Welcome to a bumper edition of the Autumn newsletter, it’s been a busy time for us at the Trust and as you can see from the contents of the newsletter there has been a lot going on at all our Schemes.
I have been full time at the Trust for just over a year, and it is a good opportunity to repeat what I said at the Residents Conference, which is to sincerely thank so many of you for making me feel so welcome in my short time here.
My focus has been to listen to our Trustees, our staff but most importantly to you, our residents, on what the Trust means to you, what we are doing well and of course what you would like to see us improve. We are trying to move to a principle of “nothing about you, without you.” Allied with a “you said, we did” response to how we work with you on the services we provide.
What this has meant in practice is small but important steps, examples include you making decisions on Scheme improvements, making changes to our Maintenance and Grounds Maintenance services and combining the Care & Housing team at William Lench Court. Widening our care and domestic services outside of William Lench Court starting at Tanner’s Close. Increasing senior management presence at resident meetings and events. These initiatives have not been dreamt up by me or the management team, they are what you told us in my first residents conference back in 2023, I hope this is a little bit of evidence that we are listening and responding in improving our service offer to you all.
Alongside this we have made some bigger investment decisions, we have rolled out our ENS system to Lench’s Close and Tanner’s Close which will increase the independence for you in your home. We are also looking long term, and I am working with Mark and Laura in developing a 25 year fully appraised and costed asset management strategy which will inform our investment decisions for many years to come. The aim being that our properties meet your needs, are warm and well insulated, energy efficient, free from damp & mould and any other hazards, all whilst not impacting adversely on the environment.
I think we would all agree it’s been a very volatile economic environment over the past 15 years, however, I often remind myself that we are a Trust that has been existence for close to 500 years, so we have weathered a good few storms already over our long and proud history! That’s why I feel strongly that we should be planning for the long term, and that will mean making difficult decisions on where and how we deploy our resources in the coming years.
Next year is a huge one for the Trust as we celebrate 500 years of existence, we have commissioned Professor Carl Chinn, a brilliant local historian, to look into the history of our Trust and the impact we have had on the City of Birmingham, it’s quite a story and lots of information is being discovered in archives that I hope you find as fascinating as I am, we are planning an event where Carl will detail his findings which all of you will be invited to alongside other anniversary events next year.
I am immensely proud to be the current custodian of such a special organisation and last year’s residents survey where we had an excellent 74% response rate stated that 91% of you are satisfied with the overall service provided by the Trust and 96% are satisfied that your home is safe, feedback like this tells me that you are proud of your home and the efforts I have witnessed in my short time, in how you look after each other, your homes and the environment around you gives me great encouragement for all of the challenges that lie ahead.
I am looking forward to spending time and working with you and looking forward to my second year at our Trust.
Best Wishes
Schemes Our
William Lench Court
The Housing & Care Team are working more closely than ever, both teams now work from the same office to enhance our services for residents, providing a unified point of access for all queries. We are really pleased with the feedback we have had on the changes so far from our residents as we continue to enhance our service offer.
Jayne McGettrick – Celebrating 25 years
Jayne, our Scheme Manager at William Lench Court, celebrated her 25th anniversary with Lench’s Trust, what an achievement! With the help of Jayne’s family, we organized a surprise gathering in the café. Jayne was overwhelmed by the celebrations, gifts, and abundance of cakes! She shared stories from her past roles, making us all chuckle and remember some special people that have lived and worked at Lench’s.
Thank you, Jayne, for your 25 years of dedication to the Trust and your unwavering commitment to our residents’ wellbeing.
Volunteers
During late 2023 and early 2024 we had the privilege of welcoming a couple of volunteers into Lench’s Trust –developing their skills for the wider world, providing valuable work experience and helping the Trust in our day-to-day activities.
Initially, Head Office welcomed Rupi as a volunteer admin assistant. She supported the team with various tasks, including processing housing applications, creating promotional materials, and updating website content. Through her volunteering, Rupi became a valued team member, building strong relationships and being warmly welcomed by the residents.
