In Touch Spring 2018 Issue 93 English

In Touch The magazine for residents of Wales & West Housing

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SPRING 2018 | ISSUE 93

BACK TO LIFE: GWELFOR GETS A FACELIFT

INNOVATIVE ENERGY-POSITIVE HOMES FOR BRIDGEND CAMBRIA APPRENTICES LEARN ON THE JOB TWO PAGES OF PRIZE PUZZLES

Cyfathrebu yn Gymraeg Welsh Communications Os ydych yn dymuno i ni ysgrifennu atoch yn Gymraeg, a fyddech gystal â rhoi gwybod i ni. Mae modd i chi wneud hyn trwy siarad â'ch Swyddog Tai neu ffonio ein Canolfan Gwasanaethau Cwsmeriaid ar

0800 052 2526.

If you would like us to write to you in Welsh please let us know. You can do this by speaking to your Housing Officer or by phoning our Customer Service Centre on

0800 052 2526.

Contact Us

Wales & West Housing, Archway House, 77 Parc Tŷ Glas, Llanishen, Cardiff CF14 5DU Telephone: 0800 052 2526 Text: 07788 310420 Email: contactus@wwha.co.uk Website: www.wwha.co.uk You can also contact members of staff direct by their email. For example, joe.bloggs@wwha.co.uk

Follow us on twitter @wwha Did you know that you can now get more news and updates online?

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Other languages and formats

If you would like a copy of this edition of In Touch in Welsh or another language or format, for example in large print, please let us know and we will help you.

CONTENTS

18 15 50 4 News - 10 years of Making a Difference 6 Your stories 8 Build it - New developments for Wrexham, Flintshire, Pembrokeshire, Cardiff, Holywell and Bridgend 13 Regenerating our homes - Our £35 million home improvement programme 17 News 20 Renewing your career Bright future at Cambria 24 Money matters - Scam alert 26 Anti-social behaviour review 28 Emergency alarm service annual report 30 Your stories - Nick brings military precision to his pastimes 32 Fix it - How to check a trip switch 34 Health and safety Preventing passive smoking 40 Gardening with Glenys 41 Easter cooking and crafts 44 Charity news 45 Social media - Digital declutter 46 What’s on this Easter 48 Easter prize puzzles 50 A day in the life of a support worker

WELCOME FROM ANNE

Dear residents

Spring is in the air, so we have chosen the theme of renewal for this edition of In Touch.

I am sure many of you are looking forward to longer days, lighter evenings and the first shoots of new growth breaking through.

On that theme of renewal, in this issue we take a look at what we are doing to renew kitchens, bathrooms, windows and doors to modernise some of our homes. There’s also advice on how you can keep your valued belongings safe by renewing your home contents insurance.

We marked the 10th anniversary of our Making A Difference Awards on March 9, so we look at some of the community groups and residents who have benefited from the money we raise in grants.

We had a great response to our feature on loneliness in our last issue, so you’ll find some ideas on how to make new friends.

With Easter Sunday taking place on April 1, there are some crafty ideas for making pretty decorations from eggs and we welcome our resident green-fingered gardener Glenys with her new regular column, Gardening with Glenys.

Plus there’s the usual news from our residents and more pages of the puzzles that so many of you enjoy.

So happy reading as we look forward to Spring.

Anne Hinchey Chief Executive

If you have any thoughts on the new In Touch or how we could improve, please let us know. We will continue to listen to you. Simply email contactus@ wwha.co.uk or speak to our PR and Communications Team on 0800 052 2526.

Cover photo: Gwelfor residents are proud of their renovated homes. L-R Stanley Jones, WWH’s Property Services Officer, William Mains of WCS Environmental and Building Services, Pembrokeshire County Councillor Pat Davies, resident Bryn Phillips, WWH Chief Executive Anne Hinchey and resident Brenda Roach.

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Making a Difference across This year we are celebrating the 10th anniversary of our Making A Difference Awards.

That’s a decade of celebrating the kindness and achievements of our residents across Wales.

In more recent years it’s also enabled us to provide money to sponsor and support our residents and their communities.

We introduced our Making A Difference framework into the way we work with our suppliers and contractors to make a positive impact on the lives and communities where we work.

Our Making A Difference grants have helped a wide range of community and environmental projects including family fun days, community and gardening projects, arts, crafts and social groups and individual support to help our residents get their careers back on track.

We also provide sponsorship for groups and organisations that benefit our residents. For example, in the last year 21 groups across Wales received a share of almost £27,000 in sponsorship from Wales & West Housing. These ranged from providing costumes and new microphones for 95 rising stars at Jaxx Martine's Popstarz performing arts academy in Bagillt, to sponsoring five schools in South and West Wales with tickets to attend last year’s Urdd Eisteddfod.

New training kit is also popular and we have supported many teams including Abergele Ladies 4

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Rugby, Colwyn Bay Hockey, Deeside Phoenix Football Club, Newcastle Emlyn Girls’ Football Team, Newtown Rugby Football Club’s 13 and 14 year olds, Llanishen RFC Juniors and Mold U13s rugby club.

Through our Future Grants we have helped 107 residents in the last two years to overcome barriers to employment, training and education by offering grants to help buy things like textbooks for college and university courses, equipment for self-employment or specialist jobs, or money for transport and clothes for interviews.

We also supported Shelter Cymru’s annual People and Homes conference, which brought together some of the leading organisations working in Wales to tackle homelessness and ease the housing crisis in Wales.

Some of the most popular areas of community grant aid in recent years have been providing

equipment for indoor social games, such as curling, bingo, cooking and social events, arts, crafts, cinema clubs and wellbeing activities to keep our older residents active and social.

We’ve also supported children and family activities such as with the Barracksfield Tenants Association, Wrexham.

Their annual community fun day attracts about 150 WWH residents from their estate and they also organise an annual children’s Christmas party.

John Williams, Chair of Barracksfield TA, said: “We are grateful for the support.

Both events always get great feedback.”

Lots of our residents are getting together to eat as a community. They are cooking and enjoying tasty, home-cooked meals in their scheme communal lounges. Oak Court, Penarth; Llys Hafren, Newtown; Llys Yr Onnen, Mountain Ash; St Clements Court,

WWH housing officer Ann-Marie Rastin with Popstarz members Kiara Leigh-Poulton and Zach Evans.

NEWS

Wales Hope Court and Wilfred Brook House, Cardiff; Christchurch Court, Llandrindod Wells, Sydney Hall Court, Connah’s Quay and Ty Gwaunfarren in Merthyr are a few groups we’ve helped by providing food safety training and equipment.

Garden projects are also popular – we helped 53 groups last year alone. For example, at St Mellons Community Garden we helped volunteers with equipment to start up. Over the last five years they have transformed a derelict piece of land into a little green oasis in the middle of their large estate and, more importantly, they have made lasting friendships with neighbours.

Anne Hinchey, Chief Executive of Wales & West Housing, said: “By working with other organisations we’re able to make an even stronger impact on tackling important social issues such as homelessness.

"We're passionate about recognising the work of organisations which help to support our own vision and, in one way or another, all of these groups are making a difference to people's lives."

This year’s Making A Difference Awards took place on Friday, March 9, at the Vale Resort, near Cardiff.

We’ll be featuring all the winners and stories from the evening in the next issue of In Touch.

Children enjoying craft making at the Barracksfield fun day in Wrexham

We gave Cheryl Litchfield-Payne grant help to start-up her pet portrait business. She was among the 146 residents we helped with our Future grants in the last two years.

Newtown RFC U13s and 14s wearing their new training tops sponsored by WWH

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YOUR STORIES

Opportunity for residents to influence housing in Wales If you are a resident who wants your views heard by your landlord, the Welsh Government and other key community decision makers in Wales, then join Tenant Pulse.

If you join, TPAS Cymru will occasionally ask you about your views on important housing issues via short surveys. Each time you give your view you could win High Street vouchers.

For more information, visit www.tpas.cymru/pulse

Cardiff residents love where they live

Residents at Western Court, Cardiff, have been taking great pride in their community.

They have carried out regular clean-ups of the gardens and the areas surrounding the scheme in Pontcanna, Cardiff.

Working with Lorna Collisson, Community Development coordinator at Cardiff Council,

residents have been cleaning up the area, sweeping up the fallen autumn leaves and planting bulbs.

Scheme manager Ann White said: “The residents have really enjoyed taking part and have made a big difference to the area around the scheme. They have bagged lots of leaves and rubbish.

They really love where they live.”

Listen up – help for hearing loss Spring blooms for Danymynydd

Our residents at Danymynydd retirement scheme near Bridgend have a blooming lovely view thanks to local schoolchildren.

Garw Valley Community Council teamed up with the local primary school to brighten the community.

They have planted hundreds of bulbs on community ground around the village of Blaengarw including land near our Danymynydd scheme.

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Residents with hearing loss at Ty Ddewi in the Rhondda have a new hearing loop to help them join in social activities at their scheme.

Asset Management Officer Ian Williams fitted the loop in the communal lounge to improve the sound quality and reduce background noise for residents suffering hearing loss.

The loop was funded by our Making a Difference to your Community grant with help from Resident Participation Strategy Officer, Claire Hammond, and John Gilchrist, of Wales Council

for Deaf People.

There are also plans to run a regular hearing loss support group, giving residents advice and the opportunity to socialise with other people with hearing loss.

One resident Mrs Jean Bebb, said: “I am very pleased with the loop system. Many of the people living here are excited about having a Hard of Hearing club at Ty Ddewi, and are looking forward to having residents from other areas joining us at the scheme.”

Hearing loops are in many public buildings and large shops.

Look out for this symbol and switch your hearing aid to the T (telecoil) setting.

YOUR STORIES

Snow! Ho! Ho! Christmas lunch for Llys Jasmine residents

A community celebration party made up for the disappointment of Llys Jasmine residents having a Christmas lunch cancelled due to snow.

Residents at our extra care scheme in Mold were invited to a party put on by Tesco in Mold, originally planned for December before it was hit by adverse weather.

Anne Hinchey, WWH Chief Executive, said: “The celebration party brought a smile to all of our residents’ faces after the disappointment of the Christmas lunch being cancelled.

"Events such as this make a real difference to people’s lives within the community and we’d like to thank Tesco Mold for their work in bringing it together.”

Do you

need help?

Have you got a challenge for Wales & West Housing staff?

A community hall needs renovating? A community garden needs some TLC? WWH encourages staff to undertake volunteering activities that benefit WWH residents and/ or the communities in which we operate, or for the benefit of our chosen charities.

The volunteering activity is part of WWH’s volunteering programme, where each member of staff is allowed a paid working day once every year to volunteer at one of our resident projects.

We’re looking for suggestions.

We need to be able to complete the task in one day. So if you have a challenge for us, send your suggestions to Herman Valentin.

Call Herman on 02920 414077/07827 279711 or email Herman.valentin@wwha.co.uk

Uno project is number one in Ceredigion Sixty one young people with learning difficulties have benefitted from help from the Uno project in Ceredigion this year.

The project at one of our homes in Llanilar, Ceredigion, is now in its fifth year and is run by the charity, DASH. It is a place where young people can go for respite, residential care and learn life

skills and valuable independent living skills.

Young people visiting say the biggest benefit they have from the project is having time with friends and staff see a big difference in their self-confidence and practical skills around the bungalow.

Well done to everyone involved!

Send us your stories If you want to see your events and news featured, send your stories to communications. team@wwha.co.uk or ring 0800 052 2526. wwha.co.uk

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BUILD IT

Innovative new energy-positive homes for Bridgend Wales & West Housing has been given the go ahead to build the first energy-positive homes in Bridgend.

