Welcome to Ayrshire Housing’s Summer Newsletter!
As the sun shines brighter and the days grow longer, we’re excited to bring you the latest news and updates in this bumper Summer issue of our newsletter!
Over the past few months, we’ve been out and about connecting with our communities— attending local events, meeting our customers, and celebrating everything that makes Ayrshire such a vibrant place to live. We love engaging with you and hearing your stories.
Inside this issue, you’ll also find the latest on our ongoing investment in your homes. From new windows, doors, kitchens, and bathrooms, to upgraded boilers—our work continues to make your homes more comfortable and efficient. We’re also thrilled to share details of our recent grant-funded improvements, including solar panels and advanced heating systems, all part of our commitment to energy efficiency and sustainability.
Page 2Join us for our AGM
You can also take a closer look at our exciting new build development at Green Street in the heart of Ayr Town Centre—another step forward in providing high-quality homes where they’re needed most.
There’s more great news as we welcome new faces to our team—check out our staffing updates and get to know the new colleagues joining Ayrshire Housing. And if you're looking to make a difference, we’d love for you to consider joining us as a Board member—your voice can help shape our future.
Enjoy the read and thank you for being a part of the Ayrshire Housing community.
Warmest wishes,
The Ayrshire Housing Team
AGM
This year’s annual general meeting will be held on Wednesday 10th September.
We’ll be awarding prizes for our garden and good neighbour competitions. You’ll also have the chance to hear about our latest development news, community updates, as well as our key business and accounts from the last year. The event will take place from 6 – 7.30pm in The Local, 119 Main Street, Ayr, KA8 8BX. All tenants who attend the AGM will be entered into a prize draw to win a shopping voucher.
As spaces are limited, please let us know if you will be attending by contacting us on 01292 880120 / info@ayrshirehousing.org.uk
Have you thought about becoming a Board member?
Are you passionate about making real change in your community? Why not join us as a tenant Board member!
If you are happy speaking up about the issues that matter to your neighbours and are keen to get involved in decision making you could be a great addition to our Board.
Becoming a Board member is a fantastic way to get involved with the running of the association and provides the opportunity to develop lots of transferable skills.
If you would like to be considered for one of the positions, please complete the form on your My Home
account, or drop us an email to info@ayrshirehousing.org.uk by Friday 1st August.
We will be holding a drop in event where you can find out more about what it means to be a Board member. This will be held on Wednesday 16th July in The Local from 3.30pm to 5.30pm.
Properties
Investment in Our Houses
We are well underway with our investment works this year, with James Frew Ltd progressing through kitchen, bathroom and boiler replacements. Our roofing contractor Pro-Cast will begin reroofing works at some of our properties in Rowan Road, Girvan in late June.
We were successful in gaining funding for ECO works in Knockbreck Road, Straiton through James Frew Ltd. Solar Panels and new heating systems have been fitted and our contractor, Scott Whalen is currently fitting new windows and doors to the properties.
A tender exercise is underway for a 3-year contract to renew windows and doors across a
wide variety of our properties –works are expected to begin in early Autumn. We will contact you with more information shortly.
Sun porches in Glenhead Place and Court, Coylton are due to be renewed over the coming weeks, and we will be in contact to advise of installation dates.
A project has been completed at Block 1, Viewfield Court, Ayr to carry out gas ventilation upgrades, and install new boilers to each property as well as a full repaint to the exterior of the building. James Frew Ltd, Ayrshire Gas Works, GTC and the Bell Group worked together to successfully undertake this project.
Development News
Green Street
We recently agreed terms with a local contractor, Ashleigh (Scotland) Ltd, to deliver 32 new build flats in Ayr town centre. The flats will be constructed on a brownfield site on the corner of Green Street and North Harbour Street.
The flats will be a combination of 1 and 2 bedrooms with some designed specifically for wheelchair users and people with mobility issues.
Works are scheduled to start on site in late summer, and the project will take around 15 months to complete.
Tenant Safety Compliance
Legionella
We have instructed Integrated Water Services (IWS) to carry out domestic water hygiene risk assessments on a 2-year contract. If you are included in Year 1, you should have received a message from us via CX Feedback.
If you have any outlets like taps or showers that are not used often, these require to be flushed every 7 days. Flushing should also be done when you return from a holiday or period of absence from your home. You can do this by placing a flannel over the tap, run the
tap at a slow flow moving to a moderate flow for at least 3-5 minutes.
To flush a shower head, place a zip lock bag over it with a corner cut off to allow the water to flow down, and follow the same flow and time instructions.
