Intouch Issue 86

Quarterly Report | intouch | www.wwha.co.uk | 1

intouch ISSUE 86 | FREE

The magazine for residents of Wales & West Housing

In this issue...

MAD Awards 2016: who’s your hero?

Build Your Skills, Try a Trade Keeping you in the picture: our new Quarterly Report Community welcomes extra care scheme to Newtown

Do you live in one of our homes?

Are you interested in: • Work placements • Re-training • Getting back • Apprenticeships to work

Catering

Construction & Trades

community.team@wwha.co.uk 0800 052 2526 www.wwha.co.uk @wwha

Care

Admin/ Customer Services

Editor’s Letter and Contents| intouch | www.wwha.co.uk | 03

Editor’s Letter

Hi all,

Contents

WWH News & Info Welcome to issue 86 of InTouch – the magazine exclusively Health & Safety for residents of Wales & West Housing. There’s lots going Making a Difference Awards on in this edition, so let’s take a closer look…

Development Update We’re pleased to announce that nominations for this Going Green year’s Making a Difference Awards are now open! As many Charity Update of you will already know, the MAD Awards are our way Quarterly Report of celebrating your community spirit, courage, enterprise Making a Difference to Your Future and kindness – Wales & West Housing style. This year, Money Matters the ceremony will take place at the SSE Swalec Stadium, Making a Difference to your Cardiff, on Friday 4th November 2016. And we want you Community to tell us who deserves to be there on the big night! You can find out more about the award categories and how to Planned Maintenance Your News & Views nominate on P10.

On P26, you’ll find out how we’ve been helping our young residents to get into work and training with our latest ‘Try a Trade, Build Your Skills’ programme. The two day initiative for residents aged 16-24 is with Cambria Maintenance Services and allows participants to try a number of housing manintenance and construction related trades.

The programme has proved really successful in South Wales, and we’re now looking for keen residents from North Wales to join us. Head to the Making a Difference to Your Future section to find out more.

In the world of development, WWH has some stunning new two bedroom homes available for purchase in Wenvoe, Vale of Glamorgan. We know how difficult it can be to get on the housing ladder, so we’re here to help, in partnership with the Vale of Glamorgan Council. The properties are part of our Homebuy Scheme, which is a shared equity initiative. Visit P14 for more information.

Follow us on twitter

04 09 10 14 16 18 19 26 28 30 32 35

@wwha

Did you know that you can now get more news and updates online?

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

Contact Us

And finally, do you have ideas for InTouch or thoughts on how you think we could improve? Well we want to hear from you! Simply email contactus@wwha.co.uk or speak to our PR and Communications Team on 0800 052 2526.

Wales & West Housing, 3 Alexandra Gate, Ffordd Pengam, Tremorfa, Cardiff CF24 2UD. Telephone: 0800 052 2526 Text: 07788 310420 Email: contactus@wwha.co.uk Website: www.wwha.co.uk

We hope you enjoy reading and, until next time, take care and enjoy the summer sunshine.

You can also contact members of staff direct by their email. For example, joe.bloggs@wwha.co.uk

The Editorial Team

Do you live in one of our homes?

04 | www.wwha.co.uk | intouch | WWH News & Info

Are you interested in:

• Work placements • Re-training • Getting back • Apprenticeships to Wales work & West Housing in

merger talks with Tai Cantref

You may have heard recently that Cymdeithas Tai Cantref and ring WWH are to merge.

The potential merger provides a fantastic opportunity for us to make a difference in meeting housing needs in West Wales, with both organisations sharing many of the same values and commitments of putting the resident struction & respecting the Welsh language first, es and achieving a vision of strong, sustainable growth.

WWH and Tai Cantref have strong track records of developing new homes to meet local needs and providing an excellent service to their residents. Together, we are confident that we can have an even greater impact supporting local communities.

Care

With this exciting prospect on the horizon, we want our residents to know that they will not be affected by the merger and that they Admin/ will continue to receive Customer Services the best service from WWH and our team.

ommunity.team@wwha.co.uk 0800 052 2526 www.wwha.co.uk @wwha

WWH News & Info | intouch | www.wwha.co.uk | 05

Community welcomes new extra care scheme The launch of Llys Glan-yr-Afon at an information day in Newtown in March proved a great success with more than 200 visitors wanting to find out more about our £8m flagship extra care scheme.

The scheme, being built by Anwyl Construction and in partnership with Powys County Council, will provide much needed, high quality accommodation backed up by 24 hour on-site care and support for adults.

The development, comprising 48 apartments, is our third extra care scheme and is due for completion in the Autumn.

Nine joinery students from Newtown College were also impressed with the scheme when they visited the construction site recently.

With the students was Carpentry Lecturer Gareth Jones, who said: “This is a real working environment which gives our students a true taste of the world of work and what a major development looks like from the inside.

“In Mid Wales this is the biggest development there has been for a number of years and they will gain a lot from the experience.”

Student Ben Evans, 31, of Mochdre, near Newtown, has just been taken on as an apprentice and he said: “I hope to make a

career in construction so it’s been a really good experience to see what happens on a major site.”

Anwyl Construction Site Manager Andy Adamson said: “Anwyl Construction is very committed to apprenticeships and we view them as the lifeblood of the construction industry - about 30 per cent of our workforce actually began with us as apprentices.”

Shayne Hembrow, Deputy Chief Executive & Commercial Director of WWH, said: “We believe in making a difference to people’s lives, homes and communities and Newtown’s extra care scheme will offer an excellent option currently unavailable to the people of Powys.”

For more information on Llys Glan-yr-Afon, please call 0800 052 2526 to speak to our Housing Options Team.

