Basildon Borough Council has threatened to terminate Morgan Sindall’s lucrative maintenance contract unless it sees “drastic improvements” in the quality of work.
Council leader Gavin Callaghan said the authority has invested an additional £16m into the repair and maintenance of council properties over the past year “due to the diabolical state [in which] our housing repairs services finds itself”.
Speaking at a full council meeting last week (13 February), he said: “We all know as members that the current performance of this council’s largest contractor is not acceptable. Repairs are taking too long and they are botched.”
“So while I am investing more in the repairs service, I want to be clear with the public: if drastic improvements to the service have not been made and outcomes improved for residents by Christmas 2025, I will sack Morgan Sindall.”
Morgan Sindall Property Services was appointed on the contract to repair the council’s housing stock and corporate buildings in April 2016. At the time the contractor said the deal was potentially worth more than £300m over 15 years.
The contract includes repair, maintenance and planned improvement works to the council’s housing stock, as well as gas servicing and boiler renewals for 10,000 domestic gas heating systems.
The deal is worth approximately £20m a year to Morgan Sindall and would be terminated five-and-a-half years before its maximum length if Basildon Borough Council ends it after Christmas this year.
A spokesperson for Morgan Sindall Property Services said: “We are disappointed in the comments by Councillor Gavin Callaghan, as this is not reflective of the service we provide to over 12,000 homes in Basildon.
“In 2024, we delivered nearly 40,000 repairs to residents, in the same year, 98 per cent of emergency repairs were completed in a 24 hour period.
“Our operatives and customer team, many of which are Basildon residents, are dedicated and passionate about the service we deliver, working closely with residents to fix their issues as quickly and efficiently as possible.
“It is clear from the comments raised we need to engage further with local councillors and residents and are doing this through the ward committee forums and our weekly resident drop-in sessions.
“We are aware that there are improvements to be made and we are actively working with Basildon council to streamline processes to positively impact the service for residents.”
Last year, Hammersmith and Fulham Council announced its housing repairs contract with Morgan Sindall had been “terminated by mutual consent”, with the local authority subsequently hiring Wates on a £28.4m replacement deal.
At the time a spokesperson for Morgan Sindall Property Services said the contract had been due to expire in 2025, adding that the decision to end earlier allowed the council to “fully consider its service delivery and procurement options”.
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Will Ing