The 10 homes, planned for land to the west of Bryn Bragl, Bridgend, will be the first to follow the design of the innovative Solcer House at Stormy Down near Bridgend. The Solcer House was Wales’ first low cost energy-positive house, which can generate more heat and

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electricity than it uses over a year and was designed and built by the Welsh School of Architecture at Cardiff University.

Like the Solcer House, our new energy-positive homes will incorporate features that collect and store thermal and electrical energy, meaning that the householders living in them could generate more electricity than they actually use and could have free heat and lighting.

Key technologies used in the homes include: • Roofs made of photovoltaic (solar) panels instead of tiles • Lithium-ion batteries which store electricity generated by the sun which can be used by householders at night or during overcast days • Air source heat pumps and mechanical ventilation with heat recovery which use heat from the air to power the

BUILD IT

house’s heating and hot water system • Steel wall panels (Transpired Solar Collectors (TSC)), on the southerly exterior wall which gather free heat from the sun The homes will also be fitted with energy-efficient windows and doors, highly insulated walls and LED lighting.

The plans were approved

by Bridgend County Borough Council’s planning and development committee recently.

The development will be a mix of one bedroom apartments and two and four bedroom houses.

Work on the scheme is expected to start later this

year and will take around 12 months to complete.

Shayne Hembrow, Deputy Chief Executive at WWH, said: “We are excited to be leading the way on this innovative project to build energy-positive homes for the future.

“Using the latest technologies available, these homes have been designed to reduce energy demand and use renewable systems and on-site energy storage along with the use of low carbon materials.

“By generating, storing and releasing their own energy, the design of these homes should lead to extremely low running costs for families.

“These homes will be easy to live in, cheap to run and will make a real difference to our residents. We hope that in the not too distant future all homes will be built this way.”

Dr Jo Patterson, who was project manager for the construction of the Solcer House, said: “It is fantastic to see a social housing company want to lead the way in innovative housing to save energy and reduce fuel bills significantly for their householders by combining reduced energy demand, renewable energy supply and energy storage technologies.

“This will be a great step forward towards reducing fuel poverty, reducing the use of fossil fuels and mitigating climate change.”

IN THE PIPELINE

North Wales: Flintshire Plans for 44 new affordable homes in Holywell have been approved following public consultation. The new development will be situated on 1.66 hectares of land west of Brignant, Halkyn Road, near to Holywell Hospital and Holywell Town Football Club. A play area or public open space will be built to the north east of the site under the plans.

South Wales: Cardiff A scheme to build 101 new homes next door to Ikea in Cardiff Bay has been approved by the City of Cardiff Council. We are working to build a mix of 2,3 and 4 bedroom houses and 1 and 2 bed flats on the former railway embankment in Grangetown. The scheme will bring affordable housing to the capital’s popular regenerated bayside area.

West Wales: Ceredigion Plans for 20 new homes in Lampeter, are being considered by Ceredigion County Council.

Planners were due to visit the site at the end of March to consider the scheme put forward by Hacer Developments Limited who are working with us to develop the site of the former Ysgol Ffynonbedr.

The site has been identified for general housing in Ceredigion County Council’s Local Development Plan. The proposal seeks to demolish the former red brick building and replace it with 12 one bedroom flats and eight two and three bedroom houses.

The planned homes will be energyefficient, modern and built to a high standard, while being affordable for local families to rent and heat.

If approved the scheme would bring a vacant brownfield site back into use for much-needed affordable homes for people in the Lampeter area. wwha.co.uk

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BUILD IT

BUILD IT

New homes for

historic Pembrokeshire town Wales & West Housing will soon start work on a £1 million scheme to bring eight new affordable homes to the popular and historic town of Newport, Pembrokeshire.

We have bought the former Parrog Pottery and yard in the centre of the town for the development. Work will soon start on the one and two bedroom houses and apartments, which will be available for local people to rent.

Newport is a popular place for holidaymakers and second home owners. The average cost of a one bed flat in the town is around £125,000 and more than £200,000 for a two bedroom house, putting many homes out of the reach of local families.

Haverfordwest builders WB Griffiths are due to start work on site later this spring. The development is expected to

take 12 months to complete and follows last summer’s consultation with local residents.

WWH’s Deputy Chief Executive Shayne Hembrow said: “This is an excellent opportunity to develop quality affordable housing in an area where many local people are

struggling to get on the property ladder.

“The scheme will create employment opportunities during the building phase and, when finished, will provide muchneeded affordable housing in this popular coastal town.

Supported living scheme for Powys

Plans for a new WWH supported living scheme on the site of a former cattle market car park in mid Wales have been approved.

The development off Foundry 10

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Lane, Welshpool, will feature two general needs and six supported living bungalows for people with learning difficulties.

Advanced technology will

allow things like lighting, heating and security to be controlled remotely, ensuring residents' needs are met more reliably.

Timber frame construction is also central to the design.

Where possible, preference will be given to local suppliers at the construction stage, particularly for timber products.

Shayne Hembrow, WWH Deputy Chief Executive, said: "The plans consist of two general needs and six supported living bungalows

BUILD IT

WE ARE BUILDING MORE HOMES AROUND WALES “There is high demand for affordable homes in Newport and we are delighted to be working with Pembrokeshire County Council, the National Park Planning Authority and Newport Town Council on this scheme.

Cllr John Griffiths, vice chair of Newport Town Council, added: “Newport Town Council fully supports this scheme.

Having more good quality homes in Newport that local people can afford to rent is vital if we want to keep our community vibrant.”

The new development will bring the total number of Wales & West Housing homes in the town up to 34, as the association already owns homes at Maes Ingli and Cysgod y Dderwen.

with staff on site to provide care to people with additional needs. This will enable people with learning difficulties to lead independent lives in their own homes.

"There is a clear, identified need for this type of quality, affordable social housing in Welshpool and we are pleased to be working in partnership with Powys County Council and the Welsh Government to deliver the scheme."

The last quarter has been a busy time for us as we’ve been preparing building schemes to start on site January to March 2018, which will provide around 200 much-needed homes across Wales.

Our experience has proven that by working closely in partnership with contractors we are much more likely to build better quality homes, more quickly.

Therefore, during the last quarter we have started the lengthy process to put new

long-term partnering contracts in place, allowing us to work closely with a series of contractors over a number of years.

We expect these contracts will be in place in the autumn and will then allow us to make long-term plans to increase the number of new homes we build across Wales.

By using the skills of our new partners, who are experts in managing the complex processes involved in building new homes, we can be more effective in the way we build our new homes.

Where we are building Where we will be starting on-site by the end of March 2018

43 4 New homes we started to build during October to December, in addition to the 236 we already have on site.

new homes were completed

during October to December to go with the 106 we completed during the rest of 2017 wwha.co.uk 11

BUILD IT and Regulatory Services, recently toured the new building site.

She said “There is a local need for good quality, well designed homes and the site at Penwallis is supporting this need. There is a good mix of homes which it is hoped will create a community environment and I look forward to working with Wales & West in the future in order to provide good quality homes for the people of Pembrokeshire.

Anne Hinchey, Chief Executive for Wales & West Housing, said: “We are delighted to be providing good quality, affordable homes for residents in Fishguard.

“Over the next three years we aim to build more than 50 new homes in Pembrokeshire and invest more than £7million in the construction industry in West Wales.

“We are also working with local contractors and suppliers on an investment programme which will make our Pembrokeshire homes modern, energy efficient and a place our residents can be proud to live.”

Bringing new homes to Fishguard

Work has started on a £4 million housing scheme to bring 30 affordable homes to Fishguard.

Wales & West Housing (WWH) has employed West Wales builders Morgan Construction Wales to build 30 new houses on land off Penwallis Road. Building started in January and is due to be finished in June 2019.

The scheme is made up of seven three bedroom houses, 17 two bedroom houses and bungalows and six one bedroom apartments. All homes will be a mixture of detached or semi-

detached properties.

Overlooking Fishguard Bay, the Penwallis Road site is the second new home development Wales & West Housing is building in the town. A pair of two bedroom semi-detached homes at Dan y Bryn are also due to be completed in April 2018.

Both developments are being part funded by the Welsh Government in partnership with Pembrokeshire County Council.

Fishguard councillor Pat Davies, Pembrokeshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Housing

Protecting bats in Ruabon Wales & West Housing is working with ecologists to protect bats at the site of a former garage in Ruabon, near Wrexham in North Wales.

The land was acquired by WWH last year, with plans to demolish derelict homes which now stand there and build a row of new twobed social housing properties.

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Three surveys are being carried out between now and the end of May to ensure bats found living at the site are unharmed by any development.

Anne Hinchey, Chief Executive of Wales & West Housing, said: “We are pleased to be in a position to bring more affordable homes to Wrexham

but protecting the bats is a priority. We hope to gain planning permission and start working on site as soon as possible after the surveys have been completed and we have taken advice and recommendations from ecologists.”

REGENERATING OUR HOMES

£35 million

Our

homes makeover Over the next three years we will be investing more than £35 million upgrading our homes across Wales to make them among the most modern and energy efficient in Wales.

We also replaced 564 new boilers to make it cheaper and easier for residents to keep their homes warm.

In North and South Wales much of the work has been carried out by our in-house maintenance team. In West Wales we are working with small and mediumsized Welsh contractors to support both local employment and skills training.

Some of the major works carried out this year include:

We’ve already spent more than kitchens, windows £40 million over the last five years and doors. In 2017 we replaced replacing old and tired kitchens 462 kitchens and fitted new and bathrooms, draughty windows and doors to 44 windows and doors, leaky roofs, schemes and 27 individual old and inefficient heating and homes. boilers and improving external decorating works (including £11.4 • New roofs and associated million in just the last 12 months). cavity wall insulation removal This, together with our £35 and improved ventilation at million investment over the next Our aim Twyncarmel, Merthyr. three years, brings our spend to over the next more than £75 million by 2020.

3 years is that: That means that for every £1 we received in rent schemes will get new windows, almost 50p goes back doors and roofline works into new kitchens, bathrooms, upgrades , will get more efficient, servicing, cheaper forms repairs, of heating major works and homes will be fitted cyclical with heat pumps and planned work.

Last year we invested our money in more than 2,300 homes domestic kitchens bathrooms and 200 scheme boilers communal areas.

By far the biggest area of our spending is in

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REGENERATING OUR HOMES

• New gutters, fascia boards and exterior cleaning and painting to get rid of the unsightly red algae at Gwelfor, Pembrokeshire.

• New heating systems at Oldwell Court, Cardiff, Celyn Avenue, Cardiff and Llys Ben Bowen Thomas, Rhondda.

• Replaced electric storage heaters with heat pumps at Bull Terrace and Gwaun Yr Odyn in Powys and new communal boilers at Oxford and Richway House.

• Built a new plant room at Celyn Avenue, Cardiff, to house a new boiler with new heating in each individual flat being fitted this year.

• Fitted 22 homes in West Wales with heat pumps including 13 at Hengell Uchaf, Newquay.

• Spent £360,000 on new kitchens in various homes and schemes in North Wales including Newton Lodge and Maelor Place, Ruabon.

• Carried out a “Whole House Review” to insulate, draft proof and ventilate 130

homes, at an average cost of £1,130 per home.

• Replaced fencing, pavements and across 212 schemes in total, at around £1.2 million.

Residents at Clos Crofft, Croesgoch, Haverfordwest, have seen great improvement to their homes. In the last year we used local contractors J & P Home Improvements to replace windows and doors and Colin Darby Homes to clean and paint the exteriors.

Resident Rhian Reynolds said: “It’s so nice to see the houses looking fresh and clean.

“I’ve lived here for 14 years and nothing has been done so I am really happy with the work Wales & West Housing have carried out.”

