Newsletter summer 2015

TENANT’S NEWSLETTER SUMMER 2015 BENEFITS ARE CHANGING! What is Universal Credit?

Universal Credit is a new benefit that replaces a number of other benefits and tax credits.

In South Ayrshire this new benefit will be introduced in stages from 12th October 2015.

The first group affected will be single people of working age (between 18 years and 60 years and 6 months old) who are making a first claim for benefit and are fit for work. Over time Universal Credit will gradually be extended to include all claimants.

It’s Different : Are you Prepared?

Universal Credit works differently to the benefits it replaces. Be prepared, you will need to:     

open a bank account if you do not already have one have online access to make and maintain your claim manage a single monthly payment pay rent directly to your landlord inform Department for Work & Pensions of all changes that will affect your claim

How to claim Universal Credit Before making a claim you will need to ensure you have the following information to hand:   

Your National Insurance Number Your bank account number and sort code Details of your current rent charge (you need to get this information from your Housing Officer) Details of your savings, capital and any other income

After completing your claim online you will be invited to your local Jobcentre Plus to meet your Job Coach who will discuss your responsibilities relating to your claim.

See next page for more information on Universal Credit.

YOU MUST ALSO INFORM AYRSHIRE HOUSING THAT YOU HAVE MADE A CLAIM.

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www.ayrshirehousing.org.uk Telephone 01292 880120 Text Message 07860020459

Benefits are Changing cont.

How to manage your monthly Universal Credit Payment If you qualify, your payment will be a single monthly payment. Your first payment will be paid at least 5 weeks in arrears. This may be something that is new to you.

Changes to paying your rent If you qualify for help towards your rent then a housing element is included in your payment.

Unlike housing benefit this will be paid directly to you. This means that you will be responsible for making your full rent payment to Ayrshire Housing. You will need to remember to make this payment on time, to make sure that you do not fall into arrears.

YOU MUST CONTACT YOUR HOUSING OFFICER TO DISCUSS YOUR RENT PAYMENT METHOD AND PAYMENT DATES. It may help you to set up a direct debit with us when you know your monthly Universal Credit payment date. This will be the same date each month thereafter and will help you manage your monthly budget.

Do you need Additional Help?

Contact the office If you need more information on paying your rent or payment methods please contact your Housing Officer.

If you need help with Universal Credit or any other benefit issues please contact either your Housing Officer or our Money Advice Officer, Jacqueline Dunlop.

LIMONDS WYND DEVELOPMENT LAUNCH Work has started on Ayrshire Housing’s latest housing development. 22 flats and houses are set to transform a key site on the approach to Ayr’s town centre. At the launch, Provost Moonie said, “It’s great to see Ayrshire Housing despite all the financial challenges maintaining its commitment to high quality sustainable housing.”

Provost Moonie was joined by pupils of nearby Newton Primary School at the launch on Thursday 11th June.

COMPETITION REMINDER! There is still time to submit your entry to this year’s Garden and Pet Competitions!

If you’ve got the perfect pet or if your neighbours are always complimenting your gardening skills be sure to get in touch! You can enter by emailing: info@ayrshirehousing.org.uk or by letting your Housing Officer know you are interested in entering. Entries can also be posted to Ayrshire Housing, 119 Main Street, Ayr, KA8 8BX. Please remember to include your name and address.

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www.ayrshirehousing.org.uk Telephone 01292 880120 Text Message 07860020459

HOUSEHOLD PESTS! It is easier to keep pests away than to get rid of them once they have settled into your home, so take these simple precautions to keep them at bay:    

Clean spillages as they occur Properly seal food, place in a suitable container and keep on high shelves Sweep up crumbs from work surfaces and the floor bag up and take out rubbish regularly

The types of pests we are often asked to deal with include: Ants: We will not send out pest control for ants, you must try a powder or ant remedy to attempt removal. They can be very irritating and come in their hundreds but they are manageable. If you are struggling you can phone our repairs team for advice; however you must try to eradicate them yourself in the first instance.

Flies & other insects: The odd insect or fly should be dealt with by the tenant, if however there is an infestation of insects or bugs and you are finding it difficult to keep them at bay we can arrange for pest control to attend.

Bees & Wasps: We cannot send anyone to destroy bees as they are an endangered species, and bees generally won’t harm you if you leave them alone.

Wasps, on the other hand, might! We would send out pest control if you are having problems with wasps within the property or if a hive is close to windows or doors, but not if they are in the garden. While it may not be ideal to be sharing your garden with some new friends, we will not disturb them.

Mice & Rats: Pest control would deal with any mice or rat issues; but only within your own home. The garden or the area surrounding the property is their natural environment. The best way to keep them away is to make sure rubbish is put into refuse sacks and stored in bins provided. Sweep up and keep the area as tidy as possible to prevent any unwanted visitors!

