Ayrshire Housing Summer Newsletter 2013

TENANT’S NEWSLETTER SUMMER 2013 Tenant Satisfaction Survey In 2010 the association commissioned a comprehensive tenant satisfaction survey which was carried out by Ashbrook Research & Consultancy Ltd. All tenants were sent a questionnaire by post and we were delighted that 45% of tenants returned their completed form.

We will be carrying out another similar survey in the autumn. We are hoping for similar return rates which would be fantastic. The results from the survey will be used to measure how well we are doing and whether there are things where we should be doing better.

The results of the survey will also be reported to the Scottish Housing Regulator as part of our Annual Return on the Charter. We are required to submit this to show if we are meeting our Scottish Social Housing Charter obligations.

We cannot emphasise enough the importance of this survey and we will be reminding you at every opportunity to complete and return the form. We will also help you if you require any assistance in completing the survey.

This survey will be one of the most direct ways you can influence what we do and allows you to clearly tell us that we could do better.

More information coming soon.......watch this space!

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 calling (01292) 880120 or by letting your Housing Officer know you are interested in getting involved. Entries can also be posted to Ayrshire Housing, 119 Main Street, Ayr, KA8 8BX. Please remember to include your name and address.

Yogi

You can also contact our very own pet competition organiser at yogi.culzean@ayrshirehousing.org.uk. Please remember to include your pet’s name and photograph. www.ayrshirehousing.org.uk Telephone (01292) 880120 or Lo-Call 0845 2712 327

STAFF & BOARD NEWS On Thursday 27th June, staff and Board members enjoyed a day trip out of the office to the beautiful estate of Dumfries House, Cumnock. Met by a tour guide, we were led through the grand rooms and told of the historic and very interesting story of the families who came to inherit the estate. During the day we also visited many of Ayrshire Housing’s developments including Coylton, Dalmilling, Corton Howe, Doonfoot, South Harbour Street and the Belmont and Forehill areas. This allowed office based staff and Board members to see at first hand the areas and communities in which we deliver our services. Housing officers talked about each of the areas which allowed all of the staff and Board members to gain knowledge and insight into the different aspects of our work.

Colouring In Competition Winner!

CONGRATULATIONS! to the winner of our Spring Newsletter Colouring In Competition SELENE CURRIE granddaughter of one of our tenants at West Sanquhar Place.

The prize of a £10 voucher has been awarded.

Thanks to all those who entered!

Complaints Performance In August 2012 the association’s Board approved a new complaints handling policy and procedures.

These are in line with the recommendations from the Scottish Public Sector Ombudsman (SPSO).

From October 2012 to the end of March 2013 we received 31 complaints on a variety of issues. We are able to provide an explanation or apology to the majority of the complaints at Stage 1 of the procedures i.e. frontline resolution.

Most of the complaints were about service levels and some common examples are provided here. It is important that we learn from these and take steps to minimise the number of similar complaints being made in future.

NATURE OF COMPLAINT ACTION TAKEN Plasterer didn’t attend at time agreed with  Apology provided to tenant, tenant. appointment was re-arranged and tenant was satisfied Contractors not attending at agreed times.

  

General levels of service from contractors  including repeat repairs and repeat visits required. 

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More robust appointment system introduced for main contractors.

Appointments monitored and reporting framework introduced.

Closer liaison with contractors and tenants in arranging appointments.

Closer liaison with contractors and highlighting such complaints.

Making contractors aware of importance of keeping appointment times and completing repairs at first visit i.e. Right First Time. www.ayrshirehousing.org.uk

Rent Arrears – Important News Unfortunately, we have seen an increase in the level of rent arrears and the number of tenants who have missed payments over the last few months.

While there has been a lot of publicity recently about the “bedroom tax” most of our rent arrears are not linked to this and, indeed, many of those who are affected by the “bedroom tax” have been making efforts to pay the required amount.

Some of the recent increases are due to tenants awaiting decisions regarding their claims for Housing Benefit and unfortunately there have been some delays in processing these claims which was recently covered in the local press.

However, leaving aside the issues of “bedroom tax” and housing benefit claims, there has been a number of tenants who have just not paid their rent or have broken previously agreed arrangements to repay arrears they had accrued earlier.

Not only is this unacceptable but it is also unfair on the vast majority of our tenants who are managing to keep their rent account in credit.

The association relies on rent being paid to maintain our houses, carry out repairs and provide a range of other services to the benefit of all tenants. We have extremely low overheads compared to many other similar housing associations. We do not employ a large number of staff in comparison to others.