Sivani also joined our team as a volunteer from Queen Alexandra
College, assisting Jayne and Sally within William Lench Court. Sivani created posters and wrote articles for the Trust, raising awareness for the various activities and groups that were held throughout the week. Sivani built up a great rapport with the residents, especially with those she spent great time with to listen to their stories. Thank you to Debbie who was the job coach for the work placement team and accompanied Sivani when volunteering, furthermore, making her feel right at home.
A huge thank you to both Rupi and Sivani for their volunteer work at Lench’s Trust. We wish them both the best in their future endeavours!
Sivani and Debbie celebrating with the residents at her leaving party!
Age UK
Age UK have been hosting a wide range of events and workshops at William Lench Court, providing support that includes specialist talks you will find informative. These events also provide residents with the opportunity to discuss their needs and ask questions about the assistance available. Some of the services offered at these events include Benefits advice, Counselling and Advocacy services or just someone to sit down and chat with
Digital Skills Club
Age UK is currently running a Digital Skills Club, every Wednesday 10.30 – 11.30 at William Lench Court. Here residents can improve their digital IT skills or learn how to stay safe online. Some topics that have been covered are learning how to use different devices, exploring the world of social media and how to shop safely online!
Why not stop by to the next session where you can expand your knowledge and confidence online. Some residents that have attended the sessions have said they feel much more comfortable using the internet and a lot safer!
Catering
Our Catering Team have been getting busier these past few months, catering for all kinds of events! Last month we hosted a big BBQ family day, providing a variety of Greek themed meals and recently we have introduced a new menu with special offers providing residents more choice with a selection of portion sizes.
Our team are already planning for the rest of the year with preparations for a Bonfire Night buffet and Age UK event in November.
We were very honoured on the 7th of September to celebrate the 100th Birthday of our very own Alice (she is looking fantastic at 100!). We had the privilege of catering for the event with up to 60 people attending. It was amazing to see that everyone had a blast!
We are also happy to have a new addition to the Team; Fatima, who has been settling in nicely with the team along with getting to know the residents. The team does an amazing job catering to our residents’ needs and ensuring the highest quality service
Care Team
Our Care Team excels in supporting residents who need extra assistance to live independently and comfortably. Their kindness and caring nature are greatly appreciated by residents and their loved ones, and the Trust truly recognizes their hard work and dedication.
At the Lench’s Trust annual Staff Conference, the Care Team was honoured as the best team of 2023. This recognition is a testament to their outstanding work and dedication. The care team are friendly and always welcoming, so if you see them around come and say hello!
If you feel you require further assistance, be that care, domestic help or other domiciliary care, please contact the office at William Lench Court for a chat.
Lench’s Close
In August, we had a huge bric-a-brac fete at Lench’s Close, raising £600 towards the resident’s fund! The scheme was full of markets set up by residents, selling everything from clothes to small knick-knacks.
A massive thank you to all residents that participated throughout the day, with a special thanks to Sheila, Elaine, Brian and Val!
Here’s some nice snapshots of the Bric-a-Brac Fete:
Act On Energy Workshop
Paul and Dorien from Act On Energy visited the scheme in March, supplying residents with free energy efficient light bulbs and electric throws
While they were there, Paul and Dorien gave some very informative money saving advice amidst the rising energy costs. Dorien has offered to visit residents that may want more in-depth advice when it comes to saving money and conserving energy.
The Great Easter Egg Hunt!
Residents had a great time during Easter with an egg hunt, scrambling around to find a chocolate treat, paired with the beautiful weather made for a wonderful day!
Thank you to Jules for making the beautiful Easter ribbons and bracelets and to Brian and Jules for making the easter egg baskets, as well as hiding them around the Scheme.
Exercise Class
Stevie the Gym instructor from William Lench Court has started up some gentle exercise classes in the Communal Room at Lench’s Close. While these classes are not intense, they are a great way to keep fit and socialise with fellow residents! At the end of each class there is a relaxation session that residents thoroughly enjoy. Should you come along bring a bottle of water to keep you hydrated through the workout.
Tree planting
We were delighted to have a few more trees planted around Lench’s Close in celebration of Founder’s day! With the help of Paul and Dean, Ann, Josie and Mary planted the trees in the ground ready to grow at all 3 of our schemes!
Tanner’s Close
We introduced a new Domestic service to residents who may need some help with housework and other tasks. Annette Hoey, Domestic Cleaner was welcomed as a new permanent member of staff to Tanner’s Close in May.