If you do have pests in your property you can call our repairs team and they will advise you on the best course of action. If we decide attendance by pest control is required, this can take up to 3 working days as this is not considered an emergency.

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Help for tenants who are Deaf or hard of hearing The association is aware that there are a number of our tenants who are deaf or who have difficulty hearing and may not be aware of the facility available to help them contact the relevant emergency services.

Emergency SMS This service allows deaf, hard of hearing and speech-impaired people to send an SMS text message to the UK 999 service where it will be passed to the police, ambulance, fire rescue, or coastguard.

The emergency SMS service is an add-on to the existing 999 and 18000 services that are available in the UK. Your SMS text message will be connected to 999 through the Text Relay 18000 service.

A relay assistant will speak your SMS message to the 999 advisor, their reply will be sent back to you as an SMS message.

If you send another SMS text message the relay assistant will read it to the 999 advisor and send their reply back to you.

It is necessary to register your mobile phone before using the emergency SMS service and it is recommended that you should do this before you need help. You can register by sending an SMS text message from your mobile phone.

Registering using SMS To register using SMS text messages you must:    

Send the word 'register' in an SMS message to 999 You will then receive SMS messages about the service When you have read these SMS messages reply by sending 'yes' in an SMS message to 999 You will receive a SMS message telling you that your mobile phone is registered or if there is a problem with your registration

Checking your Registration You can check your mobile phone registration by sending the word 'register' in a SMS message to 999. You will receive a SMS message telling you if your mobile phone is registered or if there is a problem with your registration.

Unable to Register If you try to register and do not receive an SMS message from the emergency SMS service please check with your mobile communications provider to make sure they support the emergency SMS service.

Further information on this service can be found at www.emergencysms.org.uk.

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www.ayrshirehousing.org.uk Telephone 01292 880120 Text Message 07860020459

Other Facilities Available

Next Generation Text (NGT) Relay Service This service replaces the ‘Type Talk’ service run by the RNID and provides a text relay assistant who will relay the phone conversation between you and the person you’re calling or who is calling you.

A relay assistant will relay phone conversations between a text-user and a phone-user. When making a phone call a text-user 'talks' by typing to the relay assistant who speaks their words to the phone-user, and then the relay assistant types the phone-user's spoken reply to the text -user.

The relay assistant will endeavour to relay the phone conversation word for word. However this isn't always possible and the list below shows examples of when the relay assistant might not be able to relay each word:  when a recorded announcement is too fast  when the relay on assistant can't being said e.g. English is not the Further information this service canunderstand be found atwhat's www.ngts.org.uk phone-user's first language, or they are speaking with a strong dialect  when quality of the phone call is poor e.g. high background noise The text relay service has handled every type of phone call. From calls to family and friends, doctors, emergency services or even competition lines and takeaways.

Hearing Link Scotland Hearing Link Scotland is a registered charity and is a part of Hearing Link UK. It has a team of staff and volunteers who work to improve the quality of life for people with hearing loss.

Further information on their services can be found at www.hearinglink.org.

How you use NGT depends on your own needs. There are several options available including: Type & Read

Speak & Read

For tenants who can’t hear and don’t use their voice, use Type & Read

For tenants who can’t hear but use their voice, use Speak & Read

Type & Hear

Speak & Hear

For tenants who can hear but don’t use their voice, use Type & Hear

For tenants who have some hearing and use their voice but require the assistance of NGT, use Speak & Hear

Ayrshire Housing Tenants The association are aware of several deaf or hard of hearing tenants who obtain the assistance of a family member, neighbour or friend to contact the office on their behalf. They may also use these contacts and supports to report out of hours emergency repairs.

We are reviewing the facilities available for these tenants to ensure they are suitable and appropriate and would like to identify any other tenants who would benefit from any improvements that could be introduced. We also wish to make our contractors aware of any tenants who may have difficulty in contacting the emergency repairs service when the office is closed.

If you are deaf or hard of hearing please contact the office to ensure that we are aware that you may require additional support or help when accessing our services.

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Update on Planned Works Programme 2015-16 Kitchen Replacement Project Following successful completion of the 2014/15 kitchen programme, the association have again appointed James Frew Ltd (Housing & Modernisation Division), Stevenston to undertake kitchen replacement works during 2015/16.

Surveys of the properties have commenced and the installations will commence shortly. The estates included in the programme this year include Fernbank Court, Prestwick; St Andrews Court, Girvan; Whitefaulds Avenue and Whitefaulds Crescent, Maybole; Victory Crescent, Dailly and Earl Crescent / Rise, Dundonald.