06 | www.wwha.co.uk | intouch | WWH News & Info

Ali’s new career is in the pipeline Wrexham resident Ali, 41, works in security but has been looking for a change. He wanted a better work-life balance so enrolled on an online City & Guilds plumbing course - Level 2 Diploma in Plumbing & Domestic Heating.

However, the course is all theory-based, so Ali approached WWH to see if he could get some hands-on experience with Cambria Maintenance.

He soon found himself learning how to install a new shower for Linda and Gian Carlo Danzi, at Sydney Hall Court in Connah’s Quay.

Ali said: “I needed some practical experience and saw a groundsman working at my scheme, which made me think about asking Wales & West Housing. I contacted Community Benefits Officer Frances Maclean and she organised some work experience for me.

“I shadowed Dan Durham from Cambria and I’ve learned so much.

(L-R) Gian Carlo and Linda Carlo with Ali Thomas and Dan Durham from Cambria.

“I’ve never had a trade before and I want to be a plumber. This experience has really made a difference – you can’t put a price on it.”

Linda Danzi said: “Following knee surgery I couldn’t get into my bath so Cambria have installed a walk-in shower. Ali and the lads have worked very hard and I’m pleased.”

If you want to find out about work experience or training opportunities, visit the resident’s area on our website (www.wwha.co.uk) or call Frances Maclean on 0800 052 2526.

WWH News & Info | intouch | www.wwha.co.uk | 07

Can we fix it? Yes we can!

The way we manage our repairs has changed in recent months. We have responded to resident feedback to focus on quickly answering your phone calls by setting up the compliance team, who now manage all heating and gas repairs. We are also experimenting with new ways of organising the work of our Cambria operatives, which is seeing repairs being completed much quicker than before.

Since starting our new way of working in January, we have reduced average call waiting times and the longest time anyone has to wait. For the first week of April the average waiting time was

2 minutes, whilst the longest time anyone had to wait was 13 minutes.

We are still working to make this even better and trying hard to meet your expectations. Something to bear in mind is that more people report repairs on Mondays and Fridays, so if your repair isn’t urgent you might get through quicker on the other days.

To book a repair call

0800 052 2526 Option 1 – Heating repairs and gas servicing Option 2 – General repairs

Important safety notice We have been made aware that due to a technical fault a small number of temporary electrical fan heaters issued to residents may cause a safety issue.

There is a risk of the plug/or fuse overheating, which could become a fire hazard.

The heater affected is the Centre branded FH-06A 2kW model, as pictured below.

If you do have these heaters in your home please do not use them. Please dispose of them in an appropriate manner such as at a council household recycling centre.

For more information, call us on 0800 052 2526 and press option 1.

08 | www.wwha.co.uk | intouch | WWH News & Info

WWH sponsorship helps young footballers kit up!

Two Cardiff youth football teams have kicked off their latest tournament in brand new kits, thanks to sponsorship from WWH. WWH donated £500 to fund branded shirts for the Caerau and Ely teams as part of Cardiff City FC Foundation’s Premier League Kicks project.

The charity led initiative, which aims to break down barriers between young people and society whilst reducing crime and anti-social behaviour, sees Cardiff City FC Foundation providing free weekly sports sessions to young people aged 14-19 across a number of South Wales communities.

WWH, which has properties in the Caerau and Ely area, supported the cause due to the project’s dedication to maximising the potential of young people in its communities.

The new sponsored kits were unveiled at a special tournament in Cardiff House of Sport recently, where over 50 youngsters came together to play. The keen footballers were also rewarded for their good behaviour and attendance at weekly Premier League Kicks coaching sessions.

Zac Lyndon-Jones, Social Inclusion Co-ordinator at Cardiff City FC Foundation, said: “We’re very grateful to Wales & West Housing for the donation of sports kit that our young people will benefit from. The kit instils great pride in

our young people when they represent their local community in tournaments and fixtures.”

Anne Hinchey, Chief Executive of WWH, added: “As well as providing much needed affordable homes in Cardiff, we are dedicated to helping improve people’s lives and communities, which is why we wanted to get involved with this fantastic project that supports and encourages youngsters so much.”

For details on Premier League Kicks sessions in South Wales, visit www.cardiffcityfcfoundation.org.uk or call Zac Lyndon-Jones at Cardiff City FC Foundation on 07701 287689.

Health & Safety | intouch | www.wwha.co.uk | 09

Using your personal alarm Sometimes we all need a bit of extra support and help. Our personal alarm service provides peace of mind by helping you to live independently in your own home.

WWH has been providing its Connect24 telephone and telecare services for over ten years – we are here 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. We currently provide support to over 8,500 households across Wales, answering an average of 495 calls a day.

Top tips for making the best use of your alarm system: To help ensure you stay safe and get the best use from your alarm, follow our advice: • Get into the habit of wearing your personal alarm at all times in your home. There are key times when people may have a fall – such as getting up at night to pop to the loo, or getting in and out of the bath or shower.

• We advise that you keep your alarm button close to hand when in the bath or shower, just to be safe. Don’t worry about getting it splashed a little, it will still work afterwards.

• Please don’t be worried about accidentally setting off your alarm – we really don’t mind and would rather you be safe. In fact, we receive approximately 1,500 accidental calls per month, so it’s part of our day-to-day activity. We’ll simply check you’re okay.

• Make sure you check your pendant and/or your pull cord are working once a month. Just press the button or pull the cord in your home and tell us it’s a test call. If you haven’t activated your alarm within 3 months, we’ll contact you to check it.

• If you only have a pull cord and no pendant, then we encourage you to contact us for one – it’s free for WWH residents.

If you have any questions about your alarm, contact us on 0800 052 2526 or activate your alarm to speak to one of our call handlers.

We answer around 10 emergency calls a day. Here’s just a few customer comments: “The alarm was answered promptly and the lady who answered got help to me quickly. Without the alarm I could have been on the floor for quite some time. I wear the pendant every day and feel safer knowing it’s there.”

