Street by Street Spring 2016

East Thames residents’ magazine

involved

THAMES

Issue 91 | SPRING 2016

by

street street

residents

Street by Street is going digital! See pg. 3 Give us your email address and win an iPad mini! See pg. 3 Welfare benefits are changing. More details on pg. 6

www.east-thames.co.uk

Need help starting a business?

Details on pg. 5

www.east-thames.co.uk

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Contents & welcome

e m o c l e w

Contents 2

Contents & welcome

3

East Thames catch up

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East Thames community

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Jobs & training

6-7

Money matters

8-9

Your home

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Out & about

11

How we’re doing

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Contacts

nd sident a e r s e m ations ast Tha mmunic e Dye, E o tt c ’ e n ts a n e J reside r of the membe panel

Welcome to the spring issue of Street by Street, the last printed issue of the magazine. As we say farewell to the print version of the magazine, I’ve been reflecting on my time on the communications panel and my involvement with Street by Street.

As a member of the resident communications panel, I’ve been helping to shape Street by Street for about 10 years. It’s been very empowering to be actively involved at East Thames and to feedback residents’ views on what they would like featured in the magazine. Street by Street has always been very useful in providing important information to residents, and will continue to do so in its digital version from May. It’s also a great way for East Thames to tell us more about work it’s doing to improve its services.

Being part of the communications panel has been a really good experience. The members of the panel have changed a lot over the years but everyone has always been very nice. I’d like to thank all of the residents who have been part of the communications panel, and the East Thames marketing and communications team who have been really friendly. I’ve enjoyed working with them all. You can join us on the new digital communications panel by emailing marcoms@east-thames.co.uk.

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Make sure you sign up to receive the digital version of Street by Street at www.east-thames.co.uk/sbs. If you sign up by the end of April you could win an iPad! If you have a story for our new digital magazine, any questions, feedback or want to join the residents’ communications panel, email jade.bradford@eastthames.co.uk or call Jade on 020 8522 3204.

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Street by Street is produced by the Marketing and Communications team, East Thames Group, 29-35 West Ham Lane, Stratford E15 4PH Editor: Jade Bradford Designer: Rably Malik Tel: 020 8522 3204 Email: marcoms@east-thames.co.uk

East Thames catch up

One to One with Rob Wray Head of change, East Thames As the new head of change, my role is to work with individual teams to improve our services and turn East Thames into a high performing housing association. I’ve worked in housing for over 15 years, specialising in research and improvement programmes.

One of my first tasks was a complete review of the current complaints process to identify what wasn’t working. We have redesigned the process and

removed any unnecessary steps, and we’ve launched a new system focussed on achieving a quick, simple resolution for residents. Previously, only 51% of our residents found it easy to make a complaint (see page 11), we aim to improve this by empowering our resident-facing staff to make decisions and resolve issues for residents as efficiently as possible.

Moving Street by Street from print to online is another big step forward in improving our

East Thames opening hours are changing We want to make sure we have more staff available when you need them, so we are changing our contact centre hours from April 4 2016. Many of our residents get in touch with us on a Monday evening, so our phone lines will be open until 8pm on a Monday. We’ll also be opening half an hour earlier Monday to Friday.

We’re changing our front of house service, too. You’ll still be able to visit us at our office but you’ll need to make an appointment. This will ensure you’re able to speak to the right person at a time convenient for you.

Appointments can be arranged by ringing the contact centre or speaking to reception at West Ham Lane.

You can make an appointment to visit us at West Ham Lane: Tuesday – Friday, 9am – 5pm You’ll be able to call us about repairs: Monday – Friday, 8am – 8pm and 24 hours for emergencies.

You’ll be able to call us about everything else to do with your home: Monday, 8am8pm, Tuesday – Friday, 8am – 5pm If you’ve got any questions please email us on customerservices@east-thames.co.uk

services. The online format will allow our residents to access the information that is relevant to them instantly and conveniently.

It will also help us to save money on printing costs and reinvest it into other resident services, not to mention the significant reduction in our carbon footprint.

Our improvement plan is ongoing and touches every part of the company; I hope you start to feel the positive impact of this work throughout 2016.

Say hello to digital Street by Street Thanks for reading the Win an last paper edition of Street iPad Mini!

by Street! You’ll no longer get a quarterly magazine through your door but we’ll be creating a brand new website for you to get all the information you need from East Thames.

We will tell you via email when the new site is ready for you to view. If we don’t have your email address yet, you can enter it here: www.east-thames.co.uk/sbs.

If you give us your email before the end of April, you could win an iPad mini!

