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wandle<br />
Autumn 2012 Edition | Issue Number 67<br />
<strong>Wandle</strong> News and residents’ annual report<br />
for our tenants and leaseholders<br />
ONE<br />
WANDLE<br />
Our vibrant new future<br />
<strong>Housing</strong><br />
benefit<br />
reforms<br />
How will they affect you?<br />
news<br />
<strong>Wandle</strong> Annual Report highlights
We’re helping shape<br />
vibrant<br />
communities<br />
CONTENTS<br />
02<br />
03<br />
04<br />
05<br />
06<br />
08<br />
09<br />
10<br />
12<br />
13<br />
14<br />
16<br />
17<br />
18<br />
19<br />
20<br />
Letter from Customer<br />
Services Director<br />
We are moving<br />
In 2012 <strong>Wandle</strong><br />
manages over 5,187<br />
homes and employs<br />
130 staff.<br />
Welfare reform changes<br />
Credit Unions<br />
Crisis<br />
Annual Report Highlights<br />
Resident involvement<br />
and empowerment<br />
Your Home<br />
Your Tenancy<br />
Neighbourhood<br />
and community<br />
Value for money<br />
Governance and financial<br />
viability/Board members<br />
Should it stay or go?<br />
Resident involvement<br />
idea days<br />
Over 2 U<br />
Jobs Fair<br />
Local Area Team<br />
contact details<br />
for you<br />
At <strong>Wandle</strong> we want to deliver the best services, providing<br />
great places w<strong>here</strong> you want to live and sustaining<br />
meaningful partnerships within your local area. I have<br />
recruited a new, energetic management team who<br />
have been working with me since April to deliver on the<br />
promises we have made to you. We’ve also taken on new<br />
frontline staff and steadily improved our systems. I am<br />
aware, however, we still have a way to go before we can<br />
say that we’ve got all the basics right.<br />
I’m also aware we have not regularly got out and about<br />
to see you in your local area. We are still recruiting some<br />
key roles in the local teams and when this is completed<br />
over the summer, I am confident you will begin to see a<br />
real difference in the way we are delivering our service<br />
locally. We are all working hard to meet our vision of<br />
shaping ‘vibrant communities’ and we will not stop until<br />
you are really happy with the services you receive.<br />
Within this newsletter, you will find our annual report<br />
to residents. This shows our progress against the<br />
standards that are set by our regulator, the Homes and<br />
Communities Agency.<br />
Yours faithfully<br />
Sue Daniels<br />
Customer Services Director<br />
Front cover: Involved residents Charles and<br />
Josephine Davey enjoy a barbecue at our Abbeville<br />
Road offices on Thursday 16th September. If you’d<br />
like to get involved too, call 0800 731 2030 or<br />
visit www.wandle.com for a copy of our Getting<br />
Involved with <strong>Wandle</strong> <strong>Housing</strong> <strong>Association</strong> guide.<br />
WE ARE MOVING<br />
In our last newsletter we explained our plans to move all our office staff<br />
into one office. This will allow us to create more efficient ways of working<br />
and provide a better quality of service to our tenants and leaseholders.<br />
Our office staff are currently split<br />
between two offices in Abbeville<br />
Road, Clapham and Mitcham<br />
Road, Tooting. At times, as a small<br />
company, we have found it hard<br />
to work across multiple offices. The<br />
project to become ‘One <strong>Wandle</strong>’<br />
through a one-office approach was<br />
started in 2008, but has taken longer<br />
than expected as the association<br />
has been through many changes in<br />
the meantime. Updates on specific<br />
times and dates relating to the<br />
imminent office move will be made<br />
public through our website and our<br />
texting service.<br />
We have carried out a lot of research<br />
into the best locations to provide<br />
our services from, and the best<br />
places from which we can attract<br />
staff from all over London. We are<br />
happy to announce that we have<br />
secured a lease on a new office in<br />
London Bridge, which will be large<br />
enough to house all of our staff.<br />
All our teams will sit on the same<br />
floor to improve communications.<br />
London Bridge is easily accessible by<br />
public transport from all our <strong>Wandle</strong><br />
boroughs and has the kind of office<br />
tO MINERVA HOUSE, LONDON, SE1<br />
space we need to operate as a<br />
modern and efficient organisation.<br />
Our new office is called Minerva<br />
House. While our existing offices<br />
suffer from poor disability access,<br />
this new office is compliant with the<br />
Disability Discrimination Act. We are<br />
investing in new phone systems and<br />
IT to improve services for residents.<br />
Resident visits to <strong>Wandle</strong><br />
currently average only about<br />
30 a week across both offices.<br />
Unsurprisingly, these visitors tend<br />
to come from Tooting and Mitcham<br />
– indicating that the majority of<br />
residents who live further afield are<br />
not as likely to currently visit us in<br />
person. We hope that the excellent<br />
travel links at our new office will<br />
make it more accessible to a higher<br />
number of residents. Of course, we<br />
understand that not all our residents<br />
want to travel for appointments.<br />
This is why, in the future, we will<br />
