My Great Place Spring 2017

Spring 2017 The magazine for Great Places Housing Group residents

Your local heroes!

Did you nominate a star in your community?

Find out who picked up the top prizes inside...

Get in touch

Phone us between 8am – 6pm Monday to Friday:

Email us:

0300 123 1966 (local rate) Select option 1 for repairs

Or email us about a repair at:

Text us on:

cat@greatplaces.org.uk repairs@greatplaces.org.uk

07797 870 734

Office addresses Blackburn office

Barnfield House (Suite 4 and 5) Groundfloor, Accrington Road Blackburn BB1 3NY Office opening hours: Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm

Cheshire office

106 Longridge, Knutsford, WA16 8PD Office opening hours: By appointment only

Fylde office

336 Talbot Road, Blackpool, FY1 3QU Office opening hours: Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm

Great Places head office

Southern Gate, 729 Princess Road, Manchester M20 2LT Office opening hours: Monday to Friday 8am to 6pm

Oldham office

119 Union Street, Oldham OL1 1TE Office opening hours: Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm

Salford office

4th Floor, St James’s House, Pendleton Way, Salford M6 5FW Office opening hours: Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm

Sheffield office

The Quadrant, 99 Parkway Avenue, Sheffield SS9 4WG Office opening hours: Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm

Kids’ Competition If you have any questions or comments specifically about My Great Place, contact: Communications Great Places Southern Gate 729 Princess Road Manchester M20 2LT

Email:

communications@greatplaces.org.uk Find us on Facebook at facebook.com/GreatPlacesHousing

Margaret Plaice is our little fishy friend – and she's hiding somewhere in this magazine. Can you find her? If you can, just email or write and let us know exactly where she is (make sure you put the page number) at the address on the left, making sure you put your address and phone number on the entry. The winning entry will get their hands on a cute little iPod, so get searching!

Entrants must be 16 or under and Great Places residents.

Entries must be received by 5 June 2017.

Winter 2016 winner: Fabiha Isra Begum (aged 7), Hyde Cover star: Community Star winner Vera Whitworth

Tweet us @MyGreatPlace

Access for all

We’ve already sent a magnifying sheet to our visually impaired residents. Let us know if you need one. An audio version of My Great Place is also available.

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FSC AND WORLD LAND TRUST LOGOS

Spring 2017 The magazine for Great Places Housing Group residents

Welcome to

Custo appro mer ved

Welcome to the first My Great Place of 2017! Spring also brings with it awards season – the Oscars, the BAFTAs, the Golden Globes... and the Great Places Community Stars Awards! Once again we celebrated those customers who go the extra mile and make a real difference within their communities at Gorton Monastery with a Hollywood-style ceremony. You can check out some photos from the day and the list of winners on page 7.

In this issue we meet Fallon, another resident who has gone above and beyond. She has utilised the Great Places Residents’ Fund to kick start her own business to provide for her daughter. Find out more on page 10.

This is also the first issue where we will feature your questions and provide answers from our team of experts. Don’t forget, if you have a question you would like answering – whether

What’s inside?

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Neighbourhood news

6

Our news

7-9 Community Stars 10

Customer story

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in:Team

12-13

Ask the experts

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My money

15

Newsboard

16 Grapevine How are we doing?

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Upcoming Pride events

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Competitions

Changes to your rent and service charges You should have received information in the post about changes to your rent. Great Places Housing Group uses government guidelines to set rents each year, and this year rents will be reduced.

We are a not-for-profit organisation, and any money we make is put back into services for you, our customers. Your rent is used to pay for the management of your home and to provide you with essential services such as improvements and repairs. Across Great Places, we will be spending around £25 million on repairing, maintaining and improving homes during 2017/18.

As per your tenancy agreement your rent is payable on the Monday of the week in which it is due. Payment of rent by an alternative frequency other than weekly will be allowed, providing this is made in advance of the rent being charged so that rent arrears are not accrued. If you would like more information or are struggling to pay, please contact us using the details on page 2.

Knutsford students visit Great Places

Bags of potential!

Dementia Friends page

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i

Adele

pages

Repairs news

Finally, a huge thank you to our customer panel who reads and reviews each edition of My Great Place before it goes to print.

Once again, they have provided thoughtful feedback, which helped us make this issue as interesting and useful as possible. You’ll know when our panel have given the magazine their seal of approval whenever you see the stamp above. If you’re interested in getting involved in the panel you can contact us using the details on page 11. I hope you enjoy this issue!

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it’s about saving money, saving the planet, DIY or health and wellbeing – you can contact us using the details on page 12. If your question is featured you’ll win a £20 voucher!

