Contour Homes iNside Magazine Spring 2008

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iNSIDE C O N T O U R

spring

Contour Goes

GREEN4

in this issue‌ Regeneration

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Health & Safety

Area Updates

Conference

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contents Contour Homes News

Welcome to the new

Spring issue It’s been one year since we re-launched the iNside customer magazine and in the true spirit of Spring we are having another re-birth. This re-birth is the change to a new 100% recycled paper for our publication making it a greener approach than ever before. For more information about this and some great eco-friendly money saving tips check out the article on page 4. Also highlighting the spring in people’s steps is the coverage of the Residents’ Oscars Awards on page 32. The great work undertaken by key people of our communities was rewarded at

Updates from Area Teams

the last Residents’ Conference – congratulations to everyone involved. And if you feel that these people or other residents in your community should be recognised at the very highest level

Resident Involvement

see our article about community nominations for the Queen’s annual honours list on page 10. We’re always delighted to receive any comments, articles or photos about local life in your area contact us at the addresses below.

el

Contour Homes Editorial Pan Email:

Paul.adamson@contourhousing.co.uk

Tel:

0845 602 1120

Address: Editorial Panel, Contour Homes Freepost RPAU-JBLE-CUJX, Quay Plaza 2

Lifestyle

1st Floor – Lowry Mall, Salford Quays, Salford M50 3AH

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Contour Goes Green

The Green Pages The Contour iNside Magazine goes 100% recycled To show our commitment to being environmentally friendly, the Editorial Panel (a mix of residents and staff) have decided to use 100% recycled paper for this edition

Residents have asked before about perceived cheaper alternatives such as newsprint stock (newspaper) but in fact because of buying power and print techniques from our partner printers, CPL, we get this type of paper much cheaper.

and future magazines. This is a step up from the previous editions which were partially recycled and from officially recognised sustainable sources. All inks used to print are vegetable based and the paper is chlorine free.

This is a big step forward for the magazine as it has taken the Editorial Panel a valiant effort to get the bright, vivid appearance that we have now achieved for the Magazine.

The benefits of this really outweigh the cost with the

If you have any views on the new appearance please

reduction of trees that are cut down to produce the

contact Rebecca Frost, Resident Involvement Officer or

magazine and the labour and fuel used in this process. The

Paul Adamson, Communications Officer at Contour

total increase in cost per newsletter for this is 5p per issue.

Homes on 0845 602 1120 or mail@contourhousing.co.uk

Funding available for Green Schemes – Introducing ‘Down To Earth’ Lastly to celebrate the green launch we are introducing the Green Grants Scheme called Down To Earth, which is

• Tree and shrub planting • Setting up community gardening tool hire scheme

available to individuals or residents’ groups to apply for. What kind of projects can I set up? Any green initiatives that help to improve your environment, save energy, set up or improve recycling in your area, reduce carbon emissions.

• Setting up a ‘Freecycle’ initiative where people donate goods and furniture and give them away free to those that are willing to collect them • Running a second hand furniture project (maybe as a social enterprise)

Examples of projects that we could fund under this scheme: • Setting up of ‘awareness’ campaigns to promote going • Cleaning up a neglected area on your estate –

green, particularly with children.

removing rubbish and providing plants The cash amount you are awarded will depend on • Setting up a recycling scheme, bins, composting bins, wormeries

your idea, so just have a go! If you are interested please contact the Resident Involvement Team at

• Creating an area that encourages wildlife

Contour Homes, on 0845 602 1120.

Contour Homes gets down to earth! Contour Homes wants to underline how important green issues are to us and to show our commitment we will now be dedicating a green page within each Contour Homes’ iNside Magazine. We will include lots of hints and tips on how to go green and how in most cases it will also make cost savings in your home. 1. Don't leave appliances on standby - Simply turning your electrical appliances off, rather than leaving them on standby, would save you in the region of £37 a year. And, if we all made this small switch, the UK would save £740 million a year in electricity costs and cut over 4 million tonnes of excess carbon dioxide emissions annually. 2. Notch your heating down by one degree - Turn down your central heating by just 1°C and you could save yourself 10 per cent on your annual heating bill! 3. Foil-back your radiators to cut heat loss - By improving insulation of your home’s walls and loft spaces you could reduce heat loss by up to 45 per cent, radically improve the heating efficiency of your property and prevent a lot energy wastage. 4. Only ever boil as much water as you need. 5. Keep your fridge and freezer full - A fuller fridge or freezer is more efficient than an empty one so keep it filled. When the food and drink begins to run low, fill the space with newspaper-filled carrier bags. 6. Never put less than a full load of washing in the washing machine or dryer or run your dishwasher when it is less than half full. Use the half-load or economy programme if your machine has one. 7. Energy efficient light bulbs - last 10 – 12 times longer than the traditional variety and save you around £9 per bulb per year – that’s over £100 during their whole lifetime. An average-sized home could save £135 a year just by installing a few new bulbs! Employing these seven switches alone would save the average household £532 every year. That’s enough money to treat yourself to something special or, even better, save more money in the future by investing in an energy-efficient appliance, such as a new washing machine, dishwasher or tumble dryer. For more top tips you can visit this website www.biggreenswitch.co.uk

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s w e N s e m o H Contour

Regeneration

Lock Changes

The key is to remember! s e r u t c i P g n i v o M – A st or y of m ov in g ho me ibit ion at Sa lfo rd The Mo ving Pic tures exh d co- ordinated Museum & Art Ga ller y an tel ls the sto ry by Con tou r Housing Gro up, fam ilie s an d of five Lower Bro ugh ton g home. the ir exp erienc e of mo vin in true Sa lfo rd Told ope nly an d honest ly orded the highs fashio n, res ide nts have rec ed in the first an d lows of bei ng inv olv t regene rat ion pha se of one of the larges From the origin al pro jec ts in the cou ntr y. huge tas k of con sul tat ion stage to the are all pic ked up having to physic all y mo ve in thi s doc ument ary.

Mi ke

wi th her Ma rti ne Radcliffe mo ved oom det ach ed chi ldren to a new fou r-bedr r and is one of home at the end of las t yea in the exhibit ion . the five familie s inv olved ourage d us to be Sh e said: “Co nto ur has enc ocatio n pro ces s. rea lly honest abo ut the rel e to be part of “It ’s bee n gre at to be abl ry is someth ing his tor y an d my pho to dia k bac k on in the wh ole fam ily can loo yea rs to come.”