Father-of-four John Coley is seeing the benefit of having lower bills after having the expensive electricity storage heaters replaced with an air source heat pump system.

He said: “The new system is brilliant. The bedrooms are warmer and my electricity bills are half the cost.”

Refurbished properties at Clos Crofft 14

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Before

Residents at Gwelfor are proud of their “new homes” following a £150,000 makeover.

West Wales contractors WCS Environmental & Building Maintenance moved in with their scaffolding and cleaning

L-R: William Mains of contractors WCS with resident Lorraine Howell, Councillor Pat Davies and WWH Chief Executive Anne Hinchey at Gwelfor

REGENERATING OUR HOMES

Gwelfor

brought back to life

householder’s chosen colour of white, grey or cream. While the scaffolding was in place they also replaced and repaired fascias, gutters and soffits. Some of the homes have also been fitted with new kitchens.

Pembrokeshire councillor Pat Davies, who is councillor for Fishguard, recently

“I’m really happy with my new kitchen.

It’s more modern and functional”

equipment in August to begin work to rid the 32 homes of the ugly red algae.

The work is part of a £400,000 investment in the area over the next two to three years to upgrade windows and doors and

repair fencing around the area.

Using specialist chemicals, the contractors cleaned off the red fungus, which affects the outside of many homes in seaside areas. Then they repainted all the exterior walls, in the

visited the scheme to see the improvements.

Resident Lorraine Howell said: “The houses look alive again. The whole area is so much better.”

Lorraine has lived at Gwelfor for 12 years with her son, now aged 12. She added: “I’m really happy with my new kitchen. It’s more modern and functional and it’s going to be great for big family get-togethers.”

Mrs Brenda Roach, who has lived at Gwelfor for more than 20 years, added: “The whole site looks like new. It’s so much better.”

Lorraine Howell in her new kitchen, with Anne Hinchey and Councillor Pat Davies

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REGENERATING OUR HOMES

How do we decide what to renew?

We decide which schemes are in need of refurbishment in line with the Welsh Housing Quality Standard, which sets out the guidance that all social homes in Wales should be safe, secure, fuel efficient and well-insulated with up-to-date kitchens and bathrooms.

We look at kitchens, which are more than 15 years old, and bathrooms, more than 25 years old. Our staff inspect and monitor homes regularly and make recommendations for improvements.

We decide when to replace roofs based on the number of

times we get called out to repair them. Boilers are replaced when they are no longer working properly and cannot be repaired.

If your home or scheme is due for some major work, we will write to you a couple of months before work starts to let you know.

PENNY FOR PENNY - WHERE EVERY POUND OF YOUR RENT IS SPENT £

3p

23p

20p

18p

Contribution towards new developments

People

New kitchens, bathrooms & equipment

Maintenance

15p

8p

6p

7p

Repayments on loans

Overheads

Interest on loans Major repairs 18 wwha.co.uk 16

For every £1 we receive in rent we put almost 50p back into improving and maintaining our existing homes to make them more modern and efficient.

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We also invest in new homes for the future using a combination of loans and grants. For every £1 we receive in rent, we are able to utilise £1.47 by raising further funding.

How much it costs per home to run our business:

Maintenence +£441 Managment +£216 Other +£44 =£701

NEWS

Lifesaving lessons for older residents Residents at Oak Court retirement scheme in Penarth had free first aid training in how to cope in a crisis from the charity British Red Cross.

The training, part of the charity’s risis training, was aimed at groups who support people who are at a greater risk of trips and falls and other health issues.

The residents were given tailored advice on how to help older people in a health or first aid emergency by Claire Greenhouse, Crisis Education Co-Ordinator. During the session they learnt how to give CPR, what to do if someone collapsed and

how to identify the signs of an overdose or heart attack.

Residents Sylvia Nelson, Julie Rideout and Linda Morgan, were among the residents taking part.

They said: “It was very helpful and gave us lots of knowledge about first aid. Now we feel that we have a bit more confidence to give first aid if one of our friends or neighbours was in need of help.”

The British Red Cross are offering free ‘skills to cope in a crisis’ training to other

groups and organisations in Wales.

If your social group or scheme could benefit from these free skills please contact Claire Hammond, Wales & West Housing on 07766 832692 or 0800 052 2526.

Juniors at Mold Rugby Club benefit from new kit

Under 13s at Mold Rugby Club are taking to the field in new kit thanks to a £1000 donation from Wales & West Housing.

The cash provided new contact tops for 26 players and six coaches for the squad, based on Chester Road in the North Wales town.

It proved to be a timely seasonal boost for the team, keeping them warm, dry and maximising their training through the winter.

Manager Jen Goodfellow said: “All of the players, coaches and parents at Mold rugby club U13s

would like to say a huge thank you for the sponsorship of our new contact tops.

“We are so pleased at how smart and professional they look.

The boys will wear the new tops to every training session and game.”

The U13s are the youngest of four junior teams at the Club, with squads up to U16.

WWH provides sponsorship to community organisations across Wales every year, making a difference to people’s lives, homes and communities through its Making a Difference

sponsorship.

This is the first time that we have provided funding for the junior rugby team, which recently gained charitable status.

WWH Chief Executive, Anne Hinchey, said: “We’re delighted the new training tops have made such a difference to all of the squad at Mold Rugby Club U13s.

“They work and train so hard for their matches, so we’re pleased to see how the new kit has given a boost to their training.

We wish the squad the best of luck for the rest of the season.” wwha.co.uk 17

NEW HOMES

Families move into new Cardiff homes Cardiff delivery driver Kevin Buckley is looking forward to bringing his family up in one of the city's newest housing developments.

Kevin, wife Giselle and 15-month-old baby Niall were one of the first families to get the keys to their new two bedroom home at Fford Williamson, St Edeyrn's Village, Cardiff.

The 44 two and three bed houses have been built by Persimmon as part of their affordable homes allocation on the new development of more than 1,000 homes on the site close to Cardiff Gate.

Before moving to Fford Williamson, Kevin had been living in one of our one bedroom flats in Fairwater for nine years. But when Niall was born they needed more space.

"The old flat was pretty overcrowded for a family and we had been waiting a long time for a transfer.

"Our new home is so much better, we have more space, an extra bedroom for Niall and a garden for him to play in, which is amazing.

"Plus my work is just down the road. It's a lovely area and we are so excited to be part of a new community with schools and shops."

LETTING RIGHT FIRST TIME We understand that moving into a new home can be one of the most stressful times for anyone. We continue to listen to you to make sure that the service we provide keeps this stress to a minimum, and helps you to make the decision that the property offered is right for you.

We have seen in the last quarter that it took us a bit longer than usual to let some of our properties.

This was for a few reasons,

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including some where we took the opportunity to upgrade the kitchens and bathrooms while they were empty. We have also seen from speaking to applicants who have refused properties, that in some cases the property we have, is not quite right for the people on the waiting list. We continue to work with our local authority partners to make sure that when we have an empty property, we are able to match it to the right people.

Your new home

49%

of our homes were let on the first viewing

NEW HOMES

Kevin Buckley with his wife Giselle and 15-month-old baby Niall outside their new home

TO LET

e it On averag days took us 44 of our to let one homes

“

236

WELCOME We welcomed 236 new residents into our homes

A resident from Caerphilly told us: I’ve settled in well, met my neighbours and love living at the scheme. I love the fact I have my own space I can retreat to when I need. The property was perfect for me, it was clean and just lovely.

“

44

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RENEWING YOUR CAREER

Learning on the job

If you’ve had any repairs or improvements done to your home recently there’s a good chance one of our Cambria apprentices may have helped out – and they’re all part of a scheme which is helping to provide training leading to a recognised qualification in their chosen career.

We currently have 12 apprentices working within Cambria, gaining practical on-the-job training while working towards professional qualifications. Our apprentices have previously worked in shops, fast food restaurants or other similar service industry jobs.

Having a highly-skilled workforce is essential to keep all of Wales & West Housing’s (WWH) homes safe, energy efficient and in great condition.

In return for an extra pair of hands to help our skilled maintenance staff at Cambria, all of our apprentices receive a salary and real-life work experience with the goal of becoming qualified Cambria apprentices L-R back row: Bradley Davies, front row: Luke English, Tom Cook,

Bright future for Brian at Cambria Father-of-two Brian Coles is improving his career since joining our in-house maintenance team at Cambria.

Brian joined Cambria in September 2017, where he is working with the team fitting and upgrading kitchens in homes across the Cardiff area.

“I had been working in my old job for eight years but didn’t feel like I had any chance to develop.

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So when I saw the advert for Cambria apprentices I thought I’d apply,” said Brian.

He was shortlisted for interview and, even though he didn’t meet the criteria for an apprenticeship, Head of Cambria Peter Jackson was impressed by his initiative and offered him a job as a labourer in the kitchen refurbishment team.

“It’s brilliant working for

Cambria. I am learning on the job, gaining new skills and I enjoy working as part of the Cambria team. I feel that my future is promising.”

Peter Jackson said: “I was impressed by Brian, he showed initiative, a will to succeed and a desire to achieve a career that gave him a sense of purpose and self-improvement.

“Brian has shown great

RENEWING YOUR CAREER

after a number of years working on the job and attending college.

Twenty-year-old Dylan Jones had just finished college and been looking for work for two months when he joined Cambria’s apprentice scheme in September 2015. Now he is driven by the ambition to become ‘the best electrician in North Wales’.

He said: “Cambria has provided all the knowledge I need to be an electrician. I can now do a variety of electrical work and have even been able to advise family when they have an electrical problem.”

Similarly, former carpet fitter Ryan Jones, who is completing a multi skilled apprenticeship, has expanded his skills significantly and has new-found confidence to tackle everyday practical tasks, from basic plumbing, tiling and roofing to kitchen fitting.

Former McDonald’s employee Jamie Davies has aspirations for

the future of one day owning his own small business and the apprenticeship with Cambria is just the start of that journey. “I’ve learnt new things everyday,” he said.

“It’s the diversity of work, we are not working in the same place,” said Rhys Rogers, who is nearing the end of his apprenticeship. “Cambria is a good company to work for and I’m learning different things all the time.”

Luke English is working towards qualifying as a gas engineer: “I’m putting into practice the college work, gaining experience and confidence by being shown the correct way of working. I’m being paid to learn a skill, I get a variety of work to do and I receive support from Cambria.”

Peter Jackson, Head of Cambria, said: “It is a real

privilege to be able to provide training opportunities within Cambria and see all the apprentices gain experience and develop their skills.

“Their hard work is a credit to each of them and enables Cambria to put something back into the industry in which we operate.

“It all relates to our vision of making a difference to people’s lives, homes and communities.

This is very much about investing in the future and whilst we can never guarantee a full time role at the end of an apprenticeship, all will be fully qualified, equipped for the employment market and able to pursue their chosen career.”

We will be looking to recruit apprentices in June 2018. Check the Cambria website at: www. cambria-ltd.co.uk.

Robert Grainger, James Eyton, Jamie Davies, Liam Newman, Matthew McConnell; Ryan Jones, Rhys Rogers, Courtney Canter. Dylan Jones, not pictured.

“It’s brilliant working for Cambria. I am learning on the job, gaining new skills and I enjoy working as part of the Cambria team.” commitment and has settled in well. He is making a real difference to people’s lives, homes and communities.

“He is a testament to never giving up, looking at alternatives and always looking for positive outcomes. I hope Brian joining Cambria will be the beginning of a long and successful career.”

wwha.co.uk 21

NEWS

. . .

