A SOCIAL housing association in Huddersfield has been praised by the watchdog body which two years ago gave it a damning report.

A report by the Tenant Services Authority in June 2010 expressed “serious concern” about the financial future of Edgerton-based Sadeh Lok.

It said the group’s governing body “lacked effective control” with “evidence of poor decision making at board level”.

The group had “breached legislation” on payments and benefits and had used funds inappropriately, “putting the reputation of Sadeh Lok, and the wider sector, at risk,” the report found.

The TSA also found Sadeh Lok had been financially burdened by the other companies it managed.

But in its latest report published yesterday , the TSA said Sadeh Lok was once again “viable” and was being “properly governed”.

Sadeh Lok said it had made a “major transition” to secure its financial future.

The group, which had been staring at a £2m loss, had reversed its fortunes to such an extent that it is now able to invest more than £1.3m this year in its existing housing stock.

In response to financial losses and stinging criticism from the TSA, a new senior management team had been appointed and undertaken “radical” action – de-merging four subsidiary companies, which are now independent.

As a result, the number of staff on the Sadeh Lok payroll dropped from 170 to 24. In addition, a new chairman and five new directors, including two tenants, were appointed to the board.

Sadeh Lok chief executive Paul Dolan, who took over the post last year, said: “This report from the Tenant Services Authority is very welcome news indeed. It is in stark contrast to its 2010 findings.

“Since that publication we have had to make some very tough decisions, but they were made to get us back on a firm financial footing, which we have achieved.

“Throughout a difficult couple of years, we’ve never lost sight of our tenants and we have continued to maintain strong dialogue with them.

“Despite a lack of resources, tenant satisfaction has remained consistently high, which is testament to the dedication and hard work of our team.”

Mr Dolan said: “Our future plans are to maintain our focus on our core strength, with a continued emphasis on serving our people and the communities in which we work each day.