have a greater emphasis on our staff<br />
meeting with residents in their own<br />
homes or at venues close to their<br />
homes w<strong>here</strong> appropriate.<br />
Our ‘Going Local’ strategy is very<br />
clear about our commitment to set<br />
up ‘community hubs’ in our main<br />
delivery areas. We want to improve<br />
our local presence in all boroughs,<br />
not just one. We want to visit<br />
residents at their convenience, not<br />
call residents in at our convenience.<br />
We will be keeping our Mitcham<br />
Road Office accessible for services<br />
as a pilot ‘community hub’ until<br />
we have reviewed this with our<br />
residents. Our office will open at the<br />
times that best reflect current use.<br />
These are likely to be Monday 3pm-<br />
5pm and Wednesday 9am-11am.<br />
This is the last part of our major<br />
change programme, Vibrant Futures,<br />
which we have been carrying out<br />
over the last few years and which<br />
has already seen a major change<br />
to the way in which we deliver our<br />
services. We will continue to focus<br />
on our commitment to tenants and<br />
residents in everything we do.<br />
We will shortly be sending all our<br />
residents a ‘Going Local’ leaflet,<br />
which will explain in more detail<br />
how services are going to be<br />
delivered in the future and how the<br />
changes will benefit you.<br />
www.wandle.com 3
WElfArE rEform<br />
Creditunions<br />
chANgEs<br />
The government is introducing a series of<br />
national welfare reforms. These changes have<br />
already started and will be introduced fully over<br />
the next five years. So how will they affect you?<br />
The first big change is the size criteria, sometimes called<br />
a bedroom tax. From April 2013, if you have one or more<br />
‘spare’ bedrooms, your housing benefit may be reduced.<br />
Under the new rules, if you have more bedrooms than<br />
the government says you need, you will lose part of<br />
your housing benefit. If your benefit is cut it will be your<br />
responsibility to make up the difference between your<br />
housing benefit and your rent.<br />
1 2housing benefit by<br />
empty room<br />
will reduce your<br />
empty rooms<br />
will reduce your<br />
housing benefit by<br />
10%<br />
25%<br />
The second big change is that from April 2013, the<br />
overall amount of benefit you can receive will be<br />
capped. The Government will add up how much<br />
money you get from a range of benefits, including:<br />
housing benefit, jobseeker’s allowance, income support,<br />
employment support allowance, child benefit, child tax<br />
The maximum amount of<br />
benefit you will be able to<br />
receive from April 2013<br />
will be…<br />
credit and carer’s allowance. If the total comes<br />
to more than the maximum amount allowed your<br />
benefit payments will be reduced.<br />
The maximum amount of benefit you will<br />
be able to receive from April 2013 will be:<br />
• £500 per week for single parents<br />
• £500 per week for couples with or without children<br />
• £350 per week for single people without children.<br />
This will not apply to you if:<br />
• you get pension credit or working tax credit<br />
• a member of your household is claiming disability<br />
living allowance, attendance allowance, industrial<br />
injuries benefit, or the support element of<br />
employment support allowance.<br />
How we can help you prepare for welfare<br />
reform changes?<br />
Many of you will be affected by these changes and we<br />
want to help. Your Customer Relationship Officer can<br />
direct you to further advice and support, so that you<br />
can see how changes might affect your household<br />
and plan for them.<br />
Over the next few months we will be surveying<br />
residents. This will help us to highlight w<strong>here</strong> you<br />
might be affected by these changes and directing<br />
you to support. Please help us to help you by<br />
answering the survey!<br />
* £500 per week for single parents<br />
* £500 per week for couples with<br />
or without children<br />
Having difficulty accessing a<br />
loan from a bank or building<br />
society? Looking for an<br />
alternative to the major<br />
financial institutions? If either<br />
of these things apply to<br />
you, t<strong>here</strong> may well be an<br />
alternative available within<br />
your own local community.<br />
Welcome to the world of<br />
credit unions…<br />
Unlike most financial<br />
institutions, credit unions<br />
are owned by the people<br />
who use them. Credit<br />
unions are community-based<br />
organisations that provide basic<br />
financial services within a certain<br />
locality. T<strong>here</strong> are three main credit<br />
unions that provide services to<br />
<strong>Wandle</strong> residents. These are London<br />
Mutual (who serve residents in<br />
Southwark and Lambeth), Lewisham<br />
Plus (Lewisham and Bromley),<br />
and Croydon Savers Credit Union<br />
(Croydon, Sutton, and Merton).<br />
People who use credit union<br />
services become ‘members’ of that<br />
credit union. This means that by<br />
using a credit union you become a<br />
part owner of that credit union, and<br />
can have your say on major issues<br />
Credit unions in your area…<br />
You can use the following credit unions if you live or work in the area<br />
Croydon, Sutton<br />
