Key Points
- Westminster City Council has appointed Connect Property to manage its temporary accommodation property management, repairs, maintenance and compliance services.
- The appointment followed a competitive procurement process conducted under the Procurement Act 2023.
- The contract is structured for two years, with options for two further one-year extensions, giving a potential four-year term.
- Connect Property’s responsibilities will cover property management, responsive repairs, planned maintenance, statutory compliance and resident support.
- Westminster City Council said mobilisation is already under way and that it intends to ensure a seamless transition before services formally commence.
- Cllr David Harvey, Westminster City Council’s Cabinet Member for Housing and Regeneration, said the council selected Connect Property because it believed the company could deliver the contract and provide value for money.
- Connect Property Managing Director Christopher Philippou said the company would combine its workforce, technology and customer-focused approach to provide responsive and reliable services.
- The partnership is intended to keep temporary accommodation safe, compliant and well maintained while placing residents at the centre of service delivery.
- The appointment follows Westminster City Council’s £235m deal to acquire 350 homes from housing association A2Dominion for temporary accommodation.
- The earlier acquisition was intended to strengthen the council’s temporary accommodation supply as homelessness demand and associated costs increased.
- Westminster City Council has also pursued wider housing and development initiatives, including a £1bn target for market sales to support its affordable housebuilding programme.
The latest development places Connect Property at the centre of Westminster City Council’s operational approach to managing temporary accommodation, with the company taking responsibility for property management, repairs, maintenance, compliance and resident support. The appointment follows a competitive procurement exercise under the Procurement Act 2023 and comes as Westminster continues efforts to maintain safe and reliable temporary housing for residents while managing wider pressures on housing services.
What has Westminster City Council appointed Connect Property to do?
As reported by Stephen Delahunty of Inside Housing, Westminster City Council has announced a new partnership with Connect Property covering the management and upkeep of its temporary accommodation stock. Delahunty reported that the arrangement includes property management, repairs and maintenance, as well as compliance services.
The council’s official announcement provides further detail, stating that the contract covers Temporary Accommodation Property Management, Repairs & Maintenance and Compliance Services and has been agreed on a 2 + 1 + 1-year basis. This means the initial term is two years, with potential extensions of one year followed by another one-year extension.
The appointment is significant because temporary accommodation requires more than simply providing residents with somewhere to live. Councils and their service providers must also maintain properties, respond to repairs, meet statutory requirements and provide appropriate support to residents.
Westminster City Council said its partnership with Connect Property will therefore operate as an integrated service rather than treating repairs, compliance and property management as separate functions.
How was Connect Property selected for the Westminster contract?
According to Stephen Delahunty of Inside Housing, the appointment followed a competitive procurement process conducted under the Procurement Act 2023. The council said the process formed part of its continuing work to ensure residents living in temporary accommodation receive safe, reliable and well-managed services.
Westminster City Council’s own announcement confirms the procurement route and says the appointment is intended to support an integrated service. The council said Connect Property would work with it across property management, responsive repairs, planned maintenance, statutory compliance and resident support.
The procurement element is important because the arrangement represents a formal public-sector contract rather than an informal operational partnership. It also places emphasis on value for money alongside service quality.
Cllr David Harvey, Westminster City Council’s Cabinet Member for Housing and Regeneration, said the council’s priority was ensuring residents in temporary accommodation received safe, reliable and high-quality services. He said Westminster had appointed Connect Property because the authority believed the company was best placed to deliver the contract and provide value for money.
What services will Connect Property provide?
The new arrangement brings several operational responsibilities together.
Westminster City Council said Connect Property will provide property management, dealing with the day-to-day management of the temporary accommodation portfolio. The contract will also include responsive repairs, meaning issues requiring attention can be dealt with as they arise.
The company will additionally undertake planned maintenance, which is intended to support the longer-term condition of properties rather than only responding when something goes wrong.
Another central responsibility is statutory compliance. Temporary accommodation must meet applicable legal and safety requirements, making compliance an important part of the council’s property-management responsibilities.
The contract also includes resident support, giving the partnership a direct resident-facing dimension. Westminster said the service will be underpinned by experienced teams, innovative technology and real-time performance reporting.
These elements mean the arrangement extends across both physical property management and the experience of people living in the accommodation.
The council said the two organisations will work collaboratively, listen to residents and use performance insight to strengthen the service throughout the life of the contract.
What did David Harvey say about the appointment?
Cllr David Harvey said Westminster’s priority was to ensure people living in temporary accommodation received safe, reliable and high-quality services.
As reported by Stephen Delahunty of Inside Housing, Harvey said the council had selected Connect Property following a competitive procurement process because it considered the company well placed to deliver the contract and provide value for money. He also said Westminster looked forward to working with Connect Property to maintain and improve its services.
The council’s official announcement carries the same statement, placing the appointment within Westminster’s wider responsibility for the quality and management of temporary accommodation.
Harvey’s comments therefore highlight two main considerations behind the arrangement: the standard of service provided to residents and the financial value of the contract for the local authority.
What has Christopher Philippou said about the partnership?
Christopher Philippou, Managing Director of Connect Property, welcomed the appointment and described it as the beginning of a long-term strategic partnership with Westminster City Council.
According to the council’s announcement and the coverage by Stephen Delahunty of Inside Housing, Philippou said Connect Property was pleased to have been appointed and intended to establish a strong collaborative relationship with Westminster.
Philippou also said Connect Property’s approach would combine its experienced workforce, technology and customer-focused model. The company’s stated objective is to provide a responsive and reliable service while keeping residents at the centre of its work.
The Connect Property managing director further said the partnership would support Westminster’s ambitions and create lasting value for the council and the communities it serves.
