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Welcome to the Winter Edition of the Tenants Voice Newsletter.

I am proud to announce that the hard work and dedication of members of the Hume team was recognised at two separate industry awards ceremonies recently. At the Power Housing Australia Exchange our Business and Property Development Manager Peter Malone won the award for Outstanding Achievement.

The award is recognition for Peter’s ongoing contribution to the housing industry for over 15 years in a variety of roles. His ability to communicate and engage with stakeholders across sectors and at various levels from builders to executives has earnt him respect and a reputation for success.

Our Neighbourhood Co-ordinator Julie Davenport was awarded the Inspirational Team Member award at the Australian Housing Industry Awards for her instrumental role in the development and support of The Collectives, a volunteer working group of people who have lived experience of hoarding and squalor.

The Collectives also won a highly commended award for best Tenant Led Initiative that enhances customer and community wellbeing.

The work involved in the success of these achievements not only demonstrates exceptional leadership skills, it also demonstrates compassion for those in need, resilience and is an inspiration for all of us – a true demonstration of Hume’s values!

CEO Message

The Tenant’s Voice

WINTER 2017Hume Community Housing Association

www.humecha.com.au The Tenant’s Voice | WINTER 2017

Welcome to Alll Our New Customers 2

2017 Annual Survey - Coming Soon 2

Phone System Upgrade 2

Book a BBQ or a Community Room 2

New Team Members 3

Property Upgrade Program 3

Hamilton Road Update 3

Maintenance Feedback 4

Making Modifications Easier 4

Liverpool Discovery Bus Tour Program 4

Sincerely,

Nicola Lemon CEO Hume Housing What’s Inside

Would you like to get out and about and explore your local community?

Hume in conjunction with the Liverpool City Council has been running Liverpool Discovery Bus Tours to local attractions.

In April a group of our seniors customers paid a visit to Chipping Norton Lakes, which is a beautiful regional park located along the Georges River in South West Sydney. The area has cycle ways, BBQ facilities, picnic areas, playground and gym equipment, boat ramps, sporting fields and the Georges River Environment Education Centre.

Throughout June and July groups visited the

We have new tours coming up in the next few months and would love you to join us:

Bents BasinState Recreation

Area

for All Seniors

Friday, 27thNovember 2017

Carnes HillsRecreation Centre

Precinct Tour

for Liverpool Families

Friday, 6thOctober 2017

Carnes HillsRecreation Centre

Precinct Tour

for Liverpool Seniors

Friday, 25thAugust 2017

Liverpool DiscoveryBus Tour Program

Casula Powerhouse Arts Centre. As part of the tour customers had the chance to participate in a ceramic workshop. Everyone enjoyed the opportunity to create their own designs and they got to take home a souvenir from their day out.

Contact Sarithya on 0438 095 950 if you’re interested in coming along.All excursions are FREE and transport is provided.

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www.humecha.com.au The Tenant’s Voice | WINTER 2017 | Page 2

Useful Information for New Customers

Hume Community Housing Association owns or manages the following community rooms and BBQ facilities, which are available to hire by Hume Housing customers.

For bookings and more information send an email to get.involved@humecha.com.auCall us 02 9722 4300. Visit us at: Parramatta OfficeLevel 4, 79 George Street, Parramatta

Fairfield OfficeLevel 1/119 The Crescent,Fairfield

Book a BBQ or Community room to hold your next social gathering.

Site Location Type of Facility

73-75 Mountford Ave, Guildford

BBQ

3 Shortland St, Telopea

BBQ

15 Sturt St, Telopea

Community Room

3 Shortland St, Telopea

Community Room

36 Cumberland St, Cabramatta

Community Room

In July, 64 new customers had their property management transferred from FACS to Hume Housing.

We welcome our new customers and trust you will enjoy your experiences with Hume.

Useful info for new customers....

CONTACT+ Your Neighbourhood Officer is the person you can contact with any tenancy matters you would have raised with your client service officer at FACS. They will be sending out letters soon and making home visits to introduce themselves

+ In the meantime contact Neighbourhood Co-ordinator Julie Davenport on 0419 130 566 with any questions or concerns.

RENT+ Your rent amount will now include Commonwealth Rent Assistance (CRA) this amount is an additional amount you claim from Centrelink and means you still have the same amount of income left after paying your rent

+ If you have questions about your new rent amount please call our Income Co-ordination Team.

+ Call Lorraine on 02 9685 6803 or

+ Alicia on 02 9722 4321.

LEASES+ If you are currently on a fixed term lease we will contact you when your lease expires. Whilst housed with FACS you would normally be offered 2, 5 and 10 year fixed term leases. In most cases when your current lease expires Hume Housing will review your eligibility and proceed to offer you a continuous lease.

GET INVOLVED+ Hume Housing offer social activities and outings throughout the year at reduced prices. If you would like more information regarding upcoming events please contact our community cohesion team.

We encourage you to chat with your neighbours and share information about Hume and the programs we operate.

+ Jason Newton on 0400 072 240 or + Sarithya Tuy on 0408 408 763 or on email at get.involved@humecha.com.au

We have listened to your feedback about the difficulty you can have contacting our offices and added 30 new phone lines to the network.

You can contact us on the following numbers:

Main Number – 02 9722 4300 and select the Option for the team you need....

Direct Maintenance Number – 02 9727 0688

If you have email you can reach us at:hume@humecha.com.au or report a repair request at repairs@humecha.com.au

You can also ask your housing officer for a mobile number to make contacting them about your tenancy a lot easier.

Phone System Upgrade

2017 ANNUAL SURVEY - Coming SoonOur Annual Customer Survey will be sent out in August and it is a good chance for you to let us know what we are doing well and what we can improve on.

We have listened to your feedback and have made the survey shorter and easier to understand.