Art Class
This service is available to all residents at Tanner’s Close for a very reasonable hourly fee
Resident Lizzie Gillings started a new beginner’s art activity for residents in the communal room, the club is running every fortnight, on a Thursday afternoon, starting from 1pm to 3pm, so if you are looking to get creative pop by!
Residents are enjoying the art group and the opportunity to participate with friends. Thank you, Lizzie, for setting this up.
Don’t forget during the colder months all residents can use the Communal room as a warm space and enjoy the facilities with your friends.
We have games, jigsaws, a TV and Table Tennis table if you are feeling competitive and energetic, a Library corner and our kitchen where you can make yourself a hot drink and meet with your friends and neighbours.
Whitehouse Primary School
In July, children from White House Primary School visited to take part in their Legacy project at Tanner’s Close. The Children helped paint benches, fences and our planters. The Children were all leaving School and going off to High School in September. Thank you, Paul Rumney from our Maintenance Team, for supporting and setting up the activity. It was enjoyed by both children and adults.
Thank you to the Children, for their time and hard work, I think they enjoyed being at Tanner’s Close and meeting residents and their pets and in some cases covering themselves in paint. We look forward to working with the School next year.
‘Move it or lose it’ Exercise
Residents at Tanner’s Close were introduced to ‘Move it or Lose it’ online exercises in the Communal room each Wednesday after coffee morning. The exercises are for all abilities, and we are all having fun taking part in seated exercise classes.
Age UK – Digital Awareness
Tracy Spatola from Age UK visited Tanner’s Close residents in August. Tracy provided a fun and informative Digital awareness session to support residents with using technology. Tracy will be back on 16th October and will set up a monthly session at 12pm in the Communal room for an hour working with residents to support them to learn new digital skills.
Meet the Trustees
Meet the Trustees
chance to meet the Trustees as they come and visit for a chat at the different schemes, here are the important dates for your diaries:
Lench’s Close
Friday 8th Nov 9am-12pm- Adbul Malik, Chair of the Board of Trustees & Ruth Evans (Deputy Chair of Audit & Assurance Committee)
Tanner’s Close
Thurs 7th Nov 10.30am- 1.00pm- Kamaljit Kaur Takhar, one our new Trustees & Richard Moxon
William Lench Court
Tuesday 29th Oct 9.00am- 12.00pm – Alison White (Chair of Audit & Assurance Committee) & George Mandonga, another new Trustee we have welcomed to the Board.
Complaints
Going forward we will be publishing our complaints data in the newsletter on a quarterly basis and on our website on an annual basis.
The data will include the overall number of complaints we have received and the types of complaints.
A copy of our complaints policy is available on our website and in each scheme communal room. If you wish for an individual copy, please request this from your Scheme Manager.
Anti-Social Behaviour & Hate Incidents (ASB)
The reporting figures show new cases received per month in the quarter along with open existing cases.
Anti-social behaviour and hate incidents can have a significant negative impact on everyone involved and those living within our schemes.
Lench’s Trust work with appropriate partners, such as Police, Environmental Health, Social Services etc to deter and tackle ASB effectively.
We are currently reviewing our ASB policy to simplify the process and improve our learning outcomes in line with the Consumer standards Code of Practice.
We have 12 new staff that have started with the Trust in the last year who are:
Care Team
Concierge
Molly Eades
Mandy Graham
Semoniese Jack
Fatima Usman
Jacob Boden
Ruby Rodgers
Bobola Fasai
Negin Tahmasebi
Annette Hoey
Tenant Satisfaction Measures
Tenant Satisfaction Measures
It’s important for the Trust to know what we are doing well and where we need to improve. The survey may be a requirement from our regulator, the Regulator of Social Housing, however we want to ensure you that we are not only just looking at the results but are listening to your feedback to see how we can improve our services to you.
Thank you to residents who completed the TSM survey in November 2023.
Here is a summary of the full report we released earlier this year. A copy is available at each scheme, on our website and if you want an individual copy you can request one from your scheme manager:
91% of residents reported they are satisfied with the overall service provided by Lench’s
89% Satisfaction of residents are happy with the overall repair, with 88% satisfied with the time taken to complete the repair.