D L U O C U O Y F HAT I

W

MAKE MONEY DOING WHAT YOU LOVE? CARDIFF MAY 14TH - MAY 25TH 2018 POPUPBUSINESSSCHOOL.CO.UK/CARDIFF

LEARN HOW TO BE YOUR OWN BOSS AND MAKE MONEY DOING WHAT YOU LOVE WHO IS IT FOR? People who: • Need help to think of a business idea • Have lots of ideas but are stuck • Have a business idea but need help to start • Have already started something but are struggling to make it work WHEN AND WHERE? • Monday 14 May - Friday 25 May • 10am - 3pm • Cardiff City Centre, location TBC This event is sponsored by Cardiff City Council, Cadwyn Housing, Wales & West Housing and Wates and will be free for you to attend.

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LEARN HOW TO

START A BUSINESS WITH NO MONEY

BUILD A WEBSITE FOR FREE & GET ON GOOGLE

TAX, COMPANY SET-UP AND LEGAL STUFF

GET THE CONFIDENCE TO START

To register contact WWH on 0800 0522526 and ask for the People Development Team quoting PopUp Business School

RENEWING YOUR CAREER

Building skills

in the community

holder and pitch it to the experts A group of young people from in a Dragon’s Den style.

Cardiff had the chance to On the final day they were experience working life on a given a tour of a building site at building site and learn the skills Greenmeadow Road, Trowbridge, needed to work in the trade. where Wales & West Housing, The three-day Building Skills course was organised by Cambria (WWH) and Pendragon Design Maintenance Services and local building contractors Pendragon It’s a fantastic opportunity for Design and Build this group of young people ... in partnership they are now looking forward with East Cardiff, Llanedeyrn to their future. and Pentwyn Communities First.

(ECLP).

The first two days of the and Build are building 14 new Building Skills course was held at homes on the site of the former Cambria’s base in Cardiff, where Hendre pub. After a health and safety talk and tour of the new they were given the chance to try their hand at carpentry, tiling, homes, they had a go at brick laying and were later presented plumbing and electrical work.

They were also given a project to with a certificate of achievement design and build a mobile phone for completing the course.

“

”

The group was made up of six young people living in the community who were not in education, employment or training.

A spokesperson for ECLP said: “It was a fantastic opportunity for this group of young people for whom these opportunities are few and far between. WWH, Cambria and Pendragon put everything in place to make this training course an enjoyable experience for all who attended. The proof is in the pudding, as all the young people have either gone on to further training, employment or a work placement and are now looking forward to their future in the employment world.

wwha.co.uk 23

MONEY MATTERS

Do not be fooled out of your cash No one likes to admit they have been conned out of their money, but scams are designed to dupe you into parting with your hardearned cash. And they are “big business” for some criminals.

The charity Citizens Advice has the following advice on what to look out for and how to avoid being conned.

Some of the most common tricks

• Advanced fee scams which trick you into paying money upfront with the promise of receiving goods, services, or money later on. But none of these things ever arrive.

• Phishing where you receive an email that looks like it comes from a bank or credit card company asking for details of your account. These scams are designed to steal your money or personal identity.

• Vishing where you get a phone call from someone you think is from a bank or building society, fraud investigation team or the police. They try to get financial information from you such as your credit or debit card details (including PIN), bank account details and your full name, date of birth or address. This information is then used by the scammer to gain access to your finances or to get you to make payments into the scammer's account.

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• Fund transfer scams where you receive an email, letter or phone call asking you to receive a payment into your bank account. You’re asked to take this payment out in cash and send the money abroad using a money transfer service or similar method of transfer.

In return, you’re promised commission. You may never receive the commission.

Even if you do receive a small payment, you’re probably being used by criminals to launder money. You could be committing a serious criminal offence – as well as giving criminals details of your bank account.

• Investment opportunities where you may be contacted out of the blue and asked to buy shares in a company you’ve never heard of or invited to invest in gemstones or fine wines that are 'guaranteed' to rocket in price. You should never buy shares from firms that aren't authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority (the FCA) as you won't be entitled to any compensation if things go wrong.

Protect yourself from online scams

• Only allow someone to remotely access your computer if they are from a trusted source, such as your internet

service provider.

• Create passwords which are long, unique and use a mix of random numbers and lower and upper case letters (the longer the password the harder it is to guess - a 10 digit password is better than an 8 digit one).

• Make sure you change passwords regularly and don't share them or use the same passwords on multiple sites.

• Use antivirus software and keep it up to date so you'll be protected against the most recent viruses - if you buy software online make sure it is from a genuine supplier.

• Understand what software you are installing on your computer or phone and make sure you are using a secure site when you buy software, tablet or smart phone - a secure site will have a web address beginning with https, not http.

• Make sure your firewall is switched on - operating systems such as Windows come with built in firewall settings, which can monitor and warn you of unexpected access to your computer.

• Make sure you regularly install updates to your operating system (Windows is an example of an operating system).

• Install the latest version of your web browser, for example Internet Explorer, which will

MONEY MATTERS

have the latest security features.

• Don’t open suspicious or unknown emails, email attachments, texts or pop up messages - for example an email with an unusually worded subject heading.

• No genuine company will contact you to ask for your log-in details, such as your password or user ID - you should only need to provide this information when you are logging onto a service such as

online banking.

• Before entering payment card details on a website, make sure the link is secure.

If you get a possible scam email

If you've opened a scam email don’t reply to it and don’t click on any links or pictures, or open any attachments. If you've already clicked on a link and opened a website, don’t give any personal information.

For more information visit: Citizens Advice www.citizensadvice.org.uk Action Fraud 0300 123 2040 Textphone: 0300 123 2050 or visit their website www.actionfraud. police.uk If you think a company has broken the law or acted unfairly, you might be able to report them to the Trading Standards department at your local council.

Card payments Direct debit is by far the quickest and easiest way of paying your rent. If you haven’t already done this, you can set up a direct debit by speaking to your housing officer. Although our Customer Service Centre takes payments 24/7 we can’t accept card payments on behalf of someone else. If you are calling to make a card payment, please make sure that the card is in your name or the card holder is with you - even if it is your husband, wife or partner.

NEARLY HALF OF OUR RESIDENTS PAY BY DIRECT DEBIT You told us that making it as straightforward to pay your rent as possible was important to you.

We continue to offer Direct Debits as our preferred primary payment method. The takeup of Direct Debits continues to increase, with over 1000 more of you paying by Direct Debit than at the same point last year.

Many of you will have, or will be about to start, receiving

Universal Credit. We have been working with those residents receiving Universal Credit, and with the Department of Works and Pensions, to understand if we are doing all that we can to make sure that this transition is as smooth as possible.

As the rollout of Universal Credit continues in 2018, we will continue to offer support and advice to wherever needed.

We have been helping residents to: • Apply for UC online and ensure they receive their entitlement at the right time • Sustain tenancies by challenging benefit decisions where they feel they should be eligible • Apply for grants to help furnish their new homes

EVICTION NOTICE

81% 42% (4895)

PAY

of tenancies are paying their rent on time or paying off their arrears

4

evictions because of rent arrears wwha.co.uk 25

ANTI-SOCIAL BEHAVIOUR

Anti-social behaviour (ASB) review We recently undertook a review of the way we tackle ASB. We listened to the demand of our residents who told us what mattered most to them, which was that: • Residents are supported to deal with issues that are affecting them • Residents are listened to, and the right problem to fix is fully understood • Residents are supported to get the right help at the right time • Residents feel safe in their homes and communities • Residents are kept informed

Having taken these comments on board, we decided that our purpose would be:

To support residents to feel safe in their homes and communities With this purpose in mind, we will make a commitment to work with our residents to tackle ASB as quickly and efficiently as we can.

Tenancy sustainability is foremost in our minds and we will endeavour to ensure that a restorative approach to problem solving is adopted where it is practical and reasonable to do so.

Eviction will be a last resort, however there are exceptions to this, for example where there is drug activity.

Anyone suspecting drug activity should call 101, except in emergencies where 999 would be more appropriate. In addition, residents are encouraged to contact their housing officer on their mobile telephone numbers or by calling the customer service centre on 0800 052 2526, where the information will be passed to the relevant housing officer.

We will work closely with the Police and other agencies to help eradicate drugs dealing from our homes and communities.

AGGRESSIVE BEHAVIOUR IS THE BIGGEST ANTISOCIAL BEHAVIOUR PROBLEM FOR OUR RESIDENTS To make sure that we continue to do the right thing, we have been reviewing our anti-social behaviour system based on what you have told us matters to you.

ASB

We appreciate that where a situation in your community becomes difficult it can feel like moving the person perceived to be causing the problem, or moving d yourself can feel like the only way out. We have found, from speaking to our opene cases d residents, that often a bit of support and confidence to start a conversation is e pen or reo what is needed to resolve a situation. Our Housing and Neighbourhood Dispute Officers have all received training in this type of approach, and we have seen that it has been successful all across Wales.

38

1

Harassment and aggressive behaviour is the biggest issue faced by our residents 38 26

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2

Noise is the second biggest problem for our residents

CORPORATE

SATISFACTION AND COMPLAINTS COMPLAINTS

RESOLVING COMPLAINTS

SATISFACTION

8

8

8.2

We had eight complaints in the latest quarter. The biggest area of complaints came from our Fix My Home service. Out of 8,199 repairs we carried out during the last three-months, we received 6 complaints. That’s one complaint out of an average of 1,350 repairs.

On average, we took eight working days to resolve complaints. Having the opportunity to solve your complaint is important to us and we would encourage you to call, email or speak to a Wales & West Housing staff member.

We scored highly with 9.4 out of 10 in our resident satisfaction survey for repairs.

This level of satisfaction was also reflected in our I Want A Home service, where you also rated us 9.4 out of 10.

Our anti-social behaviour satisfaction was lower, where you rated us 5.8 out of 10 in resident feedback.

ON AVERAGE IT TAKES AROUND 26 SECONDS TO ANSWER YOUR CALLS We receive a lot of calls from our residents and we prioritise answering those calls quickly and effectively. We were pleased that our average call answering times were significantly reduced in the last three quarters, falling almost 28% from 36 to 26 seconds on average.

we received

33K

calls

Calling WWH

95% of calls received were answered

26 seconds

is the average time it took us to answer your calls - less time than it takes to boil a kettle!

After 12pm

is a quieter call time than before 12pm. Call us then if you can. wwha.co.uk wwha.co.uk 27 39

CUSTOMER SERVICE CENTRE

Emergency alarm service In last year’s report, we talked about moving to our new office at Archway House and the new software we were having installed to monitor Emergency Alarms equipment.

Our move took place at the end of February and this meant that the first part of the year was spent training team members to use the software efficiently and ensuring our records were all up to date and accurate.

With more than 11,200 individual records, you can imagine this was quite a task.

To help ensure our service is safe for all our customers and provides a high quality response whenever we are needed, each year we are independently audited by the TSA (Technology Enabled Care Services Association).

The audit process changed during the latter part of 2017 and this has meant even more focus on what our customers want from our service and what they think of the service we provide.

All the great comments we receive from customers are passed to the team member who answered the call and any suggestions for improvement are reviewed and, wherever possible, we make changes to try to deliver a better service in the future.

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During 2017: we made and received

178,000

alarm calls we arranged emergency help almost

2,000 times

3

we received :

complaints

All

21

comments for improvement were thoroughly investigated and our findings and actions taken were discussed with the customers involved.

Looking forward Our focus will remain on improving our services and working closely with our customers and partners during 2018.

We are preparing for

changes to the Data Protection Regulations due later in the year and looking at potential implications to alarm monitoring when telephone lines change to digital (rather than analogue)

CUSTOMER SERVICE CENTRE

2017 annual report

850

we sent out

99%

we answered

of customers who returned their surveys said our team were “courteous, professional and helpful” when we answered their alarm call

94%

of incoming alarm activations within

1 minute 99.5% 3 minutes and

within

over the next few years.

