Councillors in Reading have clashed over the closure of the council’s housing company, which has been disbanded.
Councillors in Reading have clashed over the closure of the council’s housing company, which has now been disbanded.
Homes for Reading (HfR) was set up in 2016 to let the council buy properties and rent them at market rates. In 2024 the council decided to close HfR and absorb the homes into its housing stock so they could be used for families on the housing register.
HfR tenants said the change broke the stability they had been promised. The recommendation to close the company first appeared in a policy committee report in January 2024 and was formally made later that year.
Rob White, leader of the Green opposition, called the closure ‘evictions’ and discriminatory at the latest policy committee meeting. He said:
“The controversial decision to close Reading's housing company, HfR, was taken behind closed doors in a confidential meeting of the policy committee.
“It has meant a Labour council using no-fault evictions to throw families out of their homes – a practice that the Labour Party pledged in its manifesto that it would make illegal.
“The confidential report that came to the committee said that officers would ensure that a full Equality Impact Assessment would be done and reported back before the decision was taken to evict families.
“But that didn't happen – instead, the decision was taken by the Finance Director in consultation with the leader and deputy leader of the council.
“An Equality Impact Assessment is a tool that helps ensure decisions, practices and policies are fair and do not discriminate against anyone.
“Can you tell us why no Equality Impact Assessment was done on the policy to close Homes for Reading, and evict Reading families?”
His question was answered by the council leader, Liz Terry (Labour, Coley), who said his comments were “incorrect and inappropriate”. She said:
“The committee report committed the council to allowing tenants to stay in their properties until the end of their tenancies – so accusing the council of using ‘no fault evictions’ is both incorrect and inappropriate and seeks to unnecessarily inflame what is otherwise a very sensitive situation.
“The evidence shows that the council has been flexible, working with tenants to provide support and move people to new accommodation in an agreed way.
“The papers to the policy committee in 2024 made clear that the council could no longer afford to keep the company open, as its operating model was not effective and the company was placing an increasing strain on the council’s resources.
“Those homes are being transferred as they become available, and the Council has made good on its commitment to work with tenants to find them suitable alternative accommodation.”
Terry said the decision was delegated because the committee had agreed it should only return if consultation responses required further consideration. A statutory consultation finished in March 2024 and, she said, there was “no other viable way forward”. Councillors also heard that Cllr White had not explained how the decision was discriminatory.
The exchange took place at the policy committee meeting in December 2025.
James Aldridge, Local Democracy Reporter
