Landlord accreditation scheme launches

A new accreditation scheme for landlords in Guildford has been launched following work by a Liberal Democrat councillor. Under the new voluntary scheme landlords and agents have to meet certain standards of property maintenance and tackling anti-social behaviour and in return institutions like the University of Surrey promote these landlords to people looking for accommodation.

The scheme came from a council group led by Lib Dem Councillor Caroline Reeves and aims to raise standards in private rented accommodation both for tenants and for neighbours. The scheme is funded by Guildford Borough Council and the University of Surrey in partnership.

The new scheme is especially good news for Onslow neighbourhoods like Ashended, Dennisville and Guildford Park where the number of houses of multiple occupancy have increased dramatically in recent years.

Talking about the scheme, Cllr Caroline Reeves said:

“I have lived in the same house for 27 years, very close to the town centre, and have seen the changes in the community now that so many homes are let to families or tenants sharing.

“Houses of Multiple Occupancy or ‘HMOs’ are the only way that many can live in the town, and increasingly it’s young professionals not students who have to share. As a ward councillor, I receive complaints from both tenants and the neighbours of rented properties, and it seemed to me that there must be a way of ensuring that as an authority we can help all concerned.

“We worked together with the University of Surrey and Surrey Students’ Union and obtained input from all our further education bodies plus a number of agents and landlords, to design a scheme which will provide improved quality assurance for all landlords, letting agents, tenants and their neighbours.”

Surrey students go litter picking

On the 13th of December a group of students from the University of Surrey went out in Guildford Park Avenue as part of a volunteer litter picking session aimed at making a contribution to the local community. The student volunteers ended up collecting five bin bags worth of rubbish during the session and are planning to make this a monthly exercise.

Student volunteers at the end of the session.

Student volunteers at the end of the session.

When I first set about organising this session I was incredibly encouraged by the large number of students who emailed me wanting to take part – although only a small number were able to go out this close to Christmas there are many more who are hoping to join in the January session.

When organising the session I was also lucky enough to receive help and advice from the university’s students union as well as the Do More and the People & Planet societies at the university who both promoted the session to their members and encouraged them to take part.

Of course, the ultimate goal will be for the organisation of these sessions to be taken over by the student union or a university society so that they become a regular occurrence.

But in the meantime I’m looking for suggestions of which area the next suggestion should focus on – anyone with ideas or suggestions should contact me (George Potter) using the details elsewhere on this website.