Housing forYou

Stevenage Homes magazine for all tenants, leaseholders and careline customers

Spring 2011

Bring in the Spring

Whats changing at Stevenage Homes

over the next few months
Decent
Decent Homes
Homes funding
funding approved
approved improvements
improvements continue
continue
Shaping
Shaping the
the future
future of
of sheltered
sheltered housing
housing
Help
Help change
change services
services through
through the
the Customer
Customer Scrutiny
Scrutiny Panel
Panel
To help make life better for the people of Stevenage by providing excellent housing services

WELCOME FROM LORRAINE OBRIEN

Welcome from Lorraine
Hello and a warm welcome to our first newsletter of
2011. I do hope you had an enjoyable Christmas and
would like to take this opportunity of wishing you a
happy, healthy and prosperous New Year.
Extreme weather conditions this winter have already
caused some problems for our customers. Our repairs
team handled a much higher than usual number of
emergency calls caused by freezing temperatures. I
would encourage you to read the advice in your most
recent rent statement about preventing damage to
your home and possessions.
After five successful years of running the
management of housing in Stevenage, Stevenage
Borough Council is now responding to recent changes
in Government policy and is to review the way it
delivers its housing services.
I am very proud of all that we have achieved since we
became an arms length management organisation in
2006. We have improved standards of services that we provide for our customers and are now
operating more efficiently. The Audit Commission rated us as a two star service, which has allowed
us to access 22m of Government funding, which we have invested in improving and modernising
thousands of homes.
Both Stevenage Borough Council and Stevenage Homes believe that now is the right time to review
how the service is managed and operated to ensure that you continue to receive the best housing
service.
In partnership with Stevenage Borough Council, we are asking residents in sheltered housing
schemes for their views on what changes we can make to our services in response to a 28% cut in
Hertfordshire County Council funding; take a look at page 26 for full details.
We believe that our customers are the best people to tell us whats good or bad about our services.
Our tenant led Customer Scrutiny Panel will look at such things as the way we carry out repairs,
spend money and make decisions. For more information and how to join the panel go to page 8.
I do hope you enjoy reading this edition and, as always, if you have any news, views, comments or
suggestions please let us know by contacting our communications team on 01438 242393.
Happy Reading
Lorraine OBrien
Chief Executive

INFO FOR YOU

Contents

Are you on the same page?

Our Editorial Board

want to hear from you
Housing for You magazine reaches more than
10,000 of our tenants across Stevenage, and
90% of its readers find it a great way of getting
information on the services available to them.
We are keen to improve on our readers
satisfaction and encourage your participation
with the Editorial Board.
Do you have a talent for writing or illustrating?
Do you have a passion for reading? Could you
communicate effectively as part of a group? If
you can give your time, a place on the Editorial
Board is a great opportunity to use your
creativity in a way that will benefit plenty of
people.

Welcome from Lorraine

Message from the Board

Housing services to be reviewed

Staff sleep rough for YMCA

Helping hand for local family

Help us improve on the Customer

Scrutiny Panel

New Customer Pool pack on the way

10

FOSTA elect new Committee

11

Free tenant training courses

12

Whats going on in your community

14-15 Lettings update

16-17 How are we performing?

Were always interested in new, fresh ideas and

would love to see some new enthusiastic faces.
If you think you have what it takes, we want to
hear from you.

18-19 Stevenage Homes Board structure

The Board get together once a month at

Daneshill House (usually in the afternoon) for
up to two hours to discuss the latest and next
issue of Housing for You. We will pay for any of
your travel costs and refreshments are also
provided.
If you are interested in attending our next
meeting (April) or would just like some more
information on the Editorial Board, please
contact Jason Haslam, Editor, on
01438 242 393 or email jason.haslam@
stevenagehomes.org.uk
Dont hide your talent get involved and
help make a difference!

20

Changes to your rent and benefits

21

Decent Homes funding approved

22

Summary of leaseholder satisfaction

survey

23

Key leaseholder scheme Volunteers

needed

24

Estate walkabouts schedule

25

Keeping your drains unblocked

26

Shaping the future of sheltered housing

27

Stay connected your online services

28-29 JUST 4 KIDS

30

Changes to Home4U

MESSAGE FROM THE BOARD

A message from the Board

Adding value to Stevenage
There are few things in life that people find more important than
housing. It offers both families and individuals stability and
security. It is the basis of producing and sustaining good
communities where children can grow and flourish.
Of course the housing sector needs to work in partnership with
other local organisations to promote better conditions in health,
education, welfare and policing. The Board are very proud of
the extensive networking arrangements that Stevenage Homes
have developed over the past few years its one of the
organisations great features.
We also see the involvement of our staff in charity work as very
important to the community. The Board appreciate that this is
above and beyond the call of duty for those who get involved,
yet this kind of work has become a constant feature of the
company and those who work in it.
It is these activities as well as the professional and successful
approach our staff take towards their day job that creates a lot of value added to Stevenage.
In the next few months, as the Council undertakes the review of housing management in the Borough
including whether the ALMO should continue, I will be giving them and the consultants a broad
picture of what Stevenage Homes is achieving for the benefit of the town in general.
A lot of the review will concentrate on finance, government funding, efficiency and effectiveness and
we have a great story to tell about those aspects as well.
Good customer service is also about motivation, and the Board can see how staff are going that extra
mile to not only improve housing but also the general environment of the town.
In the next few months I am sure that we will continue to display each of the professional qualities
that got us two stars, and the many other activities that are helping us add value to the town.
For my part I will be putting all those qualities I see in the company on the table in the discussions on
our future and insisting that whatever comes about will ensure that the spirit we have developed
within Stevenage Homes continues to promote these kinds of values.