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of Con tou r Cre amer, Chief Exe cut ive

physic al Housing Gro up, said: “Th e Bro ugh ton tra nsf orm ati on of Lower grammes is no t through regene rat ion pro mo rta r but the sim ply abo ut bricks an d individua ls, person al exp erienc es of y as a wh ole . fam ilie s an d the commu nit cap ture the Mo ving Pic tures tries to ire exp erienc e.” highs an d lows of the ent

ate d iss ue and Re generatio n is a much deb compleme nts Mo ving Pic tures per fec tly exhibit ions from the ‘Re-traci ng Sa lford’ es the loc al art ists which examin r changi ng cit y. transf orm ation of this eve

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in words & pi ct ures

unt il The exh ibit ion wi ll be on ’t get to May 2008 but if you can it onl ine on the museum you can vie w ww w.f lick r.com here: pho tos /137598 htt p://w ww.flickr.com/ 3872114081/ 71@N04/s ets /7215760 Ou r tha nk s to eve ryo ne

On occasions in the past Contour Homes, Rivers and

Here are some tricks to remembering your keys:

AvenQuest have assisted tenants who may have lost their

Dan Lockton, Design With Intent says, “essentially what you want to do is mistake proofing your memory - put your keys in a difficult to avoid place or obvious place like your shoes or on the door mat.”

keys or had them stolen. This costs us a considerable amount of money each year which ultimately means that other repairs or improvements cannot be carried out. If you live in Sheltered Housing and you loose your keys or these are stolen please contact your Scheme Manager or Housing Office for advice and assistance. Everyone needs to be aware that it is the tenant’s responsibility to change locks when keys have been lost or stolen, check your contents insurance as you may be covered for the cost of carrying out this work.

Elizabeth Edgerly, Ph.D on www.reallysimple.com explains, “this can often be down to just paying attention. You toss your keys down when you walk through the door while preoccupied with something else. A few hours later, you can’t remember where you put them. Pay attention when you’re putting things down, and tell yourself, silently or out loud, what you’re doing. If you’ve forgotten them often consistency is an even better strategy. If you put your keys in the same dish every day, you’ll always, without fail, know where they are (or alternatively the simplest trick is to make it part of your routine every time to leave the door open whilst you check that you have keys). If you have lost them or forgotten them somewhere away from home try and sit down in a quiet place, close your eyes and visualise in your mind where you’ve been, what you’ve done and focus on where it’s likely that you’ve left/lost the keys. Surprisingly, this more often than not actually works”.

inv olved mu nit y

The Lower Bro ugh ton Com Cou ntr yside Pro pertie s –

Develo per

Ma nch ester Sa lfo rd Hou Re newal Pat hfi nde r

sing Ma rke t

Sa lfo rd Cit y Cou nci l Sa lix Homes

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Tenancy Agreement

Contacting Contour

Tenancy Agreements: Proposed Changes Our Assured Tenancy Agreements are changing

What happens next?

You should have now received our proposed changes

We will take all comments into account before issuing a

document through the post. This document shows the

notice of variation. Your new tenancy agreement will

proposed new Assured Tenancy Agreement and explains

automatically replace your old version.

any changes we would like to make.

If you are not issued with a notice of variation, you will be

Your Views

asked to sign your updated tenancy agreement. We will

Please take this opportunity to send us your views and

organise the best time to do this with you.

comments on our proposed agreement.

What about protected rights?

In Writing

Those of you who have protected rights will have these

Contour Homes, Quay Plaza 2, 1st Floor Lowry Mall Salford Quays M50 3AH. By E-mail: Laura.rimmer@contourhousing.co.uk By Telephone: 0845 602 1120 (ask for Laura Rimmer) You have until Wednesday 5th May to send your views in.

placed in your new tenancy agreement. Your right to buy or special succession rights will not be lost. What if I am a Fair Rent Tenant?

Making the most of your home and mobile telephone deal

We use an 0845 number as it is the most cost effective way for us to enable all our residents to contact us for an equal charge regardless of

where you live, whilst at the same time it allows Contour Homes to control how calls are diverted out of hours and in case of emergencies. Mobile telephone operators and some landline telephone operators do not allow you to use your bundled minutes on 0845 calls. Instead they charge

If you are a fair rent tenant you will NOT have received this

you the standard rate for the call.

document as your tenancy agreements will NOT be changing

We don’t want you to lose out so we’re now providing an alternative number

If you have any questions please get in touch.

for use during the daytime for people that have this issue. This number will take you straight through into the same system in our offices as everyone else using the 0845 number. So whichever number you use, you will be answered just as quickly. The downside! This new number is only available during normal office hours and is not to be used for calls outside these hours. This number does not allow us to divert calls in case of an interruption, e.g. a power cut, to the usual 8.00am to 6.00pm Monday to Friday service. Therefore if you try using the 0161 number and get no reply after five minutes you can assume that there is an interruption to the phone service so please hang up and use the 0845 602 1120 number. The alternate number to dial is 0161 875 8298 during normal office hours, Please keep your 0845 number to hand in case of any problems.

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Residents

Health & Safety

Nominate a local hero for honours

Scalding risk from domestic hot water systems

Gordon Brown has launched a campaign

got what they deserved. And that is why I

aimed at recognising the work of "local

want us to see more of our local heroes

heroes" in communities throughout the UK.

presented with an MBE or an OBE by Her

The Health and Safety Executive has recently issued a safety alert to individual

Majesty The Queen."

homeowners, tenants, landlords and the plumbing industry. This is to raise awareness

campaign to recognise local people with an

Now the Government is encouraging people

of a rare but potentially serious scalding risk from domestic hot water systems which

MBE or OBE presented by Her Majesty The

to reward those in their communities who

include a fixed all-electric or part-electric immersion heater in conjunction with a

Queen. Local clubs, organisations,

carry out valuable charitable or voluntary

plastic cold water storage cistern or ‘tank’ located in the roof space.

newspapers and councils are being

work, either as a career or in their own

The alert follows two strikingly similar fatal incidents in the last four years where a

asked to help identify people who

spare time.

large volume of near boiling water poured through bedroom ceilings onto

The Prime Minister is supporting a new

deserve recognition.

Already more than four in five of all the

The PM said:

occupants sleeping below.

