A HOUSING trust which manages numerous homes in Waltham Forest broke the law by not servicing gas appliances in its properties within 12 months, a watchdog has found.

An unannounced inspection by the Audit Commission found Circle 33's strengths far outweighed weaknesses.

But the housing association, which has a number of properties in Waltham Forest, was criticised for leaving properties without a gas safety certificate for up to six months.

The report also found the trust is not fully meeting its legal requirements to service all gas appliances within 12 months.

The inspector's report said: "Some repairs to gas instilations are reported and recorded on systems as complete when further works are required to follow up action.

"The lack of noting follow up action on the IT system may lead to confusion for staff and tenants when tracking repairs and tenants may not have repairs fully resolved or to have to report the repair a second time."

"Proposed actions to deal with complaints are not consistently monitored and some are not resolved as quickly as tenants would like. Some tenants may not receive the promised resolution to their concerns. There is no formal compensation scheme for service failures and tenants do not know the level of compensation they can expect."

However, the lead inspector was full of praise for other aspects of Circle 33's work. In a letter to tenants Norman Ewins said: "There is a wide range of ways to pay rent with good debt advice and welfare advice to help support tenants. This has led to an efficient rent collection service."

Circle 33 were also commended for an effective approach in the value for money category and for the way it has handled customers of different races, ages and religions.

Carol Carter, managing director of Circle 33 Housing Trust, said: “Our mission is to provide great homes, reliable services and local solutions, with the core purpose of improving life chances.

"We are pleased with the Audit Commission’s findings which recognise the commitment that we have made in achieving this mission, and in particular highlight that we have good levels of customer satisfaction, handle rent collections well and offer a service that represents value for money to our residents.”

“As an organisation committed to continuously improving the service we offer, we welcome the Audit Commission’s recommendations for improvement in the service areas included in the inspection and the recognition that we have excellent prospects to achieve these.” The inspection was carried out in January but it was published on Thursday, June 25.