Roger Gochin
Chair, Stevenage Homes Board

INFO FOR YOU

Dates for your diary

Monday 14 March
2pm - Daneshill House

Rent review seminar

Friday 25 March
2pm 4pm - Daneshill House

Disability advisory panel

Thursday 31 March
4.30pm 7pm - Daneshill House

Board meeting

Wednesday 6 April
3.30pm 6pm - Daneshill House

Federation of Stevenage Tenants and

Associations meeting

Wednesday 4 May
3.30pm 6pm - Daneshill House

Federation of Stevenage Tenants and

Associations meeting

Friday 27 May
2pm 4pm - Daneshill House

Disability advisory panel

Wednesday 1 June
3.30pm 6pm - Daneshill House

Federation of Stevenage Tenants and

Associations meeting

Saturday 2 July
9.30am 2.30pm - Holiday Inn, St. Georges Way

Customer Conference

Stevenage Borough Council to

review delivery of housing services
the Council to access 22m of investment from
the Government.

Stevenage Homes has now been successful

running the management of housing in
Stevenage for nearly five years. Tenants voted
to form an arms length management
organisation (ALMO) in 2006 because only two
star rated ALMOs could access government
funding to improve our housing stock.

As part of the review, the Council will be

consulting with tenants and leaseholders before
deciding on any major changes.

Recently the Government has announced that

there is no longer a need for councils to retain
an ALMO in order to access financial support.
For this reason Stevenage Borough Council and
Stevenage Homes believe that now is the right
time to review how the service is managed and
operated to ensure it is getting the best value for
the town.
In 2009 The Audit Commission agreed that
Stevenage Homes has successfully improved
the operation of housing management in the
town by awarding it two stars. This has allowed
5

POSITIVE COMMUNITIES

Our staff rough it for YMCA

Clockwise from top left; Adele Miell, Jenni Whitehouse, Sarah Brewerton, Tony Silverio and Matt Smith
representing Stevenage Homes for the YMCAs Sleepeasy event

The games were a welcome distraction from

the harsh realities of the evening as the team
were faced with bitter winds and a cold, hard
floor to sleep on. Come the following morning
its fair to say that everyone realised just how
fortunate they are to have a real home to go
back to.

Stevenage Homes anti-social behaviour and

tenancy sustainment teams braved freezing
temperatures and slept rough to help raise
funds for the YMCA on Saturday 29 January
2011.
Sarah Brewerton, Adele Miell, Tony Silverio,
Jenni Whitehouse and Matt Smith all took
part in the charitys Sleepeasy event, spending
the night in the Westgate multi-storey car park
with temperatures dropping to minus 3 at one
point!

The event gave everyone involved a real

feeling for what its like to be sleeping rough at
this time of year, said Sarah Brewerton, senior
anti-social behaviour officer. The YMCA
provides help for many people here in
Stevenage and this was an event we were
proud and happy to get involved with.

Once given a plot in the car park the gang

made the best of it by putting together their own
cardboard homes for the night. Hot drinks were
provided by the YMCA organisers while the
participants kept themselves entertained by
decorating their new homes or playing a variety
of games.

The YMCA Central Herts provides

accommodation and support for 123 homeless
people locally.
For more information on their work you can visit
www.ymca.org.uk
6

POSITIVE COMMUNITIES

A helping hand for local family

Intervention project supports vulnerable families
Our Family Intervention Project (FIP) has been
busy working with one of our Stevenage
families to help them clear their garden of
rubble and garden waste. The FIP team and
the family joined forces to tackle the job and
successfully cleared an entire skip full of
rubbish in just a few hours.

The project team has been working with the

family for just over four months and is
continuing to work with them to help improve
their relationships, skills and home life. The
Family Intervention Project works with
vulnerable families within Stevenage to provide
support and guidance in changing behaviours
where there have been problems with antisocial behaviour and/or possible
homelessness.

Everyone involved worked extremely hard,

lifting and carrying heavy pieces of rubble back
and forth through the house until the job was
completed and the garden transformed. Now
the garden is a safe place for the children to
play and the family hopes to create a vegetable
patch.

For more information on the project and the

work they do, call 01438 242 666.

Trip to the skip Our intervention project team take a well earned break with a Stevenage family after a garden clean up

RESIDENT INVOLVEMENT

Help us improve
Would you like to look into how we provide services in more detail?
New Customer Scrutiny Panel
We are looking for tenants and leaseholders to
sit on our new Customer Scrutiny Panel. This
panel will inspect and recommend how to
improve services. The panel will add extra
accountability and challenge why and how
Stevenage Homes delivers services. This will
help in our ambition to constantly improve.

Frequently asked questions

What would be expected of the customers
on the panel?
n Preparing for meetings by reading reports
and other information provided
n Assessing performance information
n Attending meetings with other panel
members and staff of Stevenage Homes

The panel will:

n Give an independent view on Stevenage
Homes processes and performance
n Highlight what is good about the organisation
and what needs to change
n Make evidence based recommendations to
the Board
For an information pack and application form
contact the resident involvement team on
01438 242 183. Alternatively you can write to:
Resident involvement team, Stevenage Homes,
Daneshill House, Danestrete, Stevenage,
SG1 5HN or email resident.involvement@
stevenagehomes.org.uk

Who is eligible to join the Customer Panel?

Stevenage Homes tenants and resident
leaseholders are all eligible to join
Whats in it for me?
This is a voluntary position, but Stevenage
Homes will pay your expenses, such as travel
and childcare costs. This position gives good
training and great personal development
opportunities, and could be added to your CV or
job application. Most importantly youll be
helping to develop excellent services for all
tenants.

We would welcome applications from young

people, disabled and ethnic minority groups.

How much time would I need to give?

In the first few months, meetings will be monthly
while the panel decides how it will carry out its
work. There will also be training sessions
organised for the panel, so a commitment of
around 2-3 hours a week is likely.