It is critical therefore that we try and make sure that all rent due from tenants is paid in accordance with the tenancy agreement that all tenants sign at the start of the tenancy.

Our Housing Officers do try and help where tenants are facing real difficulties. We have extended this help by appointing our Money Advice Officer, Jacqueline Rowlands, in January (as you will see elsewhere in this newsletter).

However, there are occasions when all our offers to work with tenants to help them meet their commitments fail and some tenants will simply not co-operate with us or adhere to repayment plans previously agreed.

Our last resort on these occasions is to instruct legal action with the possible outcome of taking tenants to the Sheriff Court and asking the Sheriff to grant us Decree for Possession of the property, in other words, to allow us to evict the tenants for non-payment of rent which is lawfully due.

This is a last resort but unfortunately we have to report that it is an action which we have had to take recently and, given the increases in arrears we are experiencing, it is an action which we may have to consider more often.

If you are a tenant who has missed payments or broken arrangements, you must contact us immediately to agree a repayment plan to stop us going to Court. We will try and make sure that such repayment plans are realistic and affordable but should you continue to avoid working with us we will take action to address this issue.

It’s never too late to contact us even if we have started Court action.

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From April 2013, Crisis Grants and Community Care Grants moved from the Department of Work and Pensions to local Council control. The new system is called the Scottish Welfare Fund.

Who can get a Crisis Grant or Community Care Grant?

To be able to apply for a Crisis Grant or Community Care Grant the person will need to be in receipt of: Income Support Income Based Job Seeker’s Allowance Income Related Employment and Support Allowance Pension Credit – any type

   

How a Crisis Grant can help?

A Crisis Grant is to help someone pay for the things they need to prevent harm to their or their family’s safety because of an emergency or disaster.

How a Community Care Grant Can Help?

A Community Care Grant is to help someone with the things they need to live independently in the community rather than having to live in care. This could be because they are:     

Setting up in the community after a period in care Want to stay in the community rather than having to go into care Taking part in a planned re-settlement programme after an unsettled way of life (homeless) A family facing exceptional pressure, for example because of a family breakdown, and need help to provide a safe and secure environment for their children Caring for a prisoner or young offender on release on temporary licence.

Crisis Grants and Community Care Grants do not have to be paid back.

For more information please contact Jacqueline Rowlands, our Money Advice Officer, at the office.

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Money Advice Officer In January of this year the association was delighted to welcome Jacqueline Rowlands, our first Money Advice Officer.

Jacqueline provides a comprehensive range of services covering welfare rights, budgeting and income maximisation. Already a significant number of tenants have seen real benefits as a result of contacting Jacqueline.

You will see elsewhere in this newsletter the importance of paying your rent and the implications of not doing so. We recognise how difficult it can be for tenants who have many demands on what can be a very limited income.

It has never been more important to make sure that tenants are receiving the full income to which they are entitled and are given every assistance in budgeting to meet their commitments, the most important of which is maintaining a roof over their head.

Jacqueline can make a huge difference to the income that tenants receive. She has been helping tenants with areas such as Employment and Support Allowance, Community Care Grants, Income Support, Pension Credit, Housing Benefit and Discretionary Housing Payment.

Liaison with gas and electricity suppliers and advice on switching providers are also areas where Jacqueline can provide help and assistance.

Jacqueline has also been working with colleagues from other agencies and organisations throughout Ayrshire to ensure that our tenants are able to access all possible means of getting help, advice and assistance across a range of welfare rights and money advice services.

If you think that Jacqueline might be able to help you or even if you just want her to review your current income to make sure you are getting all that you are entitled to, please do not hesitate to contact Jacqueline at our office. Jacqueline can make an appointment for you to come in and see her or, alternatively, an arrangement can be made for Jacqueline to visit at your home if that would be more convenient.

The following table shows the weekly and annual financial gains that Jacqueline has been able to access for our tenants since she took up her post in January. We are sure there are many more tenants that could benefit from Jacqueline’s help and would encourage you to contact Jacqueline if you think you need some assistance.

Jan – June 2013

£ Financial Gain

Number of Tenants

Type of Gains

Weekly Gains

£1,003.75

27 claims

Annual

£52,095.16

27 claims

Income Support, Housing Benefit, Employment & Support Allowance, DLA, Pension Credit

Lump Sum Payments

£7,499.69

12 backdated payments

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The Scottish Social Housing Charter introduced new reporting requirements for landlords. The following table highlights the performance being achieved against a range of indicators.