The survey questions cover areas that are important to you such as maintenance, your neighbourhood, your home and whether you are happy with the service you receive as a customer of Hume.

You can complete the survey online or by filling out the copy you receive in the post.

Surveys are available in Arabic, Assyrian, Vietnamese, Chinese and Spanish.

If you need a survey in a different language than what you receive, then please ask and we can send one to you.

We are happy to help you complete the survey and dates will be advertised for customers that require a translator.

We appreciate you taking the time to complete the survey which helps us to improve the services we provide to you.

www.humecha.com.au The Tenant’s Voice | WINTER 2017 | Page 3

New Members of Hume Team

Hamilton Road UpdateOur new building at Hamilton Road in Fairfield is progressing well with timber framing being erected on Level 8.

The 60 studio, 1 and 2 bedroom units will provide much needed affordable housing for the local community.

The new Hume Housing offices will be located on the ground levels of the building and we look forward to the move in early 2018.

If you or someone you know is interested in applying for one of the affordable housing units,

you can join our mailing listhamilton.road@humecha.com.au

We will provide regular updates on the progress of the build and let you know when applications are open.

To be eligible for one of the new units you must be an Australian Citizen or Permanent resident and earn income within certain limits.

Call our Housing Options Team today for more information: 02 9722 4310 or 02 9722 4382.

As part of our upgrade program we have recently completed works on a property in Casula which is home to several customers supported by the Cerebral Palsy Alliance.

Funded in part by the Department of Family and Community Services, the property has had a brand new adaptable kitchen installed, new flooring and has been repainted throughout.

We hope that everyone enjoys the improvements and we look forward to completing similar upgrades in the future.

Assets Team

Natalie Risby and Nicole Stevens

You may recognise Natalie as one of our front line Customer Service Officers. The knowledge gained at the front counter is helping her to provide great service on our maintenance line.

She understands how important it is to our customers to have repairs completed quickly

Property Upgrade Program

Before Upgrade

After Upgrade

and be kept up to date on progress.

Nicole has joined our team as a PropertyCo-ordinator and has worked in the real estate industry for just over 7 years. She will act as your representative for any communications with agents and owners.

Report a repair on 02 9727 0688 or via email repairs@humecha.com.au

Neighbourhood Services

Hume is growing and we now look after more properties and people than ever before.To make sure we are providing the best service

possible we have hired new Neighbourhood Officers.

This year we have welcomed Melanie Mangione and Jana Juranek to our Neighbourhood Services Team.

Over the next few weeks you will receive a letter with the contact information for the person that looks after your home and neighbourhood.

In the meantime you can call any one of the team on the numbers below:

Chantelle WoolridgeMobile: 0409 517 768Email: chantelle.woolridge@humecha.com.au

Vivian Lisciotto Mobile: 0419 590 518Email: vivian.lisciotto@humecha.com.au

Jana Juranek Mobile: 0407 899 016Email: jana.juranek@humecha.com.au

Melanie Mangione Mobile: 0418 346 100Email: melanie.mangione@humecha.com.au

Julie DavenportCoordinator Neighbourhood Programs Mobile: 0419 130 56Email: julie.davenport@humecha.com.au

Natalie Risby & Nicole Stevens

Melanie Mangione & Jana Juranek

www.humecha.com.au The Tenant’s Voice | WINTER 2017 | Page 4

Hume’s dedication to customer service has recently been highlighted with three industry award wins that acknowledge excellence in professional practice by individuals and teams.

Neighbourhood Services Co-ordinator, Julie Davenport was awarded the Inspirational Team Member Award at the recent Australasian

Industry Award WinsHousing Institute Awards. This is in recognition of her achievements; passion and connection to social justice in ensuring people are given the best chance to reach their potential. Julie was also acknowledged for her instrumental role in the development and support of The Collectives, a volunteer working group of people who have lived experience of hoarding and squalor.

Hume also won a Highly Commended award for The Collectives as a ‘Tenant-led initiative’ that achieves outcomes for customers such as increased esteem, self-confidence and self-belief in order to assist them with improving their wellbeing and recovery.

Our Business and Property Development Manager Peter Malone was awarded the Outstanding Achievement Award at the Power Housing Australia Exchange.

This award recognises Peter’s outstanding contribution across the community housing sector and his passion to help those marginalised and in need of support.

We congratulate Julie, Peter and members of The Collective for delivering outstanding services, being champions of change, creating connectivity and being determined to succeed.

We get itIt is your home and you want to make it as comfortable, safe and secure as you can.

We have made it easierHume has reviewed and updated our home modifications policy and application form.

We now have+ A home alterations request form: this is for when you want to request items such as air-conditioning installation or TV aerials

+ A home modification request form – which requires a bit more detail and covers requests for changes due to medical needs or more complicated alterations

Have a look at our website www.humecha.com.au for more information. Full details will be available mid-August.

If you have asked for an alteration or modification before and been declined – have a look at the new policy as it might now be possible.

Contact our Assets and Maintenance Team on 02 9727 0688 for further information or speak to your favourite person at Hume to discuss the new policy.

Making Modifications Easier

Working With Customers

Hume receives over 300 calls each month from customers requesting repairs to their home or requesting assistance to maintain their property in good condition.

Over 10% of those calls are urgent and within 4hrs Hume has the right contractor or trades person on site to help.

Many of our customers are familiar with SR Construction trades people – our main contractor or with Steve our handyman and Jacob our electrician. Customers trust the team to respond quickly and ensure their homes are safe.

We survey a number of customers each month who have requested repairs to see how we are performing and what we can do to improve. Over the last twelve months our customers on average have told us that:

+ We responded in a timely manner + Over 90% were satisfied with the quality of the work undertaken

+ Our contractors did a great job – they were polite, on time and showed ID