and Merton<br />
Croydon, Merton and Sutton<br />
Credit Union<br />
www.croydonsavers.co.uk<br />
020 8760 5711<br />
affecting it. Indeed, you can even<br />
volunteer with your local credit<br />
union and serve your community<br />
that way.<br />
As each credit union is an<br />
independent organisation, each will<br />
provide slightly different services.<br />
However, all provide savings<br />
facilities, and affordable loans. While<br />
anyone in a community served<br />
by a Credit Union can use it, they<br />
are often particularly helpful for<br />
people who cannot access a loan<br />
from a mainstream bank or building<br />
society. Credit Union loans are<br />
often much cheaper than some of<br />
the other loans that people in that<br />
Lewisham and Bromley<br />
Lewisham Plus Credit Union<br />
www.pluscu.co.uk<br />
020 8778 4738<br />
situation might use. For example,<br />
the most that a Credit Union will<br />
charge is 26.8% APR, while a loan<br />
from a ‘home credit’ company will<br />
typically cost 200% APR or more,<br />
while a ‘payday lender’ might charge<br />
over 3,000%! This is worth thinking<br />
about if you need to borrow money<br />
to help cover the cost of Christmas.<br />
Because a credit union’s main<br />
purpose is to promote savings,<br />
they will often ask members to<br />
save for a while before they can<br />
be considered for a loan. The<br />
Lewisham Plus and London<br />
Mutual Credit unions also offer<br />
a current account service to their<br />
members, although t<strong>here</strong> is a small<br />
weekly charge for this.<br />
Contact details for the three main<br />
credit unions serving <strong>Wandle</strong> are<br />
included in this newsletter for<br />
information. The purpose of this<br />
article is not to recommend that<br />
you use a credit union. We are<br />
simply making you aware that they<br />
are t<strong>here</strong> as one of the options<br />
available. If you have any queries<br />
as to whether or not a particular<br />
financial path is right for you,<br />
you should seek advice from an<br />
appropriately regulated professional.<br />
Southwark and Lambeth<br />
London Mutual Credit Union<br />
www.creditunion.co.uk<br />
020 787 0770<br />
4 <strong>Wandle</strong> News | Autumn 2012 Edition | Issue Number 67<br />
5<br />
* £350 per week for single people<br />
without children
Crisis at Christmas offers companionship and support to<br />
alleviate loneliness and isolation and helps people take<br />
their first steps out of homelessness. Crisis at Christmas<br />
provides warm, safe places of companionship and<br />
compassion for thousands of homeless and vulnerably<br />
housed people. We provide accommodation for rough<br />
sleepers, and people with specific needs such as<br />
women and those with dependency issues.<br />
For the vulnerably housed (for example<br />
people living in temporary hostel<br />
accomodation, squats or sofa surfing) Crisis<br />
runs specialist day centres, based in schools<br />
and colleges, providing an inspirational<br />
environment. Last year we welcomed 3,200<br />
guests to Crisis at Christmas centres and served<br />
21,000 meals. Crisis volunteers gave health<br />
advice and treatment to over 600 people and<br />
more than 700 individuals sought advice on<br />
housing, benefits and employment issues.<br />
With over 8,000 volunteers, Crisis at<br />
Christmas is one of the largest volunteer<br />
led events in the UK.<br />
Buildings, food, equipment and expertise<br />
are offered from companies, organisations<br />
and individuals. Thousands of individual and<br />
corporate donors make financial contributions.<br />
APPLY NOW TO VOLUNTEER AT CRISIS FOR CHRISTMAS 2012<br />
6<br />
<strong>Wandle</strong> News | Autumn 2012 Edition | Issue Number 67<br />
Crisis at Christmas is<br />
made possible through the<br />
generosity of individuals<br />
and companies that donate<br />
money, goods and services.<br />
Crisis at Christmas not only<br />
provides immediate help for<br />
homeless people at a critical<br />
time, but it sets them up for a<br />
more positive year ahead.<br />
Guests receive healthcare and specialist<br />
advice on housing, work and benefits.<br />
In addition we encourage them to take up<br />
life changing opportunities in the New Year<br />
through the training and support offered at<br />
Crisis Skylight centres.<br />
For more information about volunteering visit our volunteer info page at<br />
www.crisis.org.uk/pages/volunteering-at-crisis-christmas.html<br />
2011/12<br />
<strong>Wandle</strong><br />
Annual Report<br />
Special
<strong>Wandle</strong> Annual Report Special<br />
Resident involvement<br />
and empowerment<br />
Resident involvement is<br />
very important. Our scrutiny<br />
panel completed two scrutiny<br />
cycles in 2011/12, investigating<br />
communal repairs and<br />
antisocial behaviour. The<br />
information they found has<br />
been reported to the Board<br />
and is now helping our<br />
Customer Services team to<br />
make very positive changes.<br />
8 <strong>Wandle</strong> Annual report special<br />
Complaints<br />
In the Complaints Service Improvement Group,<br />
residents have been involved in looking at how<br />
we handle complaints and the Charter Monitoring<br />
Group meets to ensure that we meet the high<br />
standards <strong>Wandle</strong> has set in the customer charter.<br />