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News neighbourhood

What’s going on where you live...

Shaw Heath creates community garden The Secret Gardens of Springfields is a new group in Knutsford who have transformed a piece of disused waste land into a communal garden. The group is headed up by local residents Samantha Blaylock and Sarah Pownall and came together to create a space which can be enjoyed by the local community. The group worked hard to raise funds and sourced £13,000 plus additional support from a number of local businesses including Great Places. They held an official launch party where local families could enjoy the sensory garden, food production and relax and play section – just in time for summer!

Organiser Ben Fatimilehin and Wacky Winter Warmer guests make use of the Great Places smoothie bike!

Going wacky at Langworthy!

Staff and customers came together for a ‘Wacky Winter Warmer’ event in Salford in January.

The event, held at the Langworthy Cornerstone community centre, aimed to show you simple ways to keep warm and energy efficient in winter, as well as promoting everything the centre has to offer. Guests enjoyed games and crafting sessions, music from a local steel band and of course the famous Great Places smoothie bike!

The transformed Secret Gardens of Springfields

ESOL stars in Sheffield!

Congratulations to our Sheffield ESOL graduates!

Working in partnership with Hope English School, Great Places has helped residents in Sheffield whose first or second language isn’t English to develop their English language skills within their community.

The classes are run for those who are not accessing mainstream ESOL services and aims to boost students’ confidence in a social environment. If you are looking to complete an ESOL course, contact us using the details on page 2 and ask to speak to your employment and skills manager.

Joe and Joyce celebrating their hat trick of good news!

Congratulations Joe and Joyce!

Congratulations to Bowland House couple Joe and Joyce who this year are celebrating 60 years of marriage as well as 15 years in their home. Joe has also received the all-clear from cancer following radiotherapy, so Neighbourhood Coordinator Amina surprised the couple with a bunch of a flowers!

The Sheffield learners proudly present their certificates at their ESOL graduation

Joe said, “We have loved living in Bowland House for 15 years after moving from Bolton. Our communal lounge is always well used ­– we have a coffee morning, painting sessions, darts, even karaoke evenings and we always encourage other residents to join in!”

Cleaning up Claremont The Claremont Community and Environment Group, (made up of councillors, residents and local organisations in Blackpool, including Great Places) held a skip amnesty after Christmas. A massive total of 6.5 tonnes of rubbish was collected over four hours, with an additional 1.14 tons of recyclable household items collected by the rover service.

Claremont has been affected by fly tipping and rubbish dumping in alleys, and the amnesty was a great opportunity to bring the community together to improve the look and feel of their neighbourhood.

Customer Shenu Begum claiming her prize at the Chai Centre’s local opportunities event

Tea and training in Burnley Residents from Daneshouse, Burnley came along to the Chai Centre in January for a local opportunities event. During the day, guests could find out about local training and volunteering opportunities, get benefit and employment advice from Great Places staff, and enter a range of competitons to win prizes such as gym memberships, food hampers and family meals. Plenty of residents came along for tea and cake, with many signing up for English lessons or Daneshouse’s popular sewing group.

The slow cooker tasting session and prize draw was a big winner with residents (pictured: Bowland House resident Joyce Powell).

The Claremont Community and Environment Group

Great Places Community Development Co-Ordinator Phillip Walker with local volunteers Benjamin, Benul, Ewan, Joseph and Bevin Budding baristas learn how to pour the perfect espresso

Barista training Two of our Blackpool customers have secured jobs at a local branch of Starbucks thanks to a barista training session held in March. Due to the number of jobs in hotels, cafes and restaurants which become available in Blackpool over the summer, the session was organised to teach local jobseekers about the world of coffee and provide useful hospitality skills.

UR Potential then provided additional help with CV writing and interview techniques. Congratulations to our budding baristas – best of luck in your new jobs!

Wybourn blooms with community orchard Customers from Wybourn in Sheffield came together with Great Places and Grow Sheffield in February to plant a community orchard. Following a consultation with the community about what to do with the disused space, residents told us they wanted somewhere that local families could grow healthy food, which could also be used for education and play. In spite of Storm Doris, local families planted 11 fruit trees with help from Grow Sheffield which will be used for play, recreation and growing 5 delicious ingredients for years to come!

News Matt’s message

This issue celebrates Great Places’ fourth Community Stars Awards – an annual event held at Gorton Monastery to celebrate Great Places customers and employees who have really shined over the last year. Over 100 nominations were sent in to us for this year’s awards and it was a real honour to be able to meet and congratulate the people behind these inspiring stories. You can take a look at some of the great photos from the day, along with the list of winners, on pages 7–9.