Building Safety & Safety checks are 100% compliant, including Water, Gas, Fire, Lift and Asbestos safety.
96% of residents are satisfied their home is safe.
76% Satisfied with Lench’s Trust contribution to the local neighbourhood.
89% agree that Lench’s Trust treat residents fairly and with respect.
82% satisfied with how Lench’s Trust residents are informed about issues that matter to them.
91% would recommend Lench’s Trust to other people.
90% satisfied with the energy efficiency of their home.
We will be next surveying our residents in 2025, in the meantime we are committed to listening–
You Said:
“Gardens need more attention- not enough staff. staff are hard overworked and try hard to keep everything tidy”
“more maintenance staff, so few and they are responsible for 3 sites, impossible odds”
“Listen to people more”
“Balcony floor needs addressing”
“Give us rent statements at every 2 months. On paper, please, though some people might be OK with it on computer”
“more pro-active communication with residents concerning upcoming improvements and scheduled maintenance- with perhaps residents have a greater say in things”
“activity seek to introduce new residents to neighbours and other residents and activity groups / gatherings”
We did:
Members of the Central Team are attending more resident meetings.
We have included the residents in decision-making for the budgetary process for 2024, welcoming them to choose a specific maintenance/ décor project to be done within the 2024year end. This went down well, and we will be working with them from June onwards on the projects to be included in 2025.
The projects residents chose for 2024 are as follows:
• Lench’s Close chose for a hedge to be removed/ cut down – according to residents, this particular hedge is causing darkness in the flats on the ground floor, directly behind –completed in May 2024.
• Tanner’s Close chose their fire doors to be painted and ironmongery changed, which we were not able to do when fitted due to costings – due to start works June/ July 2024
• The replacement of the door on the rear of the building, onto the carpark, to be an automatic door for the ease of residents with walking aids – completed May 2024. Lench’s Trust appreciates the time everyone took to complete the survey for us.
It is important that through your feedback, we listen to your views and understand the services that work well along with those we know can and should be improved
TSM Comparison
The TSMs are focused and broken down into five key themes to contribute to the overall satisfaction levels. Those five key levels being:
Keeping properties in good repair
Building safety and safety checks
Responsible neighbourhood management
Effective handling of complaints
Respectful and helpful engagement
The report below presents the performance against each key level of resident feedback percentages comparing Tenant Satisfaction Measures (TSMs) of Lench’s Trust against the national median and other registered social landlords.
The full list of social landlords TSM data used was from the following*:
Lench’s Trust
Housing21
Birmingham City Council (BCC)
St Anne’s Hostel
Overall Satisfaction
Midland Heart Group
In addition, the national median figures were used.
Lench’s Trust received 133 resident completed surveys, that would equate to 74% of our total residents. For our first TSMs that is an excellent rate, but we would like to see the total number of respondents increase in the next Tenant Satisfaction Measures.
Starting with Overall satisfaction, this looked at the whole service we provide at Lench’s Trust and if our residents are satisfied.
Keeping Properties in good repair
This category is about maintaining properties to a high standard, ensuring a safe and pleasant environment for the wellbeing of residents.
Homes that meet the decent homes standard
Homes meet the decent homes standard
Satisfaction of the overall repair service
Satisfaction of the overall repair service
Satifised that home provides a home that is well maintained
satisfied provides a home that is well maintained
National Median Lench's Trust
Anne's Hostel
National Median Lench's Trust
Birmingham City Council St Anne's Hostel Midland Heart Group
Building Safety and Safety Checks
COMPLIANCE SAFETY CHECKS
Completion of Gas Safety checks
Completion of fire safety checks
Completion of asbestos safety checks Completion of water safety checks
Completion of lift safety checks
COUNCIL
ST ANNE'S HOSTEL MIDLAND HEART GROUP
National Median Lench's
21 Birmingham City Council St Anne's Hostel Midland Heart Group
Responsible Neighbourhood Management
It is important for residents to feel like their home and community is a safe place that is well maintained but also a welcoming place to the wider community becoming an integral part of the local community.