Residents have also been involved in developing<br />
how <strong>Wandle</strong> communicates, working with staff to<br />
improve both the website and our newsletters.<br />
In the future, residents will be involved in a<br />
different way. The scrutiny panel and some<br />
<strong>Wandle</strong> wide groups will continue – but soon<br />
resident involvement will mostly match our new<br />
local structures. This will mean residents will be<br />
supported to get involved in improving services<br />
directly in their communities.<br />
2009/10 2010/11 2011/12<br />
Number of complaints received in a year 477 398 297<br />
Percentage of complaints replied to on<br />
time (Stage 1 & 2) 87% 90% 96%<br />
Percentage of complaints at Stage 1 75% 77% 85%<br />
Percentage of complaints at Stage 2<br />
18% 17% 12%<br />
Percentage of complaints at Stage 3 6% 6% 3%<br />
Percentage of residents satisfied with<br />
the outcome of their complaint 32% 48% 53%<br />
Number of compliments received<br />
in year 122 194 78<br />
Your home<br />
2010/11<br />
Satisfaction<br />
with Estate<br />
Services<br />
62<br />
66<br />
Average Energy<br />
Efficiency Rating<br />
(SAP) of homes<br />
96<br />
98<br />
Percentage of repairs<br />
complete in target time<br />
95<br />
100<br />
Percentage of rented<br />
homes meeting the<br />
Decent Homes Standard<br />
Percentage<br />
of residents<br />
satisfied with<br />
repairs<br />
Percentage<br />
of properties<br />
with a valid gas<br />
safety certificate<br />
at year end<br />
2011/12<br />
Satisfaction<br />
with Estate<br />
Services<br />
67<br />
66<br />
Average Energy<br />
Efficiency Rating<br />
(SAP) of homes<br />
97<br />
98<br />
Percentage of repairs<br />
complete in target time<br />
93<br />
100<br />
Percentage of rented<br />
homes meeting the<br />
Decent Homes Standard<br />
Percentage<br />
of residents<br />
satisfied with<br />
repairs<br />
Percentage<br />
of properties<br />
with a valid gas<br />
safety certificate<br />
at year end<br />
9
<strong>Wandle</strong> Annual Report Special<br />
10 <strong>Wandle</strong> Annual report special<br />
Your tenancy<br />
We work hard at<br />
<strong>Wandle</strong> to let our<br />
homes quickly and<br />
to keep the times<br />
we have homes<br />
empty to<br />
a minimum.<br />
In 2011/12 we kept<br />
this period down to<br />
an average of 24.4<br />
days, which is a<br />
good performance<br />
in the areas w<strong>here</strong><br />
we work.<br />
We helped 43 <strong>Wandle</strong><br />
residents to move home<br />
through mutual exchange<br />
in 2011/12. This included<br />
three homes w<strong>here</strong> our<br />
residents received a financial<br />
incentive to move as they<br />
were under-occupying their<br />
home. If you need to move<br />
or transfer to another <strong>Wandle</strong><br />
home then contact us and<br />
we will give you the best<br />
advice and support that we<br />
can, although the number of<br />
homes available will always<br />
be limited.<br />
We hold a transfer list, but<br />
we also really encourage<br />
residents to take advantage<br />
of the free membership we<br />
offer for Homeswapper – a<br />
national website that allows<br />
you to exchange homes<br />
with other social housing<br />
residents across the UK.<br />
The rents we charge are in line with<br />
the government’s rent formula<br />
and you should get good notice of<br />
when your rent will go up so you<br />
can budget and plan ahead. These<br />
are difficult times and if you have<br />
financial problems you should let<br />
us know straightaway. You can be<br />
evicted for rent arrears, but we will<br />
do everything we can to help you<br />
manage the debt and stay in your<br />
home.<br />
We can put you in touch with<br />
organisations that can help such<br />
as Money Advice Plus, who can<br />
help you manage your debts and<br />
can ensure you are maximising<br />
your income. We can also give you<br />
advice on saving and borrowing<br />
with organisations that charge fair<br />
rates of interest like a credit union,<br />
and would strongly advise you<br />
to speak to us before borrowing<br />
Insurance providers<br />
JARDINE LLOYD THOMPSON<br />
www.jltgroup.com<br />
0845 601 7007<br />
Furniture reconditioning<br />
Croydon<br />
HOME AGAIN<br />
40-44 St George’s Walk<br />
CR0 1YJ<br />
Tel : 0208 667 0067<br />
money from a mainstream bank,<br />
online money lender or loan shark.<br />
We have links to all credit unions<br />
set up in our boroughs. Currently<br />
this includes Bromley, Croydon,<br />
Lambeth, Lewisham, Merton,<br />
Southwark and Sutton. <strong>Wandle</strong><br />
also offers an incentive to residents<br />
who open a savings account and<br />
maintain regular savings with<br />
most credit unions. We will pay a<br />
membership fee (usually £5) and<br />
match fund savings of up to £100<br />
for each tenant during the first six<br />
months of them opening a credit<br />
union account.<br />
<strong>Wandle</strong> doesn’t just want the rent<br />
paid on time, we want residents<br />
to get better at managing their<br />
finances and thus improve their<br />
quality of life. The aim of <strong>Wandle</strong>’s<br />
‘Financial Inclusion’ programme<br />
is to place residents in control of<br />
Merton / Sutton<br />
THE VINE PROJECT<br />
Unit 3<br />