OBEs and MBEs awarded go to people

In most cases, Contour Homes tenants have no need to worry about this, but

who contribute to the community. People

it is wise to be aware of the issue, for example an overheating immersion

can be nominated easily by calling 020

cylinder will normally show obvious warning signs. Serious incidents like

much effort: they are the people who

7276 2777 or by visiting the official

these are extremely rare but there are things that you can watch out for to

inspire us all, make our lives happier or

honours website at www.honours.gov.uk .

reduce the risk, for example:

Nominations are considered by the

Residents should be aware of warning signs (such as excessive noise from the

independent Honours Committees,

hot water cylinder) indicating possible thermostat failure and overheating of the

and their recommendations on who

water in the cylinder

should be honoured are announced

Typical warning signs include:

"Carers, helpers, or just good neighbours, nothing is ever too much trouble or too

easier, and make our neighbourhoods safer and stronger. They are the everyday heroes who make Britain great. "And how many times do we say to each other: 'That person deserves a medal'. Well I think it is time they

twice a year in the New Year's Honours and HM The Queen's Birthday Honours.

• Excessively hot water coming out of the hot water taps. • Excessive noise or ‘bubbling’ from the hot water cylinder. • Hot water coming out of certain cold water taps (some storage cisterns also feed cold water taps in the bathroom); Steam/moisture in the roof space. If you think any of these may be happening at any time in your home, you should switch off the immersion heater system and call Contour Homes immediately to report the problem. We will then send round a qualified engineer to look at the problem and carry out any repair that is needed. We have also written to all of the contractors that may come in to contact with systems in Contour Homes properties to ask them to be aware of this potential issue and let us know if they come across any problems, but so far they have not reported any cases back to us.

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s e t a d p U a e Ar AvenQuest, Preston

All board for Citizenzone

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LOCAL people will soon be able to access a range of services from their doorstep when an interactive vehicle packed with the latest technology takes to the road. The vehicle, called Citizenzone

will be launched between Monday 21 to Wednesday 23 April on Preston Flag Market where people will have the chance to climb onboard and find out more about what it will offer.

Unwanted Visitors!

Managed by Preston City Council and funded by the Single Regeneration Budget (SRB) via AvenCentral Partnership, Citizenzone includes a state-of-the-art plasma screen, DVD and CD presentation equipment and computers with highspeed wireless internet access.

There are a lot of people attempting to gain access to our high rise

Local people will be able to use Citizenzone to access services provided by the council, Avenquest, the police, NHS trust and other partners.

blocks – if these unwanted visitors are turned away every time, then

blocks who have no reason to be there. It is up to residents to say no to people who want access for no particular reason other than to cause a nuisance. If the person the visitor is wishing to visit is not answering their intercom, then there is no reason for them to enter by any other means. Please make sure that no one tailgates when you are entering the they should soon get the message. We are working very closely with the Police to identify the culprits, but it is also your responsibility to say NO to unwanted visitors.

People will be able to find out more about Citizenzone by visiting mwww.preston.gov.uk/citizenzone when the page goes live in late March.

Neighbourhood Watch

AvenQuest Homes Gardening Competition 2008 Now is the time to start sowing the seeds for the 2008 AvenQuest Homes Gardening Competition. There are prizes for different categories including Patio, Balcony, Back Garden, Front Garden, Community Garden and Hanging Baskets. Last year’s overall winner was a fantastic front garden in Halsbury Street. Judging will take place in July 2008.

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Time For A Change Are you claiming benefit for Housing or Council Tax? If you are

Local Tenants are

then you must let the benefit office know immediately if you

appealing to anyone

have any change your circumstances.

who is interested in

For example, this may mean someone has moved in

setting up a

with you, or have moved out of your property, you

Neighbourhood

may have changed your job, or the hours

Watch Scheme

you work, or you may have got married.

in the Oxford

Failure to inform the benefit agency

Street area.

may mean that your benefit is

If you are interested, or you would like to

calculated incorrectly leading to an

find out more information, please contact

over payment which you will be

the AvenQuest Office.

responsible to pay back.

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s e t a d p U a e Ar Mark Close Residents’Association Contour Homes residents in the

took place on the car park of Mark

Penwortham area of Preston have

Close. A large gazebo was put up

recently got together to re-launch

and food was prepared. Many

their own residents’ group – the

residents came and it was a huge

Mark Close Residents’ Association

success. Many other events have

(MCRG). The group, which was

been organised by the group

originally formed in March 2003,

including a clean up day. A

has recently held its third meeting

competition was run and prizes

since the re-launch. The aim of the

were given to the children for the

group is to identify and raise

most litter collected.

issues that concern local residents

Donna Whittle the chair of MCRG,

as well as to organise local

said, “the group was founded to

community events.

give the tenants a collective voice

The group recently organised the

on matters such as maintenance

New Year’s Eve Street Party which

and social problems, and also to

She also emphasises that MCRG welcomes all residents of Mark Close and they would like to see more residents getting involved. MCRG are also happy to welcome and share ideas with other tenants of Contour Homes who may be interested in setting up a similar group of their own. If you would like to get involved or make contact with Mark Close Residents Group you can do so via the Preston Office.

Withy Court is a scheme of 12, 1 bedroom flats situated on Garstang Road, Fulwood in Preston. The block was first built in 1978 and was initially owned by Two Castles Housing Association, Contour Homes purchased the block in 1982 and now manages the properties. Approximately 55 residents have come and gone over its 30 year history but some have been in residence since the block opened in 1978. To mark this special occasion we visited Eileen and Dorothy who have been Withy Court residents since the flats were first built and they were presented with bouquets of flowers. Eileen and Dorothy reminisced over old photos and tales of the past and told us that the rent back 30 years ago was the grand figure of £34.50 a month! When Dorothy first moved in she brought with her a cutting

Over many years we have taken on many projects, small at first, but they have grown bigger as we grew in confidence. Here’s an example of what we’ve achieved and you could too:

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of a Eucalyptus Tree. It was planted in the Withy Court garden and after being tended to over the years it now stands 30 feet high! Eileen was offered the caretaker role along with her husband very soon after moving in to Withy Court and she continued to do until her retirement in 1999. However, Eileen still carries out a very active role in the day to day up keep of the flats and tends to the beautiful garden. Congratulations and thank you ladies!

Mendip Road Community Group Mendip Road Community Group began on 30 July 2003 when Diane Cato, Housing Management Officer for Contour and Community Development Officer Anil Mehta, asked a few interested people to come to a meeting at the local pub. At the first meeting we agreed to work towards a Constituted Residents Association. Anil introduced us to Dave Murphy, Tenant Participation Manager, who helped us achieve this. Dave was a mind of information and provided us with support and advice. Eventually we opened our own bank account with a start up grant provided by Contour Homes.

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organise social events such as a summer fair”.