“Mum broke her hip outside and the alarm system still worked perfectly. It’s an excellent service.”

10 | www.wwha.co.uk | intouch | MAD Awards

2016

Main sponsor:

MAD Awards| intouch | www.wwha.co.uk | 11

Now in their ninth year, our Making a Difference Awards celebrate our residents’ community spirit, courage, enterprise and kindness - Wales & West Housing style.

This year, the ceremony will take place at the SSE Swalec Stadium, Cardiff, on Friday 4th November 2016, where we’ll once again be joined by our finalists and event sponsors to celebrate the achievements of some very special individuals.

There are, undoubtedly, many unsung heroes in our communities who are so deserving of such recognition - and we need YOU to tell us about them!

It’s easy to nominate - simply speak to your housing officer, or contact our PR and Comms Team on Freephone 0800 052 2526 and they’ll take details for you.

The Categories Steps to Success Award (New for 2016)

Getting back into employment, education and training can be a big step to take, so this award recognises those committed individuals who have started on their journey to success.

Whether it’s starting up a business, gaining qualifications, volunteering or

getting back into the workplace, these people have all shown determination to make their dreams a reality.

Community Project Award This category is all about those individuals and groups who have started something special in their community to benefit those who live there. These projects often help others, bring people together and change the neighbourhood for the better.

Sponsors CJS Electrical with our 2015 Community Project Award winners, The Squirrel’s Nest from Bridgend

12 | www.wwha.co.uk | intouch |MAD Awards

Good Neighbour Award This category celebrates the kindness of those special people whose small day to day actions make a big difference to the lives of their neighbours. From lending a helping hand or a listening ear, these warm hearted individuals go out of their way to help others who live near.

Peter Jackson of Cambria Maintenance Services and Kathy Smart (right) with Una Roberts, winner of the 2015 Good Neighbour Award

Going Green Award (New for 2016) This award category recognises green fingered residents who have made a real difference to their environment.

From growing beautiful floral displays to recycling and reusing goods in the garden, or even producing fruit and veg for others to enjoy, these residents lead the way when it comes to going green.

MAD Awards| intouch | www.wwha.co.uk | 13

Fresh Start Award

Local Hero

Life can be full of ups and downs, so this award recognises those brave people who have made it through tough times and turned things around for the better. From overcoming illness, confronting personal issues or supporting their family through difficult times, these extraordinary individuals set an example to us all.

Our local heroes strive to make their community a better place or help others less fortunate than themselves.

From running community groups, tackling local issues and raising money for charity - these selfless individuals dedicate their time and efforts to making a difference.

WWH’s Craig Sparrow (left) and Kathy Smart present 2015 Fresh Start winner Shane Egan with his award on behalf of sponsor Anwyl Homes & Construction

Robert Jenkins of Solar Windows and Kathy Smart (right) present Jenny Rigby with the Local Hero Award on behalf of her mother, winner Marguerite Kinsella

Rising Star Award Especially for those aged 25 under, the Rising Star Award celebrates the achievements of young people who have made a difference to the lives of others, or to their community.

Open to both our residents and those who work closely with them, these youngsters are worthy of recognition due to the significant and positive impact of their actions.

Mark Austin of sponsor Thorlux Lighting (left) and Kathy Smart (right) present youngsters from Merthyr Tydfil’s Getting Together Project with the 2015 Rising Star Award.

14 | www.wwha.co.uk | intouch | Development Update

Beautiful new homes for sale

in the Vale of Glamorgan WWH has stunning new two bedroom homes for sale at 70% of the market value in Wenvoe, Vale of Glamorgan.

The properties are part of our Homebuy Scheme and are available to first time buyers (or those in a similar position) who are working and can get a mortgage, but cannot afford a suitable property on the open market. Priority will be given to those with a local connection to the area.

The scheme operates on a shared equity basis with a 70/30 split.

This means that you will pay 70% (ÂŁ125,000) of the property value with the remaining 30% of the equity being retained by Wales & West Housing as a legal charge on the property.

The 30% equity will be paid back to WWH at current market value when you sell the property.

The houses are part of a brand new development and are built to achieve a high level of sustainability, as well as benefitting from 10 year NHBC cover.

For further information, please contact the Housing Options Team on 0800 052 2526.

Development Update | intouch | www.wwha.co.uk | 15

New homes coming to Greenfield Are you looking for somewhere to live in Greenfield?

WWH’s exciting new £5 million development in Glan-y-Don is opening soon!

The waiting lists are open for 1, 2, 3 and 4 bedroom homes (44 houses and 14 apartments). These include wheelchair adapted properties.

community work and training opportunities.

For more information please call our Housing Options Team on 0800 052 2526.

The fantastic new development of energy efficient, warm and affordable homes has been made possible thanks to funding from the Welsh Government and our partnership with Flintshire County Council.

The scheme provides an answer to the need for affordable housing in Greenfield as well as boosting the economy and giving the local

(L-R) Tom Anwyl of Anwyl Construction, WWH Development Manager Craig Sparrow, WWH CEO Anne and Cllr Aaron Shotton, Flintshire CC Leader at Glan y Don

16 | www.wwha.co.uk | intouch | Going Green

Ty Ponthrun blossoms

thanks to funding!

WWH Site Superintendents Phil Howells (left) and Mike Fowler get their hands dirty to help residents

The green fingered residents of Ty Ponthrun, Troedyrhiw, in Merthyr Tydfil, are known for their lovely flower display at the front of the scheme. However, they were struggling with tending to lots of large pots, so they applied to WWH for our Making a Difference to Your Environment grant with the hope of getting a raised bed to provide a more accessible growing space.

Their successful application saw the residents purchasing a raised bed from social enterprise Meifod Wood Products based in Denbigh, who provide training and employment for people with learning disabilities.

