Ballot.
At the end of the options appraisal process there will be a ballot to see if residents would like us to go ahead with taking forward the preferred option to detailed design and a planning application to the Council.
A few weeks prior to the vote, residents will be sent a ‘Landlords Offer’. This will be a booklet providing residents with details of the ‘residents charter’ which sets out our commitments about how residents will be treated in the regeneration process, along with draft design information which is relevant to the preferred option.
The vote will take place a couple of weeks later and will ask residents a simple question; Are you in favour of the regeneration proposal included in the landlords’ offer? Residents will then be able to vote either ‘Yes’ or ‘No’. Votes will be accepted via post or online, and residents will have at least three weeks to cast their vote.
Who will be able to vote?
Only households living on the Kingsbridge Estate can take part in the ballot, and all voters must be over 16 years old. The Greater London Authority have stated that the following people get to vote in a regeneration ballot:
- All secure or assured tenants named on the tenancy agreement.
- All leaseholders named on the lease that have been living in the property at least twelve months prior to the ballot.
- Anyone else living on the estate who has been on the housing register for the last 12 months prior to a ballot.
In accordance with the GLA guidance, tenants of leaseholders cannot vote, unless they have been on the housing register for 12 months prior to the ballot. Non-resident leaseholders or buy to let landlords do not get a vote either.
Who carries out the ballot?
An independent company must carry out the ballot and they will be appointed closer to the time. They will be responsible for voter registration, organising the ballot along with counting the results.
What would a ‘Yes’ vote mean?
One Housing would then continue to develop the current designs and get them ready to make a planning application to the council. There will be ongoing consultation with residents to ensure they are involved in developing the designs, and we would expect it to take about 6 months to get from ballot to a planning application.
What would a ‘No’ vote mean?
One Housing would consult with residents to fully understand why they voted ‘No’ against regeneration. A decision would then be taken on whether to revise the landlord offer and go to vote again, or to cancel the project completely.