Connections Spring 2013 - Essex

your quarterly magazine from family mosaic

ON TOP OF THE WORLD

LAUNCHING OUR NEW HEALTH & WELLBEING SERVICE q see page 4

spring 2013

BENEFITs change 8,9

Are you due for a cut?

winning youths 5

You voted, they won!

the best medicine 10

Work is good for you

editorial we can...

news round-up

good feeling ‘How are you feeling?’

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‘Not bad’ is what most people answer. The question is, how do we change that answer to 'good'?

Research shows that 80% of what we feel can’t be changed.

But what about that other 20%?

Here are a few things that the Government Office for Science suggests we do to make a positive difference to the way we feel.

Five ways to wellbeing:

Connect with people around you.

Why not chat with a neighbour or visit a friend?

Be active Just a small amount of regular exercise can make you feel healthy and happier. Why not walk home instead of catching the bus?

Take notice of what is going on around you.

Keep learning new things.

It builds up your confidence and knowledge of the world.

Give Do something for someone else. It is really rewarding.

Not one thing on this list involves other people doing something for us. But we realise there are some things everyone needs a bit of help with, and that

inside this issue 3,4

8, 9

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news round up

welfare advice

your services

new health & wellbeing service Wanted: 600 volunteers to test our new service

exit blocked

spend £2 million

don't be left behind

Help us pick the best causes for our Maisie Sheed Trust fund

Welfare changes start in April. Be prepared.

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Youth action

are you on dla?

PIPs are replacing DLA. So what can you expect?

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photo credit EDITORIAL: paul SANDERS

employment & apprenticeships

award winners

Who got your vote?

We reveal our most inspiring young people

6, 7

regional news

Local news and events

healthier you Finding regular, paid work isn't just good for your bank balance

Leaving your stuff in communal areas could be a matter of life or death

12 useful info

Contacting us other languages

Connections translated

wordsearch Health quiz

Contacting us

Send your thoughts and ideas for Connections to editor Charlotte Sexton at hCharlotte.Sexton@ familymosaic.co.uk or call J020 7089 1140.

If you are interested in contributing, have a look at our advert on page 4.

the place where you live can have a big impact on your wellbeing.

As your landlord we believe we can do more for you than put a roof over your head. We can help you into work, to learn new skills, to get active and build stronger happier communities.

We’re committed to improving your health, wealth and wellbeing through housing. This edition of Connections celebrates how we are already doing this and how we plan to do even more.

In this edition of Connections magazine we look at some of the ways we've been helping you to find a healthier, happier lifestyle - and we offer a preview of exciting new plans that will make an even bigger difference

Healthy eating giveaway

Brendan Sarsfield Chief Executive

longer hours for careline Customer care line to extend opening hours

As our services grow, more of you are calling us for help and advice. To make sure we answer all your calls and help those of you in work, our customer care line will soon open for longer.

From 9 April you can call from 8am-8pm Monday to Friday, and 9am-1pm Saturdays.

Rent draw winners The following tenants have won £250 each following our quarterly draw of all tenants who make sure their rent account stays in credit.

South: Mrs O Male, Lewisham East/Essex: Mr Graham, Hackney Miss McTaggart, Basildon North/west: Ms Farid, Westminster

Love 6 Life Be Healthy get A Helping hand for better health Since December 2012 over 650 of you have taken your first steps to a healthier, happier life through our wellbeing projects – and we hope many more of you will take up the challenge this year.

Fit as a fiddle

Over 40 wellbeing projects in Essex, London and Hampshire have been offering different ways to get fit and healthy. Among them they offer acupuncture for stress relief, gym sessions, tai chi, badminton, cooking, yoga, and health awareness groups.

To find out what's going on near you, turn to our regional news on pages 6 and 7. If nothing ticks your box, why not start your own health or wellbeing project? With our new Community Champions scheme, we'll get you trained and give ongoing support for projects with a health benefit or a one-off event that will help you and your neighbours – young or old.

So tell us your idea, whether it's a community fun day, setting up a garden plot to grow vegetables or something completely different.

Small grants may be available.

For further information about signing up to a wellbeing project near you or starting a project of your own, contact Angus Kerr@ familymosaic.co.uk or call Angus on J020 7089 1253.

Keeping to a healthy diet on a budget is difficult, but cooking healthy food doesn’t have to be expensive or hard.

Tell us the word missing from this well-known old proverb to win an Activate healthy recipes book.

‘An ....?.... a day keeps the doctor away.’

To win your recipe book contact Chloe Nolan on J020 3544 9490 or h chloe. nolan@familymosaic.co.uk

inspect us!