We will also continue to send out surveys throughout 2018. If you receive one, please complete it and return it to us - your feedback is vital to help us with

customer satisfaction surveys

97%

said we were able to help them

96%

were satisfied overall with the alarm service

98%

said the service is good value for money

continuous improvement.

You can also comment on any aspect of our service by using the “Contact Us” feature on our Website or by telephoning us on 0800 052 2526.

2018

wwha.co.uk 29

YOUR STORIES

Nick brings military precision to his pastimes

In service on board HMS Victorious

The photo on the deck of HMS Victorious, which he based his painting on

20 30

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Retired serviceman Nick Carter is a man of many talents.

His neighbours at the Llain Las Independent Living Scheme in Fishguard know him as the bass-playing half of the jazz duo Tonic.

Together with his friend Tony, Nick entertains his neighbours every other Monday afternoon in the communal lounge.

Away from his music, Nick, aged 90, has a talent for painting and one of his recent creations has found a place at one of the country’s top military museums. His painting of the flight deck of HMS Victorious in the South China Sea has been accepted by the Fleet Air Arm Museum at Yeovilton.

Nick served in the Royal Navy for 22 years on several aircraft carriers and at various naval air stations. He joined as a Naval Aircraft Apprentice in 1943 and reached the rank of Chief Aircraft Artificer. During his military career he was stationed in Dale and RAF Brawdy in Pembrokeshire and Yeovilton.

He and his wife Olive moved to Llain Las in 2014.

He says: “I like to paint when the fit takes me. The painting was inspired by a photograph I took when I was serving in the Royal Navy in 1961. The photo was taken early one morning before the

launch of 892 Squadron Sea Vixens. It shows the Gannet aircraft of 849B Squadron and the Whirlwind helicopters of 825 Squadron.

“I took the photo from the structure on the side of the Flight Deck known as the 'Island' and it clearly shows the off-watch crew members, who we fondly referred to as 'goofers', waiting to watch the Sea Vixens take off from the deck.

“I didn’t want the painting to end up in the dustbin, so I wrote to the museum at Yeovilton and asked them if they would like it. They put it before their ‘hanging committee’ and decided they would like it and arranged for it to be collected.”

“It’s nice to know that my work will be appreciated by visitors to the museum.”

Nick on double bass in one of the many bands he played with

YOUR STORIES

Nick Carter painting at his home at Llain Las

Independence gives James a new lease of life A new lease of life from living independently has given resident James Cope the chance to volunteer and become more active in the community.

James has complex additional needs, which mean he requires 24/7 care, but 18 months ago he moved into a specially-adapted new home in Ruabon, near Wrexham in North Wales.

The Liverpool John Moores University graduate has now started volunteering as an administrative assistant with North Wales Police and takes part in a monthly Scrabble group in the Ruabon area. He also enjoys playing curling.

“My path since leaving

university has taken a unique twist,” he said. “When most people graduate all they think about achieving is their employability status, then the accommodation side comes after a few years.

“However, the situation that I face now allows me to focus on other ambitions - health and personal relationships for example.”

James lived in a speciallyadapted flat in Liverpool while studying for his degree and had been searching for his dream home for more than a decade – even constructing a YouTube video outlining his vision.

“Overall, independent living

has given me a whole set of challenges which I’m trying to deal with successfully,” he said.

“My life has gone full circle in the last 10 years from dreaming of my own home to it becoming reality. My grateful thanks to all of those involved in making it happen, including Wales & West Housing.”

wwha.co.uk

FIX IT

How to check the RCD in your home

An RCD monitor, more commonly known as a trip switch, may sound technical, but it is a big switch with an important part to play in saving your life and your home if an electrical fault happens.

What does it do?

It’s like a lifeguard for your electrics and controls the electricity around your home. If something dangerous happens it will “trip” and switch off the electricity in the faulty circuit.

Examples include if one of the cables in your home is worn, or you damaged a cable with a nail

or screw when hanging a photo frame on your wall. It’s like the adapter you may have when you plug in your lawnmower, which will cut out and stop you getting electrocuted if you mow through the cable. But an RCD is even better as it protects you on more than one socket.

button embossed with a ‘T’.

So you may have an electrician tell you that they can’t put your new light up in the garden without installing an ‘RCD’. It all sounds like a secret code doesn’t it? Well, in this case it isn’t code and the term RCD is as worth hearing as the word lifeguard.

Where can I find it?

Do you test yours?

It’s a big switch, which can usually be found next to the fuse board in your house It should be either on the left or right of the row of other circuit breakers and has an on/off switch and an important little plastic

You should test your RCD every three months, but most people don’t know how or may be are a bit scared to do it. It’s a good habit to test it at the same time as you test your smoke or carbon monoxide alarms.

HOW QUICKLY DO WE FIX 0 YOUR HOME? d The way we deliver a strong repairs system is by focusing on aspects that really matter to you, that is that the work is done well, remains fixed and inconveniences you as little as possible.

We believe the key to always making this service delivery better is getting our managers working closely with our operatives and dealing with things that stop the operative achieving this.

26 30 32

wwha.co.uk wwha.co.uk wwha.co.uk

During the winter months, the challenge is often about making sure you can heat your home and also that you feel secure.

One of our key areas of focus has been with our electricians and gas engineers, making sure that they have all the right parts on their van to solve the heating and lighting problems that face them, enabling you to live in your home in comfort.

ay 5 s

64%

of your repairs were completed in 0 - 5 days

5% better than the quarter before

FIX IT

Before you do it, be aware that all the power to your fridge, TV, computers, washing machines and alarms will switch off for a few seconds, so make sure you’re not in the middle of a load of washing or make sure you save important work on your computer.

Then press the yellow button (the one with the T on it – although this is small and you

may not be able to see it clearly).

The switch should ping down.

To switch back on, just pull it all the way to the bottom (if it’s not already at the bottom after it has pinged), and push it back up. All your electrical appliances should now be switched back on but to be sure go and check them.

If the switch doesn’t ping down, it might not be working properly and could be hiding an electrical hazard. In this case you will need

RCD Unit with the switch in the ‘down’ position

8199 repairs were

71%

completed in the last quarter

What to do if your RCD switches off If your RCD does trip, it is quite often something simple. Faulty kettles, toasters and washing machines are the biggest culprits.

So ask yourself what you were doing when the electricity cut out. Were you making a cup of tea or a piece of toast, or had you just started your washing machine or tumble drier?

If the answer is yes, unplug the suspect appliance and switch the RCD back on. If it still trips, try unplugging other appliances on the circuit and resetting.

If this still doesn’t work call the repairs team on 0800 052 2526.

of your repairs were completed on our first visit to you

2% better than the quarter before

A resident from Merthyr Tydfil said: Operative was very polite and professional, I could not fault him and would recommended him.

“

“

to call the repairs team on 0800 052 2526 and book an electrical inspection.

“

A resident from Bridgend said:

“

How do I test it?

I would have liked to have a quicker response.

wwha.co.uk 31

wwha.co.uk 33

HEALTH AND SAFETY

Help us to protect others from

passive smoking In 2007 Welsh Government introduced the law making enclosed public places and workplaces in Wales smoke free.

It has been a number of years since the law was introduced and in many places business and local authorities have extended areas of no smoking to include open air eating areas, beer gardens, public open spaces, etc.

If you are a smoker you will have already encountered this law in action by being prevented from smoking in and around public places including on buses and trains.

Wales & West Housing (WWH) has a duty of care to employees, residents and contractors to make sure they can work or visit premises that are as smoke free as is reasonably possible and we are asking our residents to support us.

Why are we asking for your help?

There are numerous, well-known health risks to smokers, such as the increased risk of strokes, heart attacks and lung disease.

However, the risk of passive smoking or exposure to secondhand smoke can cause eyeirritation, headaches, sore throats, nausea, asthma attacks and also cause long term health problems.

We want to protect the rights and health of those people who do not want to be exposed to second-hand smoke.

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What are we asking you to help us with?

You are, of course, allowed to smoke in your own home and our policy doesn’t stop you doing this.

However we are asking residents (including your family or friends who may be visiting) not to smoke when a member of staff or a contractor visits your home, and also not to smoke immediately prior to any prearranged visit.

We are also asking residents who smoke to help us protect our staff, contractors and visitors by opening windows or doors to ventilate their homes before such a visit.

On the rare occasions when smoke is considered to be excessive, our staff and contractors may refuse to carry out non-essential repairs or planned maintenance or ask to meet the resident off site. In some extreme cases, they may even refuse to visit.

Smoking is prohibited at all times at: • WWH’s offices including reception areas, car parking areas and on the pavement close to the building. Smokers will be asked to smoke a reasonable distance away from the premises.

• Internal communal areas such as lounges, kitchens and restaurants.

• Main entrances to blocks of flats Other residents and visitors have the right not to be affected

by second-hand smoke when accessing their property or through their open windows when in their properties.

Smoking will not be allowed in shared supported housing.

If you live in a property managed by an external organisation to WWH, you will need to check their smoking guidelines.

What might change?

Current communal smoking facilities will be removed when no longer in a safe condition, rather than being repaired or replaced.

Residents in newly-built Extra Care schemes will not have internal or external smoking facilities. Existing facilities in Extra Care schemes will also be removed when no longer in a safe condition.

What will happen if I don’t want to help?

Residents found in breach of the policy may be visited at their home. Staff will advise them of the breach and discuss how they can change their behaviour. If a resident continues to breach the policy it may result in reduced levels of service or enforcement action.

NEWS

Fire Safety

Smoking is still one of the biggest causes of house or flat fires. Here are a few tips to prevent a fire from happening: • Never smoke in bed, you could fall asleep and set your bed on fire.

• Take extra care when you are tired or have been drinking alcohol, or taken certain medication, as it is easy to fall asleep while a cigarette is still burning.

• Never leave cigarettes, cigars or pipes unattended.

• Do not empty a hot ashtray into a bin, wait until the cigarette and ash has cooled down.

• For fire safety advice in your home contact your Housing Officer who can advise you on how to get help from your local Fire Service Home Safety team. Our property services team may also visit you if you are vulnerable and need advice on how to stay safe and prevent fire in your home.

Additional support

If you would like any help to stop smoking you can seek some health advice through your GP and Help Me Quit http://www.helpmequit.wales/ 0800 085 2219

Make insurance

your premium concern If you were unlucky enough to suffer a break-in or a fire broke out in your home, what would you do?

The cost of replacing lost or damaged carpets, furniture, TVs and other household items can mount up to thousands of pounds.

Have you thought about the cost of replacing what you’d lost?

And more to the point could you afford it? That’s when having your belongings insured will help take the financial sting out of an already stressful situation.

Similarly, if you were unfortunate enough to have a flood caused by a burst pipe or storm damage and other risks, it could also cost thousands to replace your damaged belongings.

Community Housing Cymru and the National Housing Federation run a My Home Contents Insurance scheme for residents. They offer flexible fortnightly, or monthly, cash payments using a swipe card or monthly direct debit payments.

You can also pay once a year using a cheque, postal order, debit or credit card.

Prices start from £1.79 a fortnight or £65.89 a year, if your possessions are valued at the lowest rate of £9,000.

If you are over 60 you can insure your belongings for a minimum of £6,000 for as little as £1.34 a fortnight or £43.93 a year.

Plus there is no excess to pay, so if you do have to make a claim you don’t have to pay the first part of it.

Call My Home directly on 0345 450 7288 for an application pack or call our freephone number 0800 052 2526. You can also speak to your Housing Officer. The pack tells you how you can work out the value of your possessions and includes a price card for WWH residents. If you prefer, we can send you an application pack – contact us to arrange this.

