Your GREAT Neighbourhood Promise Daybrook, Bonington, St. Mary’s, Bestwood Village 2014-17
Daybrook, Bonington, St. Mary’s, Bestwood Village
Queensbower Park
At Gedling Homes we want all our neighbourhoods to be great places to live. We want them to look great, have great services, feel safe and be a place for both work and recreation. We believe that both Gedling Homes and our tenants have an important role to play in shaping how our neighbourhoods grow and develop. Through reviewing and improving the services we provide to our tenants, we feel we can have a positive effect on our 2
neighbourhoods. We have produced a neighbourhood promise for each of Gedling Homes’ neighbourhood areas and this one is yours. It details the issues raised by you and a commitment from Gedling Homes to review and develop our services to contribute to improving your neighbourhood The promise will run for 3 years and will be reviewed annually with tenants, to assess our progress against the actions.
Gedling Homes’ Properties in Daybrook, Bonington, St Mary’s and Bestwood Village General needs accommodation
Sheltered accommodation
Number of properties:
790
Bedsit: 4
Bedsit: 24
Bungalow: 7
Flat: 120
Flat: 240
Total accommodation
House: 395
Occupied properties
Tenant age
Bedsit: 28
Occupied: 774
18-29: 86
Bungalow: 7
Empty: 16
30-39: 88
Flat: 360
40-49: 113
House: 395
50-59: 125
Ethnicity
Gender
White British: 677
Female: 472
BME: 30
Male: 302
Unknown: 67
60+: 316 Unknown: 46
*Data accurate as of November 2013
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Your GREAT Neighbourhood Daybrook, Bonington, St. Mary’s and Bestwood Village are four Gedling Borough Council wards in, or close to the Arnold area. Arnold is located 4.5 miles to the North East of Nottingham City with a population of around 40,000 residents. Bestwood Village is a picturesque former colliery village north of Daybrook. Arnold benefits from a range of shops, banks, restaurants, bars, other businesses and service providers along the High Street and is serviced by two large supermarkets. Arnold hosts a market on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays. The council run Arnold leisure centre, which is home to the newly refurbished Bonington Theatre presents a varied programme of high quality arts events, both amateur and professional. There are a number of green spaces and parks in this area: Arnot Hill Park that is the Head Office of Gedling Borough Council. There is King George V Playing field in the centre of Arnold and Bestwood Country Park and Mill Lakes in Bestwood Village. Gedling Homes properties in this neighbourhood comprise of 1 and 2 bedroomed flats; 2 and 3 bedroomed family houses; and 3 sheltered housing schemes.
Gedling Homes has properties in: ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●
Mill Lakes, Bestwood Country Park
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Abbots Close Acton Road Albion Rise Allens Walk Bagnall Avenue Bailey Close Bestwood Close Bestwood Lodge Drive Bond Street Browning Close Byron Street Calverton Road Church Crescent Church Drive Church Lane Church Street Coleridge Crescent Coppice Road Cornwall Road Cross Street Danes Close Deerleap Drive Derby Street Elder Close Ernehale Court Furlong Street Gladehill Road Goodwood Avenue Hanworth Gardens Heddington Gardens High Street High Street Avenue Home Close Homefield Avenue Leivers Avenue Maidens Dale Mansfield Road Mellors Road
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Moyra Drive Moyra House Nelson Road Norbett Court Nottingham Road Orchard Grove Oxborough Road Oxclose Lane Oxengate Patricia Drive Queens Bower Road Ravenswood Road Redhill Road Rookery Gardens Roundwood Road Runswick Drive Seagrave Court Sherbrook Road Sloethorne Gardens Smithy Crescent St. Albans Road St. Marys Close Stanhope Crescent The Spinney Warren Hill Close Washington Court West Street Wordsworth Road Worrall Avenue
Rating Your Neighbourhood
Heddington Gardens Garages
Working with our tenants we have identified a number of areas that tell us how well we are performing in your neighbourhood These are called neighbourhood indicators and will be used alongside the feedback we have collected from tenants and residents. The information will tell us what we need to focus on to help improve your neighbourhood.