Closing date for applications is

Tuesday 15 March, 5pm
Interviews will be held on Tuesday 22 March

After this, the workload is likely to include

attending quarterly meetings, occasional
workshops and spending a few hours reading
papers and preparing for meetings.

RESIDENT INVOLVEMENT
What skills would I need to be an effective
panel member?

How will the panel decide what it scrutinises

and where will it get information from?

n The ability to work independently and as part

of a team
n The ability to understand and analyse reports
and information
n Be able to express views clearly and
effectively, making reasoned contributions
n Be able to challenge constructively, whilst
respecting the roles, views and feelings of
others

There will be clear links from the panel to

Stevenage Homes Board and top managers.
The panel will undertake a minimum of three
scrutiny exercises each year. The topics for
scrutiny are likely to be identified:
n From a range of options put forward by the
management team
n An area of interest to the panel
n From referrals for scrutiny by other involved
groups
n As a result of repetitive areas of complaint
As a result of the work by the Scrutiny Panel,
improvement plans will be created and
monitored for the area scrutinised.

Im interested, but Im not sure I have all the

skills needed?
Full training will be provided for panel members.
What is important at this stage is that potential
members are willing and committed to
improving Stevenage Homes services.

Customer Pool
New info pack on the way
Over recent months we have worked with our
Customer Pool members on a review of the
information we provide them. This work was
carried out to ensure that our customer pool
members get the most out of their involvement
with us.
Following on from this review we have created
a new members pack which will be sent out to
all members of the pool. The pack includes a
newsletter with a frequently asked questions
sheet, prepaid envelope, a leaflet with useful
numbers, a programme of our tenant training
course, a customer pool memberbadge and a
notebook and pen. Weve even popped some
sweets in there for you!

Customer packs are already on their way to members

If you are interested in finding out more about

the Customer Pool or about getting involved
with Stevenage Homes, please give the
resident involvement team a call on 01438 242
183 or email resident.involvement@
stevenagehomes.org.uk
Alternatively you can find out more information
on our website
www.stevenagehomes.org.uk/beinvolved

RESIDENT INVOLVEMENT

FOSTA elect new Committee

The Federation of Stevenage Tenants and
Associations (FOSTA) held their annual general
meeting on Tuesday 18 January 2011. The
meeting was well attended and the new
committee were elected:
Chair - Les Isaacs
Before his retirement Les worked at North Herts
College as a tutor in computer studies. He has
been involved with FOSTA as Treasurer and will
continue this role until March 2011.
Vice-chair Mark Nicholson and Geoff Battersby

Left to right; Geoff Battersby, Les Isaacs,

Mark Nicholson and Lee Waight

This role is being shared by Mark and Geoff.

Mark is an active member of the Disability
Awareness Panel. Along with Geoff he will
attend Stevenage Homes Property &
Environment Core group meetings to discuss
the services we provide.

FOSTA contact details:

Suite 8, 5th Floor
Swingate House
Stevenage
Herts SG1 1XB
Telephone: 01438 315822

Secretary - Lee Waight

Email: enquiries@fosta.info

Lee was elected to serve a second term and

continue his work in this role. Lee is a member
of the Harrow Court resident group.

For more information please call

01438 242 183.

FOSTA needs you

Help treasure your community
support will be given. FOSTA meet on a
monthly basis and discuss housing and related
issues such as services provided by Stevenage
Homes and Stevenage Borough Council.

Stevenage Homes have been working with the

Federation of Stevenage Tenants and
Associations (FOSTA) for many years to make
sure that tenants and leaseholders have the
opportunity to share their views with us. This
partnership means that FOSTA can champion
the needs of our customers effectively and bring
their most important issues to our attention.

If you are interested please call the resident

involvement team on 01438 242 183 or email
us on resident.involvement@
stevenagehomes.org.uk

The group currently require a treasurer. This

voluntary role would suit someone who can
manage a budget and the time commitment will
be an hour or two per month. Full training and

10

RESIDENT INVOLVEMENT
Skills for Life Free tenant training courses
How would you like to learn something new? Would you like to gain a practical skill that is useful
around the home and helpful to you and your family?
Were sure that our latest programme of tenant training courses will have something to offer you. We
use professionally qualified trainers, our venues are easy to find, and we provide refreshments and
lunch. We also cover reasonable transport costs to help you to attend. The courses are free of
charge and offered on a first come first served basis.
Take a look at our upcoming courses below:
To book a place contact the resident involvement team on 01438 242183 or email
resident.involvement@stevenagehomes.org.uk
Cook with confidence

Managing your money

5 week course 4.30pm-6.30pm on

Wednesdays - 2 March to 30 March at
North Herts College, Stevenage

2 week course - 9.30am-2.30pm on

Saturdays 12 & 19 March at Rowan House,
Letchworth

Learn the techniques to cook with confidence

and add your own variations to basic recipes
ingredients provided!

This short course looks at money

management and budgeting to help you get
to grips with your finances.

Grow your own fruit and vegetables

DIY skills training

3 week course 9.30am-12.30pm on

Tuesdays 8 March to 23 March at
Bowes Lyon Centre, Stevenage

April 2010 call to book your place, dates to

be confirmed
People attending our DIY workshops in 2010
had a great time and enjoyed some real hands
on practice. Come along and learn about
painting and tiling techniques, how to hang
wallpaper and how to properly use heating
controls. Bring along any questions you may
have to help solve your own DIY problems.

Growing your own fruit and vegetables is

satisfying and easy to do. This course looks
at the basics of maintaining everything from a
large patch to a window box.

