Meres NewsFor all the local news about your community | Issue 16 – Christmas 2010

Tel: 0800 4346289 Email: enquiries@mmha.org.uk Web: www.shropshirehousing.org.uk

In this issue... Homeswapper/Homepoint • The Value of Board Members • Condensation

DownsizingRead Pauline’s story... Page 3

Sponsored Football KitTARCA sponsor Wem Town Under 9s... Page 11

Competition WinnersEveryone’s a winner...Page 9

Merry Christmasand a Happy New Year to you all!

CONTENTS2 Just Credit Union3 Local Offers/Downsizing4 Homeswapper/Homepoint5 Group News9 Condensation/Roofing/Cavity Wall Insulation10 Board Member Pay Consultation11 Competition Winners/TARCA Update12 Competions Page

If you require this document in audio, braille, large print or if English is not your first language then please contact us.

Si vous avez besoin de ce document en audio, braille, gros caractères, ou si l’anglais n’est pas votre langue première veuillez nous contacter. French

Jeśli wymagasz tego dokumentu w audio, Braille’a, duże wydruku, lub jeśli angielski jest nie pierwszy język prosimy kontakt. Polish

Если вам требуется этот документ в аудио, Брайля, крупных печатных, или если английский является не ваш первый язык напишите нам. Russian

Os oes angen y dogfen hon mewn ffurf wahannol, er enghraifft Braille, llythrennau mawr, tâp audio neu iaith wahanol, gadewch i ni wybod os gwelwch yn dda. Welsh

Se ha bisogno di questo documento in audio, Braille, grande stampa, o se inglese è la prima lingua contattaci. Italian

You can contact us in a number of ways:1 PHONE 0300 303 1190 or FREEPHONE 0800 43462891 EMAIL enquiries@mmha.org.uk1 IN WRITING by sending your letter to us at

Meres and Mosses Housing Association, Talbot House, High Street Wem SY4 5AA

1 IN PERSON by coming along to the reception desk at Talbot House.

OFFICE OPENING HOURSOur normal office opening hours are:8.45am - 5.00pm Monday - Thursday8.45am - 4.30pm Friday. See Christmas Opening Hours on page 8.

HOW

TO

CO

NTA

CT U

SChris Mellings joined the Board as a Council nominee in September 2009 and is a member of the Group’s Performance Committee. Chris is the Shropshire Councillor for Wem, Wem Rural & Whixall and has lived in Wem for 35 years.He has wide experience of local government having been a County Councillor for over 20 years. An active local Councillor, Chris serves on the Council’s Standards and Audit Committees. He is also a member of Shropshire & Wrekin Fire Authority, Wem Town Council and is Chair of Governors at St Peter’s Primary School in Wem. In his working life, Chris was a Revenues Manager with Powys Council.

Chris Meelings MMHA Board Member

2 | Meres News Christmas 2010

Tenant Involvement and Empowerment

standard

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213 45 6

2Neighbourhoods

and Communities standard

13 4

5 6

2

Value for Money standard

13 45 6

2Tenancy standard

13 4

5 6

2

Governance and Financial Viability

standard

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2Home standard

Our regulator, the Tenants Services Authority has asked

all social landlords to produce ‘local offers’ through six

standards that cover all aspects of the work we do.

Local offers are the services you want Shropshire Housing

Group to offer in the future. Our current service is set out

in the Tenants Report 2010.

We will give you updates on how we are shaping the local offers in

each issue of your newsletter. The updates will be highlighted

with the appropriate sticker (see right)

for the standard it applies to.

There are many workshops

taking place throughout

the coming months for you

to give your opinion. If you

would like to get involved,

please contact us.

Pauline took up the offer of the grant for £20001

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2Tenancy standard

Meres News Christmas 2010 | 3

Do you want to move home? Is your home too small for your household? Too big now the kids have left home? Or do you need to move for work or training?HomeSwapper is the largest national mutual exchange service for council and housing association tenants wanting to swap homes. MMHA have signed up to the scheme which means that all our tenants can register free of charge.

Simply add details of your home onto the site, post some photographs and decide on the type of property you want to move to and where.

Once you have registered, you will be able to go online and view suitable matches. If you do not have access to the internet you can choose to have details of suitable exchange partners via your mobile phone.

If you find another tenant to swap with, you must get MMHA’s permission before you move.

Find out more and register at HomeSwapper.co.uk or contact our customer services team.

26.5%

46.5%

22.8% 37%

Percentage of new lettings in each band (April to September 2010)

11%2%

50%

37%

Makeup of waiting list Applicants’ bedroom requirements

4 | Meres News Christmas 2010

13 45 6

2Tenant Involvement

and Empowerment standard

Shropshire Homepoint is a county wide Choice Based Lettings scheme, giving tenants more choice about where they want to live. Most of Shropshire’s housing providers use Shropshire Homepoint to advertise their empty homes. They include Shropshire Housing Group and Shropshire Council. 514 properties were advertised through Shropshire Homepoint between April and September 2010.