We have also identified some external indicators which were identified as having an impact on the wider community. Our tenants have told us to use a simple star rating, from 1-5, with 5 being the best. We will give a star rating to a range of indicators to identify a final, overall score for your neighbourhood. 5
Your GREAT Neighbourhood Rating STAR Rating
Indicator
Brief Summary
Percentage of tenancies in rent Gedling arrears Homes’ Indicators
There are relatively few tenants in this area that have rent arrears
HHHHH
Percentage of customer satisfaction with their neighbourhood as a place to live (STAR survey)
Tenants in these areas have a high satisfaction level with their neighbourhood as a place to live
HHHHH
Turnover of stock
Tenants stay in this area for a longer than average amount of time
HHHHH
Average number of days to relet a Across these areas the average time it takes to let a property (excluding properties where property is satisfactory a major repair has taken place)
HHHH
Percentage of opened anti-social behaviour (ASB) cases per area against organisation average
The neighbourhood experiences very few ASB cases
HHHHH
Percentage of evictions per area
Evictions in this area are high compared to other neighbourhoods. This may indicate that tenants living in this area are suffering financial difficulty
HHH
There is a good level of economic activity in these areas (employed, part-time, self-employed, seeking work)
HHHHH
Education- Percentage of pupils achieving 5 GCSE’s grade A-C including English and Maths
Educational attainment is good for pupils aged 16 in these areas
HHHHH
Level of good health in the neighbourhood
Residents’ perception of their health is lower than in other areas
HHH
Barriers to housing and services / accessibility to services
People in these areas have good access to a range of shops and services from a variety of organisations close to their home
HHHHH
Crime & Safety - Offences and incidents
People experience an average level of crime when compared against other areas within Gedling borough
HHHH
External Employment - Percentage of people Indicators economically active
Summary
STAR Rating
Gedling Homes have devised a detailed action plan which highlights many of the above areas. Work in these areas will be undertaken in the next 3 year period to improve Gedling Homes properties.
HHHH
The above information has been sourced from Gedling Homes’ own performance figures, the 2011 Census, Gedling Borough Council and the South Nottinghamshire Community Safety Partnership. The external data information relates to ward data and is not necessarily representative purely of Gedling Homes’ tenants.
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Local Knowledge - Auditing Your Neighbourhood The indicators we use to rate your neighbourhood help to point us in the right direction, but to further identify what needs doing we need local knowledge, to address specific issues and problems. We have spoken to local people who live and work in your neighbourhood. This is what we have been told:
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This neighbourhood has good quality local services and good public transportation. There is a mixture of private owner occupied properties, leasehold or private rented properties and registered social landlord properties
Our Neighbourhood Team told us: ●
Litter is not a wide spread problem, but is limited to some small areas, such as the garage sites around Daybrook. Most of the blocks of flats have dedicated bin stores so bin storage is not an issue except at Oxengate where bins tend to be left on the path
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There are some issues with dog fouling around Gedling Homes blocks of flats in Daybrook.
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Gedling Homes sites around Hanworth Gardens and Danes Close have high levels of fly tipping, with incidents being reported very frequently; there is a significant problem with residents dumping supermarket trollies here
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Goodwood Avenue and Stanhope Crescent tends to attract young people gathering around alleyways, on footpaths and grassed areas to drink and play ball games
Tesco, Daybrook
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You told us: On average the people we spoke to rate the neighbourhood 8 out of 10 as a place to live. Despite some concerns, the majority were positive about the area. ●
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Some of the best features identified were: ●
The local facilities and amenities
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Having friendly neighbours
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Access to public transport
Some of the worst features identified were: ●
Crime and ASB
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Heavy and noisy traffic
Concerns expressed included: ●
Dog fouling seems to be an issue around Gedling Homes properties in Daybrook
Hanworth Gardens
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Garage sites in the area are in poor condition and some garages are in serious disrepair
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The footpath around Hanworth Gardens grassed area is in a poor state of repair
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Fly tipping is an issue around the Danes Close and Hanworth Gardens area
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Misuse of the drying areas in flats at Danes Close, Hanworth Gardens and Heddington Gardens
Desired improvements included: ●
Improved signage around the blocks of flats in Daybrook
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More dog fouling bins in affected areas
Danes Close
Other organisations told us: ●
Gedling Borough Council’s Neighbourhood Wardens have told us that there are currently problems with dog fouling on the green areas around Danes Close and Sloethorne Gardens
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Gedling Borough Council have reported that abandoned shopping trollies are a constant problem in Daybrook
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The police have employed sporadic measures such as vehicle checks, speed guns and mobile patrols to reduce speeding traffic around schools and in highly concentrated pedestrian areas
Together, we saw: ●
Pockets of land that could be better utilised by the surrounding neighbourhood and community
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There are multiple local community groups such as the Arnold Area Forum, which are a great platform to listen to the concerns of the community
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Evidence of fly tipping in a small number of areas
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Frequent low level ASB complaints due to a small number of inconsiderate tenants
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Your GREAT Neighbourhood Promise What needs to happen? Neighbourhood and community
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What?