Developing your CV and interview skills

2 week course 9.30am-2.30pm on
Saturdays 30 April and 7 May at Daneshill
House, Stevenage

Digital photography
5 week course - 2.15pm - 4.15pm on
Tuesdays 3 May to 7 June (no session on
31 May due to half term) at In Town Training,
Stevenage

This course shows you how to set out and

compile an effective CV and tailor the finished
product to specific job applications. The
course also provides hints and tips about
attending interviews and researching potential
companies.

This course covers the basics on how to use

your camera and how to compose your
photographs. Youll learn about using lighting
for the best effect and how to capture
movement. By the end of the course you will
be able to download your photos to a
computer and make adjustments to prepare
them for printing.
11

RESIDENT INVOLVEMENT

Whats going on in your community?

Shephall Residents and Associates

Federation of Stevenage Tenants and

Associations (FOSTA)

Second Tuesday of each month at 6.30pm at

The Hyde Out.

FOSTA meet on the first Wednesday of every

month, usually at Daneshill House. If youd like
to attend a meeting please let us know by
calling 01438 242 183

St Nicholas and Martins Wood Residents

Group

Bedwell Residents Group

Second Monday of each month at 6pm. Venues

vary so please call to check 01438 242 183

First Tuesday of every month at 6.30pm at

Bedwell Community Centre

Poplars Residents Group

Meeting times vary so please call to check

Brent Court Residents Group

To confirm meeting times for these groups

please contact the resident involvement team
on 01438 242 183 or email
resident.involvement@
stevenagehomes.org.uk

Third Monday of each month at 6pm in the

Brent Court meeting room.
Harrow Court Residents Group
First Monday of every month at 7pm in the
Harrow Court meeting room

Helping us to help you

Hertford Road and Bragbury End Residents

Group

Please remember if you help us to

improve our services, we will pay for any
reasonable expenses such as bus fares,
parking fees and childcare costs. Weve
decided to pay your expenses in return for
you taking the time to get involved and help
us improve the services that we provide
you.

First Monday of each month at 2pm at the

Hertford Road Community Centre
Pin Green Residents Association
Last Wednesday of each month at the Pin
Green Community Centre, Archer Road.
Refreshments at 6.30pm, meeting starts at 7 pm

Contact the resident involvement team

for more information on 01438 242183
or email resident.involvement@
stevenagehomes.org.uk

Shaftesbury Court Tenants Group

Second Thursday of each month at 11am in the
Shaftesbury Court meeting room

12

RESIDENT INVOLVEMENT

Shephall Residents
& Associates
are hosting a

Celebration for
The Royal Wedding
on FRIDAY 29 APRIL 2011
at the following venues:
The Childrens Centre and
The Hydeout at The Hyde shops
From 1PM TO 3.30PM
If you would like to come along please contact

Michael & Sharon Hearn

on 01438 217840
for more information

13

LETTINGS

Housing supply and demand

The facts
Heres the latest information on the homes weve let over the last three months as well as the bids we
have received for them. Weve also included some other facts and figures that you wanted to know
about.
How many homes were let October to December 2010?
We let a total of 112 empty homes in those 3 months, approximately 8 per week. This was about the
same as the previous quarter. 82 lets were made to homeseeker applicants - these are applicants
who are not currently our tenants. 23 lets went to applicants who were seeking a transfer from one of
our homes and 7 lets went to applicants who were accepted by Stevenage Borough Council as
homeless. Figure 1 below shows the types of homes that we let in the period. 54 of these were family
homes.

How many people were waiting at the end of December 2010?

There were 6,829 applicants on the Housing Register, an increase of 95 on the last 3 months. There
were 4,837 live applications, which are applicants who can bid for homes. The other 1,992
applicants have applications On Hold (suspended) and are not eligible to bid, for a wide variety of
reasons. Figure 2 below shows the demand for each type of home. In total there are 1,415 live
applicants waiting for family homes and 3,422 single people and couples:

14

LETTINGS
How many points were needed to be successful?
As we are looking at one quarters homes only, it is misleading to quote an average score per home.
We are therefore showing the points needed for a successful bid, collecting together all the results
from the fortnightly feedback:

This table shows the lowest and highest

number of points for successful bids per
property type:
Lowest
1410
300
1140
3750

Highest
5000
7500
5000
8500

2500
1270
10000

7500
3000

2350
1640
4000
1850
2410

4500
2080
5000
7000

The number of points needed to be a

successful bidder varies a lot for every type
of home, which is why there is no
average.

Type of property
Studio flats
Sheltered one-bed flats
One-bed flats
Sheltered one-bed
bungalows
One-bed bungalows
Two-bed flats
Sheltered two-bed
bungalow
Two-bed houses
Three-bed maisonettes
Three-bed bungalow
Three-bed houses
Four-bed houses
Four-bed houses

n The number of empty homes we have

changes each fortnight
n Some areas are more popular than others
but that changes from time to time
n The number of people bidding changes every
fortnight
n The total number of bids varies every
fortnight
n The number of people eligible or allowed to
bid changes each fortnight
n We change the points totals or the type/size
of property that an applicant is looking for, for
15 applicants each week, to reflect changes
in their circumstances
n We register 60 new applications each
fortnight, which means that there are far
more people going onto the housing register
than are being housed

We hope some or all of this information is of interest or useful for you. If you have any questions or
comments about these facts and figures please contact us at lettings@stevenagehomes.org.uk.
For further details and information, please see our website at www.stevenagehomes.org.uk

15

OUR PERFORMANCE

How are we performing?

Our performance so far in 2010/11 shows some areas exceeding their targets and improving on last
year and others not doing so well.
n We are reviewing Customer Service performance to include reporting on what is important to you
n Performance on repairs on time is showing some improvement. We are reviewing repair processes
to ensure that all measures reflect your experience of the service
Our aim is to continually improve and we will use performance information to look at how we can
deliver better services during the year and achieve the targets we have set ourselves.
If you have any queries or comments please contact James Dean, Head of Business Improvement on
01438 242666 or email james.dean@stevenagehomes.org.uk.
Our performance between April and December 2010 was as follows
Measure

Our Performance Our Performance Our Target

2009/10
December 2010
December 2010

Target
Met ?