Withy Court celebrates its 30 Year Anniversary!

steps on the estate on our request to ensure that the edges can be seen in the dark. • We have been successful in obtaining drop kerbs for wheelchair users and pushchairs. • Tackled antisocial behaviour on the estate from groups of young people and drug users in partnership with the Parish Council and Chorley Borough Council. We removed problem bushes and replaced by flower beds, with a large centre piece made out of slate in the same location. This improved the overall feel and looks of the place and made an attractive entrance to Mendip Road. • We have campaigned for external lights on properties and are now getting them fitted on properties.

• We have paid for street signs to slow down the traffic which comes through the estate.

• We have organised a Fun Day with the local Golf Club to address youth problems.

• Contour Homes have painted the

• The committee also met with the

Parish Council who had a piece of spare land near the school that we could have the use of, but the land needed to be drained. Contour and the Parish Council helped with funds for us to get this work done. This project is still work in progress because we would like lighting to be put up and the land to be levelled; the Police have shown an interest in this and are looking at getting involved to help us. • This year we are hoping to get hanging baskets placed outside every property in the hope that it will bring people together with a common interest. Over the years we have lost some committee members but we have also gained new members. The good work will continue to go on. Meetings are held on the second Tuesday of every other month at the Mendip Road Office at 6pm.

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s e t a d p U a e Ar Revving up local training Who’d have thought manufacturing oil tank brackets for a fifty year old BSA could be so much fun! Local Contour Homes resident Claire Lee has been taking part in a ten week motorcycle restoration project at the UCAN Centre Halliwell. Amongst other things Claire and other local residents have learnt how to safely use a wide selection of hand and fixed tools under the supervision of local motor mechanic Harry Gregson. This scheme is one of a number of community initiatives run by the UCAN Centre on Hatfield Road in Halliwell, Bolton. Contour Homes works closely with this centre through its management board, and contributes to the funding of projects. Exciting future projects include the production of a book detailing the culture and history of the members of the Caribbean Elders, and the installation and commencement of a Learn Direct programme run through the centre’s I.T. suite.

The Bolton Housing Team The Bolton Housing Team includes six site based members of staff they are: Jean Watkinson – The Pewfist, Westhoughton Lilian Lomax – Sandpiper Close & St Gregory’s Close, Farnworth

We know that they are always ready and willing to offer a helping hand and often carry out tasks which are above and beyond there normal duties. They obviously love their jobs too, because between them they have worked for the company for a total of 105 years!

Bolton

Housing Management Officer, Neil Kenyon, recently spent

that all the agencies are working together on behalf of

an evening walking the streets of Brownlow Fold as part of

the residents of Brownlow fold”.

Greater Manchester Police’s Community Day. In addition to the police, Neil was joined by colleagues from Bolton at Home, Bolton Metropolitan Borough Council, the Juvenile Response Team and local residents and community groups. The event was organised to raise the profile of what is being done to tackle burglary to dwellings, youth antisocial behaviour and criminal damage and to provide reassurance to local residents. Neil commented “the evening was a great success and enabled us all to demonstrate to the local community

Dunbar Drive Residents Enjoy Mayoral Visit On Monday 14th January twenty residents from Dunbar Drive in Bolton went to visit the Mayor, Councillor Barbara Ronson, at her parlour. We were given the opportunity to look and touch some of her official jewellery. We looked at the Mayor’s insignia which was made up of the town’s mace, the Mayor’s and

Mayoress’ chain of office. We looked at t Mayoral jewel and silverware on display and told about its background. We learnt some more about our town’s heritage and why we have elephants as a symbol. We went into the Council Chambers where public, private and official town meetings are held ant took turns sitting in the Mayor’s chair.

John Lomax – Stonechurch, Deane

The Mayor was most

Margaret Cox – Ennerdale Gardens, Breightmet

welcoming, she gave us all refreshments and took the

Janet Howard – The Hollies, Breightmet

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Greater Manchester Police’s Community Day

time to chat to the children

Connie Rigby – Glencoe, The Haulgh

and look at some of the

Between them our site based staff carry out a whole range of duties such dealing with nuisance issues, carrying out sign ups and viewings and some have other duties such as cleaning and gardening, but the one thing they all have in common is that they are a valuable part of the Bolton Team. They help to keep the schemes in which they are working running smoothly; they work well with housing officers and residents in resolving problems quickly and effectively.

photographs from our events at Dunbar Drive. We had a really nice time and a great experience. We’d like to say a really big thank you to our Mayor Ronson.

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s e t a d p U a e Ar Rivers, Bury & Blackburn

80th birthday celebrations for two stalwarts of Rivers

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Improvement works on Rockcliffe Street, Blackburn For many years the residents of Rockcliffe Street in Blackburn, which consists of Yates Fold, Cobourg Close, Honeyhole and

HEART member and local activist Mrs Winnie Green struck 80 on the 21st January. The Rivers Community Wardens were hoping to help organise a surprise party for Winnie. However, she has so many friends that Winnie had to be told about the party in advance so that all her friends and relatives could be invited. St. Michael’s Old Church Hall on Ribble Drive was the venue for the party on Saturday 26th January. Local councillors, Rivers Community Wardens, HEART members and other friends danced the night away. Try as they did, no one could out-dance Winnie who was still dancing at midnight. “Being active is what keeps me young”, said Winnie. “I’m not an old fuddy duddy and love dancing”.

Smalley Way have had to endure an overgrown vegetated area (see photo above). This area, which sits between the Honeyhole flats and part of Smalley Way, became a haven for fly tippers, items in the bushes included, a television, vacuum cleaner, chairs, numerous bags of rubbish etc etc.. Officers at the Whitefield office have constantly and painstakingly attempted to secure money to improve this area, over the past three years. Ann Walton, Area Manager, Bury/Blackburn, successfully bid for monies from the Scheme Investment Budget. The work is now finally finished and, as the photograph shows, has improved the area significantly, much to the delight of residents.

Winnie dancing the night away!

Going Batty… Rivers (Hillock) Garden Club which has now been meeting weekly for over a year, had a guest speaker at a recent meeting. Local Park Ranger Phil Roe came armed with flatpacked bird and bat boxes and the members had great fun in assembling them. Community Warden Glyn Harman was on hand to help with the hammering of some nails.

Joan receiving her flowers from Garden Club chairman Harry Creega n.