The graph below shows our satisfaction scores in three different areas: satisfaction with communal area cleanliness and maintenance, satisfactions with contribution to the local neighbourhood and satisfaction with the handling of antisocial behaviour.
RESPONSIBLE NEIGHBOURHOOD MNGT.
SATISFACTION WITH THE CLEANLINESS AND MAINTENANCE OF COMMUNAL AREAS
SATISFACTION WITH CONTRIBUTION TO THE LOCAL NEIGHBOURHOOD
Effective Handling of Complaints
SATISFACTION WITH HANDLING OF ANTISOCIAL BEHAVIOUR
Understanding complaints is an opportunity to improve the service each social housing landlord provides. Allowing issues to be identified and mitigated in the future.
This category looked at the approach to complaint handling and the proportional of complaints responded to within the Complain Handling Code timescales.
Effective handling of Complaints
Satisfaction with approach to complaint handling
Proportion of complaints responded to within the Complaint Handling Code timescales
National Median Lench's Trust Housing 21 Birmingham City Council St Anne's Hostel Midland Heart Group
National Median Lench's Trust Housing 21 Birmingham City Council St Anne's Hostel Midland Heart Group
Respectful and Helpful Engagement
Ensuring residents have a preferred communication in which social housing landlords can engage with in a respectful and fair way is important for improving service provided but allows the resident feel like they a part of the community they live in.
Respect & Helpful engagement
Conclusion
To conclude, in this comparison Lench’s Trust did very strong in the first published Tenant Satisfaction Measures, coming in above the other compared social housing landlords –only coming second to St. Anne’s Hostel.
Our weakest area, when compared against the others was the proportion of complaints responded to within the Complaint Handling Code timescales. While we achieved a high score of 75% it was still the lowest when compared with the others. In contrast, our highest achieving score was with the residents feeling their homes are safe- achieving higher than the other landlords compared with at 96%.
Finally, in all but one category (mentioned above) we beat every percentage of the national median. This proves we Lench’s Trust sets a professional and high standard for our homes and only seeks to improve that going forward. Furthermore, comparing these figures to other social housing landlords, it shows Lench’s Trust is setting a benchmark in quality that is only getting higher.
Satisfaction with how keeps residents informed about the issues that matter
Satisfaction that resident views are listened to and acted upon
Agree that residents treated fairly and with respect
National Median Lench's Trust
Housing 21 Birmingham City Council St Anne's Hostel Midland Heart Group
Resident Spotlight
Founder’s Day
Another year, another fantastic Founder’s Day celebration! Thank you to everyone for celebrating with us at William Lench Court as well as a huge thank you to Paul at WSP, James Dawson at JHD Partnership Housing Ltd and Sue Anderton from Heron Press UK for donating Easter eggs for this year's event.
It was great to see all three schemes celebrating together with good food (provided by Raj and her team), good music performed by Helen Pearson and an interesting talk from Andy Harper about his new book “Knitted Swimming Trunks – Tales of a Birmingham boy growing up in the 50s & 60s”.
Good Neighbour Awards
No Founder’s day would be the same without the appreciation for residents that have gone above and beyond for their community, helping their fellow neighbours no matter the task. This year’s good neighbours are:
Josephine Creed – Lench Close
Mrs Creed is always willing to help residents with their shopping, supporting others with hospital visits and a willing volunteer at events and activities at Lench’s Close. Mrs Creed is a very generous person with the time and effort she gives to her neighbours.
Emilia Butler – William Lench Court
Emilia Butler goes above and beyond for her fellow resident, exceedingly kind and showing great patience to one such resident with Dementia. In addition to that Emilia is very reliable and a competent volunteer in the William Lench Court shop. Emilia readily steps in when others cannot.
Phillip Locke – Tanner’s Close
There would be no coffee morning without Phillip Locke as he always steps in to assist with preparing the drinks and biscuits, as well as getting the other residents settled. Furthermore, he is always willing to help his neighbour with shopping and other day to day activities.
Knit and
Natter
At William Lench Court, every Thursday there is a knitting group run by a few of the residents that work together to makes all sorts from hats to blankets to toys. Everything this Knit and Natter group makes gets donated to the Birmingham Women’s Hospital Charity and recently they sent in a heartwarming letter to thank the group for all of the donations sent in.