24 <strong>Wandle</strong> Way<br />
Willow Lane Industrial Estate ,<br />
Mitcham<br />
CR4 4NB<br />
Tel : 0208 6856640<br />
Disclaimer: Although we have provided information on these services, this does not<br />
constitute an official recommendation. <strong>Wandle</strong> <strong>Housing</strong> <strong>Association</strong> does not accept<br />
any responsibility for the quality of services provided by these organisation.<br />
their finances by giving them the<br />
knowledge and skills to make the<br />
best decisions for their households.<br />
We run Financial Freedom courses<br />
every quarter, supporting attendees<br />
with budgeting, finding affordable<br />
credit and debt management. Our<br />
partnership with Money Advice Plus<br />
also supported 57 residents and<br />
for much of the year <strong>Wandle</strong> had a<br />
welfare benefits advisor available<br />
to provide advice and support to<br />
residents on their entitlement to<br />
benefits.<br />
A partnership arrangement is<br />
also in place with Jardine Lloyd<br />
Thompson insurance providers<br />
to offer residents access to<br />
discounted contents insurance<br />
schemes. Residents can also<br />
access local furniture recycling<br />
organisations, which provide low<br />
cost reconditioned furniture.<br />
Bromley<br />
GIVE2GIVE<br />
15 Chatsworth Parade<br />
Petts Wood, Bromley<br />
BR5 1DS<br />
Tel : 0845 680 6888<br />
GIVE2GIVE<br />
20 Station Approach<br />
Hayes<br />
BR2 7EH<br />
Tel : 0203 490 6701<br />
11
<strong>Wandle</strong> Annual Report Special<br />
Neighbourhood &<br />
community<br />
Local area co-operation<br />
<strong>Wandle</strong>’s most important relationships are with our residents and their local<br />
councils. We work together with our local council partners to meet housing need. This<br />
includes housing homeless people and those who need to move home due<br />
to issues such as overcrowding, under-occupation or high medical need.<br />
What is the Neighbourhood and Community Standard?<br />
The Neighbourhood and Community Standard says we should provide a decent, clean and<br />
safe area for our residents to live in and a say in how residents’ homes and neighbourhoods<br />
are maintained and improved. We also work with our partners to promote the social,<br />
environmental and economic well-being of the wider area around w<strong>here</strong> our residents live.<br />
What are we doing to meet this standard?<br />
We work with our contractors, Fountains, to keep the communal areas of our estates<br />
clean and tidy, and to keep the gardens and external common areas looking nice and<br />
cared for. We also work with other housing providers and the local council to keep our<br />
estates looking decent, offering services which include the removal of graffiti and other<br />
rubbish left on our estates.<br />
We restructured our service in 2011/12, so we will have a much higher presence on<br />
our schemes in 2012/13. We will have new, locally based teams for each borough and<br />
our new Neighbourhood Improvement Officers will be out and about as the eyes and<br />
ears of the local team, spotting problems before they are reported, and taking advantage<br />
of local opportunities to improve our neighbourhoods. We will also be developing a<br />
network of resident champions to help us monitor important services like our repairs,<br />
cleaning and gardening.<br />
We believe everyone should be free to enjoy their home with <strong>Wandle</strong> as long as their<br />
behaviour does not have a negative impact on other residents’ quality of life. We expect all<br />
our residents to be tolerant and to respect the choices and lifestyles of other people,<br />
but not to have to live with unreasonable behaviour from neighbours. If your neighbours<br />
are annoying, harassing or disturbing you, or involved in suspicious behaviour, we want<br />
to know about it.<br />
<strong>Wandle</strong> wants to work with residents to take a confident approach to tackling anti-social<br />
behaviour (ASB). This is one of our top priorities. As a result of feedback from our customers<br />
and the help of our Resident Scrutiny Panel, we have developed a set of robust procedures<br />
to make sure our neighbourhoods are decent and peaceful places to live.<br />
Our Resident Scrutiny Panel reviewed our Anti-Social Behaviour policy and procedures in<br />
2011/12 and made recommendations to make our processes clearer and to improve our<br />
auditing and case management. We have put these new processes in place and will be<br />
monitoring our ASB work closely in 2012/13 to ensure we are consistently improving our<br />
service.<br />
12<br />
<strong>Wandle</strong> Annual report special<br />
Value for money<br />
How we spent your rent<br />
Rent is our main source of income and it is critical that we collect the<br />
rents that are due to us so we can remain financially viable and continue<br />
doing the work we do. We fix our rents at the level set out by the<br />
regulating body and aim to collect the rent promptly.<br />
We also aim to keep arrears as low as possible whilst providing as much<br />
support as we can to our residents so they can sustain their tenancies.<br />
As evidence that this strategy is working, rent arrears in the last year<br />
fell when compared to the year before. Below is a chart showing how we<br />
spent your rent last year.<br />