Replacement Window and External Door Programme Following the appointment of JD Thomson & Son Ltd of Maybole, the Contractor has completed the installation a number of replacement external hardwood doors and has also commenced the installation of replacement windows in Burnbank Road, Ayr. The new doors include double glazing units and insulated panels with multi-point locks, with the new windows being timber, double glazed units.

Tenants will be contacted in advance to arrange the surveys and installations dates. Again, tenants are being offered a choice of door and worktop options.

Cyclical Decoration Works Programme 2015/16 Following competitive tendering, contractors were appointed to undertake external painting on the following estates: Ailsa Street West / Henrietta Street / Harbour Street, Girvan Dalrymple Street / Clyde View and Hamilton Street, Girvan Hosiery Court / Kenmore / Logan Drive / Wallacefield Road and Killin Place, Troon Observer Court and Moor Park Crescent, Prestwick Victory Crescent (Phase 1 and 2), Dailly Viewfield Court, Ayr Whitefaulds Avenue and Whitefaulds Crescent, Maybole Works commenced in April and works are already completed in a number of estates with the remaining properties due to be finished over the summer months.

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www.ayrshirehousing.org.uk Telephone 01292 880120 Text Message 07860020459

Wet Wipes lead to blocked pipes!

Despite previous articles our repairs service has witnessed an increase in reports for blocked drains where the cause has been found to have been preventable. Again, ‘wet wipes’ are often found to have caused the blockage because, unlike toilet paper, wet wipes don’t break down when flushed and can therefore clog drainage pipes. To reduce the risk of drain pipes getting blocked, tenants with young children should seal used wet wipes in plastic bags and dispose of in the bin as you would disposable nappies.

Ayrshire Housing supports an ongoing campaign by Scottish Water. This campaign is aimed at reducing the problems of chokes and blockages caused by the inappropriate disposal of items. This includes the prevention of blockages caused by fat or grease deposits.

The only things which should be flushed down the toilet are human waste and toilet paper. This is particularly important for our developments at Knockbreck Road, Straiton and Hamilton Street, Girvan which are served by a septic tank and pumping station respectively.

You should never flush the following down the toilet:  Disposable nappies, liners and baby wipes  Sanitary items including tampons, towels, applicators and panty liners  Condoms and femidoms  Cotton buds or cotton wool  Razors or toothbrushes  Contact lenses  Incontinence pads or colostomy bags  Used bandages  Syringes and needles  Medicines

The Scottish Water campaign is in response to concerns over damage to the sewerage infrastructure and ultimately, the environment. A staggering 300 million items are flushed down Scotland’s toilets every year. The drain pipe serving your house is only 100mm (4 inches) and is only designed for the disposal of human waste and toilet paper. Blocked toilets and drains cause inconvenience and can be expensive to repair. Tenants may be recharged these costs if they are found to have caused the problem by the inappropriate disposal of items.

In addition, damage can be caused to the filter screens at the sewage treatment works and result in problems during periods of heavy rainfall. This allows diluted waste to contaminate rivers and beaches.

The Scottish Water campaign advises the best method of disposal for the ‘never flush’ items is to use disposable bags (available from chemists and supermarkets) and place the items in the bin. Needles and syringes should be properly disposed of using a sharps box and taken to the nearest Needle Bank. Your doctor can advise where this is located. Finally unused medicines should be returned to the chemist for safe disposal. Remember to keep all medicines out of the reach of children.

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ELECTIONS TO THE BOARD Annual General Meeting

The Annual General Meeting of Ayrshire Housing will take place on Wednesday 9th September 2015. In due course, you will receive a formal agenda and a review of our activities and performance in the last year.

As you may know, the Board consists of five tenant directors, five from the community category and three appointed by South Ayrshire Council. All tenants are members of the company and can thus seek election to the Board. If you have a joint tenancy, both tenants are considered to be members.

There are up to 3 vacancies within the tenant category. If you are interested in a tenant position, please complete and return the form below by Friday 31st July 2015. If there are more applications than vacancies, a postal ballot will be organised with the result being announced at the Annual General Meeting. Please provide a short statement of around 50 words in support of your application. You can find full details of what's involved at Ayrshirehousing.org.uk.

This is a real opportunity to influence the quality of service that you and your fellow tenant members receive.

AS A TENANT I WISH TO STAND FOR ELECTION TO THE BOARD (please submit by 31st July 2015)

Name:

............................................................................

Address:

............................................................................ ............................................................................

Tel:

............................................................................

Email:

............................................................................

STATEMENT (no more than 50 words please) :-

____________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________ Alternatively you can email us at info@ayrshirehousing.org.uk

We can supply this document in a print size to suit. It is also available in Braille, audio and other formats, and in other languages. Our website also has several accessibility features which you may find useful.

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www.ayrshirehousing.org.uk Telephone 01292 880120 or Lo-Call 08452712327 Text Message 07860020459