If you’ve got any questions about reading the magazine online, you can contact us on marcoms@east-thames.co.uk or call us on 0300 303 7333.

www.east-thames.co.uk

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East Thames community

Reclaim at the Lane If you’re sprucing up your home for spring, and want to make it beautiful on a budget – come down to our furniture re-use store, Reclaim at the Lane.

Based in Cranberry Lane, Canning Town, the cut-price furniture store offers both new and used furniture and white goods. Beds at Reclaim start at just £20 for a single bed, or just £16 if you are in receipt of benefits.

Double beds start at just £32.

If you’re updating your home and have some reuseable furniture that you want to donate, Reclaim at the Lane will pick up your donations for free at a time to suit you. For the full range of products available, visit the website at: www.reclaimatthelane.co.uk Visit Reclaim at the Lane: Cranberry Lane Community Centre, 122-162 Cranberry Lane, E16 4PE. Open 10am - 4pm, Tuesday – Thursday

You’ve helped us shape our services You’ve helped us make the following positive changes:

Last year 200 residents were actively involved in helping us improve our services, from those who completed a survey or attended a focus group meeting through to the continuous hard work of the Housing Scrutiny Panel.

• You said the complaints procedure was too complicated, so we’ve made it easier for you. You can find more details at www.east-thames.co.uk/complaints.

• Based on your feedback we are making our letters and communications easier to understand.

• We’ve actioned over 60% of the recommendations made by the Housing Scrutiny Panel – see their reviews on our website at www.east-thames. co.uk/scrutiny-panel.

• The Housing Scrutiny Panel were shortlisted for a national award for Excellence in Scrutiny.

In November 60 residents took up the opportunity to meet our Chief Executive, Yvonne Arrowsmith and heard her speak about the future of East Thames.

The Resident Involvement team would like to thank all the residents who have been involved in improving services and look forward to continuing your great work and meeting new residents.

And, over the past year we have awarded £2,000 in Community Grants to help local communities to run their own projects and neighbourhood events, building community spirit and improving sustainability.

If you are interested in helping East Thames improve our services why not join one of our panels, please email residentinvolvementteam@east-thames.co.uk.

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Jobs & training

East Entrepreneurs Do you need a cash injection to help you set up your own business or to develop a business that you already have?

So far we have funded 7 residents to set up their own businesses which have ranged from photography to beauty therapy, and you could be next.

Above: Two successful winners of East Entrepreneurs

East Thames residents can apply for funding of up to £1,500 to help start or develop a business.

Applicants will be invited to attend a presentation skills training session

and will then go on to present their business idea to a panel of judges.

For more information or an application form please contact Nicola Brown on Nicola.brown@east-thames. co.uk or 020 3288 2100.

Alternatively, come along to Starting Point, our enterprise hub at: 16 Pickering Road, Barking, IG11 8PG. www.starting-point.org.uk.

Where can I go for support?

If you want employment and training support, we’ve got several offices that can help you.

Who: The employment and financial inclusion team Where: East Thames’ head office, 29-35 West Ham Lane, Stratford, E15 4PW How can they help: We offer a range of employment support for people of all ages and skill levels right from our head offices, drop in for help with your CV, work placements, training courses, apprenticeships and advice.

For more information: www. east-thames.co.uk/employmenttraining.

Who: The Winsor Park hub team Where: Winsor Park Employment Hub, Winsor Park Community Centre, 20 Warwall, Beckton E6 6WG How can they help: Our local one stop employment service based at Winsor Park covers everything from job searches to training courses and also works with local businesses to find job opportunities.

For more information: www.eastthames.co.uk/employment-hub.

Routes to Work If you’re trying to get into work, but lack recent experience, a work placement could be the boost your CV needs.

We’ve had participants go on to find jobs as support workers, financial advisers, and a variety of other roles.

We offer a range of placements in different teams and organisations, so you can get the experience that best suits your needs.

If you are interested in joining Routes to Work, get in touch.

Who: The Youth Employment team Where: Starting Point, 16 Pickering Road, Barking, Essex, IG11 8PG How they can help: If you’re aged 16 to 24, are not in education, training or employment, and would like help to find a job or apprenticeship, the Youth Employment team can help you.

For more information: www. east-thames.co.uk/youthemployment.

Finding the right programme for you East Thames offers a number of free courses to people of all ages and skill levels to help you find a job or training opportunity.

Visit www.east-thames.co.uk/ete or talk to our employment and training team today about the service that’s right for you.

Call 020 8522 2221 or email ete@ east-thames.co.uk.

www.east-thames.co.uk

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Money matters

Benefits – are you ready for the changes? be told when universal credit will affect you.