Local WWH Site Superintendents kindly spared some time to build the raised bed and ensure it was in place for the residents to use over the summer months.

Resident Pauline Orchard was delighted to have an accessible area to grow her beloved flowers and plants.

She explained: “How lovely it is to have a raised planting area so I don’t have to bend. I can ensure there is a flower display for the residents at the scheme to enjoy too.”

To find out more about our MAD Environment grant, contact Sarah Willcox on 0800 052 2526 or email sarah.willcox@wwha.co.uk

Going Green | intouch | www.wwha.co.uk | 17

Gardening project gets off the ground at Glan Yr Afon

The WWH team and residents got together recently to build raised beds at the scheme

Residents at Glan Yr Afon retirement scheme in Maesteg will be enjoying plenty of fresh fruit and veg over the coming months, thanks to help from WWH. The project came about when those living at the scheme decided they wanted to improve their grounds and grow produce for residents to make healthy meals.

Staff from Cambria Maintenance Services worked hard to create a level, accessible garden for residents to access their new raised beds.

It was then down to a group of keen WWH volunteers to get their hands dirty and work with the residents to build the beds on a lovely sunny spring day.

With the beds now in place to grow beans, lettuce, tomatoes and other With the support of WWH’s produce, the group is looking forward Sustainability Officer Owen Jones to the arrival of their new greenhouse and Environmental Assistant Sarah which will enable them to grow Willcox, the keen gardeners applied for produce from seed. a WWH Making a Difference to Your Patricia Lavercombe, resident and Environment grant. member of the gardening group said: Following their successful funding bid “We are so happy with the garden! All and lots of planning, the project got the staff have worked so hard, we will off the ground in March this year. be able to grow lots of vegetables for the scheme.”

18 | www.wwha.co.uk | intouch | Charity Update

Cambria donates £3,500 to Macmillan and hospice Our colleagues in Cambria Maintenance Services recently donated a fantastic £3,500 to a cancer charity and a treatment centre.

Cambria staff in South Wales donated £1,750 to Macmillan Cancer Support Cymru. Operations Manager Tom Creed raised a fabulous £725 of the total sum with a gruelling Brecon to Cardiff Bay bike ride… dressed as a superhero!

Meanwhile, nursing staff from the North Wales Cancer Treatment Centre at Glan Clwyd Hospital in Bodelwyddan, Denbighshire, were delighted to receive a cheque for £1750 from Cambria’s northern team.

(L-R) Paul Davies and Rebecca Parke of Macmillan, with Cambria’s Andrea James, WWH CEO Anne Hinchey, Cambria’s Tom Creed and Head of Cambria Peter Jackson.

Quarterly Report | intouch | www.wwha.co.uk | 19

Quarterly Report:

keeping you in the picture

Our new look quarterly report is designed to keep you updated on how we’re doing as an organisation and what we’re doing to improve our services for you – our residents.

These six infographics give key information on how Wales & West Housing is performing, as you’ll see over the next few pages.

There’s information provided for each of our main systems. These are: - More homes - Anti-social behaviour - I want a home - Help me pay - Fix my home - How we run our business So you can find out everything – from how many homes we’ve built so far this year to how long it takes to fix a repair.

Did you know…?

We want you to find all information regarding our performance and future plans easily. As a result, we’ve put all our reports in one place on our website for you.

This includes our infographics, annual report, financial statements,

Fix my home Performance

7416 Repairs we’ve completed

Satisfaction

9.5 out of 10

is the score residents gave us for the repair service they received

% 64%

0-5 days

days 17

Repairs fully complete on our first visit

6-10 days 11-15 days 16+ days

The average days we took to complete a repair

Feedback from residents What residents like The quality of work | Polite and friendly operative | That repairs stay fixed What residents want to see improved Repairs completed faster | Easier to report repairs | More repairs to stay fixed

Complaints

24

complaints out of

7416 repairs completed

Which is about one complaint for every 310 repairs completed

Please take a good look and if you have any comments, let us know by emailing contactus@wwha.co.uk or calling us on 0800 052 2526.

You told us that you wanted it to be easier to report repairs. In response we’ve been working hard to ensure that it’s easy to call us and make arrangements for repairs to be carried out. We have tried new ways of managing our workload to make sure any time spent waiting on the phone during busy periods is kept to a minimum. As a result of this, things have improved during our busiest time of the year- just after the Christmas holidays. We are continuing to focus on this in the coming summer months.

You have also told us that it really matters that we finish repairs within a reasonable period of time. So to do this, we’ve tried new ways of managing the work load of staff who carry out repairs. These staff now have more flexibility to arrange their work schedules so they can come back quickly and complete work they started.

We’ve seen good results and will continue to develop this approach in other areas, so the benefits can be felt by everyone.

Quarter 1 (January - March 2016)

Welsh Government financial viability judgement and Welsh Government regulatory report.

To view these reports, visit our website – www.wwha.co.uk – and simply click on the ‘our performance’ link on the bottom right of the homepage.

Fix my home Performance

7416 Repairs we’ve completed

Satisfaction

9.5 out of 10

is the score residents gave us for the repair service they received

% 64%

days 17

Repairs fully complete on our first visit

6-10 days 11-15 days 16+ days

The average days we took to complete a repair

Feedback from residents What residents like The quality of work | Polite and friendly operative | That repairs stay fixed What residents want to see improved Repairs completed faster | Easier to report repairs | More repairs to stay fixed

You told us that you wanted it to be easier to report repairs. In response we’ve been working hard to ensure that it’s easy to call us and make arrangements for repairs to be carried out. We have tried new ways of managing our workload to make sure any time spent waiting on the phone during busy periods is kept to a minimum. As a result of this, things have improved during our busiest time of the year- just after the Christmas holidays. We are continuing to focus on this in the coming summer months.