Percentage of calls to our

customer service centre
answered within 20 seconds

79.62%

73.71%

85%

No

Percentage of customers visiting

our customer service centre
without an appointment who
were served within 20 minutes

87.29%

89.44%

85%

Yes

Percentage of complaints,
compliments and comments
responded to within 10 days of
receipt

93.8%

90.60%

95%

Nearly

Percentage of routine repairs

carried out on time

91.34%

92.90%

95%

Nearly

Percentage of urgent repairs

carried out on time

72.64%

93.99%

97%

Nearly

Percentage of repair appointments

made & kept

95.22%

95.59%

97%

Nearly

Percentage of homes with a valid

gas safety certificate

99.99%

100%

100%

Yes

Percentage of customers who are

happy with the caretaking service

80.5%

72.38%

80%

No

Number of blitz cleans undertaken

in small blocks of flats
(avg per block per year)

4.35

4.03

Yes

Average time to re-let a property

(days)

47.83

27.53

30

Yes

Percentage of all rent collected

98.06%

98.44%

98.8%

Nearly

16

OUR PERFORMANCE
You Said We Did
Feedback from you is important as it lets us
know what areas we need to improve and also
what we are getting right.
Weve received a lot of praise along with the
grumbles but as a result of the grumbles we
have made improvements to our services. Here
are just a few of the improvements weve made:
You said
When moving into your new home you
werent sure what repair work would be
done once youd moved in

You said
Many of you
were not
happy with
the condition
of your
neighbours
gardens

We did
Now you are
given a check
sheet that
includes a list
of any work
that will be
done

We did
A new neighbour agreement has been
produced and all new tenants with gardens
sign this. You can view the agreement on
our website or ask your Tenancy Adviser for
a copy

You said
Many of you told us that you were unsure
of how to end your tenancy and what you
needed to do before handing in your keys
We did
We have now produced a leaflet called
leaving your home this is available on our
website, from the Customer Service Centre
or call and we can send you a copy

As you can see, letting us know about the services we provide makes a real
difference to what we do so please keep the feedback coming.
You can register a complaint, comment or compliment in the following ways:
n
n
n
n

Through the website

By speaking to any member of staff in person or on the phone
Emailing us at yoursay@stevenagehomes.org.uk
Writing to us at our Daneshill House office
17

STEVENAGE HOMES BOARD

Board Structure 2011

David Gray joins as independent Board
member. David has lived in Stevenage since
1984 and is also Vice Chair of the board of
governors for Fairlands Primary School and
Nursery. As an independent Board member
Davids role will be to share his skills in
customer care and project management.

Moving into Spring we are happy to present

you with our newest Board members, as well
as a recently agreed new Board structure.
The Board has twelve members who work
together to ensure that Stevenage Homes is
effectively governed and delivering efficient
services. Four Board members were
nominated by the Council, four are
independent members and the remaining four
are made up of tenants or leaseholders.

Gervase Muller becomes the new tenant

Board member. Gervase has lived in
Stevenage for more than 25 years. He is
Secretary of Harrow Court Resident Group and
a former Vice Chair of the Federation of
Stevenage Tenants & Associations (FOSTA).

Cllr Michael Hearn has taken up the post of

Councillor Board Member. He has lived in
Stevenage since 1993 and was elected as
ward councillor for Martins Wood in May 2010.
Michael is also chair of Shephall Residents
Group and volunteers for St Johns Ambulance.

Board Meeting Dates 2011/12

2011
31 March
19 May
14 July
8 September
29 September (AGM)
13 October
1 December
2012
9 February
29 March

Operations Committee Meeting Dates 2011/12

Members: John Lloyd (chair), Carol Latif, Gervase
Muller, Helen George & Amanda Harper-Ives
2011
13 April
Kadoma
28 July
Kadoma
3 November
Kadoma
2012
26 January
Kadoma

Shimkent
Shimkent
Venue tbc
Venue tbc
Shimkent
Shimkent
Shimkent
Shimkent
Shimkent

18

STEVENAGE HOMES BOARD

CHAIRMAN

The Board

Roger Gochin

INDEPENDENTS

Simon Smith

Helen George

David Gray

COUNCILLORS

John Lloyd

Michael Hearn

Brian Underwood

TENANTS

Gervase Muller

Carol Latif

LEASEHOLDER

Amanda Harper-Ives

Astrida Mulenga

19

Jo Martins

INCOME SERVICES

Changes to your benefits

You may have seen or heard about changes the
Government are making to the benefit system.
This will affect you if you have someone living
with you who is classed as a non dependant. A
non dependant is someone who normally lives
with the Housing Benefit claimant such as an
adult, son, daughter, relative or friend.

from April 2011. As a tenant you should make

sure that anyone who is classed as a non
dependant pays their contribution towards your
rent charge.
If you have any queries about what you or your
non dependants should pay please telephone
one of our income advisers on 01438 242 666
or call Housing Benefit on 01438 242 440

The amount by which you are affected differs

depending on the non dependants
circumstances. These changes come into effect

Changes to your rent

You will soon be getting a letter telling
you how much rent you will be charged
between April 2011 and March 2012.
from April, we will be showing service
charges separate to the weekly rent
payment where applicable. This is so
you can see exactly what you are being
charged for. As Value for Money is
important, you will be able to see
exactly what youre paying for.
We are holding a meeting on Monday
14 March for you to raise any questions
or concerns about your rent. It will be
held at Daneshill House at 2pm and will
be chaired by Cllr Ann Webb, Portfolio
Holder for Housing. All customers are
welcome to attend. To reserve your
place please contact
enquiries@stevenagehomes.org.uk

20

LEASEHOLDER NEWS

The future of Decent Homes

Funding details released

The funding will allow us to continue with our Decent Homes programme

Roger Gochin, chair of Stevenage Homes,

said;

This February we received confirmation of how

much funding we will receive from the Homes
and Communities Agency (HCA) to go towards
Decent Homes in Stevenage.