Visit www.thistlemyhome.co.uk for more information. With all insurance policies, you have to make sure that it is right for you, your needs and the value of your possessions. Please shop around to make sure you get the right policy for you.

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HEALTHY LIVING

Time to spring clean your life as well as your home?

A recent campaign by the Welsh fire service highlighted the dangers of hoarding, but what can you do if you know someone at risk?

It may be the traditional time for spring cleaning your home, but what happens if you are among the thousands of people who just can’t get rid of items?

Piling up worthless and useless items, such as junk mail, carrier bags or broken items, in a chaotic way can be a tell-tale sign of a hoarding disorder.

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Such a disorder can be a problem for several reasons.

It can take over the person's life, making it very difficult for them to get around their house. It can cause their work performance, personal hygiene and relationships to suffer.

Hoarding can also lead to wider issues and pose an increased fire

risk to the person’s safety.

Recent statistics from the Welsh Fire Service showed that 25% to 30% of fire deaths were related to hoarding.

It’s estimated that 150,000 people in Wales are affected by the disorder and 670 extreme hoarders are known to the fire services.

HEALTHY LIVING

When is it a problem?

According to the NHS Choices website, hoarding becomes a problem when the clutter: • interferes with everyday living – for example, the person is unable to use their kitchen or bathroom and cannot access rooms.

• causes distress or negatively affects the person's quality of life – for example, they become upset if someone tries to clear the clutter and their relationships with others suffer as a result.

“

The hoarding could also be a sign of an underlying condition, such as OCD, other types of anxiety or depression and potentially more serious conditions such as dementia.

The difficulty is that many hoarders don't see it as a problem, or don’t realise the impact it’s having on their lives and the people around them.

Others may realise they have a problem but feel too embarrassed or ashamed to speak to others.

Many hoarders don’t see it as a problem, or don’t realise the impact it’s having on their lives

”

The person hoarding is usually reluctant to, or unable to, have visitors, or even allow tradespeople in to carry out essential repairs, which can cause isolation and loneliness.

The clutter can pose a health risk as it makes cleaning very difficult and can lead to unhygienic conditions and even rodent or insect infestations.

It can also increase the person’s chances of tripping or falling over the clutter, or having the piles of clutter topple over onto them.

Why hoard?

NHS Choices says “the reasons why someone begins hoarding aren't fully understood.

“In some cases, hoarding is a condition in itself and is often associated with self-neglect.

It can be also be a symptom of another condition. For example, someone with mobility problems may be physically unable to clear the huge amounts of clutter they have acquired. People with learning disabilities or people developing dementia may be

unable to categorise and dispose of items.

Signs to look out for Does a person…

• keep or collect items that may have little or no monetary value, such as junk mail and carrier bags • find it hard to categorise or organise items • have difficulties making decisions • struggle to manage everyday tasks, such as cooking, cleaning and paying bills • become extremely attached to items, refusing to let anyone touch or borrow them • have poor relationships with family or friends.

Some of the more common items people hoard include newspapers and magazines, books, clothes, leaflets and letters, including junk mail, bills and receipts, containers, including plastic bags and cardboard boxes or household supplies.

Some people also hoard animals, which they may not be able to look after properly.

For further help visit: NHS Choices • www.nhs.uk/conditions/ hoarding-disorder/ • ocduk.org – the charity offers support including a volunteer-run telephone advice and support line for people affected by Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. The phone line is open between 10am-4pm on 03332 127890.

It also offers online forums and support. wwha.co.uk 37

HEALTHY LIVING

Help to beat loneliness by helping others

Just because you live on your own, doesn’t mean you have to be lonely. Volunteering is a great way to help conquer feelings of loneliness. Not only will it give you a purpose to get out and meet like-minded people, it will also give you a great sense of achievement by helping others. With Volunteer’s Week starting on 1 June, here are 10 charities which would welcome a few hours – or even a few days - of your spare time.

1

Opportunities are available year-round at some of the biggest historic attractions in Wales. Already this year Cadw has been searching for volunteers at Caernarfon, Caerphilly, Denbigh and Harlech Castle as well as Blaenavon Ironworks and Plas Mawr, Conwy. Find out more at cadw.gov.wales or call 0300 0256 00.

2 The charity helps millions of people in the UK and around the world at time of emergencies, disasters and conflicts.

It is looking for volunteers to help run, stock and display items at its charity shops across North, South, Mid and West Wales.To find your nearest place to volunteer visit www.redcross.org.uk

3

6

Cadw

The Royal British Legion

volunteers to visit beneficiaries in their homes or help to raise funds through the annual Poppy Appeal every year from late October to early November.

Visit www.britishlegion.org.uk/getinvolved/volunteer/ways-to-volunteer/

4

Guide Dogs for the Blind

Opportunities to help this charity, which provides guide dogs, mobility and other rehabilitation services to blind and partially sighted people, include: volunteer puppy walkers, fundraisers and helping at special events. You might also like to train as a volunteer guide to help blind or visually impaired people in your area to get out and about. Visit: www.guidedogs.org.uk/local-to-you/

5

The charity works to stop homelessness for young people and vulnerable women across Wales. As a volunteer, you’ll be trained to help support women and their Use your time to help make a difference families to settle into their communities to veterans and members of the Armed when they move out of a refuge, or helping out at one of the charity’s Forces community. You can volunteers fundraising events. Visit www.llamau. from just a few hours a week to a few org.uk/volunteer-with-us or email days every year. volunteering@llamau.org.uk The Legion is looking to recruit

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Prince’s Trust Cymru

Could you help a young person build their dream life? The organisation supports young people and encourages them to take responsibility for themselves. It trains volunteers for a variety of roles from mentoring young people to start their own business or develop skills, to helping with job applications and CV writing. Visit www. princes-trust.org.uk

7

Samaritans Cymru

Work with the charity to help alleviate emotional distress and reduce the incidence of suicide feelings and suicidal behaviour, with various volunteering opportunities from fundraising to trained listeners. Visit www.samaritans.org

8

Sustrans

A network of more than 4000 volunteer rangers making a difference in their local area www.sustrans.org.uk/volunteer/ volunteer-sustrans.

HEALTHY LIVING

Useful contacts If you are looking to volunteer and can’t find an organisation near you, try these organisations: • Volunteering Wales volunteering-wales.net

9

St John Wales

Volunteer for a variety of roles to support the work of one of the leading first aid charities in Wales www.stjohnwales.co.uk/volunteer/

10

Royal Voluntary Service

Help older people maintain their independence and stay involved in the local community. They have many groups across Wales - here are some that may be local to you.

Conwy, Denbighshire, Flintshire and Wrexham - conwydenbighwrexham@ royalvoluntaryservice.org.uk; 01248 661915 / Ceredigion and Powys - ceredigionpowyshub@ royalvoluntaryservice.org.uk; 01597 824931 / Carmarthenshire - carmarthenshirems@ royalvoluntaryservice.org.uk; 01269 843819 / Cardiff -cardiffvalehub@ royalvoluntaryservice.org.uk; 02920 027 855 / Pembrokeshire - pembrokeshirehub@ royalvoluntaryservice.org.uk; 01646 699108 / Swansea, Neath Port Talbot and Bridgend swanseanptbridgendhub @royalvoluntaryservice.org.uk; 01639 500623

• Community and Voluntary Support Conwy CVSC.org.uk; (01492) 534091 mail@cvsc.org.uk • Powys Association of Volunteering Opportunities (PAVO)

•

pavo.org.uk; 01597 822 191 Volunteering Matters Cymru 02920 464 004 Volunteeringmatters.org.uk

Joy loves her volunteer work Barry resident Joy Woods recommends volunteering as a way of helping others and passing on life experiences.

Joy lives at Hanover Court in Cadoxton, Barry, and volunteers Joy Woods (left) with other volunteers at the Age at her local Age Connects Senior Health Shop.

Connects Cardiff and the Vale Senior passing your knowledge on and Health Shop. The café and helping others. I’ve seen people drop-in centre is open daily come in to the shop on their own, and relies on volunteers to help quite shy. But over time they run its many health and social come back, recognise people, activities, including exercise make friends and their confidence classes, computer training, grows.” stitching/knitting sessions, As a WWH resident Joy has health checks, quizzes and also successfully applied for afternoon teas. sponsorship to help her fellow The volunteers are trained volunteers. WWH provided the in food hygiene and those who sponsorship for the blue tabards help run the weekly dementiathat the volunteers wear. friendly group are given Manager Nona Hexter said: specialist dementia awareness “We are so grateful to Wales training. & West Housing for providing “I saw an advert in the paper sponsorship for our dementia for volunteers and decided café tabards. It’s made it easier to apply,” said Joy, who had for people to recognise our volunteered for St John’s volunteers.”

Ambulance and Girl Guides in For more information about the the past. work of Age Connects Cardiff & “I love volunteering. It’s all the Vale call 029 2068 3600. about life and experience, wwha.co.uk 39

HEALTHY GROW IT LIVING

WITH GLENYS g n i n e d r Ga

Glenys Vandervolk is an award-winning gardener, living at our St Mellons scheme in Cardiff. She is one of the leading lights in St Mellons Community Garden. In the first of a regular column she shares her tips and advice to make your garden grow.

Spring is the time of year to get your gardening going.

Although it’s still too cold to plant delicate and tender seeds outdoors, most fruit, veg and flowers seeds can be started off indoors in February or March, ready to plant outdoors in May or June when the risk of frost has passed.

If you have a small area or small budget, don’t let that stop you.

Many of the pound and discount shops sell seeds quite cheaply and you can always share and swap with friends and neighbours.

You don’t need to spend money on fancy seed trays either. I like to recycle plastic cake containers, you know the small ones with lids

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that you buy with individual cakes in. With the lids they make great propagators. I also recycle the polystyrene and plastic meat trays I get from the supermarket and use a polythene bag or cling film to cover them.

Just make sure that when you’re recycling containers you give them a good, thorough cleaning before use.

Fill the base of your container with compost and make some small drainage holes in the base, then put in the seeds and cover lightly with compost, label and place on a window sill and wait for them to germinate.

You don’t need expensive pots either, you can grow in anything

as long as you have drainage, and you can even grow potatoes in strong black bags.

Hanging baskets are also a great place to grow many things such as tomatoes, mini cucumbers, strawberries, runner beans and French beans.

Window sills are another good place for growing dwarf tomatoes, peppers, chilli peppers, and many herbs.

With all things in containers, pots and hanging baskets; they do need watering daily and feeding weekly.

Happy growing

Glenys

MAKE IT

Easter Tree An Easter tree is a decoration suitable for Easter time.

It's very simple and therefore is an ideal craft idea for smaller children to make with you.

You will need: • A dead branch or some flowering spring branches e.g. dogwood, cherry or apple • Pebbles, decorative glass stones or soil • White paint (if you want to paint the branch or the plant pot) • Blown out eggs to decorate • Toothpicks • Thin string • Plant Pot / Jug / Vase • Ribbon to tie around the plant pot Here’s what you do 1. Arrange the branch/branches in a container and balance with pebbles, glass stones or soil.

2. To blow out the eggs pierce both ends with a pin, smaller end first. One way to help prevent cracking when making the holes is to place sellotape or a plaster on the egg at the piercing point.

3. Rotate the pin (or use a toothpick or straightened end of a paper clip) to make the hole slightly larger.

4. At the wider end of the egg you need to make a slightly larger hole (about twice the

size of the first hole).

5. Once you have made the holes, hold the egg over a bowl with the largest hole facing down. Take a thin straw and blow through the smaller hole at the top until the contents of the egg flow into the bowl. Don’t waste the eggs, you can use them to make omelettes, scrambled eggs, quiches etc.