We’re always interested in hearing about Great Places customers who are doing great things – whether that’s being a good neighbour and looking after vulnerable people, volunteering at community events and clubs, or personal achievements. If you know of a person or group that is doing something special in your community – however big or small – then we’d love to hear about it (please email communications@greatplaces.org.uk or write to us using the contact details on page 2).

The Knutsford students discuss technology with our Business Systems Team

Students sample the world of work with us Earlier this year, 19 pupils from Knutsford Multi Academy Trust visited Great Places’ head office in Didsbury. The visit was designed to showcase different job roles within the housing sector, and allow us to meet some younger people from one of our communities.

During their visit the pupils got to speak to some of our Web Developers, Housing Officers, Communications Officers and IT Service Desk Officers, to name just a few. They learned about the different paths they could take to get started in these professions, and chatted to colleagues about their job role and our organisation.

Feedback from the pupils was excellent, with all of them saying they enjoyed their time with us – we hope you will visit us again soon!

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I know repairs remains an important topic for customers so I’m pleased to report that 92.3% of customers surveyed over the 12 months said they were happy with our repairs service. This has increased by nearly 10% over the last three years, which is a great success, so many thanks to all those customers who have provided feedback about our repairs service so far.

Finally, you may be aware that the government is making a number of changes to benefit payments (see page 14) – if you need advice or support on managing your money then we have a professional team who can help you.

They can help with things like how to manage debt payments, reduce your bills, apply for a bank account, and benefits. We can also provide career and training advice. Please get in touch with us and we’ll be happy to help – see page 2 for contact details.

Celebrating equality and diversity Great Places Housing Group is committed to advancing equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) and ensuring that EDI good practice is considered and applied in the delivery of all our services. We also incorporate the principles of EDI into our vision and values, so that whether you are a customer living in our communities or a member of staff working for Great Places, everyone is free from harassment and discrimination.

Our aim is to recognise and value diversity across both our customer base and our employees; it is about fairness in its broadest sense, and is something we truly believe in as an organisation.

With this in mind, we recently created a new EDI strategy, which has now been positively received and agreed by the Great Places Board. This strategy ensures we strive for equality, embrace diversity and always act inclusively as an employer, as a provider, and as a community anchor.

If you would like to get involved with our work around EDI, have any suggestions for us, or just want to find out more, email: EDI@greatplaces.org.uk. For information on upcoming Pride events, see page 19.

Great Places’

Community Stars Awards The red carpet once again rolled out for our residents this month for the calendar event of the year – the Community Stars Awards 2016!

Over 150 Great Places customers attended a glittering Hollywood style award ceremony at Gorton Monastery to celebrate their inspirational achievements in local communities across the north west and Yorkshire. The theme of this year’s event was ‘Willy Wonka’ – a chance for our ‘sweetest’ residents to step into the spotlight!

The Community Stars Awards are an opportunity for Great Places to thank our customers who show compassion, selflessness and courage on a daily basis.

Congratulations to everyone who was nominated or won an award – you can learn more about the winners by turning the page...

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Meet the winners...

Deborah Bhatti

Good neighbour award – DEBORAH BHATTI MANCHESTER

Deborah was awarded the Good Neighbour Award for her tireless work within the community. She has been a caseworker at the Royal British Legion, volunteered at a mental health drop in based in Bury, and helped a number of her neighbours on an individual basis.

Andrew S mith

Young resident Award – Andrew Smith MORECAMBE

Andrew said: “I was hoping I would win – I had a feeling I would! In the future, I want to keep getting involved and making a difference.”

Community PROJECT Award – VOICE SUNDAY FAMILY CLUB( BLACKBURN

VOICE Sunday Family Club

The group said: “It was such a strong category – we were so shocked to have won!

We’ve only been going for 18 months now, and we’re purely run by volunteers. We want to create a safe environment for families, where they can spend quality time together – we’re blown away to have our work recognised like this.”

Community residents group Award – Northmoor together( MANCHESTER

Northmoor T ogether

The group said: “We’re delighted to win - we’ve been going for a number of years now so it’s great to be recognised. But it’s listening to the great work that others do that really makes the day special.”

GREEN ChAMPION AWARD – The Secret Garden of Springfields KNUTSFORD

The Secret Garden of Springfields

The group said: “It feels great to be awarded a Community Star! The project is finished now – it was a long process, it took us almost two years to get here, but to have it finished feels amazing. It just looks like a completely different space to when we first started!”