You can apply for membership of Shropshire Homepoint by completing an application and returning it to Shropshire Homepoint, or by filling in an online form at www.shropshirehomepoint.co.uk.

Your housing need will be assessed and put into one of the following bandings:

Key

Priority Gold Silver Bronze

Properties are advertised on the Shropshire Homepoint website, in a weekly property list, at housing offices and sheltered schemes, and at libraries.

You must then tell Homepoint that you are interested in a property by placing a bid on it.

4+ beds 7%

3 beds 18%

2 beds 34%

1 bed 41%

Group News Christmas 2010 | 5

Group News

The analogue TV signal in Shropshire will be turned off in April 2011. If you don’t have digital TV by the time of switchover you will lose your TV service.

If you live in a home that shares its aerial (for example a flat or sheltered housing) you don’t need to do anything to your aerial. Shropshire Housing Group has completed its work to upgrade all these systems.

If you live in a house you are responsible for your aerial and its upkeep, but most TV aerials do not need to be changed.

Do not accept doorstep sellers trying to sell ‘digital’ aerials. If you do need to change your aerial and don’t qualify for help, use a Registered Digital Installer (RDI) who has been trained and security checked.

To find one in your area, go to www.rdi-lb.tv or call 08456 50 50 50. Installation of a standard rooftop aerial is likely to cost £60-£180.

switchover help scheme

The Switchover Help Scheme helps eligible people convert one of their TV sets to digital. They will explain digital TV clearly and simply, tell you about all the options available, install the equipment needed and demonstrate how it works.

Who is eligible?The Help Scheme will convert a TV set to digital for people who;

Are aged 75 or over, or get (or could get) disability living allowance, or

• Attendance or constant attendance allowance

• Mobility supplement, or

• Are registered blind or partially sighted.

Will you have to pay?The Help Scheme will ask eligible people to pay £40 for the standard offer, which includes:

• Easy-to-use equipment that meets your needs

• Help with installing the equipment

• Fitting a new dish or aerial, if it’s needed to make the new equipment work

• A demonstration and someone to call for help while you’re getting used to things.

This service is free for people who get pension credit, income support or income based job seeker’s allowance. There are other options available at an extra cost.

The Help Scheme will write to people who are eligible for the scheme in plenty of time to ask if they want the help. They must have a valid TV licence (free for people aged over 75) to get the help.

To check what TV services will be available after switchover where you live, use Digital UK’s post code checker at digitaluk.co.uk or call

08456 50 50 50

6 | Group News Christmas 2010

Investment Manager

Administration Assistants

Project ManagersGenerally deal with planned works projects

(general refurbishment works) and also manage and update the asset

management data base.

Clerk Of WorksOverseeing contractors working on properties,

an example would be kitchen and bathroom replacements,

making sure work meets the agreed specifications

and quality.

The Asset Management Team for Shropshire Housing Group is responsible for future investment in the Group’s housing stock.

This investment will include planned improvements, estate improvements, tackling fuel poverty, stock condition surveys, and quality control.

Bernard Quinn

Eleanor Smith Sam Andrews

Rob Banford Daniel Warrington

David Challinor

Ron Edge

Paul Blower

Dawn Lewis

John Bate

Head of Asset Management

Group News Christmas 2010 | 7

Head of Asset Management

Estates SurveyorIncludes estate improvements, inspection of the association’s

housing estates and communal areas, taking part in estate

walkabouts.Carry out inspection of garage

sites, to be responsible for ordering of fencing

works via the associations fencing contract.

Property SurveyorsCarry out stock condition surveys,

post inspections of any major works and carry out inspections to any major repair

(i.e structural, damp etc).

Asset Management Admin Assistant

Investment Manager

STOCK CONDITION SURVEYSShropshire Housing Group is carrying out stock condition surveys which will mean that we need to access all properties.

Clare Willets will be visiting MMHA properties and Roger Mullard will be visiting SSHA properties. Clare and Roger are trying to arrange visits with the Community Housing Officers when they do their tenancy audits, to minimise our disruption to you.

Simon Cookson

Sarah Weaver Claire Willets Roger Mullard

Chris Oliver

Dawn Lewis

John Bate

We always try to deal with complaints promptly and fairly, but we accept that not everyone will agree that we have done this. We are registered with the national Housing Ombudsman Service, an independent service which provides a free and fair way of dealing with complaints against housing organisations.The Housing Ombudsman expects that anyone who has a complaint should try to get it resolved through their landlord’s complaints procedure. So, if you have a complaint about our service, please let us know. We will investigate the complaint and, where we agree we

have made a mistake we will apologise and try to put things right.In the past six months, four complaints about SSHA or MMHA have been sent to the Housing Ombudsman Service. In all four cases the Ombudsman has upheld our decision and has accepted that we handled the complaints fairly and appropriately. You can find out more about the Housing Ombudsman on www.housing-ombudsman.org.uk or by picking up a leaflet at one of our offices.