We are thrilled that we will be able to continue

our programme of investment in Stevenage
Borough Councils housing stock. In the past
two years the improvements that Stevenage
Homes has made to peoples homes has
changed tenants lives for the better. Although
it will take longer than anticipated to complete
our programme we hope that we will be able to
continue to upgrade homes to a higher
standard than the minimum Decent Homes
Standard set by the Government.

Stevenage Homes have been allocated

24,585,052 a significant proportion of our
original bid. This will allow us to continue our
major works programme.
The HCA decide how much each organisation
is allocated. We had to show a need for
investment and an ability to deliver value for
money.
Only 46 of the 70 Council landlords that bid for
funding were successful.

We will soon be working with Councillors and

tenants to agree which homes that have yet to
receive works will be done and when. As
always, we will tell you about the new
programme in future issues of Housing for You.

Our allocation means there is sufficient funding

over the next four years to maintain a
reasonably healthy decent homes programme
without significantly compromising the
Stevenage Standard.

21

LEASEHOLDER NEWS
Summary of Leaseholder Satisfaction Survey
Results 2010

This survey was conducted by post during July

and August 2010. We sent a survey to all 1168
leaseholders and received 187 responses. This
is a response rate of 16%: An improvement on
last years response rate of 12%.

Despite the good level of satisfaction with local

neighbourhoods as a place to live, leaseholders
mentioned a variety of environmental problems
in and around their block. The most common of
these were litter, fly-tipping and noise.

Summary

Satisfaction remained low with some areas

such as service charges being value for money,
which has dropped from 44% to 34%, and some
aspects of Major Works: In particular only 36%
were satisfied with the quality of the work and
even though only 40% were satisfied with the
options for payment, this has increased from
37% last year.

Overall, 60% of leaseholders said they were

satisfied with our services and 56% said they
were satisfied with the Home Ownership Team.
Throughout the survey, satisfaction with the
Home Ownership Team and with the
organisation as a whole was very similar.
This year, leaseholders rated us highest for
keeping them informed (77%) that staff at
Stevenage Homes are helpful (74%) and that
information sent regarding service charges is
easy to understand (74%).

The survey showed that value for money,

followed by repairs and maintenance were both
the most important services to leaseholders and
the services most in need of improvement,
followed by dealing with anti-social behaviour.

Satisfaction increased in a number of areas this

year compared to last year, including:
n The local neighbourhood as a place to live
(75%, up from 73%);
n Major works being value for money (34%, up
from 29%); and
n Satisfaction with the payment options
available for major works (40%, up from
37%).

You said: Leaseholders wanted their

communal repairs services to be published
on our web site.
We - formed a key leasehold scheme where
residents volunteer to review the quarterly
communal repairs listing of their block.

22

LEASEHOLDER NEWS

Key leaseholder scheme

We need volunteers!
For further details, please contact the home
ownership services team on 01438 242236 or
by emailing leasehold@
stevenagehomes.org.uk

Key leaseholders are volunteers who actively

participate in the inspection of communal
repairs and other works carried out to their
blocks. They have access to reports detailing
these charges during the period in which they
are calculated so that queries and issues can
be addressed and resolved before invoicing.

Value for Money We need your e-mail

addresses!
Please forward us your email address, this will
help to keep service cost down.

The aims of the key leaseholder scheme are to:

n encourage feedback on our repairs and
services and make them more open and
transparent;
n improve consultation with leaseholders about
how we operate;
n help sort out any errors and disputes before
we finalise the charges for day to day
repairs;
n help carry out spot checks of repairs and
services to achieve excellent standards;

For further details, please contact the home

ownership services team by emailing
leasehold@stevenagehomes.org.uk

You said: Leaseholders wanted to

take over ownership of the leasehold forum.
We - sent out a questionnaire to all leaseholders
and the result was that the majority of leaseholders
were happy with having a leaseholder as Chairperson
but for Stevenage Homes to continue with the
ownership of the forum.

Leaseholder Forum dates

Here are the upcoming Leaseholder Forum meeting dates
for 2011. All meetings will run from 6.30pm 8pm
Date

Venue

April 13 2011

Daneshill House - Shimkent room

July 13 2011

Daneshill House - Autun room

October 12 2011

Daneshill House - Autun room

You said: Leaseholders wanted a more

flexible payment option

We - produced a specific Major Works

payment option that includes extended payments.
Call 01438 242666 for details.

23

ESTATE WALKABOUTS

Come join us for a walk

around your estate
Take a look at our upcoming estate walkabouts and see if were visiting your neighbourhood.
Date

Area

Streets to be visited

Meeting point

Time

3 March 2011

St Nicholas

Durham Road

Flat block 110 -112

10am

17 March 2011

Broadwater

Spring Drive
Brook Drive
Tye End
Ashdown Road

Marymead Drive
Flat block
1 - 11

10am

7 April 2011

Shephall

Chertsey Rise
Bandley Rise

Chertsey Rise
Flat block
110 -112

10am

12 May 2011

Chells

Pankhurst Crescent
Warwick Rd
Nightingale Walk

Pankhurst Crescent
Flat block
22-32

10am

26 May 2011

Bedwell

Bedwell Shops
Fieldgate House
Hillside House

Bedwell
Community Centre

10am

Come join us for a walk around your estate

Walkabouts are a great way to meet some of your
neighbours and Stevenage Homes staff.
Our walkabout round Fovant Court, Knowle
Court, Baron Court and Ansell Court was held at
the end of July. It had one of our best turn outs,
residents from the flat blocks turned up to
discuss their issues and learnt more about
Stevenage Homes. They were able to speak to us
about any issues in the blocks including antisocial behaviour, refuse and maintenance. The
estate service team and tenancy service team are
working with these residents to resolve these
issues.
A resident emailed the estate service team asking
for Aylward Drive and Brittain Way to be added to
future walkabouts, we have programmed this in
and will be visiting these streets in October. We
work with our tenancy advisers and local
residents groups to design these routes. If there
is a street you would like to add, please phone
us on 01438 242666 or email
www.estate.services@stevenagehomes.org.uk
24

Come and help make a difference

REPAIRS

Stop it dont block it!

