Belle Isle Tenant Management Organisation
Link to BITMO website
Leeds City Council built the first homes on the Belle Isle estate during the 1930s. Until the 1980s it remained as one estate –one of the largest in Leeds and the north of England. We decentralised our housing service in 1984, and created 39 smaller local neighbourhood housing management areas. This included the creation of two areas in Belle Isle: Belle Isle North and Belle Isle South.
In 1991, we set up the Belle Isle North Estate Management Board (EMB) in partnership with local tenants. The EMB managed the north of Belle Isle - which had benefited from investment in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The south of the estate was outside the improvement area and required major improvements. It remained our responsibility.
The creation of the ALMOs in Leeds led to further consideration about the future of the EMB, and the whole of Belle Isle. It provided the ideal opportunity for the EMB to achieve their vision of working with us to reunite Belle Isle North and South into one area. Over a period of five years, a group of tenants on the Belle Isle estate worked towards tenant management for the whole area. The formation of the Belle Isle Group (B.I.G.) led to the eventual serving of a ‘Notice to Manage’ and the establishment of the Belle Isle Tenant Management Organisation (BITMO).
To achieve full TMO status the organisation had to consult with local residents. A majority of local residents had to be in favour of setting it up. A ballot took place and 94% of the people who voted were in favour of local Tenant Management. The unification of the estate and the creation of the new organisation took place in October 2004.
Belle Isle Tenant Management Organisation is the biggest Tenant Management Organisation outside London. It is responsible for managing over 2000 homes and employs 32 staff.
Tenant Management Organisations - what are they?
A TMO is an organisation that gives council tenants responsibility for managing the homes and estates where they live. They are companies owned by residents in local communities and have their own elected Management Board. They can be responsible for various items such as repairs, allocations and lettings and rent collection. There are TMOs across the country successfully managing homes on streets, in blocks of flats, on estates and in areas of up to 4000 households.