Council bosses admit they have “grave concerns” about the safety of their tenants as a damning report is expected to highlight a catalogue of serious failures in the management of its housing stock.

A fortnight ago it was revealed gas systems at 125 homes in the district managed by East Kent Housing (EKH) had not been ruled legally safe to use, with urgent checks left outstanding.

And now an emergency inspection has highlighted potential further issues with electrical safety, fire risks and checks for legionella - a potentially fatal airborne disease.

The council admits its tenants’ safety is of “paramount concern” and is reassuring residents all is being done to make their homes safe.

Canterbury City Council leader Rob Thomas has branded the scandal “horrifying”.

“This doesn’t give you great confidence that everything is well looked after,” he said. “It is a horrifying situation to face - it’s not what any councillor wants to worry about. You’d assume solid property management is a given, but that has not been the case. These breaches are an incredibly serious matter.

“By not doing all of the legal checks, something could go wrong. You’re running the risk of problems - and that is unacceptable.

“I’ve heard the explanations and we are where we are. The council is taking steps to rectify this as soon as practically possible and I’ll be pursuing the case at every opportunity.”

While details of the new safety fears - which also include lift maintenance worries - are yet to be officially confirmed, council chief executive Colin Carmichael says “early indications are that there may be further areas of non-compliance”.

EKH, which manages 5,107 council homes in the Canterbury district, has already seen its property boss Mark Anderson step down in the wake of the gas certificate scandal.

Now, its future hangs in the balance as Canterbury, Thanet, Dover, and Folkestone and Hythe councils scrutinise the possibility of reshuffling or ditching the company.

In his report, city council boss Mr Carmichael lists a string of key concerns over the management of EKH.

Significant underspending, poor staff appointments, sub-standard reports and a lack of understanding are among criticisms of the housing operator.

A full report on the further safety breaches are set to be revealed to the council later this summer.

As it stands, there are still 16 council homes with outstanding gas safety checks, but 13 have appointments booked in.

Cllr Nick Eden-Green (Lib Dem) said: “The council should have been looking under the carpet a long time ago - there have been plenty of warning signs. But when you do start looking, more horrors are revealed.

“If there are these other failings then that further confirms EKH has not been doing its job.”

Local Labour leader Cllr Alan Baldock added: “This is as bad as anything I can imagine.

“It is incredibly worrying and incredibly disappointing. The number one priority is safety and that’s not what we’ve got. It’s a dreadful state to be in. The council has failed abysmally.”

Summing up his report, Mr Carmichael said: “The recent issues regarding gas safety and potential non-compliance in other areas of EKH’s work are of grave concern to this council and the other three east Kent districts.”

Council spokesman Leo Whitlock said: “We would like to say sorry to those tenants who are concerned about their safety and reassure them we are working hard to make sure the appropriate checks for their property have been and are being completed.

“We are working closely with EKH to ensure any concerns it has raised so far are addressed as quickly as possible.”

Councillors sitting on the Policy and Resources committee are set to consider the future of council housing management next Wednesday.

They will have four options put before them; to continue with EKH on a reformed basis, continue with EKH but scrap it from being an arms length management organisation, bring the service in-house, or appoint a new contractor to provide the service. Officers have recommended the preparation of a more detailed report into the findings.

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