With your help we can improve the quality of the repairs we do for you.

We are looking for more of you to join our team of resident inspectors, inspecting repairs once they are finished then reporting the findings to us.

This role is ideally suited to ex-tradespeople or those with some experience of building or property maintenance.

To find out more email stephen.odili@family mosaic.co.uk or Maggie. manga@familymosaic.co.uk

by Tuesday 30 April.

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news round-up your new health & wellbeing service

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It's well known that the quality of your home can affect your health.

As your landlord we do our best to keep your homes free from health hazards. But we also think we're in a good position to do more for you so we're trying out a new health and wellbeing service.

In time we'd like to offer the service to all of you but first we want to learn what works. So we’re looking for 600 of you, aged 50 or over, to answer questions on your

health once every six months over 18 months. We'll come to your home to do this, at a time that suits you.

If you decide to take part you could benefit from exercise classes and maybe even get some small improvements made to your home.

To take part in our trial or find out more, call us on J020 7089 1042 or email healthstudy@ familymosaic.co.uk

G A L IV E A N D K IC K IN

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Help us spend £2m! pick your top causes for maisie sheed We're looking for volunteers to become trustees of this charity to help us spend the money wisely.

Each year, we set some money aside for the Maisie Sheed Trust which backs projects that will get more of you into paid work or improve your communities.

For example it has paid for: ●● a huge team helping jobseekers ●● Greening Communities helping neighbours set up garden makeover projects ●● Get Connected, with young people teaching internet skills ●● encouraging volunteer work like gardening and befriending ●● our in-house 12-month apprenticeships scheme.

You'd come to just four evening meetings a year, with a couple of hours reading board papers before each meeting. We will give you relevant support and training.

Please send contact details with a statement telling us why you'd like to join the trust to: company secretary Heather Renton or h Companysecretary @familymosaic.co.uk

connections wants roving reporters!

There is a big hole in our news coverage – that of tenant reporters. If you're thinking of a career in the news media, this could be your chance to get some hands-on voluntary experience. For an informal chat, call editor Charlotte Sexton on J020 7089 1140.

youth action

To watch the film, find out more about our award winners or learn more about opportunities for young people, follow the Youth Academy on Facebook, BB 216EA416, text/call J07931 551 647 or email Reg Amoah at hreg.amoah@familymosaic.co.uk

Youth Academy

Rewards After several weeks of voting, and with hundreds of votes counted, on 20 February our Youth Academy held its second event to celebrate inspirational young people.

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Worthy candidates

Nominees were put forward by their youth and support workers. They included for the first time our growing team of apprentices, put up for two new categories: Professional and Academic Apprentice of the Year.

At the award ceremony we learnt more about each nominee and were treated to performances by home-grown dance group Tropical Isles and Isaac Dankwa, an up and coming rapper. A short film made by some of our Youth Forum also got its first screening.

Academic apprentice award winner Musa Sengendo said his win was a pleasant shock.

'It was unexpected but I felt over the moon once it actually sunk in, especially as I know how hard all the other apprentices worked.'

The Youth Academy winners are senior protector: SARAH CLARKE junior protector: THEO ACHAMPONG senior leader: WOLAY OLUBAYO junior leader: TYRESE NANA ADU GYAMFI & NADIR ABDULAHI senior challenger: NAOMI TAYLOR junior challenger: LOVNEESH CHAUHAN apprentice professional: MILES JAY BANKINSON apprentice academic: MUSA SENGENDO achiever: RYAN CAVALIER Winners Sarah Clarke, left, and (main pic) Theo Achampong, with regional director Sarah Mbatha

Learn more about our youth academy winners on Facebook

local news

Bushy Close buzzes

from Essex

Urban entertainment for young people on a Romford estate

ready, steady, go!

Bushy Close youngsters turned out in force for an All I want for 2013 event on the Romford estate, organised specially for them by our Youth Academy.

Urban DJ

Despite the cold and rain, over 30 young people came out to try their hand at urban arts. Music lovers had a go on the decks in the DJ and MC/rap workshops.

Those with an artistic bent got to make their own T-shirt or get their nails painted in another workshop.

The event came about after Bushy Close residents told neighbourhood manager Cindy Short that a lack of things for young people to do on the estate was the reason for the large numbers just ‘hanging about’.

Cindy contacted our Youth Academy, which teamed up with the Urban Arts Academy to stage the Bushy Close event.

The young people who took part have told us they really enjoyed

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Mention the word 'graffiti' and the image that pops to most of our minds is the messy scrawls and tags we see on urban walls or train station platforms.