Rivers (Hillock) Garden Club member and treasurer, Mrs Joan Lund also celebrated her 80th birthday in style. Joan’s big day was the 22nd February. She was presented with a bouquet of flowers on behalf of the Garden Club by Rivers Senior Community Warden Andrew Taylor at a recent meeting. She turned up to the meeting armed with cream cakes,

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home made apple pies and sausage rolls to share with her friends. What a meeting that was – no seeds planted and not a pot washed! Congratulations to both ladies from all at the Rivers’ Office and thanks for the good work that you both

Everyone had a great time and they were really chuffed with their achievements. The completed boxes were taken home by their makers for painting and installing in a north-facing position. Any local birds or bats should contact the River’s Housing Office for an application to move into one of these very desirable residences. Glyn Harman has now become an expert in rehousing local tenants. Not content with looking after the birds and the bats on the Estate, Glyn recently was asked to re-locate a hedgehog. The poor animal was peacefully hibernating under a pile of garden waste when it was disturbed by the Rivers new Ground Maintenance Team. Staff from Greenfingers Ltd were doing a fantastic job in clearing an overgrown garden when they discovered the cute animal. The hedgehog that is, not Glyn! Being very brave, Glyn carefully picked up the wild animal and carried it to a safe location in Boz Park where he covered it in leaves and twigs. Ah! What a lovely story.

continue to do on the Estate.

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Middleton, Rochdale & Oldham

s e t a d p U a e Ar

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Beat Sweep Early 2008 has seen two of our areas benefit from a ‘Beatsweep’. Residents in St Mary’s and Coldhurst/Westwood in Oldham will know all about them due to the publicity and the opportunities to get involved. A Beatsweep is a period of partnership activity to make a positive impact on an area and to help bring the community together. Those involved include Youth Services, Sport Development, Connexions, Job Centre Plus, Trading Standards, Benefit Investigation and the co-ordinators – Groundwork. The latter support individuals and organisations who want to improve their neighbourhood.

Talk To Me… I would like to introduce myself.

nothing will be done with it if I do take

For those that do not know me, I am

the time to fill it in”. I am pleased to tell

Wanda Dean and I am the Housing

you that it is very important to us that

Administrator at the Middleton Office.

we have your feedback on our

A very important part of my role is to seek feedback on some of our service areas after you have experienced them. These include Antisocial Behaviour,

Before Beatsweep Initial assessment of the area highlighted one of the main problems as being litter and fly tipping in the Coldhurst/Westwood area. Local staff and volunteers worked very hard all week to clean up the areas affected. Oldham Council work hard to both prevent these problems arising and tackling them when they do. As well as recycling facilities, there is the free ‘Bulky Bob’ bulk waste collection and kerbside collections, weekly bin collections and ‘Tidy Oldham’. This is where residents can e-mail a digital photo of a ‘grot spot’ to the council and they will deal with it.

And after

Income Management and Lettings. Now I do realise that you may think

experience, whether good or bad as we can learn from both equally. Without your comments we have no way of telling how well we are doing what we should be doing better at and what we should carry on doing well at.

that this is yet another form for you to

So please take a couple of minutes to

fill in and when it drops on your mat

fill in and return the forms, or else in

you think “oh, I cant be bothered,

Arnie’s famous words, ‘I’ll be back’!

Hazelhurst Mews February 2008 saw the completion of the window replacement and fencing installation at Hazelhurst Mews in Chadderton. This scheme is for some of our mature residents and they have made us aware that security is very important to them.

The Housing Officer, Diane Santoro, successfully applied for funding for the fencing to bring some privacy and peace of mind to the residents. They have reported that they are very pleased and happy with the work that has been carried out.

Street Scene work to remove rubbish and litter from the streets as well as using enforcement measures against anybody caught littering or fly tipping. This is usually through fines and then ASBO’s for the more persistent offenders. Beatsweeps encourage everyone to take a pride in their local environment and to play their part in maintaining it. If you would like further information on a Beatsweep, getting involved in improving your neighbourhood or enforcement action against perpetrators, please contact Nadeem Iqbal, Assistant Housing Officer or Diane Santoro, Housing Officer at the Middleton office.

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Avenues & Hollins, Oldham

s e t a d p U a e Ar

22

New Chil drens Pla y area at Avenu es & Holl ins

Paul Charnock

Shanine Meadowcroft

I’m the recently appointed Deputy Area Manager at

I’d like to take this opportunity to say a big thank you

Shanine has again been

the Avenues Office and at the time of writing I’ve been

to all the staff here and the residents who kindly

successful in bidding for further

in post for two months and it’s been a pretty eventful

allowed us into their homes and made the day

funding of £24,000 to set up a

time. After I’d been given a few days to settle in we

so successful.

similar project at Canon George

were asked to arrange a short tour of the Avenues

While we were at the Tenants’ Hall we showed our

and Hollins Estate and provide lunch for residents of

visitors the children’s play area funded by Contour

Primrose bank and Oldham Council staff as part of

Homes which has just been completed and the IT

the PFI bid. The staff here pulled out all the stops and

class which has been running since November last

arranged for two of our tenants to allow a large group

year, this was a project made possible By Shanine

of people to go into their homes to show the high

Meadowcroft our Community Development Worker,

standard of improvements since stock transfer. They

through Government funding. If you fancy learning

also arranged a hot buffet lunch at the Tenants’ Hall.

how to use a computer or just want to come along

The day was a big success and the feedback from the

and surf the net contact Shanine at the Avenues

Paul Charnock

Primrose Bank residents was extremely positive. So

Office and she’ll happily give you all the details.

Deputy Area Manager

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Tenant Hall on Chapel Road in partnership with St Margaret’s Church. Shanine has also submitted a bid for £10,000 to the Heritage Lottery Fund to fund a photography project to work with young people in the Hollinwood, Westwood and Clarkwell areas.

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s e t a d p U a e Ar M a n c h e s t e r, Tr a f f o r d & S a l f o r d

Who’s cleaning your scheme?

24

In November last year Contour Homes ran it’s review of contractors supplying services to schemes. After a lot of hard work a new group of contractors started cutting the grass, managing planted areas, cleaning windows, mopping floors and hovering carpets. On the whole the change has gone well but as with all new things there are hiccups. We are doing our bit to manage the new arrangements as best we can but as ever we’d do a better job if you helped. We want your feedback. We want to know if you think that services have improved, got worse and are no different. Contact your housing team and let us know. Remember Abi and Pearl cover everything in Salford plus Ridgeway Park. Faye and Jazzy cover everything in Manchester & Trafford.

Parenting in Manchester Manchester City Council are running an initiative with housing associations like Contour Homes, to make Parenting Orders work across the city. Contour Homes are part of that initiative, We have three staff who will learn the ins and outs of parenting orders. We’ll be able to do them in Manchester and spread good practice across the whole of Contour Homes.

