to a single continuous wall.
The report states the repairs are being done to ensure the safety of residents and the wider community, in addition to reaching the Welsh Housing Quality Standard.
The walls of two adjoining council-owned properties – numbers 5 and 6 – deteriorated to such an extent that they had to be taken down for safety reasons and the gardens battened back as a temporary measure.
Cllr Shayne Cook, cabinet member for housing and social care, said the council had a responsibility as a landlord.
Plaid Cymru councillor Lindsay Whittle welcomed the council’s support and said it was a “long outstanding problem” for residents.
The report said due to the design and construction of the existing walls and steps, the scheme could not be undertaken without the inclusion of the private sector properties.
Therefore all the properties – council-owned and private – will receive financial support from the council.
The properties are all four-bedroom terraced houses, which were built along the contours of the valley before 1919.
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