Showers heads and hoses should be removed and disinfected at least once every 3 months. To do this, remove the shower head and hose, soak in a disinfectant for at least 10 minutes then scrub
Fire Door Inspections
Our Technical Services Officer Greg Dunlop is continuing fire door inspections at our flatted properties. Work is now complete in Rowan Road, Girvan and Crown Square, Ayr. South Harbour Street, Ayr and our Troon flats have been inspected, and remedial works have been ordered. The next round of inspections will be in Viewfield Court, Ayr. Look out for a CX Feedback message for dates.
clean and rinse. Run the water to clear the pipes before refitting to the shower, then run the water through the hose and head after refitting.
You must let us know if your hot water temperature drops at any outlet so we can arrange for this to be checked.
Alarm Testing
You should test your smoke and heat alarms at least once every month. This should be for a period of at least 20 seconds to ensure they are all interlinking with each other. If you have gas in your property, your carbon monoxide detector is not linked and requires to be tested separately. If you are covering an alarm to carry out decorating works, please uncover and test the alarms as soon as the work is complete.
If any of your alarms don’t sound during a test, please contact our office immediately.
EICR (Electrical Installation Condition Reports)
A programme of electrical inspections has commenced with Magnus Electrical Services. If you are included in this year’s programme, you should have received a message from us via CX Feedback. An electrical inspection is a legal requirement, and you must allow access for this work to be carried out.
Places
Energy Scams
With energy prices remaining a major household expense, scammers are finding more sophisticated ways to steal money and personal information. We have listed below some of the most common energy scams and how you can avoid them.
Top Energy Scams to Watch Out For
1. Home Improvement Scams – Fake contractors push unnecessary or overpriced energy upgrades.
2. Ofgem Impersonation – Fraudsters claim to be from the energy regulator offering refunds or requesting personal info.
3. Prepayment Meter Scams – Selling fake meter keys that don’t work, leaving victims to pay twice.
How to Protect Yourself
4. Energy Rebate Scams –Phishing emails or texts offering fake government rebates.
5. Meter Check Scams – Imposters claiming they need to read or inspect your meter.
6. Smart Meter Scams – Fake installers or messages about faulty meters demanding payment.
Be sceptical of unsolicited offers—if they sound too good to be true, they normally are!
Verify identities—ask for ID and call the company using official contact details.
Never share sensitive info—like PINs or full bank details via email, text, or phone.
Check for red flags—spelling errors, odd email addresses, or high-pressure tactics.
Use trusted sources—like Ofgem-accredited comparison sites.
7. Fake Comparison Sites – Designed to steal data or push poor-value deals.
What You Can Do
Contact your energy provider directly if unsure about any offer.
Report scams to Action Fraud (UK) or your local consumer protection agency.
Use TrustMark to verify installers under the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) scheme.
Places
Ayrshire Housing ‘Pop-up’ Community Events
Over the past few months we have been visiting some of our areas and having some very informative and enjoyable catch-up chats with our customers and residents.
So far, we have visited Barr, Straiton, Tarbolton and held a meeting in the ‘Local’ with our
tenants from The Sandgate. We are planning to visit several other areas in the coming months so look out for a message from CX Feedback and keep an eye on our Facebook page then ‘pop’ along and see us. We love to hear your views and ideas of what we can be doing in your community.
Good Neighbour Award
Do you have a neighbour who is one in a million or goes above and beyond to help? If you do, we want to hear all about it, and you still have time to enter a nomination for our Good Neighbour Award.
Nominations can be made on MyHome (our online tenant portal) or you can
email your nomination to us at info@ ayrshirehousing.org.uk and tell us who you want to nominate and what makes them the best neighbour. Nominations close on the 30th August 2025. The winner will be presented with their award at our AGM in September.
Places
Our yearly Garden Competition is back for 2025! Do you have a green space? If so, you could be in with a chance of winning a £50 shopping voucher.
We had some fantastic entries last year and were really impressed with all the hard work and attention that goes into your gardens and outdoor spaces. It is great to see the impact your gardens have on the surrounding areas.
The competition is designed to allow everyone to take part. It doesn’t matter how big your space is, whether you have a lawn or not and it certainly doesn’t matter how much gardening experience you’ve had before. Do you have a green-fingered neighbour, then why not nominate them?
There will be 5 categories
• Best Front Garden
• Best Hanging Baskets
• Best Pots
Garden Competition 2025
The competition closes on 1st August 2025. We can’t wait to see your Gardens!
Send your entry to info@ayrshirehousing.org.uk, don’t forget to attach your pictures.
• Most Improved Garden (before and after picture required)
• Most Colourful Garden
Kid’s sunflower growing competition
We launched our competition in the Spring newsletter and entries are still open!
To take part, plant some sunflower seeds and send us a picture of your plant once it has grown as tall as it can.
Top prize is a gift voucher of your choice for £50 and the runner up with the second tallest sunflower wins a £25 voucher.