Why?
When?
Target low level nuisance by an increased staff presence and joint working with the Police in the specific area identified. Where appropriate manage low level noise and other inconsiderate behaviour generally in the neighbourhood
To reduce the incidence of ASB in the neighbourhood and improve tenants and residents quality of life
March 2015
Introduce a restorative justice scheme with partner agencies and utilising volunteers from the community to help reduce levels of ASB and to produce long lasting solutions to it
To engage communities in helping to solve the ASB and the offending that affects them. This will increase community engagement and provide a voice for victims of crime and ASB and those who have been harmed either directly or indirectly.
August 2015
Increase the signposting of tenants to health advice and other support services
To improve the health of tenants in the neighbourhood and make them aware of the support that is available
September 2015
Consistently signpost and refer tenants and their families to training and income advice services, working with partners to develop people’s employment readiness
To improve services and maximise input into the neighbourhood from other service providers
September 2015
Improve and focus our Caretaking service in the areas identified by our tenants
To ensure that tenants get the best possible service from our Caretaking team and to maximise their impact on the neighbourhood
March 2015
Work with partners and other agencies to support initiatives to help improve the neighbourhood
To improve services and maximise input into the neighbourhood from other service providers
December 2015
Neighbourhood Team to increase targeting of y tipping and litter hotspots within Gedling Homes areas including the use of surveillance cameras
To improve the neighbourhood appearance and quality of life for residents
March 2015
Work in partnership with local supermarkets to target the issue of y tipped shopping trolleys in Daybook
To improve neighbourhood appearance and quality of life for residents
March 2015
What?
Why?
When?
Work in partnership with Gedling Borough Council’s (GBC) Neighbourhood Wardens with regards to dog fouling
To reduce incidents of dog fouling in the neighbourhood and raise awareness of the issue in the community
March 2015
In consultation with GBC provide more dog bins in identified Gedling Homes problem areas
To improve neighbourhood appearance and quality of life for residents
September 2015
Arnold Town Centre
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Home
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What?
Why?
When?
Work towards publishing a plan of internal improvement of communal areas in our apartment blocks
To improve the appeal of properties and the quality of life of existing tenants
March 2015
Review the use of the internal drying rooms in flats
To reduce instances of ASB and fly tipping and August 2015 to improve the appearance of the flats for tenants who live in them
Improve and introduce where possible scooter storage in our schemes
To improve tenants quality of life
Implement an external painting programme
To improve the appearance of Gedling Homes March 2016 properties in the neighbourhood
Undertake a review of the condition of all garage sites owned by Gedling Homes and produce a programme for future improvements
To improve the management, security and appearance of garage sites and improve parking provision
December 2015
Undertake a review of any additional parking we can provide to complement the work carried out by partners
To improve parking provision in the neighbourhood, reduce congestion on selected roads and increase quality of life for tenants and residents
March 2016
Review the refuse storage provision for Gedling Homes flats and the recycling options available
To improve the appearance of the neighbourhood and quality of life of tenants and residents
March 2015
Consider all options available to improve the appearance of Gedling Homes’ properties
To improve the appearance of the neighbourhood and quality of life of tenants
March 2015
Improve the green spaces in our Independent Living Schemes
To improve the scheme and area appearance
March 2015
April 2016
Tenancy What?
Why?
When?