Heather Court might change your mind

The young people at Heather Court have shown that, in the right hands, graffiti can be a skilled art form.

In good hands

With money from the Maisie Sheed fund they’ve created some fantastic, colourful artwork to brighten up the hallways at Heather Court.

The project has helped them refine their own artistic skills but it also shows what you can do with concentration, commitment and teamwork.

Heather Court in Havering is a scheme for young people who have left care. During their stay with us they learn to live independently and build a future.

Many of our young residents come from a background of poverty where they have never been given a chance to try different activities or get an idea of the sort of things that might interest them - and be useful in a career.

With projects like this they develop their skills and, importantly, it’s fun!

Artists at work: Nash, left, and, above, Verity

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Bushey All decked out at Bushy

the day, and are keen to find out more about Youth Academy events and opportunities.

We think the day was a success too, and are hoping to work with London and Quadrant (L&Q), which also own homes on Bushy, to put on more activities in the future.

Far from home We usually keep this page just for local news. But here we find a local lad who’s now a long way from Essex

Privileged to be here: Blake playing with local children in Tanzania where Raleigh International volunteers are working with the community to improve their quality of life

A partnership between our Youth Academy and Raleigh International has led to an incredible journey for young tenant Blake, from street homelessness to Tanzania.

Blake arrived at one of our schemes for young people after being picked up by care workers who found him living on the streets.

When the partnership with Raleigh International was announced, Blake was quick to respond to a request for volunteers to work on community projects abroad, and worked hard to fundraise money for his flight to Tanzania and his kit.

‘My tenancy with Family Mosaic has really grown my confidence,’ Blake says. ‘I now want to give something back to people less fortunate than others.

Blake’s trip is no holiday! He has joined a drive to develop facilities in Tanzania that local people can sustain once Raleigh leaves.

‘This is Raleigh’s first expedition to Tanzania and I feel privileged to be part of it,’ Blake says. ‘During my time there I’ll get involved with local communities to help make improvements to the area and will develop skills on a personal level.’

welfare advice

To call your local welfare rights adviser: north and west London south and east London Hackney and Essex

J020 7089 1323 J020 7089 1187 J01268 498 563

Don’t get left behind! the Welfare Changes are here - are you ready?

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For the past year we’ve been telling you about coming welfare changes and what you can do, if they'll affect you, to lessen the blow. Those changes start in April

What happens in April?

Getting to grips with the details of each change isn’t easy, so here are the main changes: ●● Bedroom tax/under-

occupation deductions are introduced. You will lose up to 25% of your housing benefit if you have a 'spare' bedroom under the new rules.

●● Benefit cap - a limit will start

to be put on the total benefit you can be paid. This will begin

in some local areas and spread nationwide eventually. It will mostly affect large families. ●● Council tax benefit will be

replaced by council tax support. Many people who didn't have to pay council tax will have to do so now.

●● Disability living allowance

will over the coming months be replaced by personal independence payments.

katherine's story

bedroom tax Drop-in Surgeries Drop-in for information and advice on moving home, money and welfare benefits, including discretionary housing payments, and employment.

i Albion House: 12 April from 3-7pm. i Arcola Street:

9 and 25 April from 10-12pm and 7 May from 2-4pm

Katherine lives in Lewisham with her adult son, in a three bedroom home. Even though Katherine is partially sighted, under the new government rules from 1 April she will be assessed as having two ‘spare’ rooms. Her housing benefit will be cut by 25%.

Because Katherine’s son is over 16 and not in education, he is classed as a ‘non-dependant’ so is expected to pay towards Katherine's rent. Losing 25% of her housing benefit each week means Katherine would have £36 less for essentials like food and bills.

But Katherine’s son doesn't have a job so can’t help with the rent. Worried about how to find the money to make up the rent, Katherine contacted our welfare rights team. The team told Katherine her options: move to a smaller home or find the cash to make up the shortfall every month.

Katherine has lived in Lewisham for a long time.

She has strong local links and really didn’t want to leave so the welfare rights team has helped her find a way to increase her income.

She has decided to take in a lodger for one of the rooms and that will help pay the rent.The team has also referred her son to our apprenticeship scheme, and already he has an interview lined up.

If Katherine had not planned ahead for the ‘bedroom tax’ it's very likely that she wouldn't have been able to pay her rent. She would have fallen into debt and in time she and her son could have been evicted.

new 'Council tax support' might mean yet another bill to pay One of the first changes to take place will be the abolition of council tax benefit.