Once universal credit is in place, any benefits you receive will be paid in one monthly sum into your bank account.

You will need a bank account which allows you to set up a direct debit to help you pay your rent and other bills. If you would like to set up a direct debit to pay your rent, contact us on 0300 303 7333.

Welfare Benefits Team

If you are worried about the changes detailed here we’re happy to help, please get in touch with our Welfare Benefits team on 0208 522 2040 or email welfare. benefits@east-thames.co.uk.

New benefit cap for out of work households From April, the benefit cap is changing to £442 a week for couples and families living in London, and £385 a week for couples and families living outside of London.

For single people this will be lowered to £296 a week if you live in London and £258 a week if you live outside of London.

You will receive a letter from the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) if this affects you. If you’re worried that your benefits won’t cover your rent, contact us.

Universal credit is now live in your area Currently universal credit applies to new benefit claims from single people who would have otherwise been eligible for jobseeker’s allowance. Universal credit pulls six of your main benefits, including housing benefit, into a single monthly lump sum that is transferred directly to your bank account.

If you receive universal credit, your housing benefit will be paid directly to you, and you will be responsible for paying your rent to East Thames. You don’t need to do anything if you’re already claiming any benefits - you’ll

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www.east-thames.co.uk

The application for universal credit needs to be filled in online, so you’ll need access to the internet. You can access the internet at your local job centre, library or at East Thames’ head office. Find the nearest place to you here: www.east-thames.co.uk/local-resources If you need help completing the universal credit application form, setting up a bank account or budgeting, get in touch with our welfare benefit advisors using the details on this page.

Freeze on working age benefits If you receive benefits and are aged between 18 and 64, from April 2016 your benefits will be frozen for the next four years. This means that the amount of benefit you receive won’t increase each year. It will only change if your circumstances change.

This change will affect people who receive: jobseeker’s allowance, employment and support allowance, income support, child benefit, child tax credit and working tax credit (excluding disability elements).

Changes to housing benefit From April 2016 the amount of backdated housing benefit you can receive will be limited to four weeks down from the current 26 weeks. If your circumstances changes, make sure you tell the job centre straight away so you don’t miss out on back dated benefits you’re entitled to.

No housing benefit family premium for new claimants The family premium is an extra £17.45 of housing benefit for families with at least one child. From April the family premium will not be provided to new claimants or to parents whose child is born after April 2016.

Money matters

Annual Rent Review In April, some residents will have their rent and other charges reviewed following our annual rent review. If your rent is being increased (or decreased) you should have recently received a rent review notice, with details of the rent and service charges you need to pay over the coming year.

All rent changes come into effect in April 2016.

If your rent changes, you’ll receive a rent and service charge FAQ through the post.

These can also be found online at www.east-thames.co.uk/rent-review.

• If your housing benefit is paid directly to us, we will inform the benefit office of the increase or decrease.

• If your housing benefit is paid to you then you need to tell your benefit office about your new rent and service charges.

• If you are in receipt of universal credit then you need to report these changes to the Department of Work and Pensions by calling the universal credit line on 0345 6000 723. If you have not received notification from DWP of your new benefit rate by 15 April 2016, please contact the relevant benefit office directly.

If you think you should have received a rent review notice from us but you haven’t, please contact us on 0300 303 7333, Mon-Fri 8.30am-8.30pm and ask for the Rents and Service Charges team.

www.east-thames.co.uk

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Your home

Improving your home We understand a safe, comfortable home is the most important thing to you. We’re investing more money, so we can improve more homes over the next five years.

In 2016, 1,140 homes will receive improvements ranging from new heating systems, windows, kitchens, bathrooms to electrical upgrades.

We have commited to:

140 new windows/ doors

How often will you check my home?

650

130

new kitchens

new bathrooms

330 new boilers

140 new electrical rewires

How often will you check communal areas?

Type

Frequency

Type

Frequency

Gas safety checks

Annually

Fire alarm testing

Every 6 months

Stock condition surveys

Every 5 years

Emergency lighting

Every 6 months

Unvented hot water cylinder checks

Every 14 Months

Lightning conductors

Every 11 months

Fire extinguishers

Annually

Water hygiene

Every Two years

Playgrounds

Every 6 months

Electrical checks

Every 5 months

We know it can be frustrating having to wait in for service appointments throughout the year, so if you have more than one safety check due, we will try to schedule both on the same day.

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If your home is due to be upgraded, we’ll send you a letter to let you know. If you’d like to know when to expect an upgrade please call us on 0300 303 7333 and press 1.