The Residents’ Income Working Group met during the year, discussing<br />
such topics as performance targets, service standards, changes to welfare<br />
benefits and rent increases. They’ve had a significant impact on our<br />
financial inclusion action plans. In particular the changes residents<br />
recommended to the content, tone and layout of rent arrears letters to<br />
make them easier to read and more effective.<br />
Management<br />
Responsive<br />
maintanance<br />
Major repairs<br />
Other<br />
Interest<br />
Development<br />
in new homes<br />
£6,474k<br />
£9,883k<br />
£6,641k<br />
£6,256k<br />
£3,480k<br />
£3,232k<br />
<strong>Wandle</strong> now owns 6,520 homes and many of these were built<br />
partly with money borrowed from banks. We borrow this money<br />
over a long term and at low rates. We factor this interest into<br />
our long term plans as part of the overall cost of providing good<br />
quality and affordable homes.<br />
£ £ £<br />
Our teams:<br />
Our new local area<br />
teams are already<br />
busy talking to<br />
residents and<br />
community groups,<br />
building on the<br />
knowledge we<br />
already have so that<br />
they can get to know<br />
the differences and<br />
similarities between<br />
the areas in which we<br />
work.<br />
13
<strong>Wandle</strong> Annual Report Special<br />
Governance &<br />
financial viability<br />
The <strong>Association</strong>’s policies for membership and services on the<br />
Board of Management are designed to meet the requirements of<br />
the National <strong>Housing</strong> Federation’s codes, namely the Excellence in<br />
Governance Code and Excellence in Standards of Conduct Code.<br />
Both codes have been adopted by <strong>Wandle</strong>’s board.<br />
The <strong>Wandle</strong> board shapes the long-term strategy<br />
of <strong>Wandle</strong> and holds the executive to account<br />
in relation to service delivery, financial and risk<br />
management and governance. To ensure that<br />
the focus remains on customer services and the<br />
quality of delivery, the board very much welcomes,<br />
supports and respects the role of the <strong>Wandle</strong><br />
Scrutiny Panel.<br />
The panel was set up in 2010 to help the board<br />
fulfil its role of driving better services, as well as<br />
satisfying the need for strong co-regulation. The<br />
panel is supported by an independent advisor. We<br />
are proud of our transparency in this - it ensures<br />
that the panel cannot be influenced in its findings<br />
by the organisation. The Scrutiny Panel attends<br />
board meetings to report on its findings. The<br />
Chair of Scrutiny holds regular sessions with the<br />
Chief Executive and senior managers at <strong>Wandle</strong><br />
to discuss areas of service to investigate and to<br />
ensure that t<strong>here</strong> are no barriers to the valuable<br />
work that the resident panel members undertake.<br />
Scrutiny is supported by a strong and meaningful<br />
resident engagement structure. The Scrutiny Panel<br />
is supported by our Charter Monitoring Group and<br />
our Complaints Service Improvement Group and<br />
through a wide network of residents. We strongly<br />
encourage more residents to apply to use their<br />
individual skills on the Scrutiny Panel. You can find<br />
more details on how to do this on our website<br />
at www.wandle.com or by calling our Customer<br />
Services department on 0800 731 2030<br />
Our aim is to continue to build on this<br />
commitment during the coming year.<br />
14<br />
<strong>Wandle</strong> Annual report special<br />
<strong>Wandle</strong>’s board is committed to upholding the<br />
National <strong>Housing</strong> Federation’s Excellence in<br />
Standards of Conduct Code and adhering to its high<br />
criteria. The board of <strong>Wandle</strong> <strong>Housing</strong> <strong>Association</strong><br />
Limited has agreed to adopt the National <strong>Housing</strong><br />
Federation’s Excellence in Governance Code. This<br />
code has been chosen because it is sector specific<br />
and focuses on our residents, customers and<br />
stakeholders. The suitability and appropriateness of<br />
this code will be reviewed every three years (next<br />
review due in 2013).<br />
<strong>Wandle</strong> currently has a board of 12 non-executive<br />
directors, some of whom are <strong>Association</strong> residents.<br />
The board operates two committees and board<br />
members are active in championing key work<br />
streams that are reflected in the Business Plan<br />
commitments. The board has regular meetings,<br />
with members undertaking appropriate training to<br />
fulfil their roles and carry out ‘reality checks’ such as<br />
estate inspections and new homes tours to make<br />
sure that what is being delivered is in line with<br />
their expectations. They review performance on a<br />
regular basis and ensure that the diversity of our<br />
customers’ needs is at the heart of decision making.<br />
<strong>Wandle</strong>’s board has a Value for Money Strategy<br />
which was revised in 2009/10. The board is<br />
focussed on ensuring that the organisation<br />
manages its business in a way that delivers the<br />
best services in the most efficient ways. The Board<br />
will be reviewing its strategy during 2012.<br />
Our board members<br />
Philip Sturrock<br />