Less money to help

Local councils have been told by the government to come up with their own scheme to help low income households, whose council tax used to be paid by the benefit.

But the government is also giving councils 10% less money than they used to get to pay for council tax benefit.

So if you are of working age it is very likely you will now have to pay some of your council tax, even if you had been getting full council tax benefit.

You won't be affected if you are a pensioner.

The new rules for what is called 'council tax support' are different from borough to borough.

If you haven’t been told what your council has planned for council tax support, please do call the council now.

This is important. If you are going to have to pay some of the tax you are going to have to think where to find that extra money.

Welfare Rights Drop-in Surgeries i Albion House, SE1:

Mondays from 10am to 4.30pm

i Arcola Street, E8:

Thursdays from 2pm to 4.30pm Drop-in for advice from one of our welfare rights experts or call us for friendly advice or to find out about your options. Visit our website at www.familymosaic.co.uk/ welfare-changes/index.html

are you getting Disability Living Allowance?

Important changes are coming soon to the way you get financial support One of the welfare changes coming very soon is the new personal independence payment (PIP) which is replacing disability living allowance (DLA). From 8 April, if you make a new claim for benefit to help you cope with a disability or long term health condition and you are aged 16 to 64 (or turn 16 after 8 April) you will have to claim PIP instead of DLA.

If you are already claiming DLA, at some point between October this year and October 2017 you will be asked to switch your claim to PIP instead. Most people will not be asked to do this before October 2015.

What is PIP?

PIP is designed to help people meet the extra costs that come with having a long-term health condition or disability. By this they mean a condition that is expected to last 12 months or longer.

PIP will be made up of two parts: an amount to help with your daily living costs and one for your mobility. Each part will have two rates standard and enhanced.

PIP is not affected by your income or any savings. You won't be taxed for any income you get from PIP and you can get PIP whether you’re in or out of work.

If you have any questions about the changes to support for disability or long term illness, or would like to apply for PIP, please contact the welfare rights adviser for your region: ● north and west London ● south and east London ● Hackney and Essex

J020 7089 1323 J020 7089 1187 J01268 498 563

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employment & apprenticeships

your services

Do you think work can make you healthier? We asked Yvonne from Islington, who has just found a job – with a little support from us

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healthier you healthier bank balance Work is good for your bank balance but what about your wellbeing?

When the NHS reviewed more than 400 scientific studies looking at employment and health it found that people in work tend to enjoy happier and healthier lives.

There was also strong evidence to show that getting back to work is often the best way to recover from health conditions like back pain, stress, depression and high blood pressure.

We know it's the best way to make you financially independent. But the increase in personal wellbeing also makes an excellent case for investing resources in ways to help you find paid employment. And it's why we are committed to supporting 1000 of you into jobs over three years.

We’ve so far helped 220 of you into employment this year - so we must be doing something right.

We understand that if you haven’t been in work for a long time, or have tried but not been able to get a job, it can damage your confidence and make you feel low.

This is partly why we started our Employment Boot Camp and Get that Job courses. Many of you who have completed these courses have told us how you feel much more positive about life in general, and about finding a job.

Get fit q020 7089 1345 for work to contact our

employment team

'I had been out of work for over a year when a letter came through the post inviting me to register with Family Mosaic’s employment team.

After calling the team, I was invited to a CV workshop. I went along and, as well as getting valuable tips on my CV, I was made to feel very welcome by all the staff. They made me feel as though they really cared about me as a person.

After the workshop I was given the opportunity to do a voluntary work placement in Family Mosaic’s human resources department. I found that learning new skills and feeling part of a team really gave me back my confidence.

After my placement I used the computers, telephones and one-to-one support offered by the employment team. After a short time I found a job locally. I’m sure I got it because of the changes to my CV and the fact that I had recent work experience through the work placement.

Working again has made such a difference to the way I feel. Although I’m busier, I wake up with more energy and purpose. I think all housing associations and councils should provide this kind of help and support to their tenants. It has changed my life and my family's.'

Yvonne

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call the customer care line

just dial ✆ 0300 123 3456 » then press 2 soon opening 8am-8pm ● monday to friday and saturday morning 9am-1pm ✌ 9 april!

Good as Gold

Keeping your goods out of harm's way Living in a city or town means we have limited space. A lot of it we have to share, like our hallways or gardens. These are what we call communal areas.

11 Bikes and other items left in halls could cause a fatal delay for anyone trying to escape a fire

Safety comes first

We do our best to keep your communal areas safe and to do so we will sometimes need your help.

Any goods left in a communal area can cause a safety risk to everyone who uses that space.