0-5 days

Complaints

24

complaints out of

7416 repairs completed

Which is about one complaint for every 310 repairs completed

You have also told us that it really matters that we finish repairs within a reasonable period of time. So to do this, we’ve tried new ways of managing the work load of staff who carry out repairs. These staff now have more flexibility to arrange their work schedules so they can come back quickly and complete work they started.

We’ve seen good results and will continue to develop this approach in other areas, so the benefits can be felt by everyone.

Quarter 1 (January - March 2016)

Help me pay Performance

1253 Tenancies not in an arrangement to pay off their arrears

We helped residents to: furnish their home

manage their money and apply for the right benefits appeal decisions to end benefit payments

TENANCY

Tenancies paying their rent on time or paying off their arrears

The number of evictions because of rent arrears

Residents paying by Direct Debit

Complaints

3000

Residents

Support

ONE

89%

2500

0

2000 1500 1000

Complaints

500 0

Jan

Feb

Mar

Direct Debit is the easiest way to pay, with payments taken from your bank 50 account on a fixed weekly or monthly 40 date that’s most suitable for you, so 30 you don’t have to worry!

out of

1253 tenancies in arrears

20 10

0

Jan

When it comes to paying your rent, you told us it was important that we understood your situation, helped quickly and gave you clear and accurate information.

We know that changes in income and Housing Benefit can be stressful. So we’re working with residents to support them in the move to receiving Housing Benefit directly, as well as helping people to set up Direct Debits to make budgeting easier.

Feb

Mar

We know that simply doing things for you is not what you want, which is why we are working with residents to support and enable them to take control of their own finances. We have, and continue to, provide in-depth financial support to over 100 residents at any one point in time.

So if you need help with managing your money, please get in touch by calling us on 0800 052 2526 or speak to your Housing Officer.

Quarter 1 (January - March 2016)

I want a home Performance General needs

Extra Care

50 40

days

199

Retirement

30 20 10 0

50

Homes we’ve let

On average it takes 40 days to let a property and support residents to set up a home

Satisfaction

Feedback from residents

40 30

53%

of the time, the home is suitable for the first person who views it

20 10 0

9.3 out of 10

is the score residents gave us about our service when finding them a home

What residents like The help and support provided | The features of their home | The Location of their home What residents want to see improved Repairs completed faster | Cleaner properties | Given a little more time to move

Complaints

1

complaint out of

199 homes let

You told us that when it comes to finding a home, understanding what makes the property right for you is important.

regarding a potential property, so we both have time to make sure everything is in place for a successful tenancy in the long term.

As a result, we have changed the way we go about meeting new applicants - we look to get to know you and help you to get to know us as a landlord. This enables us both to understand if the property available will be suitable for your needs.

We have seen that bringing together the incoming and outgoing residents also works, as often people make agreements between themselves about items in the property and the incoming person can find out more about living in the area.

You also told us that you don’t want to feel rushed into a decision. We aim to ensure that people get as much notice as possible

We will continue to use satisfaction surveys with our new residents to make sure we understand what matters to residents.

Quarter 1 (January - March 2016)

@!

$%&

Anti-social behaviour

$%&

@!

Performance

57

NOISE

72

ANIMAL NUISANCE THREATENING BEHAVIOUR

Anti-social behaviour cases we opened or reopened

Satisfaction

7.4 out of 10

is the score residents gave us for the antisocial behaviour support they received

Anti-social behaviour cases we resolved

Most common anti- social behaviour issues

Feedback from residents What residents like Speaking to the right person to discuss their ASB issue | That we take into account personal circumstances | The speedy response What residents want to see improved More action to resolve cases | Providing more updates on the case

We are working with residents to ensure that our role in supporting you to address anti-social behaviour in your community is clear and effective, and to encourage you to discuss and resolve issues.

We continue to work closely with other agencies, such as the police and social services, to tackle wider or more serious problems.

You told us that being able to speak to the right person and us understanding

Complaints

1

complaint out of

57

anti-social behaviour cases reported

your personal circumstances are important to you.

Your Housing Officer is the first person you should speak to if you do have any problems, and they will work with you to understand and help you resolve the issues.

In the first three months of this year we helped resolve 12 anti-social behaviour complaints by bringing people together.

Quarter 1 (January - March 2016)

More homes Performance

433 Homes we are building

Satisfaction

8.3 out of 10

is the score residents gave us about their new home

Started Completed

We completed 31 new homes

Feedback from residents What residents like More affordable than the private rented sector | The location | The size of home What residents want to see improved The size of parking spaces | Would like separate kitchens | The quality of soil and turf

Complaints

0

complaints out of

31

new homes completed

We have a large number of homes on site which will complete over the next few years and will provide a range of housing opportunities – from affordable rent to low cost home ownership.

As a result, we’re trying out different approaches to make things better – from trialling different types of turf, to paying more attention to the design of road layouts and parking areas.

Understanding what matters to new residents is important to us, and some of our new residents have told us about issues with car parking and landscaping.

We have also reviewed our home user guide and created a smaller, easier to navigate booklet, which provides clearer guidance on how to use the various components in your property such as the boiler and thermostat.