(Appointed 2010) Chair<br />
Former CEO of companies in publishing;<br />
member of the Industrial Development<br />
Advisory Board.<br />
Martin Hurst<br />
(Appointed 2004) Vice Chair.<br />
Senior Policy Advisor to Government.<br />
Member of Audit Committee.<br />
Paul Rydquist<br />
(Appointed 2007)<br />
Member of Audit Committee.<br />
Independent <strong>Housing</strong> Consultant.<br />
Janet Collier<br />
(Appointed 2008) Member of Audit<br />
Committee. Finance Consultant.<br />
Tunde Awofolaju<br />
(Appointed 2004) Member of<br />
Remuneration and HR Committee.<br />
Manager, UK Online Centre.<br />
Richard Raeburn<br />
(Appointed 2008)<br />
Chairman of Audit Committee.<br />
Justin Elcombe<br />
(Appointed 2008) Member of<br />
Remuneration and HR Committee.<br />
Managing Director of Hollybrook Ltd.<br />
Ann Humphries<br />
(Appointed 2008) Chair of<br />
Remuneration and HR Committee.<br />
Adviser to the Chair of the John Lewis<br />
Partnership on public policy issues.<br />
Sara Thakkar<br />
(Appointed 2009)<br />
Chief Executive, <strong>Wandle</strong> HA.<br />
Paul Glinkowski<br />
Tenant Board member.<br />
Catherine Martin<br />
(Appointed 2006, resigned September<br />
2011). Equality and Diversity Board Lead.<br />
Freelance consultant.<br />
Karen Talkington<br />
(Resigned February 2012). Tenant board<br />
member.<br />
Samantha Cheng<br />
(Resigned September 2011). Tenant board<br />
member.<br />
Ravensbourne<br />
Development & Delta Homes<br />
Board Members<br />
howard Webb<br />
(Appointed 2010 , resigned June<br />
2011)<br />
Justin Elcombe<br />
(Appointed 2008)<br />
Peter mulloy<br />
(Appointed 2008)<br />
gary Bellenger<br />
(Appointed March 2011)<br />
<strong>Wandle</strong><br />
Executive Team<br />
sara Thakkar<br />
Chief Executive (2009)<br />
sue Daniels<br />
Customer Services<br />
Director (2012)<br />
Tim coppard<br />
Business Partnerships<br />
Director (2012)<br />
Eddie milne<br />
Finance Director (Appointed 2010,<br />
resigned December 2011)<br />
Nathan gravesande (Appointed<br />
2006, resigned June 2011)
STAY GO<br />
GO<br />
STAY<br />
SHOULd IT S TAY OR<br />
SHOULd IT gO?<br />
<strong>Wandle</strong> has always worked very closely with residents<br />
to improve services. We want to make sure this continues.<br />
The Community Investment Team is consulting residents on<br />
our proposals for how resident involvement could work in<br />
the future. We will be asking some big questions:<br />
£20 incentive payment – Should it stay or should it go?<br />
Refreshments - Should it stay or should it go?<br />
Long meetings- Should it stay or should it go?<br />
Taxi fare - Should it stay or should it go?<br />
<strong>Wandle</strong> wants to work with you at all levels of the business, but especially at the local<br />
level w<strong>here</strong> you live. We have some exciting ideas which we really want you to help us<br />
make real.<br />
Attend one of our two workshops or pop in to find<br />
out more at our resident Involvement Idea Day.<br />
We want your feedback and your ideas.<br />
Tuesday<br />
13th November<br />
6pm - 8pm<br />
Cornerstone House<br />
14 Willis Road<br />
Croydon<br />
CR0 2XX<br />
RESIdENT INVOLVEMENT<br />
IdEA dAYS<br />
tuesday<br />
20th November<br />
6pm - 8pm<br />
Merton Hall<br />
78 Kingston Rd<br />
SW19 1LA<br />
If you want to attend a workshop, please<br />
register your attendance with<br />
Phil Cone, Community Investment Officer<br />
0208 682 5367 / 0203 617 4807<br />
philcone@wandle.com<br />
All residents attending a workshop will receive<br />
either £20 or a return taxi. Please indicate your<br />
preference when registering to attend.<br />
involved residents' barbecue<br />
Thursday<br />
22nd November<br />
6pm-8pm<br />
Sue Daniels, our Customer Services Director,<br />
opens our barbecue for involved residents on<br />
Thursday 13th September. The barbecue gave<br />
us an opportunity to begin our consultation<br />
on how we can refresh and improve our<br />
resident involvement strategy. We had some<br />
really good feedback.<br />
Head Office<br />
Leonard Cheshire<br />
Disability<br />
66 South Lambeth Road<br />
London<br />
SW8 1RL<br />
Wednesday<br />
28th november<br />
12 noon - 2.00pm<br />
Consultation Workshop -<br />
(Lunch provided)<br />
2.00 - 6.00pm<br />
Drop-in - come along and<br />
ask us questions!<br />
6.00 - 8.00pm<br />
dATES<br />
FOR YOUR<br />
d IA RY<br />
Consultation Workshop -<br />
(Refreshments provided)<br />
St. Boniface<br />
Community Centre<br />
(next door to the Church)<br />
185 Mitcham Road<br />
Tooting<br />
SW17 9PG<br />
16 <strong>Wandle</strong> News | Autumn 2012 Edition | Issue Number 67 www.wandle.com<br />
17
oVEr 2 U<br />
FOCuS ON FiRE<br />
SAFETy<br />
<strong>Wandle</strong>’s Property Risk team is<br />
committed to keeping residents safe<br />
from fire. Following on from the fire<br />
risk assessments we carry out in all<br />
blocks, we are rolling out a wider<br />
programme of action to increase the<br />
safety of your homes.<br />
In line with this initiative, <strong>Wandle</strong> is<br />
asking residents to remove bikes,<br />
prams and other items which are<br />
blocking halls, corridors and stairways,<br />
as these are important escape routes in<br />
a fire. Whilst they may be easy to see in<br />
daylight, if the corridor was filled with<br />