SENIOR RESIDENT Award – BERYL STOTT POULTON-LE-FYLDE

Beryl said: “It’s smashing to win – I didn’t expect it! I used to volunteer with church and from there I founded the ladies group. We do all sorts, from afternoon tea to charity work. ”

Beryl Stott

supported housing resident award – Louis Kirkwood MANCHESTER

Louis, a resident at Docherty House, was overjoyed when he heard he had won. He said: “I’m very surprised! Last year I got nominated and this year I won! Thank you Docherty House and Great Places.”

Louis Kirkwood

supported housing scheme Award – FLOATING SUPPORT SERVICES BLACKBURN

Service Manager Debbie said: “A fantastic award for the scheme and its residents. It’s recognition of our work that’s helping and supporting people to live independently.”

Resident Kim added: “It’s great that the scheme helps young people to find a place to live and give them an opportunity to go on and get into work or education.”

community champion Award – DAVE WATKINS( SHEFFIELD

Floating Su pport Serv ices, Blackburn

Dave said: “I was really really pleased to have won – it’s been a lot of work. Park Hill is a very complicated project and everyone works so hard. I represent a whole community group – it’s not just me. This award is really for everyone in the residents group!”

great places staff Award – LUCY BARTON( KNUTSFORD

Dave Watkins

Lucy said: “I’m pretty overwhelmed to be honest – I was not expecting to win! Since getting married, I’m still getting used to my name change, so it took a few seconds to register that they were saying my name! I’m so grateful. It feels lovely.”

volunteer AWARD – Sarah Pownall KNUTSFORD

Sarah Pownall said: “I feel like a star – and I’ve got the star to prove it! It was amazing to be up there a second time. I really didn’t expect it after Springfields had already won. This was just me, on my own. It’s just amazing. I’ve had such a good day!”

Lucy Barton

david nuttall Award – Vera Whitworth SALFORD

Vera has been a resident of Great Places Housing Group for just over 14 years. In that time she has been the eyes and ears of Aldersgate Court in Salford as a scheme rep. She has also been an integral part of many Great Places groups. To name a few, Vera has been a member of the North Region Board, the Tenants’ Advisory Group, Service Improvement Clubs and has been involved from home as a Tenant Funding Panel member and Call Auditor. She said: “I just didn’t expect it! I was so shaken I couldn’t walk to the stage. I was gobsmacked.”

For more information on this year’s awards, including a list of highly commended customers, visit our website: www.greatplaces.co.uk.

Sarah Pownall

Vera Whitworth

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Bags of potential!

We join Fallon Boonsawet, 29, as she has just finished taking photographs of her range of products, now complete with custom logo and branding.

“Earthware – it sums up the brand and it’s a reflection of me. All my products are eco-friendly and made with natural untreated leathers.”

Originally a kayaking and outdoor persuits instructor, Fallon was given the opportunity to travel to Thailand to take her skills abroad and immediately packed her bags. There she met her husband, a Thai leather craftsman who taught her his trade.

However, when she found out they were expecting a baby, she moved back to Burnley to be close to her family. She found a home through Great Places and Neighbourhood Officer Mary Brown referred her to Employment and Skills Manager Karen Burns to discuss her skills.

“The leather making was a bit of a fluke really. Karen and I were discussing my adventure training skills and it was only as she was leaving that I mentioned my leather crafting.

Karen’s eyes lit up!

“I applied for funding through the Residents’ Fund and bought all the materials and supplies that I never would have been able to get otherwise. Since then, I’ve been

working on creating a range of products – wallets, belts, bags – and am now starting to sell them online and through craft fairs and independent retailers. The money and support I have received is allowing me to pursue my dream, to spread a message with my eco-friendly products and to provide a stable and interesting life for my daughter. She will grow up going to fairs and festivals... and she even helps me make the products!

“It’s all just snowballed – I now have a mentor from the Chamber of Commerce who has helped me with my business plan and my logo and it’s really boosted my confidence that I can do this. I get so much pride from working for myself and making my own living. You’ve just got to go for it. You’ve got to follow your gut.”

Karen said “I am so proud of Fallon. As soon as she mentioned the bag making and showed me photos of the products she made with her husband, I knew we were on to something special. I really do feel she has the drive and ambition to make this a success – she has a truly special talent.”

You can check out Fallon’s creations through her Etsy store, www.etsy.com/uk/shop/earthwareleather.

For more information on the Great Places Residents’ Fund, visit our website or contact us using the details on page 2.

Thank you for your FEEDBACK! We’re currently working on building a new website for Great Places and at the start of the year, we shared some designs with you and asked for some feedback.

Almost 900 of you responded to our request and the feedback has been incredibly helpful. We will be taking on board your preferences as we finalise our new site. Keep your eyes peeled for more information on the site’s launch!