Quarter 1 (January - March 2016)

How we run our business Performance All other calls

Repair calls 4

Minutes

29,591

3

3

2

2

1

1

9am 11am

500 The 400 4 3

Money spent

2 1

£

0

500 500

Jan

Feb

Mar

Our busiest call periods

average time it took us to answer your calls

300 200 100 0

Value for money

Complaints

£ spent per home

Q1 2014 Q2 2014 Q3 2014 Q4 2014 Q1 2015 Q2 2015 Q3 2015 Q4 2015

29

400 400

300 Q4 2015 300 4 Q3 2014 Q4 2014 Q1 2015 Q2 2015 Q3 2015

15 Q4 2015

Repairing residents’ homes People to support our residents New kitchens, bathrooms & equipment Repaying loans & interest Building new homes Running our business

200 200

complaints

100 100 0

10am

10am

0

Calls we answered this quarter

11am

9am

Q1Q1 2014 Q2Q2 2014 Q3Q3 2014 Q4Q4 2014 Q1Q1 2015 Q2Q2 2015 Q3 Q3 2015 Q4 Q4 2015

2014

2014

2014

Management

2014

2015

Maintenance

2015

2015

2015

Other

in

total this quarter

How much it costs per home to run our business

We aim to run our business efficiently and use our money wisely. Most of our income is spent on maintaining homes either by doing repairs or improvements such as renewing kitchens, bathrooms or windows. We also spend some of our income building new homes and paying off the mortgages we have on existing properties.

We review expenditure and our costs regularly to make savings and limit potential cost increases. The value for

money graph above shows that we have kept the cost of managing the business almost constant at about £200 per property over the last two years despite price rises in several areas.

We have changed our processes so that we can answer calls more quickly as we know this is important to residents. The average call time has halved and we will continue to focus on this area. Our busy periods are first thing in the morning and calls are answered more quickly later in the day.

Quarter 1 (January - March 2016)

26 | www.wwha.co.uk | intouch Making a Difference to Your Future

Head of Cambria Peter Jackson (right) shows one of our residents the ropes

Residents try a trade!

Residents from Cardiff and Bridgend attended our exciting new ‘Build Your Skills, Try a Trade’ initiative recently.

Working alongside Cambria Maintenance Services, the two day initiative allows young residents aged 16-24 the opportunity to try a number of construction related trades, coupled with a mini design and build project to help improve job readiness.

On day one, the groups experienced a variety of trade roles that Cambria performs; from bricklaying to carpentry and tiling. Residents had the opportunity to try their hand and find out whether a career in housing maintenance is something they would like to persue.

Making a Difference to Your Future | intouch | www.wwha.co.uk | 27 The second day saw the group take part in ‘Project Construct’, where they received a brief to create a mobile phone holder which they then pitched to a Dragon’s Den style panel.

Following on from the two day programme, they also had the opportunity to complete on site work experience with Cambria in their chosen field.

Resident Matthew, who took part in the initiative, said: “I really enjoyed the two days. I had the chance to try out several different trades, which I didn’t think I would ever have the opportunity to do.

“Providing an opportunity for our residents to experience and try a range of practical skills has been a real pleasure.

“Cambia is very much about growing its own staff and this initiative is just the start of an investment which encourages individuals to progress onto a full time work placement in housing maintenance.”

Steve Porter, Operations Director at WWH said: “We are very pleased to welcome residents from across South Wales to our first ‘Build Your Skills, Try a Trade’ event.

“I got to meet some great people too.

I am looking forward to learning more on work experience!”

“It’s a fantastic chance to unlock the potential of young people in our communities, giving them useful skills and building confidence.”

Peter Jackson, Head of Cambria Maintenance Services, said:

We have the same fantastic ‘Build Your

Would you like to Build Your Skills and Try a Trade in North Wales?

We have a ‘Build Your Skills, Try a Trade’ opportunity coming up for our residents in North Wales. So if you are 16-24 years old and have an interest in construction, why not come along?

Monday 20th June.

To register to take part, contact Frances Maclean, Community Benefits Officer by:

- Freephone 0800 052 2526 The two day taster will be held on Thursday 9th June – Friday 10th June at - Email contactus@wwha.co.uk Coleg Cambria in Connah’s Quay, Deeside.

- Visit www.wwha.co.uk and go to our There’ll also be the opportunity to go ‘Get Job Ready’ section on to a work placement with Cambria Maintenance Services, based on a The closing date for registration is 40 hour working week commencing Friday 3rd June 2016.

28 | www.wwha.co.uk | intouch | Making a Difference to Your Future

Interested in a career in law?

Law firm Blake Morgan are running a work placement scheme for 15-18 year olds in July 2016.

The scheme will allow you to spend a day in the life of one of the firm’s lawyers, meet trainees and learn how they started their career in law, take part in workshops and get tips on interview techniques and completing applications.

To find out more, contact our Employment and Enterprise Coach Alun Harries on 0800 052 2526.

Money Matters | intouch | www.wwha.co.uk | 29

Benefits of a

bank account Earlier this year, fee-free basic bank accounts were launched. They are available for people who don’t have/are ineligible for a standard bank account, or can’t use their current bank account due to financial difficulties.

What are the benefits?

• The accounts are designed to make it easier to manage money.

They don’t have an overdraft facility, so you won’t be able to spend money you don’t have and go into debt • It will enable you to pay your bills

by Direct Debit, pay cheques in for free and take money out or check your balance at a cash point with a debit card.

• You won’t be charged if a Direct Debit bounces (if the transaction doesn’t go ahead due to lack of funds)

How do I get one of these accounts?

You can set up a fee-free bank account today as nearly all of the high-street banks offer these accounts, allowing you to have your wages, benefits or pension paid into a bank account.

Universal Credit If you receive benefits, you will need a bank account ready for when you are moved onto the new Universal Credit scheme. This is because the funds will be paid directly to you and you then have to make your own arrangements to pay your rent.

You can find out more about fee-free bank accounts by visiting www.moneyadviceservice.org.uk or calling them on 0800 138 7777.

Don’t forget our Tenancy Support Officers are also on hand to help and give you financial advice. To find out more, contact us on 0800 052 2526 or email contactus@wwha.co.uk

30 | www.wwha.co.uk | intouch | Making a Difference to Your Community

Making a Difference …

at Cwrt Andrew Buchan The communal gardens at Cwrt Andrew Buchan retirement scheme, Rhymney, have been transformed into a hive of activity thanks to funding from WWH.

