East Boro Housing Trust Annual Highlights 2023/2024
• Rented homes in Management is 499, plus 14 shared ownership homes and 23 leasehold homes. We have developed 24 new homes in the year
• Housing for Older People 242 , Supported Housing 213, General Needs Housing 18 , Leaseholders 23, Shared Ownership 14 and Affordable Rents 26. Total 536
• Carried out 41,500 hours of housing related support and individually funded care and support to vulnerable adults with learning/physical disabilities
• In addition to the regular Sheltered Housing Officer (SHO) visits, our SHO team expanded communication to include telephone calls, text messages, and emails to meet the needs of individuals and in acknowledgement that some tenants/residents are not home during usual visit times. Over 25,000 Sheltered Housing Officer welfare checks were completed to Sheltered Housing Customers in their own homes throughout Dorset.
• Number of formal complaints received in the year was 4 . All were acknowledged within the required timescale and investigated in line with the Complaints Policy
• Routine Response Repairs saw 92% of all repairs completed within the emergency/urgent/routine category timescales achieving the overall target of 92%
• The Weymouth Community Hub at the Waverley has been busy with over 1,130 attendees attending 201 Art Group Sessions held during the year. The Café and Community Shop run by the local charity “The Nest” has also continued to provide affordable food to thousands of people in the local Weymouth Community.
Senior Management Team
This group shows the Management Team and Board as at 31st March 2024.
Ray Evans
Kevin Hodder Chief Executive
Karen Allan Director of Housing Services Board Members
Cara Lewis Support Services Manager & Executive Assistant to Chief Executive
Jacki O’Shea
Gerald Dukes Vice Chairman
Kate Dukes
Tracey Peters
Malcolm Baker Finance Chair
Val Bagnall
David Doyle
Richard Teather Chairman
East Boro Annual Highlights
as at 31st March 2024
41,500 hours of combined daytime support, housing related support and individually funded care and support delivered to vulnerable adults and over 25,000 visits/checks to Sheltered Housing customers by East Boro staff
536
Total number of homes provided to general needs, supported, sheltered housing and leasehold
437 health & safety inspections & 111 Estate Assessments were carried out
83%
Satisfaction with how quickly we resolved our customers repairs
General Needs Housing & Affordable Rents 44 (up16) units
Supported Housing 213 units
Housing for Older People 242 units
Leasehold 23 units
Shared Ownership 14 (up 8) units
New homes developed
All of which were built in Dorset 24
2023/24
Statement of Financial Position as at 31 March 2024
Value
for Money Metrics 2023/2024
Comment
EBHT continue to invest into properties£613,000 invested in current housing stock and £5.4 million as result of increase in development programme. Gearing increased 7.9% on prior year due to additional lending from Aster of £139,000 combined with reduction in cash holding of £5.0 million, used for development programme. Significantly under gearing levels of group and sector. In good position. Slight increase in EBITDA of £50,000, offset by £227,000 increase in interest payments on previous year and dilute interest cover metric. Improved margin due to increase in rental/service charge income (£395,000) combined with reduction in management charges (£100,000) partially offset by increases in service and maintenance costs (£104,000). Improved operating margin driven by increased lettings income, partially offset by reduction of 1.1% in support & care margin combined with an increase in development costs which cannot be capitalised. ROCE has increased on prior year by 0.5% due to increase in operating surplus of £261,000 plus increase in net assets of £436,000 (increase in housing assets of £5.5 million ofset by reduction in cash of £5.0 million). Reflective of development programme in EBHT- 24 units at Buckland Newton, Windmills, Portland and Violet Farm, Corfe Mullen. No NonSocial Housing units 2023/24 Headline social housing cost per unit is consistent with prior year. Expect this cost to be higher than sector threshold and those of Aster due to Supported Housing.
Letting our homes
Highlights of 2023/24
• 87 homes were let. 69 relet and 18 let for the first time
• Rent lost due to empty properties 4.08% against a target of 3%.
Estate management
Highlights of 2023/24
• 437 Heath and Safety inspections were carried out
• 111 Estate Management inspections were carried out
Maintaining our homes
• 2,030 Repairs completed
• 111 Estate Assessments carried out
• 437 Health & Safety Inspections carried out.
Building safety
Highlights of 2023/24
• 100 % Gas servicing compliance
• 99.79% Electrical testing
• 100% Fire risk assessment
• 82.21% Lift and lifting equipment annual servicing
• 100 % Lifts and lifting equipment inspection
• 100% Asbestos management survey and re-inspection
• 100 % Water hygiene
Customer satisfaction survey results
The satisfaction results are from questions sent to twenty of our customers. They were asked for their feedback on our services.
The methodology used to calculate the results is in line with TSM guidelines.
The Annual Customer Satisfaction Survey results are set out below. They show the percentage customers who indicated that they were very satisfied, satisfied, very happy or happy with the question asked.
New developments
East Boro’s Development team are delighted to have completed 24 new properties as shared ownership and affordable rent homes for local people in Dorset.
• Buckland Newton, West Dorset x 4 homes: 2 x shared ownership, 2 x affordable rent
• Violet Farm, Corfe Mullen x 5 homes: all of which are affordable rent
• Windmills, Portland x 15 homes: 9 x affordable rent, 6 x shared ownership
BEFORE Pictured breaking ground at our Buckland Newton development, from the left:
Susie & Mark Humphries , Directors, Sambec Property Dev. Ltd; Gerald Duke, EBHT Vice Chair; Kevin Hodder, EBHT Chief Executive; Nigel Reed, EBHT Locality Manager; Darren Robins, Director, D.R Jones of Yeovil.
AFTER Outside a property from the completed housing development at our Buckland Newton development, from the left:
Cllr. Jane Somper, Dorset Council; Gerald Duke, EBHT Vice Chair; Cllr. Jill Haynes, Dorset Council.
East Boro Head Office: Faulkner House, 31 West Street, Wimborne, Dorset BH21 1JS
Tel: 01202 883 503 Email: info@ebht.org.uk
Weymouth Office: No. 2, The Waverley, 121 Abbotsbury Road, Weymouth DT4 0JX
Tel: 01305 750 403 Email: info@ebht.org.uk
