Tenants and residents from housing associations across Tower Hamlets are meeting this Saturday (April 14) to agree a basic rights charier it wants social landlords and the council to adopt.

Tower Hamlets Federation of Tenants and Residents Associations (the Fed) is holding a conference in Mile End to finalise the details of the Tower Hamlets Residents Charter.

The charter has been designed like a pack of cards listing the principles the association wants housing associations to adhere to such as ensuring residents are consulted before important decisions are made.

Chair of the Fed, the Fed, said, “Stock transfer was supposed to provide residents with local, more responsive landlords. But for many tenants and residents on former council estates, the experiment has gone very wrong.

The Residents Charter is our attempt to set the local agenda by listing some very basic standards for them to live up to.”

The association’s administrator and East End Homes tenant Mark Taylor added: “A lot of people are concerned about future changes to tenancy, housing benefits and social landlords keeping their promises.

“In my own case I’ve been concerned about the scale of development carried out my landlord and the lack of transparency.”

Since the charter was launched before Christmas nearly half of tower Hamlets councillors have signed it, including Tower Hamlets Mayor Lutfur Rahman and Leader of the Labour opposition Joshua Peck. Conservative councillors are understood to agree in principle but have not signed up because the charter’s demand for life-time secure tenancy is said to conflict with government policy.

The association is planning to present a petition to the council next month with the aim of getting the council to adopt the charter.

Saturday’s conference is from 10.30am to 14.3 East London Tabernacle baptist church on Burdett Road.