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Social housing tenants in England could be paid money to take pride in looking after their homes, the government has announced.
Housing minister Grant Shapps has said council tenants could be offered up to £1000 a year to maintain their own homes in an attempt to control the repairs budget.
The 'Tenant Cashback' scheme will allow tenants to claim money to do their own repairs or to commission the work from local business and share any savings with the council.
The Communities and Local Government department said that at present social housing landlords spend an annual average of £1,000 per property on repairs.
It is thought that 20 per cent of the annual repairs budget could be saved, which would then be shared between tenants and the council.
Local authorities will continue to carry out major repairs such as fixing roofs and replacing boilers.
And councils will ensure work is carried out to a sufficient standard.
Shapps said: "Social housing should act as a springboard to help people make life better for themselves. When residents take pride in their homes it saves their landlords cash, so I think its right that tenants should benefit too.
"Tenant Cashback will do just that, giving house-proud residents more control over looking after their own homes. Doing your own DIY or choosing a local handyman to do the work – will allow tenants to pocket any savings they make.
"And if house proud tenants drive down the total cost of maintenance then this could lead to tenants receiving cheques in the post worth thousands of pounds, for them to use however they wish."
Shadow housing minister Alison Seabeck said: "This scheme needs to show that it isn't another poorly thought-through idea to prevent any misuse of public funds and to protect social housing tenants and housing stock from shoddy work."
Housing association Moat welcomed the announcement to give social housing residents money to maintain their own home.
It said it was delighted with the plan and looks forward to the results of pilot schemes currently being undertaken by Home Group and Hastoe Housing Association.
Moat chief executive Brian Johnson said: "We believe that the most successful relationship with residents is one with reduced bureaucratic control and increased empowerment.
"The government's latest announcement fits perfectly with this belief, offering social housing tenants responsibility for their repairs budget and more power over the services that we deliver in their areas.
"In order to continue and be taken up more widely, it will require excellent communication and partnership working between local authorities, landlords and residents to ensure long-term upkeep of housing stock."
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