This is a low cost phone number that will cost the same as calling an 01 or 02 number. It also brings together, and will eventually replace, the two separate 01588 and 01939 numbers that are used across the Group.

Shropshire Housing Group now has a new telephone number

Shropshire Housing Group will be closing for Christmas on Friday 24th December and re-opening on Tuesday 4th January 2011. If you have an urgent repair please call our customer services number and the out of hours call centre will take your call.

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2Tenant Involvement and Empowerment standard

8 | Group News Christmas 2010

Meres News Christmas 2010 | 9

Mr and Mrs Edward’s Garden

The Pumpkin FaceManor Place T

idy Garden

Winner Mrs E

dna Clive

Tenant’s Welc

ome Card

Design winner

Poppy Ridgew

ay

Casie Clark won the Pumpkin Face Competition!

Please let us know your views about this by filling in the short form below.

Do you think Meres and Mosses Housing Association should pay its board members?

Yes No

Please give the reasons for your answer:

Please give your name, address and telephone number:

Please return your form to:Jen Hayball, Assistant Director – Performance & Governance, Shropshire Housing Group, The Gateway, Craven Arms, Shropshire SY7 9BW

#Cut out here

THE VALUE of BOARD MEMBERSTHE VALUE of BOARD MEMBERS

How much would they be paid?MMHA would not be paying board members lots of money. The payment would range between around £2600 for a board member to £5800 for the Chair of the Board. This cost would not be added to rents but would be met from existing budgets.

What do you think about these plans?

TARCA are proud to be sponsoring Wem Town under 9s football team. The team is made up of local boys, from the local Wem area.

The team train on a Wednesday night, 4.30-5.30, at Wem Sports and Social Club, and play in the Shropshire under 9s league each Sunday morning, from as far North as Whitchurch to as far South as Chirbury.

The team are doing well this season under their manager Paul Glennerster.

The money used to sponsor Wem Town is money raised through delivering the tenants handbooks for Meres and Mosses Housing Association.

TARCA have recommended three projects to the MMHA Board, they are for:

1. Seating at Longlands School in Market Drayton, for their new reading area; parents and friends of Longlands have brought new books and shelving and they need new seats to enjoy reading in comfort.

2. A tenant from Duddleston Heath has asked if we would recommend to the board security lights for 28 bungalows and 5 houses, as the street lights do not light up their doors at night. All are MMHA properties.

3. There is also another project in the pipeline for a conservatory at Millington Close Sheltered Housing Scheme in Baschurch. They are having the kitchen extended and this will make their community room a lot smaller. A conservatory would add some much needed space to a much used room.

Meres News Christmas 2010 | 11

Sponsored by Meres and Mosses Housi

ng As

socia

tion

TownsAndRuralCommunitiesAssociation

TARCA on the web TARCA now have their own dedicated website at www.tarca.org.uk.

They also have a Facebook page. Search for Tarca Shropshire on Facebook to find us.

Other contact details: Tel: 01630 652953 Mobile: 07530 002771 email: tarcashropshire@yahoo.com

Sponsored team Kit for Wem Town under 9s

When cooking, use an extractor fan if you have one, or open a window slightly and shut the door between the kitchen and other rooms. Use the extractor fan if you have one when taking a bath or shower. Afterwards, ventilate the room by opening a window and closing the door.

Dry clothes outdoors or in a cool area of the home. It may take longer but less moisture will be held in the air.

If possible open a window when drying clothes indoors.

Hang wet coats outside the living area to dry. Use the trickle vents on the tops of the window frames to increase ventilation.

Open bedroom windows slightly during the evening when safe to do so.

Condensation occurs when moist air comes into contact with a colder surface. Here are some tips to reduce condensation in your home:

Shropshire Housing Group consists of the following organisations

Shropshire Housing Group consists of the following organisations

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Christmas QuizCan you answer our Christmas Quiz questions below? Send in your answers to win a

£30 ‘love to shop’ voucher1. In the carol ‘Once in Royal David’s City’,

where is Royal David’s City?

2. Who wrote the novel ‘A Christmas Carol’?

3. What singer is most famous for singing ‘White Christmas’?

4. What name or names do we normally use when referring to St Nicholas?

5. Apart from frankincense and myrrh, what was the other gift brought by the three wise men?

6. What is the period leading up to Christmas known as?

7. What day of the week will Christmas fall on in 2011?

Name

Address

Postcode

Telephone number

Name

Parent/Guardian

Address

Postcode

Telephone number

Please send all entries to: Vicki Coleman, Communications Officer, The Gateway, The Auction Yard, Craven Arms SY7 9BW by Friday 7th January.

Childrens Competition Find the baubles!

How many baubles can you find hidden throughout this edition of Meres News? Write your answer for a chance to win a

£30 toy voucher.