Last autumn, residents and WWH staff worked hard to build the accessible pathway, greenhouse, shed and raised bed, funded by our Making a Difference to Your Environment grant.

The green-fingered group at the scheme are lucky to have some experts amongst them - Royston Hill and Lyndon Harry both trained as mature students to become qualified horticulturists. Along with experienced gardener Alan Fisher, they are now growing a range of fruit, veg and flowers so residents can eat healthily and enjoy the beautiful garden.

Royston and Alan, along with Alan’s wife Linda and fellow resident Pat Thomas, have also all recently passed their Level 2 in Food Safety so they can make tasty treats for events in the garden, thanks to funding from our Making a Difference to Your Community grant.

Alan and Royston have also attended a bee-keeping training course to find out more about having a bee hive at their scheme. The group even sold their homegrown plants at our Head Office recently to raise funds for their future garden activities.

Residents at Cwrt Andrew Buchan said: “Royston, Alan, Lyndon and the other volunteers have done a marvellous job

Making a Difference to Your Community | intouch | www.wwha.co.uk | 31 of the garden. Everyone’s commenting If you’d like to Make a Difference like the on how great it’s looking. We’re very Cwrt Andrew Buchan residents, there are grateful for all the help that Wales & West lots of ways we can help you.

Housing have given us.

Our grants can fund items you need to “We’re really enjoying learning more and develop a community garden, learn new working in the garden is helping us to get skills and host community activities. So fresh air, exercise and most importantly, if there’s something you and your fellow friendship. It’s great for our health and residents would like to try this summer wellbeing.” then just get in touch to see if we can help!

If you need training to help you learn more about your activity, we can even:

To find out more about how we can help, contact Claire Hammond on: • Email: claire.hammond@wwha.co.uk • Phone: 0800 052 2526 • Text: 07766 832 692

32 | www.wwha.co.uk | intouch | Planned Maintenance

Planned Maintenance Below are the properties that we plan to upgrade from April to June 2016: Kitchens Caerau Court Road, Cardiff (houses) Caerau Court Road, Cardiff (tower block properties) Cwrt Berllan, Prestatyn

Bathrooms Powys Close, Deeside Radnor Close, Deeside Wilfred Brook House, Cardiff

Windows/Roofline Celyn Avenue, Cardiff (plus additional major works ongoing at the scheme) Fairleigh Court, Cardiff Fields Park Road, Cardiff Maelor Place, Ruabon

“My new doors make such a difference!”

Snowdonia Windows recently replaced old doors with new ones in Scotts Close, Marchwiel, Wrexham, as part of Wales & West Housing’s planned maintenance programme. Residents are delighted.

Resident Caroline Jeffs, 46, said: “My hallway was quite dark before. Both front and back doors have made such a difference to the lighting. The team from Snowdonia Windows were so friendly and helpful. I’m really pleased with the work.”

How to bleed a radiator

PH Jones Prize Draw | intouch | www.wwha.co.uk | 33

Don’t let trapped air wreak havoc on your boiler and your heating bills!

Follow these simple steps to release (or “bleed”) air from your radiators to ensure your heating system is efficient and working to its full potential.

Step 1

Diagnose the problem

All systems occasionally require bleeding. Tell-tale signs are taking too long to heat up and/or are colder at the top.

Single out your radiators

Fire up your heating system. Assess each radiator by touching the top and bottom (be careful not to burn yourself), checking for inconsistencies in warmth.

Step 3

Turn off your heat

It’s very important that you turn off your heating before you go to the next step. Otherwise you risk injuring yourself and/ or getting water all over the floor.

Release the air

Grab the radiator key and some rags. Fit the key into the groove in the valve at the top of your radiator. Hold one rag at the valve base to catch drips; use the other one to protect your hands. Twist slowly, anti-clockwise.

Step 5

Step 2

Step 4

Shut the valve

You should hear air escaping. Stay alert as it tapers off - as the hot water travels up to push the air out, it makes its way up to the valve where your hands are. Once water starts to drip out, quickly shut the valve. Repeat as needed on other radiators.

Check the pressure

Finally, check the guage on your boiler - if the pressure is too low after bleeding, you’ll need to ‘top up’. Adjust it using the filling loop, following directions from your boiler manufacturer.

Step 6

34 | www.wwha.co.uk | intouch | Your News & Views

Your News & Views

Fitters Direct surprise

residents with garden revamp

Staff from one of WWH’s contractor partners gave residents a lovely surprise recently when they revamped a community garden.

Fitters Direct Integrated Services (FDIS) were kind enough to take on the project at no cost at Llys Hebron in Pentre, Rhondda.

Four members of the FDIS team spent the weekend working hard to drastically improve the garden, undertaking work worth almost £2,500.

They painstakingly removed defective paint from the main wall, took away old timber and cleared weeds, before making a border with railway sleepers and filling the area with fresh top soil ready for planting. The team also laid a membrane in three areas that were

looking tired, installed new decorative stone and built a patio area. FDIS are even donating outdoor furniture for the patio, so residents can enjoy the summer sunshine.

Residents at the retirement scheme were really grateful for the work, and kept the boys going with lots of fuss, tea and biscuits.

Steve Donaldson, Managing Director of FDIS, said: “Having worked with Wales & West Housing for approximately nine years it was our absolute pleasure to be involved in the garden project and help residents.”

A big thank you from our residents and WWH!

Your News & Views | intouch | www.wwha.co.uk | 35

Green fingered residents bring plant sale to WWH! The talented gardening group from Cwrt Andrew Buchan, Rhymney, paid a visit to our Cardiff head office recently to hold a special plant sale for staff.