Continue to provide support to sustain tenancies and wherever possible prevent evictions
To help more tenants successfully sustain their tenancies
June 2015
Continue to make targeted calls and visits to customers in rent arrears. Provide advice and assistance to enable the customer to pay the rent due and come to a sustainable agreement to repay any arrears owed
To reduce arrears in the neighbourhood and the number of customers whose home is at risk due to debt issues
March 2015
Continue to signpost and refer customers who may benefit from the help of our Money Wise team
To reduce the number of evictions for nonpayment of rent and provide more help and advice on managing finances
June 2015
Provide increased support to identified families and tenants and link them to our support and advice services
To help identified customers successfully manage their tenancy and reduce lifestyle clashes with other residents
June 2015
Continue to signpost support services to tenants who may be experiencing drug and alcohol related problems
To reduce levels of neighbour nuisance and disputes and help identified tenants access health support and services
September 2015
Work with tenants to create a sense of community and reduce isolation through befriending
To help new tenants settle into the neighbourhood and create links to the community and neighbours
March 2015
Review the need to develop a regular housing surgery
To make it quick and easy for residents to access services and for neighbourhood issues to be dealt with in the locality
March 2015
Neighbourhoods team to continue with regular estate inspections (open to all tenants)
To provide regular monitoring of street level appearance and visible issues
June 2015
Increase the use and targeting of mediation services in neighbour disputes
To reduce neighbour disputes and improve neighbour relations
June 2015
Target fast track enforcement for serious ASB perpetrators with targeted resources from our Tenancy Services team
To remove disruptive tenants quickly and improve the quality of life for other residents, protecting demand for properties
December 2014
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Involvement and empowerment
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What?
Why?
When?
Set up a regular neighbourhood improvement group with tenants
To ensure services are more customer and neighbourhood focussed
March 2016
Continue to work with tenant and resident groups and provide any support they require to develop their activities
To obtain detailed feedback from tenants and residents specifically on services and wider neighbourhood issues, and work with them jointly on neighbourhood priorities
September 2015
Extend and improve activities for older tenants via Sheltered Scheme events
To improve community links between older tenants in different parts of the neighbourhood and improve community spirit and quality of life
September 2015
Promote ‘grow your own’ schemes for our tenants
Promote health and wellbeing
March 2015
Extend our links with furniture recycling community enterprises to help new and existing tenants furnish their properties
To improve community access to affordable furniture, build community networks and develop a community’s ability to work on projects together
March 2016
Develop a Time Bank scheme where tenants can provide skills and support to each other
To build community cooperation networks, increase community spirit, self-help, improve inter-generational links and build respect
March 2015
Final Thoughts We hope that over the next three years, through the actions outlined in Your GREAT Neighbourhood Promise, we will really make a visible difference to your neighbourhood.
We believe that the key to achieving the goals set out in this plan is to continue working together, with you, our tenants and leaseholders.
What happens next? Work has already begun in your neighbourhood on the various actions outlined in Your GREAT Neighbourhood Promise. We will be reviewing the plan frequently and will keep you updated on the progress with an annual report. You will have the opportunity to be involved in this so please watch out for advertised activities or requests for feedback. However, if you have something to say, don’t wait for us to call you! If after reading this you have any questions, comments or suggestions, or if you would like to get involved in fulfilling the plan, please contact us:
Phone: 0115 905 1515 Email: enquiries@gedlinghomes.co.uk Twitter: @Gedling_Homes Facebook: facebook.com/gedlinghomes We can also arrange for someone to call and visit you in your own home. We look forward to hearing from you. Thank you!
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St. Mary’s Church, Arnold
Contact Us Phone:
0115 905 1515
In person:
Email:
enquiries@gedlinghomes.co.uk
Website:
www.gedlinghomes.co.uk
Customer Contact Centre, The Civic Centre, Arnot Hill Park, Arnold, Nottingham, NG5 6LU.
Facebook: www.facebook.co.uk/gedlinghomes Twitter:
@Gedling_Homes
Write:
Gedling Homes, Gedling House, Wood Lane, Gedling, NG4 4AD
Opening times are 9am to 5pm Monday to Thursday, 9am to 4.30pm Friday