We are aware that tenants have been asking about progress with the application for Luminus Homes to become a charity as a proper and legal way of saving tax, so this is the current position.

In early August 2015, Luminus Group Chief Executive, Dr Chan Abraham, met with Jason Ablewhite, Executive Leader of Huntingdonshire District Council (and currently standing for the job of Police and Crime Commissioner for Cambridgeshire and as a councillor in the 5 May elections).  Dr Abraham explained that the Articles of Association – the rules – by which Luminus Homes is governed - had to be changed to become  a charity.  He also told him that the Government’s regulator wanted to make sure there no longer were any appointments made by HDC to the Boards at Luminus.

Luminus works in partnership with Huntingdonshire District Council and, in early August 2015, Luminus Group Chief Executive, Dr Chan Abraham, met with the council’s Executive Leader, Jason Ablewhite, who is standing for the job of Police and Crime Commissioner for Cambridgeshire and as a councillor in the 5 May elections

This is because all the companies in Luminus Group, including Luminus Homes, are independent and the Government wants to make sure there isn’t any outside control or influence – such as by councils, although Luminus works closely and co-operatively  in partnership with them.  The regulatory insists that Board members must be appointed on merit, not because an external body puts them there by some historic right. 

Our situation arose because, when Dr Abraham set HHP up in 1999 (Luminus Homes’ predecessor) it was normal practice to give the council that was selling the homes the right to have up to five places on the Board.  The theory was that the council’s Board members would make sure HHP kept its promises.  Well, all those promise were more than kept in the first five years – but HDC still has that right, even though it no longer is necessary, and is now not permitted by the regulator.  But it is in the Articles, so they have to be changed to enable us to move forward.

To get things sorted out, after Dr Abraham met with Jason Ablewhite in August 2015, within a fortnight, Nigel Finney, Executive Director (Operations) sent all the necessary papers to HDC’s Managing Director, Joanne Lancaster, asking for their action.  However, despite repeated requests for a response, HDC didn’t get back in touch until almost seven months later in February 2016.  They said they wanted to continue to keep some of their people on the Board, even though it had been clearly explained to them that this was against Government policy and was making it impossible for Luminus to comply with the law.

The council’s long delay in responding has cost Luminus Homes approximately £2.5m. This could not have come at a more serious time, as Luminus also has to meet the government’s requirement to reduce spending on services to tenants by 1% each year for the next four years.

Dr Abraham has written to Jonathan Djanogly MP and Shailesh Vara MP outlining the current situation, as well as to Jason Ablewhite.

Our hope is that we can avoid losing money again by getting charitable status – and the changes to the Articles – this year.

If any tenant has further questions, please do feel free to get in touch with Luminus.