Welcome to Michelle In Broughton we have a new officer in post. Michelle Peart who some of the sheltered tenants will know has taken over from Paul Charnock as the Neighbourhood Regeneration Officer. Luckily we haven’t lost Paul. He successfully applied for a Deputy Manager’s job in Contour Homes (as you can see from the Avenues & Hollins pages). Paul did a great job in Broughton so with a sad sigh we say goodbye and thanks. At the same time we say a big hello to Michelle. She’ll be working at our Camp Street office managing properties in Lower Broughton and St Simons Street. Michelle can be contacted on 0845 602 1120.

We hope it’s chips it’s chips Our Insurance Officer Zoe Wilmott made herself some friends in Salford in February giving away deep fat fryers. In a joint initiative with the Fire Service and Zurich Municipal, we organised an amnesty for chip pans. Residents were asked to bring their chip pans and swap them for a deep fat fryer. The purpose of the event was to try and help reduce the chances of household fires. It had been identified that

old style chip pans had been one of the main sources of household fires in Contour Homes’ properties so the amnesty is an attempt to prevent this. Even today there are regular call outs for the fire services because of chip pan fires. The event took place at Albert Park in Broughton and it doesn’t stop there. If you live in the Broughton area and have a chip pan get in touch. We can still do the swap.

Salford Survey Over the next few months some of our Salford residents may be invited to participate in a financial survey conducted by Community Finance Solutions at Salford University. The surveys will be carried out in the comfort of your own home at a time that it is convenient to you. The survey is not compulsory however by taking part you will be helping us to analyse and hopefully improve the financial services that are available in your area. A £5 shopping voucher will be given to all those who take part. Not all residents will be approached as the data is being collected on a random basis but we hope that if you are contacted you will be willing to get involved.

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Stockport, Handforth & Liverpool

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26

Scheme Inspections a worth while exercise Merseyside residents in Knowsley and Wirral have recently had new and improved external

Kelton Park Residents’ Association secures external grant funding for scheme Improvements

scheme lighting fitted on their schemes. The initial problem was raised by residents on their scheme inspection leading to a submission for funding to Contour Homes which was successful. Mrs Rowley of 1 Marcus Court stated “the new lighting had improved the security of the scheme”. Positive action from residents does get results so please try to attend your scheme inspection over the coming year.

Where have all the eggs gone? The latest event on the Spath Lane Estate was the

placed messages around the estate for the children to

Children’s Easter Egg hunt held on Wednesday 19th

discover the eggs in treasure hunt style. Lots of

March. The Spath Lane Residents’ Association

children joined on the day and the event turned out to

generously donated 40 chocolate eggs, we then

be a great success with not a chocolate egg to spare!!!

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The residents of Kelton Park Aigburth, Liverpool will soon have the benefit dropped curbs being installed which will vastly improve wheelchair access on the scheme. A number of residents have highlighted this as a major issue on the scheme in the past and were keen to see something happen. Staff at Kelton Park in Liverpool and Kelton Park Residents’ Association have worked closely together in preparing a bid and securing funding both through Contour and external agencies. The bid was successful and a large amount of funding was received. Paul Latham, the Housing Management Officer based at Kelton Park offered thanks to the Residents’ Association in helping to secure this funding and for their continued support.

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Sheltered & Supported Housing

s e t a d p U a e Ar Leonard Cheshire Disability Leonard Cheshire Disability exists to change attitudes to disability and to serve disabled people around the world. The charity supports over 21,000 disabled people in the UK offering a wide spectrum of services. Leonard Cheshire Disability works with Housing Groups such as Contour Homes to provide a variety of Supported Living Services which enable disabled people to live in their own homes, as independently as they wish, with individually tailored personal assistance and twenty four hour a day support from highly qualified staff. In the North West we operate the several supported Living Services including the following

Contour Homes schemes: Warren Close (Middleton) - There are 6 bungalows which are run in partnership with Contour Homes and Rochdale Borough Council Pendleway (Salford) currently provides independent housing for 9 people in partnership with Contour Homes and Salford City Council. What do our residents think of the Leonard Cheshire Disability Services? Service Users at our Supported Living Schemes in Middleton have found their lives transformed by the positive impact of supported living. Below are some quotes from some service users at our Warren Close Supported Living Scheme in Middleton.

New number for Sheltered and Supported Team Supported Teams moved from

“I love the independence that I have and having my own space. There is a lot more support available for me here”

going through the Customer

If you would like more information on Leonard Cheshire Disability or any of our North West or national services you can visit our website at www.LCDisability.org or contact our Regional Office at the address below; Leonard Cheshire Disability, 27 Wilson Patten Street, Warrington, Cheshire, WA1 1PG or on the telephone number; 01925 414115

other service from us. We have

the Stockport office to our new head office in Salford Quays we kept our old phone number of 0845 601 5683. However, when we moved here our calls started Service Centre. This is the place where you would ring if you wanted to report a repair or any found since the move that less and less people are using the old

There was a huge response of contestants for the Dominoes know if the Hotpot dinner afterwards had anything to do with it but there was plenty of interest.

The Petrus Community is a registered

local companies and individuals,

soap Hollyoaks. She presented the

charity and provides supported

the film was planned, directed and

stars of the film with certificates in

It took place on Wednesday 30th January

housing, day centre and outreach

produced by Petrus service users

recognition of their achievements.

and consisted of 3 games of Dominoes -

services for single people who are

with the support of Candella Films,

Actor Colin Meredith and mayor and

in the first round Lily v Rita, Bill v Bob,

homeless or in housing need.

a company specialising in short

mayoress of Rochdale, Councillor

Phil v Barbara and Olive v Sheila.

Petrus has worked closely in

documentary films.

partnership with Contour Homes for

It tells the moving account of three

over ten years and encourages active

service users lives, how they came

participation amongst residents in the

to Petrus and what assistance

running of the housing schemes and

Petrus gave them in helping to

in promoting independence. Many of

rebuild their lives.

our customers have significant and complex difficulties and have histories of unsettled accommodation.

This means that if you want to ring the Sheltered and Supported Team in future you should dial 0845 602 1120.

Dominoes Champion of Contour! Tournament at Mitford Court. I don’t

Film Premier for Petrus Supported Schemes

number, so we want to change so that everyone uses the main number of 0845 602 1120. This will make no difference to the service as both numbers will be answered by the same teams in the Customer Service Centre. However, we will be able to make a saving by not paying for a phone line that we do not need.

When the Sheltered and

“I use my mind more and can plan my days and weeks for shopping socializing and trips out. I enjoy having my own space and comforts and not being regimented to certain meal times.”

Peter and Linda were subs and were soon called upon to stand in as Phil was called away and Barbara got cold feet.

In the final it was over 5 games and

Lily, Bill, Peter and Sheila won through to the next round all games going the full 3 games to decide the winners.