Our latest update

By Insight - our customer scrutiny group After completing our fourth review late last year, we were asked to check if Great Places’ services meet the standards set by the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA). The HCA is the regulator for social landlords and the standards list the things that landlord services should offer customers.

With help from other involved customers, we attended three workshops in November and heard how Great Places offers services to customers. We then judged whether it was felt that this met the criteria listed in the consumer standards.

The good news is we did, and we were also able to identify some areas for improvement, which will be used to help us to choose topics for future scrutiny reviews.

We started our next review earlier this year and we hope to finish by the end of April. We chose to look at the planned maintenance service, which replaces items such as bathrooms and kitchens. We wanted to find out from a customer perspective how it feels to have these works undertaken in your home.

If you would like to hear more about scrutiny, you can find our reports on the Great Places’ website under the heading ‘where you live’.

We’re always interested to hear from customers, so if you are curious about scrutinizing services and would like to contribute, call the involvement team on 0161 447 5020 or email involvement.team@greatplaces.org.uk.

A year of fantastic work from our call auditors!

Our team of call auditors have completed another year of call audits! By listening to calls made to the Great Places’ customer access and repairs teams and feeding back their comments about what they hear, we can learn about the standard of services we provide from a customer perspective, and continue to make improvements.

These comments are often used in team meetings and planning sessions, as well as staff one-to-ones to improve and monitor performance. Many thanks to all our call auditors – your feedback has been invaluable!

If you’re interested in becoming a call auditor for Great Places, contact us using the details below.

If you are interested in improving Great Places’ services, meeting new people, and learning new skills please contact us by using the details on page 2 or by emailing involvement.team@greatplaces.org.uk.

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Ask the experts!

Money

Ask Josh

I recently received a letter about a rent decrease. Why has my rent gone down and what does this mean for my finances?

Mark, Sheffield

DIY

Ask Ruby

Now the weather is getting warmer I’d like to try gardening. It would be lovely to have a nice garden ready for summer. Where do I start?

Julie, Salford

Dear Mark,

Dear Julie,

Great Places Housing Group uses government guidelines to set rents each year. The Welfare Reform and Work Act of 2016 set an obligation on social landlords to reduce rents by 1% from April 2016, or from 2017 for supported and sheltered housing. This means that you will see a reduction in the amount you pay for your weekly rent.

Following the harsh winter months, the best thing you can do for your garden in spring is improve the condition of your soil to allow plants to thrive. Firstly, remove any weeds that have grown over winter, then begin to cultivate the soil by digging and turning it over. You may also want to add some compost to your soil to improve its fertility.

However, depending on the type of property you live in, you may also pay a service charge. This covers services such as window cleaning, communal gardening and door-entry systems. This amount is based on the amount we expect services to cost each year and can go up or down throughout the year. This means some of you may end up paying more in total this year if your service charge has increased. Everyone who has a service charge will receive a detailed breakdown of the amount owed.

If you are struggling to make payments, contact us using the details on page 2.

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Spring is also the perfect time to plant vegetables for them to be ready to pick and eat by summer. Once your soil has been treated, sprinkle your seeds sparingly. When seedlings come up, let them grow about an inch high before thinning them out. Carrots, lettuces, rocket, spring onions and spinach can all be grown at this time of year.

When choosing what to plant, you may want to consider flowers that attract bees. As a pollinating insect, bees are beneficial to gardeners but are unfortunately declining in numbers every year. Lavender, daisies, crocuses and thymes all attract bees and make lovely additions to any garden.

Health & wellbeing

Ask Kirsty

I have recently noticed more condensation on my windows of my home. I am worried about this developing into mould as my child has asthma. What can I do about this?

Amina, Bolton

Go green!

Ask Chris

I would like to find ways to reduce the amount I spend on bills per month by cutting down on the amount of energy I use. Any tips?

Phil, Gorton

Dear Amina,

Dear Phil,

The best way to keep your family safe from mould, particularly if they have a respiratory condition such as asthma, is to try and reduce the levels of condensation in your home:

Most households have a few changes which can be made to cut down energy consumption – saving you money and saving the planet! This could be through changing your lightbulbs, installing new insulation or using appliances more efficiently.

1) Reduce the amount of moisture being produced – try drying your clothes outside instead of on the radiators and always keep a lid on boiling pans.

2) Remove excess moisture – wiping down the windows of your kitchen and bathroom can prevent moisture build up.

3) Ventilate – let air in by opening windows on a regular basis and by running the extractor fan while cooking or showering.

4) Heat your home correctly – rather than putting the heating on high several times a day, keep the heating on low throughout.