By 'goods' we mean any item we believe is your personal property.

If we find your goods in a communal area we will give you a fixed amount of time to move them or collect them.

If we think the goods are a serious fire risk, they will go straight into storage. If you don’t collect them within the time given to you, we have the right to sell them or give or throw them away.

We will throw away anything that is perishable or hazardous or looks like rubbish or bulk refuse.

These are examples of typical things we've recently had to remove from communal areas: ●● electrical goods, such as televisions and stereos ●● bikes, pushchairs and disability buggies ●● clothes hanging on driers or over handrails and shoes.

Removing and storing goods is costly and the money could be spent on better things. It is also unfair to your neighbours so, if we have to pay to move your goods, we will charge you for the cost to us of storing, disposing of or reselling the goods.

You said… we did…

You said... you didn't want your goods moved from communal areas without our giving you the chance to move them or take them back

You said... you wanted to be quite sure service charged items for major repairs had been finished to a good standard.

We did... take a fresh look at our disposal of goods policy. It now makes clear your responsibilities and ours if we remove goods from a communal area.

We did... appoint quality control inspectors who can get involved if there are any disagreements.

You said... you wanted clearer

guidance on installing and taking down satellite dishes

We did… make a new satellite installation permission application form. It tells you clearly where we will permit a dish and where we won't, and why a satellite dish already installed has to be taken down. Before you put up a dish, we have to sign the form.

You (leaseholders) said...

you wanted total reassurance that before we handed over property management to an outside agent, they first had the right information about their responsibilities

We did... agree to meet agents

before handing over properties to make sure they understand clearly what we expect of them. We also make sure they know who here to contact on management, service charges and tenancy matters.

Staying in touch with us

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We have opportunities for unemployed young people needing repairs-related work experience.

To apply you must be at least 16 years old, unemployed, a Family Mosaic resident or customer, or getting services from In Touch.

Interested job seekers should call the employment team by Tuesday 30 April on J020 7089 1345 or send an email to h employmentteam@familymosaic.co.uk

General needs housing or leasehold enquiries: Customer care line q0300 123 3456, option CustomerCareLine@ familymosaic.co.uk Head office Albion House, 20 Queen Elizabeth St, SE1 2RJ q020 7089 1000 www.familymosaic.co.uk Essex office Pembroke House, Northlands Pavement, Pitsea SS13 3DU q01268 498 500 Care and support London q020 7089 1000 Essex q01268 498 500 Welfare rights officers To speak to a welfare rights officer see page 8 for numbers or call the customer care line on q0300 123 3456, option Employment team (formerly Pathways2work) q020 7089 1345 Report repairs www.familymosaic.co.uk q0300 123 3456, option If you live in London press 1 If you live in Essex press 2

PRINTED AND DISTRIBUTED BY COUNTRYWIDE PUBLICATIONS ON PAPER FROM SUSTAINABLE SOURCES ✆ 01502 725 832 SUBEDITED & DESIGNED BY the thompsons ✆ 01732 750 433

Speaking your language Voici Connections le bulletin régional des locataires. Si vous ne pouvez pas lire ce bulletin en anglais et s’il y a des articles qu’il vous faudrait faire traduire en l’une des langues mentionnées ci-dessous, veuillez nous contacter à enquiries@familymosaic.co.uk ou téléphoner au q020 7089 1000.

Este es su boletín de noticias regional Connections. En caso de que no pueda leer este boletín en inglés y necesita que alguna parte de éste sea traducido a una de los idiomas que aquí se indica, le rogamos se ponga en contacto con nosotros a través de la dirección de correo electrónico enquiries@familymosaic.co.uk o llamando al q020 7089 1000.

q020 7089 1000 Connections, Family Mosaic Konut Kurumu’nun Doğu Londra yöresindeki kiracıları için çıkardığı bir dergidir. Bu derginin Ingilizcesini okuyamıyorsanız ve herhangi bir bölümünün Türkçe’ye çevrilmesini istiyorsanız, lütfen q020 7089 1000 numaraya telefon ederek ya da internete bağlanıp enquiries@ familymosaic.co.uk adresine mesaj göndererek bizimle iletişim kurun.

q020 7089 1000.

Warsidahan goboleed waa mid loogu talogalay ijaartayaasha, Connections.

Hadii aadan warsidahan ku akhrin karin Ingiriisi, isla markaana u baahato in qeybo lagugu soo turjubaano luqadahan halkan ku xusan, fadlan nagala soo xiriir enquiries@familymosaic.co.uk ama soo wac q020 7089 1000.