A COST-CUTTING overhaul of the housing department will worsen the service for tenants and is affecting staff morale like a “bereavement”, Town Hall insiders warned this week.

Sources say a restructure being pushed through by Camden Council is forcing out long-serving and experienced managers in favour of cheaper and lower-paid new recruits.

Women, black people and those in their 50s are being disproportionately affected, according to a report seen by the New Journal.

Union chiefs called for the council to put pressure on Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour government for a “significant increase” in funding to local authorities.

The New Journal understands those accep­ting voluntary redundancy packages have been asked to sign hush-money agreements in exchange for “discretionary settlement payments” – thousands of pounds in exchange for not publicly criticising the council over the cuts.

A source said: “What is happening is that a lot of knowledge, experience and history of Camden is walking out the door. “It’s not just that, they have done a lot of innovative stuff that has gone on over the years. There are people leaving who have decades of experience. Anybody who works in social housing came into it for dignified reasons. They wanted to give something back. They want to do it because they enjoy their work. “Now everyone is really demotivated. The way things have been done, it’s felt very cloak and dagger.

“They are offering counselling. But I don’t think they realise how much of a bereavement this is. It’s a massive shock to people. And I think we have been treated really badly.”

The source said that the restructure effectively was wiping out an entire tier of management, adding “they have created new jobs that are an amalgam­ation of what we were doing before but with some extra bits”. “You can’t take a sledgehammer and crack a nut. The vast majority are women in their 50s. It is disproportionately affecting black women too.”

Asked what it would be like getting another job, they said: “If I was 20 years younger it would easier.”

A report seen by the New Journal said: “We recognise that black female staff are likely to be more impacted by these proposals.”

The report also said the “restructure may have a negative impact on those having to reapply for jobs, particularly those with disabilities”.

Appointments for new posts to “all vacant roles should conclude by the end of this calendar year”, a council report said. Camden Council, in a recent report to the housing scrutiny committee, said that one of the key drivers of the restructure is to “better support staff to keep them in posts, reduce long-term sickness to ensure more consistent service delivery to residents”.

It said it was trying to address high levels of turnover and sickness in the housing sector, due to increasingly tougher demands and working environment, and higher workloads.

The restructure is creating four sub-departments in housing – including allocations, housing solutions, neighbourhoods and leaseholder services.

Contacted for their view of the restructure, Camden Unison branch secretary Liz Wheatley said: “Housing and the support services have been in a constant state of restructure for a number of years caused by cuts to funding. Rather than reducing the service and staff, Camden should be calling on our own MP, and the Labour govern­ment, for a significant increase in funding.”

A council spokesperson that many of the voluntary redundancies offered to the staff were taken up by women, particularly black women, contrasting against a minimal uptake among men.

They added: “The changes will make it easier for our residents to work with us.

“Following an equalities impact assessment we’ve put robust measures in place to make sure this restructure is fair and doesn’t discriminate. We are working closely with unions to get this right.”