This will keep your home warm more efficiently and reduce condensation.

5) If black mould does occur, carefully remove it with a damp cloth while covering your nose and mouth, and throw away the cloth after. Leaving the mould will only make the problem worse, so it’s best to nip it in the bud.

It’s hard to know the ways that you could be saving money without assessing your home.

This is why the Great Places Environment Team offer free home energy visits. The team can take a look around, and install small energy saving measures or offer practical advice on how to reduce your energy consumption, which could help towards savings on your fuel bills. These visits ensure that you’re making changes which will be the most efficient for you and your home.

Last year we helped over 100 households become more environmentally friendly and cheaper to run, so contact us to book yours, using the details on page 2 or emailing environmental.team@ greatplaces.org.uk.

Send us your question and if the experts answer it, you’ll win £20 in high street vouchers! Email your questions to communications@greatplaces.org.uk or write to us using the address on page 2!

Send us a question and win £20!

my money

Our Financial Inclusion Team work hard to help you save money!

Welfare changes due in 2017 Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) The government has decided to scrap the additional payment (currently £29.05 per week) given to people who are in the Work Related Activity Group of ESA. This should only apply to ESA claims made on or after 1 April 2017. Existing claimants will continue to receive this extra sum of money until they come off ESA. The government has stated that the additional sum paid to people in the ESA Support Group (currently £36.20) will continue to be paid.

Changes for Universal Credit claimants with children

Jobs

If you are a single parent or the primary carer for a child under the age of five, you are currently not expected to look for work as part of your claimant commitment. This is due to change in April 2017. From April, when your youngest child turns three, most single parents and primary carers who receive Universal Credit will be subject to ‘all work requirements’. This will mean that in order to receive your Universal Credit you will be expected to look for work. Your DWP work coach will provide more details.

Two child limit This limits the help available from certain means-tested benefits a family can receive.

It will apply to families who have a baby born on or after 6 April 2017 and where there are already two or more children in the family for whom benefits are being paid. It is believed that this change will be applied to Housing Benefit, Universal Credit and Tax Credit applications. Existing benefit claimants who already have more than two children should not see a drop in their benefits as a result of this change, however any future children will be subject to this change.

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Clear your arrears with a jam jar!

We spoke to Sally, a resident from Sheffield, about how support from Great Places helped her clear her rent arrears through a credit union budget account (sometimes known as a jam jar or scuba account).

£

With a budget account, you arrange for money to be paid into your credit union account via a benefit transfer, standing order or wages. The credit union keeps your money safe until the bill is due and then pay the bill, correctly and on time.

Any money left over can be put into your savings or paid straight back to you in regular amounts.

Sally said: “The credit union were really friendly and helpful. They helped me fill in all the forms and it was all set up within ten days. It gave me peace of mind knowing my rent and arrears were being paid on time and whatever was left in the bank was my money to spend. I paid off £3,000 of arrears in two years. It’s such a relief!”

The Benefits Cap: what you need to know At the end of last year, you will have received some information from us about the Benefits Cap. The government has put a limit on the amount of money that people can receive in benefits. The new rules mean that a family will get a maximum of £384 per week and a single person £257 per week. All working age benefits are included, and if your rent is paid by Housing Benefit that amount will be included. If all the benefits you get take you over the cap, then your Housing Benefit will be reduced. If there is a reduction in your housing benefit, Great Places will contact you to offer you a range of ways to pay your rent.

Contact us using the details on page 2 for more information.

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NEWS BOARD Want to move house?

You could find your next home with House Exchange. House Exchange helps you find another social housing tenant to swap homes with. The site is easy to use and free for Great Places customers.

Remember to add a property description and some photos to maximise your chances of finding a match!

To register and start searching visit www.houseexchange.org.uk.

ou safe Keeping y

work across y safety team to tackle it n u m m co r Ou ods neighbourho Great Places ehaviour. We work b unacceptable eighbourhood staff and n r u t. alongside o to put you firs s e ci other agen ur or a social behavio ntact us ti n a rt o p re To co fety concern community sa on page 2. The ASB line ils using the deta including bank holidays rs u o h is open 24 s. d n and weeke

Changes to your window cleaning service Great Places currently spends almost £250,000 a year on window cleaning, with over 30 different contractors working across our regions.

Changes to benefit regulations mean that we can no longer charge for cleaning ground floor windows of individual properties (communal areas excluded), so we may be withdrawing this aspect of the service to ensure that the window cleaning service is compliant with Universal Credit.