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www.east-thames.co.uk

Your home

You told us you wanted to see more updates on how we’re improving our repairs service:

Spare parts We have changed our parts supplier and will keep more items in stock in our warehouse.

This means we’ll be able to attend to repairs which require a replacement part more quickly and provide a first time fix more frequently.

Better service The quality of Interserve’s work has been steadily improving over the past year. 97% of recent inspections have been passed by our Quality Control team. Customer satisfaction has also increased, you can see figures for the last quarter on the next page.

We’re working on improving other areas too, such as communications and achieving a higher level of first time fix rates.We are continuously reviewing our training plans for staff and using your feedback to make improvements to the service.

When reporting a repair over the telephone, don’t forget to press 1 to get through to the repairs team. www.east-thames.co.uk

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Out & about

Essex: East Thames celebrated the reopening of Lakeside – a scheme for adults with learning difficulties on Canvey Island in Essex.

Newham: Young job seeker Clarke Quintyne was awarded a Best Individual trophy on his 19th birthday after completing a workplace skills training course delivered by East Thames and HSBC.

Waltham Forest: In October, East Thames launched a brand new supported living scheme for adults with high mental health support needs in Chingford.

Newham: With the help of the University of East London and the passion and commitment of residents, an area of land at Winsor Park Estate has been transformed into a community garden.

Waltham Forest: Waltham Forest’s Cabinet Member for Housing, Councillor Khevyn Limbajee, and Councillor Gerry Lyons visited a young family in their recently purchased shared ownership home in Chingford.

Want to see your community, scheme or estate represented?

Send your photos to marcoms@east-thames.co.uk.

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For further details on these stories visit the news section of our website on www.east-thames.co.uk/news

How we’re doing

How we’re doing

We look at our performance for October – December 2015, and see how it compares to the same period last year.

I’m satisfied with my last repair

2014

My repair was completed first time

2014

My problem was solved on first contact

2014

(East Thames contact centre only)

70% 78%

It was easy to make my complaint

2014

easier complaints process.

2015

90% 93% 2014

on board and launched a new,

2015

61% 71%

My views are taken into account

We’ve taken your feedback

2015

2015

41% 45% 2015

57% 51%

Note: All figures have been rounded to nearest whole number.

www.east-thames.co.uk

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Contacts East Thames Address: 29-35 West Ham Lane, Stratford, London E15 4PH (open Mon-Fri, 8.30am-6pm) Customer contact centre: Customer Contact Centre: 0300 303 7333 (Mon-Fri 8.30am-8.30pm) Our opening hours are changing from April 4 – see pg. 3 for details Email: info@east-thames.co.uk Repairs email: EastThames.Repairs@ interserve.com Web: www.east-thames.co.uk Facebook: www.facebook.com/EastThames

about us

Local Councils: Barking & Dagenham: E: 3000direct@lbbd.gov.uk T: 020 8215 3000 W: www.lbbd.gov.uk Essex: W: www.essex.gov.uk

includes links to all

district councils

Newham: T: 020 8430 2000 W: www.newham.gov.uk Redbridge: E: customer.cc@redbridge.gov.uk T: 020 8554 5000 W: www.redbridge.gov.uk

Harlow: E: contact@harlow.gov.uk T: 01279 446655 W: www.harlow.gov.uk

Tower Hamlets: E: generalenquiries@ towerhamlets.gov.uk T: 020 7364 5020 W: www.towerhamlets.gov.uk

Havering: E: info@havering.gov.uk T: 01708 434343 W: www.havering.gov.uk

Waltham Forest: E: wfdirect@walthamforest.gov.uk T: 020 8496 3000 W: www.walthamforest.gov.uk

East Thames is a registered social landlord and social regeneration charity with over 35 years’ experience of providing affordable homes.

We give people a chance to succeed through community programmes that include: employment and training, art and culture, sustainable living, and health and wellbeing.

Our mission is to make a positive and lasting contribution to the neighbourhoods in which we work which we do through different parts of our business.

We manage and/or own more than 14,000 affordable homes.

We provide support and accommodation in over 80 schemes for people with a wide range of needs, including: older people, people with a learning disability or mental health needs, and women escaping violence.

For free translation of this magazine for East Thames residents, call:

Buy more shares in your home. It’s as easy as 1,2,3 If you’re a shared owner and you’d like to buy further shares in your property, contact us today for more information or to request an application form.

THAMES Call 0300 303 7333 and ask to speak to the home ownership team or e-mail homeownership@east-thames.co.uk THAMES www.east-thames.co.uk

THAMES

0800 952 0119

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