Keeping your sinks and toilets running properly
Dos and Donts

Every year our sewers team attend over 1600

jobs, many of these jobs are dealing with
blockages caused by items being put down
drains.

n Regardless of the advice on the packaging,

wipes including toddler wipes, face wipes
and toilet cleaning wipes should be put in the
bin, rather than flushed down the toilet
n Sanitary products should also be wrapped
and placed in with general household rubbish
n Nappies should never be put down the toilet
under any circumstances
n Never pour oil, fat or butter down the sink,
even if running hot water down with it - this
can harden in the pipes later on, causing
blockages
n Fat should be left to go hard (one way of
doing this is to pour it into something like a
yoghurt pot and leave it to stand) and then
put in with the general household rubbish
These are small things you can do to make a
big difference to you and your neighbours
drainage systems think before you flush it!

Some of the things we have retrieved include:

nappies, wipes, sanitary products and the most
common of all FAT!
By following these simple tips you can prevent
drain blockages which will not only
inconvenience you, but can affect your
neighbours homes too:

You can also report a repair by:

Phone: 0800 1123444 or 01438 211011
Fax: 01438 211256
E-mail: cscrepairs@stevenage.gov.uk
Post: Repairs Centre Manager,
Stevenage Homes,
Cavendish Road, SG1 2ES
The Customer Service Centre is open:
Monday to Friday
Telephone 08:00 - 18:00
Walk-In 08:30 - 17:30 (public access)

Call us on 01438 242 666 if youre unsure what to,

and what not to flush

25

SHELTERED HOUSING

Water charges in
sheltered housing courts
If you live in a sheltered housing court, part of
the rent you pay is for water charges. This is not
covered by Housing Benefit.
Until now your water charges have been
worked out according to the size of your flat because our courts have shared water meters.
From April 2011 we will be working out your
water charges on an average of how much has
been used per flat.
This means your water charges are going to go
down from April 2011.
Most tenants will be eligible for refunds. If you
are due a refund, we will tell you about it later
this year.
For more information please call 01438 242 666

Shaping the future of sheltered

housing we need your views
Every sheltered housing resident has received
a questionnaire and an invite to a meeting. If
you havent received your invitation, or need
help to take part in the meeting, please speak to
your supported housing officer. If you are
unable to participate we can arrange to visit you
to discuss your views.

If you are a sheltered housing resident, we will

be asking you for your views on what changes
we can make to our services in response to a
28% cut in county council funding.
During February and March we are holding a
series of meetings in our sheltered schemes, so
that we can listen to customers about which
parts of our service they most value and their
ideas for how we can make the reduced funding
stretch. Customers are also being asked to
complete a short, confidential questionnaire.

In partnership with Stevenage Borough Council

we will use your feedback to develop some
proposals we have for the services we provide.
Well share these with you in the summer and
will be asking you to comment on them.

26

SHELTERED HOUSING

Stay connected
Your online services

Tweeting for tenants and customers

You dont have to wait for your issue of Housing

for You to arrive to keep up to date with all the
latest news on your housing services. There are
a number of ways you can stay connected to
Stevenage Homes.

As well as our website you can also keep in

touch with what were up to by following our
official Twitter feed at
twitter.com/stevenagehomes. Our user name
is @StevenageHomes so if youre familiar with
the world of Twitter, why not come and follow
us?

Our website Stevenagehomes.org.uk provides

all of the latest up to date news and information,
covering every aspect of your tenancy as well
as advertising meetings and events that you
can get involved in.

Headline news and important changes to your

services are always tweeted and well also
take the time out to answer your questions if
you tweet to us.

The website is also where you can access and

sign up for your own Online Account, helping
you to keep track of your rent payments and
any repairs history, as and when you want to.

If youd like more information about our online

services call 01438 242 666.
Were just a click away!

27

jUST 4 KIDS

Welcome to Just 4 Kids

This edition is filled with fun things for you to read
and do. More importantly theres prizes to be won,
so have a go at the competitions.
We would love to hear from you. Please send your
jokes, stories, photos and recipes to Caz & Berni,
Stevenage Homes, Daneshill House, Danestrete,
Stevenage, SG1 1HN or email
J4K@stevenagehomes.org.uk . Please include
your name and your age.
Send your competition entries to this address too.

Green food colouring

Jelly beans and other small sweets
White pipecleaners

Theres lots going on in and around

Stevenage, heres just a couple of things
you might like
Where:

Stevenage Museum

When:

Saturday 12 March. Various

times available

A dozen fairy
cakes or
cupcakes

Desiccated coconut

Whats on?
Where? When?
Meet the creepy crawlies

You will need:

Icing sugar or
ready made soft
white icing

We look forward to hearing from you

What:

Easter basket
cupcakes

Ribbon
How to make them:
Ice all the fairy cakes. Put more of the
icing around the edges then in the
middle
Put the desiccated coconut into a bowl,
add a couple of drops of green food
colouring and mix until all the coconut
has turned green

This is suitable for kids over 7 and costs

just 1.50. You must be accompanied by an
adult. Call the museum on 01438 218881
to book
What:

Easter Party

Place a small amount of the coloured

coconut in the middle of the cakes

Where:

Monkey Bizness. Roaring Meg

Retail Park

Now put a few jelly beans or chocolate

eggs/sweets on top of the coconut

When:

Friday 8 April

To make the handles of the baskets,

bend a piece of pipecleaner and push it
into the cake on each side.