The emphasis on technology is particularly relevant to the operational side of the contract because Westminster said real-time performance reporting will underpin the service. This suggests that performance information will be used alongside operational teams to monitor and improve service delivery.
When will the new temporary accommodation service begin?
The handover process is already under way.
Stephen Delahunty of Inside Housing reported that Westminster City Council has begun transferring the relevant services and said the council intends to ensure a seamless transition before the service formally starts.
Westminster City Council’s own announcement similarly states that mobilisation is already under way. The authority said it will work to ensure a seamless transition before service commencement.
The mobilisation period is therefore an important stage between the appointment of Connect Property and the full operation of the new service. It provides time for the organisations to coordinate staff, systems, property information, maintenance arrangements, compliance processes and resident-facing services.
Why is the appointment important for Westminster’s temporary accommodation strategy?
The new contract comes against the background of Westminster City Council’s broader efforts to secure and manage temporary accommodation.
As reported by Stephen Delahunty of Inside Housing, the latest contract follows the council’s £235m agreement to acquire 350 homes from a housing association for use as temporary accommodation.
Inside Housing previously reported, also in an article by Stephen Delahunty, that Westminster had completed the £235m agreement with A2Dominion to acquire the homes for temporary accommodation. The arrangement was intended to help Westminster respond to homelessness and provide greater certainty for people waiting for longer-term housing.
The earlier deal was financed through funding provided by Macquarie Asset Management on behalf of Phoenix Group, with inflation-linked funding over 42 years and an initial two-year rent-free period for Westminster Council. The properties were also due to be refurbished to achieve at least an Energy Performance Certificate rating of C.
The council was also set to benefit from guaranteed rent levels during the funding period and an option to acquire ownership of the properties at the end of the agreement.
Against that background, the appointment of Connect Property provides an operational framework for managing temporary accommodation assets while Westminster continues to address the wider housing pressures facing the borough.
How does the new contract relate to property management and maintenance?
The appointment illustrates the connection between acquiring or providing temporary accommodation and managing those properties effectively once they are in use.
Simply increasing the number of available homes does not remove the need for ongoing property management. Properties require repairs, planned maintenance and compliance checks, while residents need access to appropriate support.
Westminster’s contract brings these responsibilities together under one service arrangement. The council said Connect Property will combine property management, responsive repairs, planned maintenance, statutory compliance and resident support.
The partnership also places emphasis on performance information. Westminster said both organisations would use performance insight to strengthen the service over the contract’s life, while listening to residents and working collaboratively.
For professionals working across Facilities Management, this type of arrangement demonstrates how property operations, maintenance planning, compliance and resident-facing services can interact within a public-sector housing environment.
What wider housing initiatives has Westminster City Council pursued?
The temporary accommodation contract forms part of a wider housing programme at Westminster City Council.
Inside Housing noted that the council had previously launched a new market sales brand with a £1bn target intended to help fund its affordable housebuilding programme. The publication also reported on Westminster development director Setareh Neshati and her plans to maximise affordable housing in one of London’s most expensive boroughs.
The council’s earlier £235m temporary accommodation acquisition and the latest Connect Property contract consequently sit within a broader housing strategy involving accommodation supply, property management, development and affordable housing delivery.
The different initiatives address different stages of the housing system. The acquisition of 350 homes sought to secure accommodation supply, while the Connect Property contract focuses on managing and maintaining temporary accommodation and supporting the residents living in it.
What does the partnership mean for residents in temporary accommodation?
For residents, the stated focus of the partnership is the condition, safety and reliability of temporary homes and the quality of services provided around them.
Westminster City Council said the partnership is built around a commitment to providing safe, compliant and well-maintained homes where residents feel supported, respected and valued. The council also said both organisations would listen to residents and use performance information to strengthen the service during the contract.
Connect Property’s Christopher Philippou similarly emphasised a customer-first approach and said the company intended to provide a responsive and reliable service.
The practical outcome will therefore depend on how the new arrangements operate once mobilisation is complete and the service formally commences.
For organisations managing housing assets, the development also demonstrates the importance of combining Facilities Management with property compliance, maintenance planning, resident support and performance monitoring. These areas increasingly require coordinated management rather than isolated operational functions.
What happens next for Westminster and Connect Property?
The immediate priority is the completion of mobilisation and the transition into service delivery.
Westminster City Council has said it wants the handover to be seamless, while Connect Property is expected to establish its operational role across property management, repairs, maintenance, compliance and resident support.
The contract’s 2 + 1 + 1 structure also means the relationship has the potential to continue for up to four years, subject to the applicable extension arrangements.
The longer-term performance of the partnership will therefore be assessed through the quality and reliability of services delivered to residents, the condition and compliance of properties, responsiveness to repairs and the effectiveness of collaboration between Westminster City Council and Connect Property.
The development comes as Westminster continues to manage the complex requirements associated with temporary accommodation while pursuing broader housing and affordable development objectives. The council’s approach combines property acquisition, asset management, maintenance and wider housing investment, making the latest appointment another operational step in its response to temporary accommodation requirements.
For professionals seeking to understand the management of housing assets, compliance, maintenance and public-sector property services, Facilities Management provides a relevant area of professional learning alongside the wider disciplines of Project Management and Management and Leadership. These fields cover issues such as coordinating complex operations, managing service performance and maintaining effective organisational oversight.
The appointment of Connect Property ultimately represents a focused operational development within Westminster City Council’s wider housing programme. The council has selected a specialist provider following a competitive procurement process, while both parties have stated that the partnership will prioritise safe, compliant and well-maintained temporary accommodation and a resident-focused service.