To enter, please take a photo of
your sunflower, showing us how tall it is by placing it next to a ruler or measuring tape. Remember to include your name, address, age and phone number. Closing date for entries is 1st August 2025.
Our staff are getting into the competition spirit and are having our own sunflower growing competition!
Please send your entries to info@ayrshirehousing.org.uk.
Your Feedback Matters! Customer Satisfaction Survey
We are committed to improving our services for you. To help us understand how we are doing, we will shortly be carrying out our 3-yearly Customer Satisfaction Survey. Your feedback is important and will help us to make positive changes.
We have partnered with Research Resource, an independent research company who will conduct
these face-to-face surveys. They are scheduled to take place between 28th July and 5th September 2025. If you are being surveyed, you will be contacted in advance by Research Resource.
Your responses to the survey will remain totally confidential and anonymous. Nobody at Ayrshire Housing will know what answers you have given without your permission.
If you would prefer not to participate, you can opt out by calling our office on (01292) 880120 or sending us an email to info@ayrshirehousing.org. uk. If you would like to make any special arrangements for interview, please contact Research Resource direct on 0141 641 6410 or email info@ researchresource.co.uk
Hear about the service our Community Engagement Coach offers
Mark Jenkins has recently joined Ayrshire Housing and Atrium
Homes as a Community Wellbeing Officer, dedicated to helping tenants overcome challenges related to mental health, addiction, anti-social behaviour, and financial hardship. His work aims to address the root causes of these issues, helping individuals and families maintain stable tenancies and improve their overall wellbeing.
Mark’s role is part of a Small Steps Community Planning initiative, which seeks to give children and families the best start in life. The programme is part-funded by the
National Lottery’s Improving Lives Community Fund.
In addition to crisis support, Mark will help tenants navigate everyday challenges—such as budgeting, organisation, and accessing specialist services. His work will also benefit families facing transitions and young people moving into their first homes, offering a coordinated and compassionate approach to problem-solving.
We are delighted to welcome our newest staff members …..
Director of Assets & Compliance
Ayrshire Housing has appointed Scott Cunningham as Director of Assets and Compliance to oversee a significant increase in investment in its homes over the next five years. Scott joins us from West of Scotland Housing Association.
"I am absolutely delighted to be joining Ayrshire Housing. This is
Community Engagement Manager
amplifying local voices, and driving positive change. I can't wait to get started and work alongside this fantastic team!" Sharon works closely with Mark Jenkins, our Community Wellbeing Coach and our Financial Wellbeing Officers in providing a dedicated ‘Engagement and Wellbeing’ service for our tenants. If you need to reach out to the team, please contact 01292 880120 or info@ayrshirehousing.org.uk. People
We have recently completed our recruitment for this brandnew role and are delighted to advise that Sharon Mather joined Ayrshire Housing on 17th June. Upon her appointment, Sharon said "I'm absolutely delighted to step into the role of Community Engagement Manager at Ayrshire Housing! With years of experience in community development, strategic planning, and grassroots empowerment, I’m focused on building meaningful connections,
an exciting time for us and I want to help to build on the existing high level of service delivery and keep our tenants at the heart of everything we do. I look forward to starting my new role, especially working with the existing high performing staff on a wide range of exciting objectives within our business plan," said Scott.
Scott Cunningham
Sharon Mather
Processes
We’re listening to you!
We value complaints as they provide essential feedback, help us identify areas for improvement, and enhance our services. You can make a complaint via your My Home account, by email – info@ayshirehousing.org. uk or by phone – 01292 880120.
We follow the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO) Model Complaints
Handling Procedure, which has two stages:
Stage 1:
We aim to resolve complaints quickly and informally.
Stage 2:
For more complex issues or if you're unsatisfied with the Stage 1 outcome.
You have highlighted some areas from improvement which will enhance your living experience and community environment. We are committed to addressing these.
YOU SAID
Work in my property was carried out without my permission.
YOU SAID
The work carried out by the contractor was unsatisfactory.
YOU SAID
Contractors did not treat my garden with respect.
YOU SAID
The close was not cleaned to an acceptable standard.
WE WILL
Work with our contractors to ensure they communicate with you prior to proceeding with any works.
WE WILL
Continue to raise concerns with our contractor and monitor their performance through our postinspection process.
WE WILL
Address this with the contractor and advise that this is unacceptable.
WE WILL
Continue to raise all feedback like this to our contractor during our monthly meetings.
CX Feedback –
Transforming our Customer Engagement
We recently introduced CX Feedback to share important updates about your property or community and to collect your feedback through quick surveys.
How will you receive messages?
• Text messages will appear from ‘Ayrshire HA’
• Emails will come from ‘Ayrshire Housing’
• All messages will include Ayrshire Housing’s recognisable branding.