smoke these items could cause you to<br />
trip and fall and prevent you from<br />
getting to safety. These areas are<br />
designed to prevent the spread of fire<br />
so that if you do need to leave your flat<br />
it is a safe route to exit. Any items left<br />
in these areas will also add to the fuel<br />
load and spread the fire further.<br />
TEST yOuR<br />
HEATiNg<br />
Don’t wait until winter to test your<br />
gas central heating! Turn your central<br />
heating on, leave it on for 45 minutes<br />
and then check all your radiators to<br />
make sure they’re getting hot. If you<br />
have any problems call K&T heating<br />
on 0800 092 2420 (0208 269 4500<br />
from a mobile).<br />
WHAT iS<br />
SuSTAiNAbiliTy?<br />
Environmental sustainability is<br />
something the whole world is now<br />
concerned with. Even painting and<br />
decorating houses is something that<br />
we can look at doing in a more<br />
sustainable way. 500 <strong>Wandle</strong> homes<br />
are included in the cyclical decorations<br />
contract this year and our contractors,<br />
Mullaley, will be using paint sourced from<br />
Akzonobel (who include ICI and Dulux in<br />
their portfolio). <strong>Wandle</strong> have partnered<br />
with Akzonobel for several years of the<br />
annual decorating contract.<br />
It is important to <strong>Wandle</strong> that we<br />
use contractors and suppliers with a<br />
sustainable approach to their work.<br />
Akzonobel are proud of their<br />
sustainability focus and they have<br />
worked with Forum for the Future<br />
to develop ways to reduce the<br />
environmental impact of decorating.<br />
They are recognised as leaders in<br />
their field in their approach to<br />
product sustainability.<br />
If you are thinking of redecorating<br />
your home you can use Akzonobel’s<br />
handy online paint calculator to ensure<br />
you buy only the amount you need.<br />
www.dulux.co.uk/advice/paint_<br />
calculator/index.jsp<br />
JoBs fAIr<br />
WorKs<br />
<strong>Wandle</strong> recently attended and supported the South<br />
London Jobs Fair and the Tooting Works Jobs Fair.<br />
The South London Jobs Fair took place<br />
in Croydon in June. Over 1,000 people<br />
attended this amazing event, which<br />
was organised by a group of housing<br />
associations including <strong>Wandle</strong>. The fair<br />
is set to become an annual event, so<br />
look out for it again next year. It really<br />
works too – one of your new Customer<br />
Relationship Officers applied to work at<br />
<strong>Wandle</strong> after attending this event and<br />
chatting to <strong>Wandle</strong> staff. Next time it<br />
could be you!<br />
The Tooting Works Jobs Fair took place<br />
in August and was hosted by South<br />
Thames College. Local MPs Sadiq<br />
Khan and Chuka Umunna both came<br />
along to offer their support to job<br />
seekers. <strong>Wandle</strong> set up stall alongside<br />
companies including Starbucks,<br />
Sainsburys, The Princes Trust, South<br />
London Job Centre and Think Big. As<br />
well as stalls, t<strong>here</strong> were also workshops<br />
offering advice on hot topics such as<br />
CVs and digital profiles.<br />
Want a local job club? Maybe a<br />
start your own business course?<br />
Just need some work experience?<br />
<strong>Wandle</strong> will be starting to<br />
offer lots more opportunities<br />
like this soon.<br />
If you would value some support in<br />
getting into work, call Phil Cone,<br />
Community Investment Officer on<br />
0208 682 5367 or 0203 617 4807<br />
or email on philcone@wandle.com<br />
18 <strong>Wandle</strong> News | Autumn 2012 Edition | Issue Number 67<br />
19
locAl ArEA TEAm<br />
Local Area Manager<br />
Owen Ramsay<br />
OwenR@wandle.com<br />
Technical Officer<br />
Sophia Grant<br />
SophiaG@wandle.com<br />
Customer Relationship Officer<br />
Beatrice Brown<br />
BeatriceB@wandle.com<br />
Customer Relationship Officer<br />
Babatunde Raji<br />
BabatundeR@wandle.com<br />
Important numbers:<br />
☎ customer services<br />
0800 731 2030<br />
(020 8682 7442 from a mobile)<br />
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and<br />
Friday 9.00am to 5.00pm<br />
Wednesday 9.00am to 4.00pm<br />
If you would like any more information<br />
or would like to comment on any of the<br />
articles, please contact your Local Area<br />
team at customerservices@wandle.<br />
com, freephone 0800 731 2030<br />
(freephone) or 020 8682 7442<br />
(from your mobile), or go to<br />
www.wandle.com<br />
Local office<br />
232 Mitcham Road, London SW17 9NN<br />
contact details<br />
☎ K&T heating services<br />
0800 092 2420<br />
To report a problem with your gas<br />
central heating or hot water system<br />
24 hours a day, 7 days a week<br />
Customer Relationship Assistant<br />
Deniz Ibrahim<br />
DenizI@wandle.com<br />
Customer Relationship Assistant<br />
Andre Ansah<br />
AndraA@wandle.com<br />
Customer Relationship Assistant<br />
Christine Addy<br />
ChristineA@wandle.com<br />
Handyman<br />
Chris Bethell<br />
<strong>Wandle</strong> News is printed on Revive 50/50 paper<br />
(50% recycled fibre and 50% virgin fibre)<br />
☎ Anti social behaviour<br />
hotline 020 8682 5346<br />
24 hour message service<br />
Fadlan Kooxdayada Adeegyada<br />
Macmiilka kala soo xiriir 0800 731 2030.<br />
Veuillez contacter notre équipe de<br />
service clientèle au 0800 731 2030.