Repairs & Improvements

Private Finance Initiative (PFI)

Housing PFI (Private Finance Initiative) is a method by which central government provides financial support for partnerships between public and private sectors. PFI projects aim to refurbish existing social housing and provide other essential services such as repair and maintenance rent collection and tenancy management. In return the private sector receives payment linked to its performance in meeting standards of provision set down in a contract which last for up to 30 years. Government part funds the scheme with PFI credits and the private sector provides private finance.  The local authority also makes contributions.

In housing PFI schemes:

• The local authority retains ownership of the stock and the tenants retain their secure tenancies.
• A consortium of private sector firms (usually consisting of a bank, a housing association and a building contractor) raise capital to refurbish homes under a contract negotiated with the local authority.

Why choose a PFI scheme?
The PFI solution was chosen by Islington Council as the best and most cost effective available means of dealing with the backlog of repairs and improvements required to bring its street properties up to the decent homes standard.

The refurbishment of street properties will benefit residents but also have a wider regeneration impact. It will enable council owned properties to continue to be used for social housing, thereby maintaining a range of housing tenures in Islington.

PFI in Islington
Islington’s first PFI scheme, known as PFI 1, started in May 2003. A second scheme, PFI2, was started in October 2006 For further information about these schemes please click the green PFI 1 and PFI 2 on the left side of this page.

In PFI 1 the contractual target is to refurbish all 2,344 PFI 1 properties by the end of 2008. At the August 2007, 1933 dwellings had been completed out of a total of 2336.

In the PFI 2 project, the target is to refurbish all 4095 properties by the end of March 2012. 184 dwellings had been completed by the end of August 2007.

How to make a complaint about Partners’ services
PFI1 Reports and Surveys
PFI2 Reports and Surveys