Call Monkey Bizness to find out more

08458 739 645

Lastly, use the ribbon to tie a bow

around the pipecleaner

Time for a giggle...

What is the easiest way to count a herd of cattle? Use a cowculator!
What do you call a woman with a sheep on her head? Baa-Baa-Ra!
Whats red, can fly and wobbles at the same time? A jelly copter!
28

jUST 4 KIDS

Win with Sudoku

Just 4 fun Colouring in

When youve completed the Sudoku add

together the numbers in the orange squares
and send us your answer to win a game of
bowling at Hollywood Bowl

4
2

4
1

6
5

3
3
2

Spring time word grid

Can you find where the list of words go?
One word doesnt fit in the grid, tell us what
that word is and the first correct answer
drawn from the hat will win a giant Easter
egg.
Word List
Puddles
Flowers
Rain
Butterflies
Umbrella
Lambs
Tulips
Showers
Spring

29

OTHER NEWS

Home4U changes

You can drop into our Customer Service Centre and search for properties using our computers

Applicants will still be able search and bid for

empty homes using www.home4u.org.uk. If you
dont have access to the internet at home or
work you can use the computers in our
customer service centre or visit a local library to
use the internet for free to make your bid.
Details of homes that are available to bid on
can also be seen on display in the customer
service centre.

If you have applied to become a Council tenant

and are using Home4U to bid for a new home
you need to know about some changes that we
have made.
As of January we now no longer publish the
Home4U magazine that applicants used to find
and bid for empty Council homes.
It costs over 30,000 per year to print and
circulate the fortnightly magazine, but less than
2% of the applicants bidding for a home use it
to make their bids. A recent consultation with
applicants has shown that because the
magazine is not well used they would prefer us
to stop printing it and save the money.

If you need help with making a bid please

visit the customer service centre, call us on
01438 242666 or email lettings@
stevenagehomes.org.uk and staff will be
happy to help.

30

USEFUL CONTACTS
Other numbers you might find useful:
The Federation of Stevenage Tenants
and Associations (FOSTA)
Telephone
Email

01438 315822
f0st4@yahoo.co.uk

Rubbish, waste and recycling

Telephone
email:
Visit

0800 0527007
wastewizard@stevenage.gov.uk
stevenage.gov.uk/wasteandrecycling

Street care and cleaning, including reporting flytipping

Telephone
Email
Visit

0800 136661
environmentalservices@stevenage.gov.uk
stevenage.gov.uk/streetcareandcleaning

Help with benefits

Telephone:
01438 242440 / 01438 242707
Textphone:
01438 242555
Email:
benefits@stevenage.gov.uk
Visit
stevenage.gov.uk/benefits
Welfare Benefits adviser
01438 242666
Automated telephone payment details
01438 242345
Citizens Advice
Telephone
Visit

0845 120 3789

stevenagecab.org.uk

Stevenage Credit Union

Telephone
Email

01438 740844
stevenage-scu@keme.co.uk

Police
To report a crime
Telephone
Textphone
Visit

0845 33 00 222 (non emergency)

01707 390990
herts.police.uk/report/report.htm

Gas Leaks
If you smell gas call Transco on Freephone 0800 111999

31

Please recycle your copy of

Housing for you when you have
finished reading it. Please put it in
your blue recycling box.

THE REALLY USEFUL PAGE AT THE BACK

How to contact us for:
Resident involvement
Telephone 01438 242183 - during
normal office hours
Email resident.involvement@
stevenagehomes.org.uk
Visit www.stevenagehomes.
org.uk/beinvolved
Repairs
Freephone 0800 1123444 from
8am - 6pm Monday to Friday (if
calling from a mobile phone it may
be cheaper to ring 01438 211011)
Email cscrepairs@
stevenagehomes.org.uk
Visit www.stevenagehomes.
org.uk/repairs
Emergency repairs - outside of
office hours
Please see your tenant handbook
for what we consider to be an
emergency
Telephone 01438 314963

Lost in Translation
Do you know someone who has difficulty speaking or reading
English because it isnt their first language? Do you know
someone who has difficulty reading English because they have
problems with their eyesight? Or have literacy problems?
If a customer cannot read a Stevenage Homes document there
are some other options. We have a translation service and we can
provide documents in audio form, CD, Braille for customers who
are blind or large print for customers who have a visual
impairment.
If you know someone who would benefit from these services,
or who has used them in the past, we would like their comments
and suggestions.
Please call 01438 242666.

To make a compliment, comment

or complaint
Telephone 01438 242666
Email yoursay@stevenage
homes.org.uk
Visit www.stevenagehomes.
org.uk/yoursay
To report anti-social behaviour,
hate crime, or domestic violence
Telephone 01438 242666 and ask
to speak to the tenancy team
Email tenancyservices@
stevenagehomes.org.uk
Visit www.stevenagehomes.
org.uk/antisocialbehaviour
For emergencies dial 999
For general enquires
Telephone 01438 242666
Email
enquiries@stevenagehomes.
org.uk
We also have a textphone service
for people who have hearing
difficulties - call 01438 242150
You can also write to us at
Stevenage Homes
Daneshill House
Danestrete
Stevenage SG1 1HN
or Visit us by dropping into the
customer service centre, next to
HSBC, in Danestrete.

32