Sheila three straight games to become

Round 2 Lily was hot to trot and beat Peter 2 straight games.

tournament and look forward to the next

Sheila beat Bill but had to go the whole 3 games before winning.

start of the Contour Homes Dominoes

Lily‘s finger were on fire tossing the Dominoes down as she thrashed The Champion of Mitford Court! Everyone agreed that it had been a good one. Who knows it might even be the League if anyone else is interested.

Peter Evans, also lent their support. To find out further information about the work of Petrus or for copies of the film you can contact Denis Skelton on 01706 345844 or email denis.skelton@petrus.org.uk

The premiere was attended by over a hundred people and

In November 2007 a short-film

included actress

called “Petrus – My Story” was

Kathryn George, who

premièred at the Odeon Cinema,

played Helen

Rochdale. Funded by the lottery,

Cunningham in the

Image Courtesy of Rochdale Observer

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29


t n e m e v l o v n I t n Reside

Training

Tailored Tenant Learning Calendar e simmer apart from in th y da ur at S a g full and will be run on ration includin s du ha in ry am Te va t n en ai ag t Involvem holidays and omes Residen nts Learning na te The Contour H ns. io w ss ne e se th y half da s? hard setting up of fun and ty rie ut the course been working va a e id will prov I find out abo o ch d hi w w o r, g H da in er en al ov sletter a nts. C Events C into your new ns for our tena ed io rt ss se se in ng d ni fin es ar e Pleas vel issu courses and interesting le often causes tra ides details of t ov es pr w th ch or hi N w e and course y calendar the whole of th s on one side rd to travel to sa te ha da it d d fin fin ill ho w w s dates. You for some tenant also difficult for verse side. in Preston. It is e liv ey th ve if r ha t te tails on the re no de ay that you m Manches ey th ndy reminder attend, as ha to a ng es ki id or ov w e pr s you those that ar The calendar tick the course course. a st Ju nd te l. at al w to e ur yo a whole day fre can on hang t booked on. me tending and ge red program at ilo in ta a ed e st th re are inte Welcome to ms above by e course? me the proble co er ov to I book onto th rs o fe ed d of tri w o ch ve so you H hi ha w e ar W of 15 spaces, th calend on um m im 6 ax hy m a nc s, has designing a pu e from 2 hour Each course n do this in a rse times rang asap. You ca ou on C y. ok lit r bi bo fo xi to s fle more will need , with course ll day sessions s: . nd half a day or fu ke variety of way ee return in the n at the w ru g in be reply slip and le e th in l fil es y nu young peop pl Post: Sim t organised ve intentionally no nge lope ra ar d an se We have also freepost enve irm interest in the cour st re te in r team to conf e ou ug l ai ga . m ill ed ew st e n w re ca as o.uk at are inte E-mail: You ourhousing.c ound those th emnet@cont ur home lv yo vo to .in the location ar ar nt ne de si as at re e the venues 602 1120. Frost on 0845 We aim to mak ca ec eb R l al C s, Tel: ing the course as possible. queries regard y an chat e ve le p lik ha eo u ld P If yo Young act or wou nt co se ea Courses for y pl tail not provided an want more de with extra e that we had provide you ing d in ul tra co us e io w We were awar ev w pr our ecca Frost about ho ung people on se contact Reb ea pl , w nd ne te e at courses for yo th decided support to We therefore ld include ou 1120. w programmes. er m m ra on 0845 602 arning Prg Le e es es om th H of ur t Conto g people. Mos ction for youn a separate se

Resident Groups

Residents’ Groups Could Get over £2000 Two schemes which should prove very popular with residents’ groups are being introduced this month. Groups will now be eligible for a not only a yearly grant of £200 from the MOT but also up to £2,000 from the Community Funding Scheme (CFS). The Community Funding Project Scheme Residents’ groups must apply to the CFS by filling out a questionnaire and answering questions about their proposed projects. Ideas for projects can range from cultural awareness activities to community clean-up days. Successful applicants are free to run their project any time this year. It is hoped that such projects will make a significant impact on local communities. It will be a great opportunity to get people of all ages to come together, increase community spirit and possibly reduce conflict or tensions in some areas. Residents already benefiting Mendip Road and Coldhurst Park Residents’ Associations have been the first to benefit from this new Contour Homes’ scheme. Coldhurst Residents’ Association have received £2000 towards their community landscaping project, which will see residents carry out a project to improve the gardens and communal planting areas. Mendip Road Residents’ Association also received £1000 towards their hanging basked initiative, which will see all resident on the estate receive a hanging basket, which will brighten up the area. We look forward to many more applications from all of our residents’ groups. Housing MOTs

Dave Murphy… Dave Murphy has worked for the organisation for over 25 years, starting as a Housing Manager at the Stockport Office. After working in the role for ten years he then moved over to be a pioneer in Resident Involvement, where he has remained with for the past 15 years. Dave has

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the same drive, commitment and energy that he had when he first started and still strives to support the involved tenants. He’s a star and both Contour Homes staff and residents think highly of him. A big thank you and well done to Dave for all his commitment over the last 25 years!

The Housing MOTs are being introduced by the Resident Involvement Team to assess the progress and needs of residents’ groups. It is a way of Contour Homes learning more about the way residents’ groups work generally, but also getting an insight in to how individual groups are organised. By answering questions on the MOT form, residents’ groups must show that they meet the criteria Contour Homes require in order to be recognised as a fully functioning residents’ group. This will entitle them to a £200 yearly grant to help with the running of the group. For more information on this contact the Resident Involvement Team on 0845 602 1120 or email; resident.involvement@contourhousing.co.uk. You can also download an application from form the Resident Involvement section of the website www.contourhousing.co.uk.

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Resident Conference

CONTOUR RESIDENTS’ C ONFERENCE

y n o m e r e C s d r a w A s r a sc Welcome to the Residents’ O

32

The Contour Homes Residents Conference took place at Haigh Hall in Wigan on 29th November and like the previous conference was a resounding success. The clear willingness of both Contour Homes staff and resident delegates to make the most of the opportunities presented by the conference created a positive and optimistic atmosphere.

up by the different contractors.