Performance Area

Last Year (to March 2013)

This Year (April 2013)

Comment

Emergency Repairs

92.49% - (1532 repairs)

98.2% - (112 repairs)

% of repairs completed within 4 Hour target

Average Time taken to complete Emergency repairs

2 Hours 19 Minutes

1 Hour 54 minutes

Non-Emergency Repairs

96.9% - (3806 repairs)

95.68% (301 repairs)

% of Urgent & Routine repairs completed within 3 and 15 day target

Average Time taken to complete Non-Emergency repairs

4.18 Days

4.37 Days

Working days – excludes weekends and public holidays

% of Reactive Repairs Completed Right First Time

Not Calculated

82.06%

% of Reactive Repair Appointments Kept

Not Calculated

79.37% (63 Appointments)

% of Properties that require a gas safety certificate completed by the anniversary date

100%

100%

See separate article on Gas service programme

% of tenants satisfied with the repairs and maintenance service

97.59% (956 Surveys)

96.3% (81 Surveys)

See separate article on Tenant Satisfaction

Change of Garden Tidy Contractor The Garden Tidy service for qualifying elderly or disabled tenants was included in the overall Grounds Maintenance Contract entered into with JMK Groundcare Ltd last year.

Following some complaints and a series of inspections, we have decided to appoint a new contractor, Prestige Tree Services of Kilmarnock for the Garden Tidy Service.

It is hoped that the action we have taken will ensure that gardens are maintained to a satisfactory standard.

Public areas in our schemes will continue to be maintained by JMK Groundcare Ltd. In order to support our own inspections, we welcome feedback, positive or negative, about the quality of the service.

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Repairs Satisfaction The association routinely collects feedback from tenants regarding their satisfaction with the repairs service. This is undertaken through the issue of survey forms to tenants who have had a repair carried out.

Survey forms are sent out with pre-paid envelopes to encourage a greater number of responses to be submitted.

During last year (1 April 2012 to 31 March 2013), 956 tenant satisfaction surveys were returned by tenants. These surveys noted that 98.74% of tenants were satisfied with the ease of reporting repairs; 97.59% of tenants were satisfied with how their request was dealt with and 97.49% of tenants responded that staff had been helpful when dealing with the repair.

The survey forms have recently been amended to reflect the new reporting requirements contained in the Scottish Social Housing Charter which commenced on 1 April 2013. For April, there were 81 surveys returned and the table below provides a breakdown of the responses provided.

Satisfaction with the Repairs Service provided EMERGENCY URGENT ROUTINE TOTAL %

Very Satisfied 9 28 29 66 81.5%

Fairly Satisfied 3 4 5 12 14.8%

Neither Satisfied nor Dissatisfied 0 1 2 3 3.7%

Fairly Dissatisfied 0 0 0 0 0.0%

Very Dissatisfied 0 0 0 0 0.0%

Don't Know / No Opinion 0 0 0 0 0.0%

Total 12 33 36 81 100%

This indicates that 96.3% of tenants were either fairly satisfied or very satisfied with the service provided.

In addition we also ask tenants to provide feedback on the perceived quality of the works. The table below indicates the responses obtained and notes that 93.8% of tenants are fairly satisfied or very satisfied with the quality of the repair completed.

Satisfaction with the Quality of the Repair EMERGENCY URGENT ROUTINE TOTAL %

Very Satisfied 10 31 30 71 87.7%

Fairly Satisfied 1 1 3 5 6.2%

Neither Satisfied nor Dissatisfied 0 1 2 3 3.7%

Fairly Dissatisfied 0 0 0 0 0.0%

Very Dissatisfied 0 0 0 0 0.0%

Don't Know / No Opinion 1 0 1 2 2.5%

Total 12 33 36 81 100%

The survey forms returned for April have been collated and analysed and a summary of the findings is listed below.

81.3% of tenants state that the worker showed proof of ID. 98.6% of tenants advised that the workers cleaned up any mess.

93.3% of responses suggest that care was taken to protect carpets etc.

80.5% of respondents confirmed that they made an appointment for the work to be undertaken.

93.2% of these indicate that the appointment was kept.

    

Finally 86.7% stated that the works were completed within the target timescale.

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ELECTIONS TO THE BOARD Annual General Meeting The Annual General Meeting of Ayrshire Housing will take place on Wednesday 11th September 2013. 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 is one vacancy within the tenant category. If you are interested in the tenant position, please complete and return the form below by Friday 2nd August 2013. 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.

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

Name:

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

Address:

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

Tel:

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

Email:

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

STATEMENT:-

_____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ 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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