We want to provide a consistently good quality service to all our customers at a fair price, so we have invited interested companies to bid for doing the work. This could mean that we carry on using the same contractors at your scheme, or it could be an entirely new contractor, depending on how much the service will cost and the quality of the service they are offering to our customers.

We will also be asking all suppliers not to use ladders when cleaning your windows for health and safety reasons – they will all be cleaned using a ‘wash and reach’ water pole system, which is much safer, and gives a better finish as it uses 100% pure water.

MP welcomes Bolton customers to Union Road MP for Bolton North East, Sir David Crausby, recently visited our new Union Road housing development in Bolton, to welcome local families and celebrate the completion of the development.

Along with Pete Bojar from Great Places and Steve Garnett from Cruden Construction, Sir David had a chance to chat to customers about their new homes.

Pete Bojar from Great Places, Sir David Crausb yM customer Danie P and l Nyoni

Daniel Nyoni, who moved into his house last year, said: “I could not be happier – the area is quiet but still close to everything we need, including our daughters’ school. It’s so nice at the end of the day to know that I’m coming home to somewhere I feel so happy and settled!”

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GRAPE INE

Elderly services news

Tech, tea and biscuits!

Residents at John Atkinson Court have been hard at work learning to use the internet through an initative called Tech and Tea. Tech and Tea is a five week course run through informal sessions using laptops and tablets, and covers topics such as sending emails, using the council website, and online shopping.

John Atkinson Court customers set up for a day of tech and tea!

Scheme Manager Gareth Gibson said: “John Atkinson Court looked like it had been transformed into an office during the Tech and Tea sessions! Many thanks go to the brilliant tutors and a huge congratulations to the students who completed the course and received a certificate. I hope the sessions will give some of our customers the confidence to try new things online – they certainly picked it up quickly!”

We’re dementia friendly!

Scheme Managers Alison and Andrea have been visiting elderly services schemes to deliver ‘Dementia Friend’ information sessions to our customers.

A Dementia Friend is someone who learns a little bit more about what it’s like to live with dementia and then turns that understanding into action.

Anyone of any age can be a Dementia Friend – it is all about the small ways that you can help. From telling people you know about Dementia Friends to visiting someone living with dementia, every action counts.

Monday 15 May marks the start of Dementia Awareness Week, and various events will be taking place so keep your eyes peeled for more information!

Daffodils in bloom planted by residents at John Atkinson Court

Customers at St George’s Court showing off their Dementia Friend certificates!

Blackpool gets together for Marie Curie St George’s Court hosted a charity event in March to support the Marie Curie Great Daffodil Appeal. The event was attended by customers from all of our sheltered and extra care schemes in Blackpool. Over £200 was raised for the charity, which will go towards helping Marie Curie be there for more people living with any terminal illness. Many thanks to everyone who attended and bought a daffodil pin!

Guests at Blackpool’s Marie Curie Great Daffodil Appeal coffee morning

Repairs update New walk-in showers As part of a planned investment programme, residents at Bowland House have been offered a new model of walk-in showers to trial a new brand.

The bathrooms at Bowland House had reached their end of life, and were in need of a revamp. The team successfully installed 24 showers over 10 weeks and have seen an increase in customer satisfaction thanks to the new bathrooms.

The new showers have a sleek, modern look and can benefit those who struggle to climb over a bath. They also come with the option of a shower seat.

The new showers at Bowland House

Before...

Tidying up in Morecambe

...After!

Works have taken place to tidy up Whinsfell View and Whitmore Close in Morecambe. Due to the poor condition and high maintenance cost of the houses’ existing canopies, fencing and hardstandings, these have been replaced by the repairs team. Canopies were removed and replaced with low maintenance weather-resistent canopies, driveways were given with permeable tarmac, and fencing was installed with a combination of metal bow top, timber and recycled plastic.

Recycled plastic is also being used for the perimeter boundary fencing which will increase the lifecycle of materials and reduce future maintenance costs, while also helping the environment.

Keeping your home gas safe We reported in the previous issue of My Great Place as part of our customer annual report that for the second year running we were 100% gas compliant. In order to test the gas safety of all our homes, we worked with Morgan Lambert, a gas safety consultancy company. They recently sent us the following testimonial: “We at Morgan Lambert have had the pleasure of working with the Great Places gas team for the past 10 years. During this time, we have watched the team demonstrate considerable resolve in assuring gas safety for all their customers.

This has resulted in their outstanding achievement of attaining 100% compliance on the Landlords Gas Safety Records across their entire housing stock, for the past two years. They are committed to partnership working and support all their partners to drive standards higher. Well done Great Places!� Thanks Morgan Lambert!

If you want any more information on aids or adaptations or need to report a repair, please contact us using the details on page 2.