In this letter the Birmingham Women’s Hospital Charity said: “Thank you so much for your donation of knitting for the Birmingham Woman’s Hospital. We are endlessly overwhelmed by the kindness of our incredible supporters and are always pleased to receive donations.”
Here are some of the notable achievements to date from the Knit and Natter group:
Knitting large squares to make two blankets and enough squares knitted to make a third.
Large quantities of hats and blankets for the Women’s Hospital premature baby unit.
Poppies knitted to make a display for D Day and to be reused for Remembrance Day. (There are plans to make a post box cover.
Hearts knitted for the Hospice done so well they have requested loads more to be made.
Clove underway with 6 Christmas nativity characters knitted already.
Xmas ornaments for the Lench’s Christmas sale.
And finally new friendships made, shared skills and new ones passed on.
Catching up with the residents:
Malcolm Reeves
Earlier in the resident spotlight, we mentioned one of our volunteers –Sivani, had the chance to sit down with a few of our residents at William Lench Court and hear their stories. One such story told was that of Malcolm Reeves (who has been at William Lench Court for 8 years) life and we want to share that with you.
Malcolm was born in Stirchley at his grandmother’s home before moving to Weoley Castle, then again to Bournville, when his dad got a job working at Cadbury’s. When Malcolm was fifteen, he got expelled from education for accidently creating a bomb which blew up the metal work forge. Malcolm’s sister followed him to the same school three years later and stated that his name is still well known due to the wild incident that happened – it’s not every day a student accidently blows up his classroom!
After leaving school he had three or four jobs, before he became a plumber. He gained this qualification through an apprenticeship that was introduced to Malcolm by his dad, while at Cadbury’s.
Malcolm, however, said he wanted to be a carpenter but at the time there were no vacancies in that profession, meaning he had to put that dream on the backburner. During the interview he explained that in those days it took six weeks to order plumbing equipment – so he had to gain the skills to make his own.
During his career Malcolm had the opportunity to work abroad in places like Qatar and Iran. Malcolm actually worked within Iran when the Ayatollah was in power – causing businesses to shut down, meaning people were not being paid for the work they were doing.
Malcolm then had to do the only thing he could; to go to the British Embassy to get a temporary passport, empty his bank account and leave the country to return home.
One day, when he was crossing the road, Malcolm was hit by a taxi and had to put his career on hold due to the injuries he had sustained. Malcolm was 48 at the time of the accident and began to miss many aspects of his work – mainly teaching the other trainees, and it was due to this Malcolm began to feel isolated because of being unable to pass on his knowledge to others. To Malcolm it was not about making money, but the loss of his self-identity. Malcolm was also very candid about his mental health with me, because he could not cope with the culture shock of not going to work.
Malcolm stated that he did not know where he stood with the DWP, because
they were sending mixed message that ultimately led him into a deep depression. Malcolm shared that he was getting up to eight letters a day and they were conflicting messages regarding benefits. That was the final straw, and he succumbed to a mental breakdown. This was until the police intervened and got Malcolm the medical help that was needed to put him back in a better place; this support continued for twelve months.
One day, Malcolm decided to take control of the situation he was in and wrote to Tony Blair, who was the Prime Minister at the time to explain his situation. The Prime Minister’s Office put him in direct contact with the Chief of the DWP. Although he is in a better position now, he still has some difficulty with his wellbeing – which he is working through with the right support being put into place.
Malcolm moved here eight years ago, leading to a second lease of life for him. Malcolm has made some new friends, especially through his belated birthday party, which had a positive effect on him.
Malcolm talked about the activities being provided at William Lench Court and how they are inclusive for all residents. Malcolm also mentioned that he is heavily involved with the Trust, taking part in Founder’s Day one of the years. Not to mention when Malcolm grew his hair long to be shaved during a fundraising event!
Overall, Malcolm feels that this place turned his life around for the better and he has a strong support network because of the support he has had from the Trust.
Thank you, Malcom, for sharing your story with us!
Financial Report
Financial Report 2022 vs 2023
Incoming Resources 2022
Incoming Resources 2023
Financials Per Scheme
Lench’s Close
Depreciation of housing properties/ amortisation of capital grant