• Links will come from cxfb.co.uk. These links are safe to click and will direct you to surveys and more information. If you’re unsure or anything seems suspicious, please contact our office.
Repairs Satisfaction Survey We Want to Hear from You!
We’ve started using CX Feedback to send out our Repairs Satisfaction Survey. If you’ve recently had a repair completed in your home, please keep an eye out for a text or email with a link to a short survey.
• Your feedback helps us improve our repairs service and the work of our contractors.
Just Moved In?
If you have recently moved into a new property with us, you’ll receive a Settling In Survey before your settling in visit. This helps us to ensure that everything is going smoothly in your new home.
Are your contact details up to date?
It is important that you let us know of any changes to your phone number or email address. We now send regular surveys to all our customers using CX Feedback. You won’t have the chance to have your say if we don’t have a current mobile or email address for you. You can update your details by:
• Calling our Office (01292) 880120
• Emailing us at info@ayrshirehousing.org.uk
• Through your MyHome account.
More Surveys Coming Your Way
From time to time, we may also send you other surveys to gather your thoughts on the services we provide. Your voice matters—and helps shape the way we work.
Processes Equality Data Collection
As part of our commitment to the Scottish Social Housing Charter, we are required to collect equality and diversity information each year. This helps ensure that:
“Social landlords perform all aspects of their housing services so that:
• they support the right to adequate housing
• every tenant and other customer has their individual needs and rights recognised, is treated fairly and with respect, and receives fair access to housing and housing services”.
We are collecting information securely through your MyHome Account. The form is:
• Voluntary
• Anonymous
• Secure – your responses are protected under data protection laws and cannot be accessed by Ayrshire Housing staff.
The information you provide helps us to:
• Understand the needs of our diverse customer groups
• Identify and remove barriers to accessing services
• Develop and improve services to meet the needs of all our customers
• Ensure fair and equal access to housing and housing related services
• Meet our legal and regulatory obligations.
To complete the form:
• Log into your MyHome account
• Click on “Complete Form”.
• Answer as many questions as you feel comfortable with.
If you have any questions or concerns about how we collect and store information about you, please contact Caroline Donald or Kirsty Broadfoot at our office.
Thank you for helping us to build a fairer, more inclusive housing service for everyone.
Secure access 24 hours a day, 7 days a week You can register through our website or contact our office to request an email link which is valid for 24 hours.
Mutual Exchange –
Is your current home too big or small? No longer meeting your needs? Not in the right location for work or family?
Ayrshire Housing has subscribed to HomeSwapper, the UK’s largest online homeswapping platform. This service allows you to swap your home with another Council or Housing Association tenant, locally or anywhere
in the UK. This service is completely free to Ayrshire Housing tenants.
To find out more and register, visit ayrshirehousing.org. uk/find-a-home/mutualexchange/ or contact our office for help registering.
Once you have found a potential swap, you must apply to us to progress the exchange.
You will need to meet the criteria for the new property and all landlords must approve the exchange before it can go ahead.
FREE PC Access at our Office!
We are pleased to offer two free-to-use PC's in our office for members of the public. Whether you need to:
• Do some online banking
• Apply for housing
• Set up an email address
• Or just get online …..
You can do it here, for free in a comfortable and welcoming place.
Sessions are available on a first come first served basis.
Housing Perks is a mobile app that saves you money on everyday items with discount codes, vouchers, cashback and free items. It allows users to save money on essentials and things they already buy, as well as putting those savings towards rent arrears payments too.
We’re delighted to be able to offer Housing Perks to all our tenants. Download the app here
Click to view video
Emergency repairs
When our office is closed, you can report an emergency repair with our contractor James Frew by calling 01294 468113. Please remember the out of hours service should be used for emergency jobs only.
Move to Digital
This report is digital by standard which helps us to provide value for money for tenants and reduces our impact on the environment. We will continue to make this report available on our website www.ayrshirehousing.org.uk and on MyHome. However, if you would like a paper copy, please contact our office.
We are always here to help: Call: 01292 880120
Text: 07860 020 459
Email: info@ayrshirehousing.org.uk
Visit: www.ayrshirehousing.org.uk
LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/company/ayrshire-housing Like: www.facebook.com/ayrshirehousing
Other Formats
Equality & Human Rights Statement
We are committed to promoting an environment of respect and understanding where diversity is encouraged, and discrimination is avoided. This commitment covers all areas of our work, as an employer of staff, as a landlord and provider of services. A copy of our Equality and Human Rights Policy can be found at www. ayrshirehousing.org.uk.
On request, we can provide translations of all our documents, policies and procedures in various languages or other formats such as large print, Braille etc. These can be obtained by contacting our office.