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HOW ARE WE DOING?

Feb: 41

We always aim to make sure you’re satisfied with the service you receive from Great Places and are always keen to hear what you think. So whether you have feedback on what we’ve done well or could do better at, we want to hear from you. You can find our contact details on page 2.

Nov: 38 Dec: 31

Jan: 35

If you’re uphappy with a service you have received from Great Places, you can inform us by any method (telephone, email, in person or by post) and one of our frontline staff will initially try to resolve your issue. We call this ‘Nip in the Bud’ (NIP) and staff have five working days to identify the best possible course of action to put things right.

Number of NIP complaints

If you are not satisfied with how we propose to put things right you have the option of requesting your issue is looked at in more detail by one of our service managers. They will then investigate your issue, discuss why you are unhappy with our initial offer to put things right and provide you with a final, formal offer to put things right. We call this process ‘Right First Time’ (RFT). We aim to resolve your complaint within 15 working

Feb: 34 Jan: 24

What have we learned from recent complaints?

• We are delivering additional anti-social behaviour training to regional staff to raise awareness of key issues.

• We need to keep customers informed when there is a change of staff so customers are always aware who is acting as their neighbourhood coordinator.

• We need to ensure our contractors are keeping you fully updated on the progress of works in your property, as well as keeping the property clean while the work is taking place.

• We will ensure that your preferred method of contact is adhered to and

Oct: 38

challenge staff who do not follow your requests.

• We are currently implementing a new method of transferring data to our out of hours team to ensure that supporting housing schemes are more easily identifiable for ease of access.

• We will ensure that the relevant staff are fully aware of the correct protocol regarding mobility priority applications.

• We have developed reporting on uncompleted or cancelled jobs and appointments to identify potential failures in our service.

Overall performance (as of this financial year)

Oct: 34

Nov: Dec: 27 25

Number of RFT complaints

Feb: 41

Oct: 34

Jan: Nov: 30 57 Dec: 27 Compliments

£ 86.1%

Rent not collected due to empty properties

Average days to re-let empty property

2.6%

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0.5%

22.3 days

Overall customer satisfaction

Amount of rent which has not yet been paid

92.3%

Satisfaction with repairs service

82.3%

Satisfaction with the quality of your home

y t i n u m m Co pride!

Great Places actively supports and celebrates our diverse communities through a number of equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) events.

Over the summer we will be taking part in several LGBT events and would love you to get involved, whether you’re a member of the LGBT community or an ally or supporter.

So far, we are planning to take part in the following events: • Blackpool Pride – 11 June 2017 • Manchester House Proud Conference – 28 June 2017.

House Proud are a network of housing organisations who have pledged to support LGBT people within their communities. The House Proud Conference is for housing association customers in Manchester who identify as LGBT or an ally. Great Places are able provide transport support to make this event more accessible for customers who want to attend.

• Pink Picnic Salford – 15 July 2017 • Manchester Pride – 26 August 2017

If you are interested in any of these events, whether you want to attend as a guest or would like to get more involved behind the scenes, or if there are any other LGBT or Pride events in your area that you think we should know about, get in touch!

We would also like to try to find out about our LGBT customers’ experience of our organisation – what we do well and how we can improve. For more information on this, or any of the above, email EDI@greatplaces.org.uk or contact us using the details on page 2.

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Competition time Word Search!

Complete both competitions, along with the survey questions, cut them out and post them to us, along with Name: Date: your full name and address, to be entered into a prize draw to win a £10 shopping voucher. Three winners will Find and with circleyour eachentry. of the words from the list below. Words may appear be selected. Make sure you include your survey questions horizontally, vertically or diagonally, but forwards only.

Send your entries by post to: FREEPOST, RLSC-HLLJ-EZRZ, My Great Place, Maria Morris, Great Places Housing Group, Southern Gate, 729 Princess Road, Manchester, M20 2LT All entries must be in by Friday 5 June 2017. Remember, you don’t need a stamp!

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Congratulations to last issue’s winners: Thandiwe Khoza – Brierfield Svenja Akram – Longsight Derek and Shirley Lees – Sheffield

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Copyright ©2017 WorksheetWorks.com

Please answer the following questions and send them along with your competition entry in order to be entered into the prize draw.

Are you interested in receiving an advanced digital copy of My Great Place and providing us with feedback? Yes / No Which features of My Great Place do you find the most interesting or useful? ................................................................ ..........................................................................................................................................................................................

Name: .........................................................................................................................................................................................

Address: ......................................................................................................................................................................................

Telephone/Mobile: ...............................................................Email: ..........................................................................................

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