Seedlings for various produce, which had been grown at the retirement scheme by green fingered residents, were sold at the event.

The community garden at Cwrt Andrew Buchan has proved to be a huge success, and got off the ground thanks to the hard work and dedication of residents plus funding from our Making a Difference grants.

The residents managed to raise £66.30, which will now be put back into the community garden.

Royston Hill, who is one of the lead gardeners in the group, said: “The Wales & West Housing staff were so kind and friendly, even those who didn’t know too much about gardening came to see us to make a donation.

“As well as raising the £66.30 for our funds, we were also able to donate a few plants to other local charities, which meant even more to me.

“Helping other groups within our communities is what everything is about for me – and Wales & West Housing are not only helping me to get my life and health back on track, but also giving me the opportunity to help others.”

36 | www.wwha.co.uk | intouch |Your News & Views

Kathy helps residents to get crafty!

21 of our craft groups have been given a boost by a thoughtful gift from our Chair of the Board, who is finishing her 4 year term as Chair this May. Kathy Smart is stepping down as Chair and a member of our Board after serving the longest permitted term of 13 years, and has given the craft groups a lovely leaving gift of materials and equipment worth £50 per group.

Kathy said: “I chose our craft groups because they promote friendship and are able to reach many residents in our schemes. I was fortunate to meet some ladies from local craft groups at WWH’s Cardiff office recently who make cards, jewellery and knitted items. Their greetings cards were so beautiful that I bought several, thus giving them the opportunity to make more to fund a Christmas treat.”

Kathy, along with our Chief Executive Anne Hinchey, met with members of the Craftynanas.com (Cardiff), Crafty Tuesdays (Barry) and Langford Close (Wrexham) craft group. They were joined by members of our Resident Participation Steering Group who were keen to see what they make.

As you can see from the pictures, the clever crafters create a huge range of cards, plaques and toys which they sell to raise funds for activities at their schemes and estates.

Barbara Edwards from the Crafty Tuesdays said: “We feel very fortunate to have been invited to Cardiff to receive Kathy’s generous grant and show off our work. It’s been really inspiring to meet others with similar interests! We love challenging ourselves with new projects and really appreciate the support and funding we’ve received from Wales & West Housing.”

Your News & Views| intouch | www.wwha.co.uk | 37

Tea, Talk and Tech at Constantine Court!

Residents of Constantine Court and other members of the local Rhondda community got together recently in the scheme’s communal lounge for some Tea, Talk and Tech.

The event was especially for the over 50s and those interested in finding out more about local groups and activities.

Thank you Resident Richard Lambert from Penrhyn/ Headland, Kenfig Hill, would like to express his thanks to neighbours for their kindness during a very difficult time.

Richard’s wife sadly passed away in March, and kind-hearted neighbours collected money to take him and his four

The team from the Phoenix Initiative (shown above) was also on hand to help people improve their technology skills, alongside numerous other agencies with lots of useful information for members of the community.

Attendees also treated themselves to a nice cup of tea and plenty of gorgeous cakes, whilst having the opportunity to chat and meet new people. children out for the day, as well as buy a beautiful floral display for the funeral.

Richard says that everyone has been amazing, especially the family of number 17, and the children had a lovely day out and the flowers were simply stunning.

The family would like to sincerely thank everyone for their kind thoughts and generosity.

38 | www.wwha.co.uk | intouch | Your News & Views

Easter treat at Llys Hafren

Residents at Llys Hafren celebrated Easter with a delicious meal.

Mrs Sherrie Jones and Scheme Manager Amy Parry prepared a 2 course meal that was enjoyed by over 20 residents. They also held a cake decorating competition.

Cynth says goodbye after 33 years at WWH!

Cynth Preston, admin officer in our Flint office, retired recently after an amazing 33 years of working for Wales & West Housing.

Cynth said: “I’m very proud to have worked for Wales & West Housing, the staff have been wonderful and I will miss everyone.”

We wish you all the best for your retirement Cynth!

Your News & Views | intouch | www.wwha.co.uk | 39

Residents get together

for a trip to Ross on Wye Residents from Western Court had a lovely visit to Ross on Wye recently.

Here, resident Marjorie Holtham tells us about their trip...

On the lovely spring morning of Friday 8th April, we set off in the Cardiff VEST (Voluntary Emergency Service Transport) bus to Merton House Hotel - a not for profit community service project in Ross on Wye. We reached the Ross on Wye roundabout and turned onto Wilton Road and over the bridge. Before us lay the wide expanse of the Wye River in full flow, with the town ahead and a tall church spire visible on the hill.

We turned left at a large fish sculpture which was a shimmering pewter and green and the hotel was just around the corner.

We were made very welcome and had a silver service fish and chip lunch, the rolls warm with butter, which was followed by Bakewell tart and custard and pots of tea.

Graham the manager then showed us around the lovely gardens with level access overlooking the river. All the rooms at the hotel have recently been refurbished to a high standard and the en suite facilities are designed to meet everyone’s needs.

In the foyer there was a row of communal mobility scooters and the hotel has a bus similar to the VEST bus for excursions.

Entertainment is arranged for guests and those currently staying there told us that they were very pleased, the staff were very kind and they were having a good time.

We went to the Labels outlet centre afterwards for some retail therapy; it is literally five minutes away from the hotel.

We had a lovely day and on the way back as we approached Wales we were greeted with a bank of daffodils that seemed to go on for miles.

The Merton House hotel web site is at www.mertonhouse.org if you would like to check it out for yourself.

Marjorie Holtam

40 | www.wwha.co.uk | intouch Making a Difference to Your Community

#MADAwards16

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Nominate them now!

Good Neighbour Going Green Local Hero Community Project

Rising Star Fresh Start Steps to Success (new for 2016)

To nominate contact your Housing Officer or call PR and Communications on 0800 052 2526