6. Paint or decorate the blown eggs with any designs you wish.

7. To thread the eggs for hanging, break a toothpick in half and tie a 6-8 inch piece

of string around its centre making sure the tails are even in length. Carefully insert the half toothpick and string into the hole at the top of the egg. Gently wiggle the egg to ensure the toothpick is in then pull the string taut. The toothpick should be stuck horizontally in the egg. Tie the ends together to make a knot and cut off any excess string. Hang the egg baubles on your tree.

8. Alternatively, you could decorate the tree with Easter chicks, make a nest and fill with miniature eggs.

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COOK IT

Simple glazed roast ham

Easter is traditionally the time for a roast leg of lamb, but at one-third of the cost this roast gammon recipe will be the highlight of your Easter dinner table.

Ingredients: (Serves 10) 1 (2-3 kg) unsmoked gammon joint, soaked overnight in water 5 tbsp English mustard 5 tbsp honey or maple Syrup 2 tbsp dark brown soft sugar Preparation time: 15 mins.

Oven Temp: 170C/Gas Mark 3.

Cooking time: 2 hours.

Method: 1. Preheat the oven to 170C/ Gas Mark 3.

2. Pat the ham dry with kitchen roll.

3. Place ham in a shallow roasting tin. Score the fat in a criss-cross pattern.

4. In a small bowl, mix together the mustard, honey or maple syrup and brown sugar. Coat the ham with the glaze using a spoon or brush.

5. Roast the ham uncovered for 2 hours in the preheated oven or until heated through. Let it rest for about 15 minutes before carving to keep it from drying out.

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Resident recipe

- Chai tea

This Indian-inspired recipe, which comes from Cardiff resident, Geraint ap Dyfed, is a popular coffee-bar alternative to latte.

Ingredients:

6 cups water 2 cinnamon sticks 10 slices fresh ginger 1/2 teaspoon black pepper corns 1 1/2 teaspoons whole cloves 1 teaspoon allspice berries 1 1/2 teaspoons green cardamom pods 2 star anise pods 6 tea bags 1 teaspoon agave nectar

Method:

1. Put all of the ingredients, except the tea and agave, into a slow cooker and cook for four hours on low or two hours on a very low heat if using a saucepan. If using a pan be very careful and don’t leave the pan unattended to boil dry.

2. Add the tea bags and agave and leave to steep for 5 minutes.

3. You now have chai concentrate. To make a cup of chai tea combine half of the concentrate with an equal amount of milk and heat in a pan on the stove.

CHARITY NEWS

Ready, steady, bake … for Age Cymru As winter comes to an end the warmer weather means a new spring in the step for many – and the perfect opportunity to get out and about and raise money for Age Cymru.

Making some cakes and selling them at a bake sale is one of the simplest and most effective ways of fundraising.

Even better, why not combine the two and host a coffee morning which everyone in the community can attend?

There are resources to promote organised events on the Age UK website at ageuk.org.uk, or you can call Age Cymru on 02920 431 555 for advice and support.

Sponsorship is another great way to raise cash. If you enjoy painting, you could auction off some of your work, or take part in a social and fun knitting challenge.

For those who are feeling a bit more active, spring also sees the running season gather a pace, with organised races from 5k up to half marathon and beyond across Wales.

Fundraising packs are available directly from Age Cymru for a whole range of challenge events, including Swansea Bay 10k on 16 September or Snowdonia Half Marathon on Sunday 20 May. Whether you live in North or South Wales there’s a Gung-Ho event taking place near you.

These 5k inflatable obstacle courses are the perfect way to get fit and have fun at the same time. Cardiff’s Bute Park on 5 May or Chester Racecourse on 23 June.

Age Cymru has eight high street shops in Wales - Bangor, Caerphilly, Ebbw Vale, Mold, Monmouth, Pontypridd, Porthcawl and Rhyl. Money raised for Age Cymru is used to provide vital services directly to older people in the community.

Age Cymru accepts online donations at any time at ageuk. org.uk/cymru/get-involved/ donate-to-age-cymru.

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CHARITY NEWS

On your marks…

Race For Life Race For Life season will soon be here - Cancer Research UK’s events raising money for research into all types of cancer.

As the nights start to get lighter, pink ladies of all ages will be out in parks and pounding the pavements.

The races have grown and now include 5k, 10k, half marathons and pretty muddy obstacle courses. This year there is a new challenge Race for Life

Hike. This will include a 20-26 mile, day-long Brecon Beacons hike starting at 6.30am from the Brecon Showground on Saturday June 30.

If you’d like to take part – it’s not too late. Many of the local events are open to entries.

New to jogging or running?

Don’t worry, Cancer Research UK have created a six-week training plan to follow. And you can also follow a walking plan.

Here are some of the key 5k events around Wales:

Haverfordwest Sunday, 1 July, Scolton Manor, Bethlehem, Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire, Haverfordwest, SA62 5QL Cardiff Sunday, 15 July, Coopers Field - Bute Park, Off North Road, Cathays, Cardiff, CF10 3ER Swansea Sunday 22 July Museum Green, Swansea, Swansea, SA1 1SN 2018 11:00 All races start at 11am and entry is £14.99 for women and young women and £10 for children.

Although the races and events are only open to women to take part, men and boys are welcome to show their support and cheer on the runners in the family.

For more information and tips visit www.raceforlife. cancerresearchuk.org

Aberystwyth Sunday 13 May, The Bandstand, Marine Terrace, Aberystwyth Ceredigion, SY23 2BX Wrexham Sunday 13 May, Alyn Waters Country Park - Llay Side, Llay New Road, Llay, Wrexham, LL12 0PU Caernarfon Sunday 20 May, Coed Helen Recreation Ground, Aber Foreshore Road, Caernarfon, LL54 5RP Bridgend Sunday, 3 June, Newbridge Fields, Off Angel Street, Bridgend, CF31 4AH Rhyl Sunday, 10 June, The Arena, The Promenade, Rhyl, LL18 3AQ Llanelli Sunday 10 June, Festival Fields, Millennium Coastal Park, Sandy Lane, Llanelli, SA15 4DP

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Training doesn't have to be just about following a training plan. Why not think about walking some or all of the way to work, shopping or to school?

If the full distance is a bit much, try getting off your bus or train a stop earlier and walking the rest of the way.

And even if you’re not up to the Race For Life challenge, keeping active is one of the ways you can reduce your cancer risk.

SOCIAL MEDIA

A digital way to declutter… and make some money too!

If you’re spring cleaning your home, there’s a good chance you’ve got a shelf full of DVDs or CDs just gathering dust.

Often, you find things that are no longer useable or that have been replaced by a newer model or method. For example: DVDs – many people now choose to stream films and programmes via Netflix, NowTV and many other providers instead of watching a DVD; CDs – you can fit so much more music on iPods, mp3 players and phones these days that your CDs may no longer be played.

Mobile phones – with smartphones allowing you to do so much more than a 'regular' phone, why keep the old one in the cupboard?

There are lots of websites and apps to help you clear out these items. If you want to quickly sell your techie items why not check out Music Magpie: www.musicmagpie.co.uk Sell DVDs, CDs, laptops, phones, books, Lego and gold!

For most of these items, you simply input the barcode (or scan using their free app) and you will be given a price. If you are happy with the price, then add it to your basket.

You'll need a minimum of £5 worth of stuff to complete an order. You can sell up to 500 items per order, but if you're selling more than 500 you can simply create a new order, and you can create as many orders as you like.

Once you’ve completed your order, they will send you a Pack & Send Guide, which includes all the info you need to pack your items.

Or maybe you would prefer to try and get more money for your items by selling them on sites such as: www.ebay.co.uk, the well-known marketplace, to start a bidding war on your items!

Facebook Market Place - a lot of communities now use Facebook to buy and sell items, just search ‘*place name* buy and sell’ and you should find a group. www.shpock.com - is a similar concept to eBay, but it’s not a bidding system. Once both parties agree on a sale it becomes a legally-bound contract.

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WHAT’S ON

What’s on NORTH WALES

MID WALES

2 April: Dydd Llun Pawb

8 April: Monstersaurus

12pm - 10pm Tŷ Pawb, Chester Street, Wrexham, Wrexham, LL11 1TL A carnival celebration to mark the opening of Wrexham’s new arts and market hub, Tŷ Pawb, feat live music, a parade, performing arts, crafts, food and drink stalls and hands-on activities.

Free. 01978 345230

5 - 8 May: Llandudno Transport Festival

Bodafon Fields, Llandudno The largest festival of its kind in Wales, held in conjunction with a Victorian Extravaganza. Celebrating Llandudno’s transport and entertainment heritage with costumes, vintage fairground rides and other attractions. £7.50 adults; £2 children; £2 car park llantransfest.co.uk

13 May: Rowen Village Gardens Open Day

10.30am - 5pm. Up to 20 gardens open at Rowen Village in Conwy, LL32 8YA. Refreshments available to buy.

Adults £6, children free 01492 650851 http://rowenconwy.org.uk/

21 - 22 April: Wales Comic Con

The Hafren, Llanidloes Road, Newtown, Powys SY16 4HU. 11.30am & 2pm From the creators of Aliens Love Underpants, this family show follows the life of young inventor Monty as he creates whacky inventions and incredible monsters – then has to find out what to do with them. Featuring original music, magic and mayhem. 50 minute show.

Tickets priced £12 adults, £10 concessions, £40 family, available online or by calling 01686 614555. Booking fee £1. thehafren.co.uk

28 - 29 April: Wonderwool Wales

Royal Welsh Showground, Builth Wells LD2 3SY A festival of Welsh wool and natural fibres featuring 200+ exhibitors, trade stands, demonstrations and workshops.

Admission from £10 (one day); £18 weekend.

4 - 6 May: Machynlleth Comedy Festival 2018

Various venues and prices.

Live comedy in the unique setting of Machynlleth, in the heart of Wales. machcomedyfest.co.uk

Wrexham Glyndwr University 10am - 4pm The 10th anniversary of the biggest event of its kind in North Wales, featuring big names, activities, displays, talks and more.

Walescomiccon.com

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13 -15 April: RHS Flower Show

Bute Park, Cardiff The Royal Horticultural Society Flower Show Cardiff celebrates the best of springtime, inspiring gardeners to creatively use outdoor spaces, and encourages visitors to learn and grow as gardeners. Tickets £11 in advance or £14 on the gate. www.rhs.org.uk

28 April: Judgement Day Cardiff Principality Stadium The final weekend of Guinness PRO14 Championship action before knock-out stages sees the Dragons take on the Scarlets and Cardiff Blues face the Ospreys in back-to-back clashes in the capital.Tickets from £10 www. principalitystadium.wales

5 May: May Day celebration

St Fagans National Museum of History, nr Cardiff 11am-4pm It’s time for the Green Man to wake up from his Winter sleep as life returns to the woods and fields. May Day is time for merriment, music and maypoles.

Admission free. https://museum.wales/ stfagans/whatson/9888/May-DayCelebration

5 May: Welsh Hearts May Day Carnival

Whitchurch Common, Cardiff 11am - 5pm Now in its 5th year, it’s a fun-filled day, with stalls, fun fair rides and much more. http://welshhearts.org/events/may-daycarnival/

12 May: Caerphilly Food Festival Over 100 stall holders will tempt you with plenty of samples to try and buy – plus a wide range of crafts, top class cake decorating workshops and activities for children.

Llandudno Transport Festival 5 - 8 May

Medieval Day, Cardigan Castle 4 April

SOUTH WALES

26 May: Swansea City AFC Charity Football Match

Carmarthenshire locals will take on Swansea City Legends in a charity football game at Richmond Park at 2.30pm.

Managed by John Cornforth, the Swansea side will include players such as Andy Robinson, Lee Trundle and Kevin Austin.

Admission is £3 - proceeds go to the Swans4Cancer foundation. @swansealegends

PET TALK

Dragon’s den WEST WALES 19 April: Woof Walks

Stackpole Quay, Pembrokeshire.

11am - 2pm. New dog-walking group starting at Stackpole Quay car park exploring trails with your four-legged friends!

30 March - 2 April: Easter Egg Hunt

Stackpole Court, Pembrokeshire. 11am - 3pm The Easter Egg Hunt will lead you through Lodge Park Woods with quizzes about Stackpole’s wildlife along the trail. Children and dogs on leads welcome. Please bring stout footwear and wet weather clothing just in case. £3 per egg hunt.

4 April: Medieval Day

Cardigan Castle Celebrate the castle’s medieval heritage with fun activities, craft fair and exhibitions. www.cardigancastle.com

9 June: Newcastle Emlyn Food Festival King George V Playing Ground, SA38 9BA Food producers with a range of delicious foods to go and ingredients to make your own special dishes. Free parking in the town for the festival. 10am – 4pm www.facebook.com/Gwyl-Fwyd-CastellNewydd-Emlyn-Newcastle-Emlyn-FoodFestival-150904378279604/

20 - 29 May: Aberystwyth Cycle Festival

A celebration of cycling in Mid Wales, with some of Britain’s top cyclists. Visitors can watch all the action and experience the beautiful and undiscovered lanes of Ceredigion on their own bikes. Includes fringe events all week and the thrills of town centre cycle races all afternoon and evening on 26 May. www.abercyclefest.co.uk/

Two exotic pets named after characters from the TV series Game of Thrones are making their home in one of our newest apartments in Mold, Flintshire.

Seven-year-old chameleon Loki and Drogan, a two-year-old bearded dragon, relocated from Manchester with their owners Lisa and Michael Smyth, residents at Cwrt y Becws.

The couple were among the first to move into the development last year. Lisa, Michael, Loki and Drogan share their home with another, more conventional pet - Ted, a fiveyear-old Shar Pei. "All of them get on really well," says Michael. "I've always owned reptiles - they're a bit different and great to look at, though Drogan and Loki are a bit smaller than the 16ft rock python I used to have.”

Drogan is very much Lisa's pet.

She said: "He loves running about but he's a bit different to my old bearded dragon who sadly died in March. Thor would come up to you and give you a cuddle all the time but with Drogan he's not that bothered.

"You can probably guess by the names of all of our pets that we're big fans of Game of Thrones."

“I couldn’t say no” Karen Jones saved rough collie Evie when she was a seven-month old puppy. Evie was born with a heart murmur and was going to be put to sleep. But Karen and her daughter stepped in to give the puppy a future and a forever home. Evie and Karen have been inseparable since then, especially after Karen suffered a heart attack two years ago.

“I’ve always had dogs, but Evie is my baby as we both have heart problems,” says grandmother Karen, who lives with her husband Steven at Ty Brynseion,

Merthyr Tydfil.

“Evie likes to go out for walks, but if she runs around she gets out of breath just like her mum!

Taking on a puppy with heart problems was a big responsibility, but when she looked at me with her sad puppy dog eyes, I couldn’t say no.”

Send us your pet stories

RHS Flower Show, Cardiff 13 - 15 April

Do you have a favourite family pet you’d like to tell us about? Send your stories to communications.team@wwha.co.uk or call 0800 052 2526. Don’t forget to include your name, address and phone number. wwha.co.uk 47

PUZZLES

Puzzle pages

Win £30 shopping vouchers with our Wordsearch and Crossword puzzles To be in with a chance of winning a £30 shopping voucher for our wordsearch or crossword puzzle, simply send your entry with your name, address and contact details to Alison Stokes, Wales & West Housing, Archway House, 77 Parc Tŷ Glas, Llanishen, Cardiff CF14 5DU. All correct entries will be put into the draw and one lucky winner will be chosen for each puzzle and will receive a £30 shopping voucher. The closing date for entries is 30 April 2018.

PRIZE S R E R B S E H S M Z C N W Y

P U A A T W A W N A R R G C D

S I N N S L B O I E M O I C M

BLOSSOM BREEZE BUD CATKINS CROCUS DAFFODIL EASTER FLOWERS 48

wwha.co.uk

WORDSEARCH

SPRING QUIZ

This issue's Wordsearch is all about Spring.

All the words may be found backwards, forwards, horizontal, vertical or diagonal.

1. Approximately how many spring tides are there each year?

2. What do crocuses grow from?

3. According to the UK Kennel Club, the English springer spaniel belongs to which group of dogs?

4. The players of which sport are described as “egg chasers”?

5. When is the first official day of Spring?

6. In Australia, in what month does Spring begin?

7. Which country has the tradition of eating hot cross buns at Easter?

8. The custom of giving sweets and chocolate for Easter first appeared during what historic age?

9. What colours are associated with Easter?

10. Which bird lays the largest eggs?

11. Which comedic rap group from Newport has a rapper known as “Eggsy’?

12. What is the religious significance of the egg at Easter?

N R A S F T R S K R U C O O Y

E L E T H B E Z T T S U S D T

P M E W R I G R A S N S N T Y

W R I E O R N C C L O I M W Y

GRASS GROW HALF TERM ICY LAMB MEADOW PLANTS PRUNE

M A E T A L P E O L W P S I F

J Z R S G W F Z B J D R D G S

E I S M U N O Q B V R U O N V

T E L O I V I R C X O N O H I

W O B N I A R R G N P E W N B

RAIN RAINBOW SEEDS SNOWDROP SOW SRINGTIME STREAM SUNSHINE

U M B R E L L A P M E A D O W

L N B M A L N D R S E E D S F

B U D V O R L I D O F F A D F

TWIG UMBRELLA VIOLET WARM WINDY WOODS

PUZZLES

Christmas puzzle winners Congratulations to the winners of our Christmas puzzle competitions. They were Mrs June Hutson of Meridian Court, Cardiff, who won the Wordsearch and Dennis and Pat Casement of Plastirion Court, Rhyl, who won the crossword. They both receive a ÂŁ30 gift voucher.

E PRIZE Z I PR

CROSSWORD

SUDOKU PUZZLE 1

5

8

7 6

2 5 8

1

4

2

6 9

5

ACROSS 1 Jailor (6) 7 Ruffian, yob (8) 8 And not (3) 9 Former British prime minister, Neville ___ (1869–1940) (11) 10 Young bird of prey (5) 12 Goods carried by a large vehicle (7) 15 Temporary substitute (7) 17 Country, capital Kathmandu (5) 20 Usable for a specific purpose (11) 21 Sudden uncontrollable attack (3) 22 Cellar (8) 23 Gained points in a game (6)

3 9

8

1

2 6

9

9

7

4 7

1

8

3 4

6

5

4 3

2 7

6

DOWN 1 Exercises authoritative power over (8) 2 Package (6) 3 Be similar in end sound, eg cat and mat (5) 4 Without a trace of moisture (4-3) 5 Slope, geographical feature (8) 6 Disappear from view (6) 11 Anticipated (8) 13 Endowed with natural abilities (8) 14 Storage locker (7) 16 Sikh headgear (6) 18 Like better (6) 19 Gasps for breath (5)

Spring Quiz Answers: 1. 24; 2. Corms; 3 Working; 4. Rugby; 5. 20th March; 6. September; 7. Great Britain; 8. The Victorian age; 9. Purple and Yellow; 10. Ostrich; 11. Goldie Lookin Chain; 12. It represents the tomb Jesus rose from

wwha.co.uk 49

A DAY IN THE LIFE OF

A day in the life of ...

a Support Worker Helping vulnerable young people move a step closer to realising their dream of an independent life is at the heart of everything support worker Gemma Summerfield does.

Gemma is one of the newest members of the team at Kickstart, WWH's supported housing development in Abergele. She joined the team after taking time out to raise her young son.

Based on site at the scheme in North Wales, she helps young people learn skills needed to deal with everyday life before going on to live in their own home.

"My role revolves around helping the residents to maintain a daily routine, which in turn encourages them to keep and maintain an independent lifestyle.

"For example our residents may need assistance with remembering to take medication, or daily tasks such as cleaning.

"I try to encourage all learning and work possibilities as well as helping them to socialise and maintain their health and wellbeing.

"Once a month we sit down with each resident and discuss what they would like to achieve.

For example, we encourage them to obtain a work or college placement, which could include helping them to research jobs which they're looking for and support with producing CVs, submitting job applications and finding references."

Every resident at the Kickstart 50

wwha.co.uk

scheme has different needs – and meeting them is one of the biggest challenges, and biggest rewards, of Gemma's role as a support worker.

We support residents with disabilities, impairments, mobility issues, health issues and more. All of them are at least 18 years old but each has a unique situation and comes from a different background and upbringing. They are all kind-hearted and caring though, always asking staff how we are when it is our job to care for them."

"The best part of my job is knowing I am helping others," she said. "I find happiness can be contagious so I always come to

work ready to make a difference – and ready to make the residents smile while they complete their daily tasks.

"Whether it's encouraging residents to socialise, budget, organise their home and/or work lifestyle, we aim to get the best outcome for them."

Gemma is employed for 30 hours a week by Castell Ventures, a company in the WWH Group which provides services to residents across Wales, including care and support.

"I'm part of a fantastic team at Kickstart. Every day is a chance to help someone and every day is an opportunity to make a difference to someone's life."

"I'm part of a fantastic team at Kickstart. Every day is a chance to help someone and every day is an opportunity to make a difference to someone's life."

ADVERTISEMENT

Inspired by

Gemma’s story?

Would you like a career with an employer who is committed to making a difference?

Wales & West Housing (WWH) is more than just a housing association; to our residents and employees we represent a way of life. Our residents are at the heart of what we do, and we strive to deliver a service that is second to none. At WWH we are supported by our subsidiary companies, Castell Ventures and Cambria Maintenance Services, and together we deliver what matters to our residents.

CAREERS WITH:

WALES & WEST HOUSING CASTELL VENTURES CAMBRIA MAINTENANCE

SERVICES At Wales & West Housing we have a wide variety of career options available in: • • • • • • • •

Housing; Property Services; ICT; Finance; Customer Services; Administration; HR; and Development.

WWH delivers services to residents across Wales, with three main office locations in Cardiff, Ewloe and Newcastle Emlyn.

Through Castell Ventures, we also offer careers in: • Catering; • Cleaning; and • Care & Support Castell Ventures have bases in Abergele, Aberystwyth, Mold, Newtown and Prestatyn.

And our maintenance company Cambria offers roles for: • • • •

Electricians; Gas Engineers; Labourers; and Multi Skilled Operatives, with skills in plastering, joinery and painting and decorating.

Cambria Maintenance are based in Ewloe and Cardiff.

We offer excellent benefits to our employees across the group, including training, childcare vouchers, pension, SimplyHealth cashplan and enhanced holidays with the option to buy additional annual leave. We are also a Living Wage employer, which means that the minimum rate per hour for any of our jobs is £8.75.

wwha.co.uk 51

IN THE PICTURE

Cleaning up in Crymych Residents in Pembrokeshire say it’s like “having new homes”, since we carried out work on their scheme. Local contractors Jamson Estates Ltd have carried out major upgrades at the 10 homes at Parc Yr Efail, Felindre Farchog, Crymych, Pembrokeshire.

The houses have been repainted and had repairs and painting work carried

out to the windows and doors. The cost of the work is estimated at around

£130,000.

For more news about our homes across Wales over the next

three years, see page 13.