The main theme of the conference was Service Delivery and we therefore provided opportunities throughout the day for residents to provide feedback and shape services. This included providing Market Stalls which were run by various service contractors including: Jackson Lloyd, Mono, DLP, Preston City Works, Connaught, HT Forest and Whites Building Services. Residents were given a real opportunity to ask questions and voice their concerns directly to the people that are responsible for service standards. Any unresolved queries from the day will be followed

improve them. See below for

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Other opportunities also included the various workshops that were run and included Customer Care and Contour services, Access and Contour Services, Repairs workshop, Scheme Inspections amongst others. Feedback – key information The workshops always prove as a good way to get a real insight into how residents feel about the services

person you needed might not be available or that someone with the relevant skills might not be available. When calling at a Contour Homes office: There was concern that when messages were left on staff members mobiles these were not responded to. With regard to home visits: Timescales should be established on when you should be visited by depending on your priority but should not exceed two weeks.

they receive and ideas about how to feedback we received from tenants on Access to Services and Customer Care at Contour Homes: Major works and cyclical Programme: We need to increase the information we provide to residents on our asset management service area. This includes details of its functions and role with regards to major repairs, gas servicing and other programmed improvements. When arriving at a housing office: You thought you should be seen by someone within half an hour of arriving. It was recognised that the

Feedback on Scheme Visits: Scheme visits should be made more accessible to tenants and also be more tailored around tenants. They should try to avoid organising visit times around meeting local agencies (e.g community organisations) and thereby reducing the time available for tenants to meet the officer. What methods would you like to contact Contour Homes: In the future it was recognised that we need to use less paper. A future method would be the introduction of text messaging both ways. However “text speak” must be avoided and proper English used.

Introduction of an answer phone system which allowed people to leave messages.

Best newcomer to

All feedback will be used to improve services and will be reported back in the Your Feedback, Contour Response’ article.

Hayley woods, Coldhurst

The Residents’ Oscars Awards Ceremony

Martin Perry, Ridgeway Park

In the absence of the Good Neighbour Award the Resident Involvement Team have launched the Resident Oscars Awards which provide recognition to those residents that work hard bring about improvements within their community or to Contour services. The conference therefore seemed the perfect place with which to present our tenants with these. To make for true authenticity the categories were likened to the real Oscars Ceremony and the Resident Involvement Team even purchased the gold style trophies to present to residents.

Outstanding contribution to

There were different categories for achievements that residents had made throughout the year with one overall category for outstanding contribution. Winner for the following categories were: Best contribution to continuous improvement of services: Alan Lancaster, Greenfield Court Residents Associations

Resident Involvement: Resident Association Best supporting resident:

their community: Marjorie Atherton, Kelton Park Resident Association Special Commendation Awards went to: • Malcolm Shaw • Jean Royle • Eric Riley • Irene Whitehead • Winnie Green • Teresa Hargreaves • Bob Mingay • Gerry Burns Please ensure that you don’t miss out on our next Residents’ Conference which will be held on Thursday 5th June 2008

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Resident Involvement

Resident Involvement Feedback Your feedback, Contour’s Response How your feedback has improved services At Contour Homes there is a variety of ways for you to provide feedback on the services you receive from us. We have a ‘Menu of Opportunities’ that contains all the ways to ‘get involved` and ‘have your say’. This ranges from Service Review iN Panels (makes improvements to each service), residents’ groups to the Residents’ Conference. The Resident Involvement Team at Contour Homes also has a Consultation Guidance Procedure for all of our staff. This encourages staff to consult with residents and get their view on work that is being developed like ways of providing a service to residents and the policies and procedures that help to deliver them. Please see below for feedback on how we have responded to your views on services.

lifestyle

Fun and Puzzles

Spring Wordsearch Cut out and send in your completed wordsearch to us and you could win £50. Remember to include your name and address (and phone number if you have one). The address is: Paul Adamson, Contour Homes, Freepost RPAU-JBLE-CUJX, Quay Plaza 2, First Floor Lowry Mall, Salford Quays, Salford M50 3AH.

• Colourful

• Bonnet

• Sunshine

• Chick

• Flowers

• Bunny

• Spring

• Eggs

• Easter

• Lamb

L A M B H N G N E O

F U O R T A N E S A

E L F N D A I A O O

I A O R C S R T T E

D F S W U T P C T T

T N O T E O S G G E

A H F N E R L S H T

Y N N U B R S O A H

L O C H I C K T C E

B F E N I H S N U S

Spot the difference for kids… Spot the 10 changes and you could win £25 in gift vouchers. Ring the differences then ask an adult to cut out and send in your entry to the address below. Remember to include your name and address and your age. Contour Homes, Freepost RPAU-JBLE-CUJX, Quay Plaza 2, First Floor Lowry Mall, Salford Quays, Salford M50 3AH

Your feedback

Service area

We did…

You said that you were not satisfied with the current Contour Homes’ Complaints Procedure and the timescales used. You found it difficult to chase the progress of your complaint.

Corporate Services

We have appointed an officer to review the Complaints Procedure with support from the Tenant Liaison Group. We are currently considering changing the timescales and setting up one central logging to improve the tracking of complaints.

You said that you would like recycling facilities in your area

Housing Services

We have assisted in a survey to understand demand for facilities in the area. Although there were reservations for having large recycling facilities the outcome is the City Council has provided extra recycling boxes for flats and promoted availability of wheelie bins for house.

You said you needed drop kerbs in you area to improve access onto the estate for wheel chair users

Housing Services

We have written to the local council to support your need for drop kerbs, we are awaiting the outcome.

You said that was various rubbish and tipping occurring in your area

Housing Services

We are in process of arranging a clean up day which will involve council services to collect large items and hire skips

You said that youths were congregating and hiding in nearby bushes and causing a nuisance

Housing Services

We removed the units that youths were using to sit on and cut back the hedges to remove hiding places. The Housing Officer is now working closely with the residents to monitor the situation.

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Last Issue winners:

The Winner of the Spot the Difference was Josh Brierley from Oldham. The Winner of the Wordsearch was Miss P Hetherington from Preston.

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If you have any difficulty reading or understanding this publication, we can provide this copy in large print, Braille, recorded onto tape, or you could request a translation. Please contact our Customer Service Centre on 0845 602 1120 or mail@contourhousing.co.uk

Contour Homes would like to express their appreciation to the following people, without whom this Magazine would not have been possible: Joan Winston, Len Lloyd, Malcolm Shaw, Tracy Shaw, Alan Lancaster, Tess Simpson, Val Broadbent, The Wilson Family, The Radcliffe Family, Patrick and Gail Heggarty, Mark Close Residents’ Association, Mendip Road Community Group, The Petrus Community, Leonard Cheshire Disability. If you have a comment about the Magazine, our service to you, or any housing related subject we would be delighted to consider it for publication in a future issue of iNside. You can send your contributions to Paul Adamson at Contour Housing Group Limited, Quay Plaza 2, First Floor - Lowry Mall, Salford Quays, Salford M50 3AH. Alternatively you can email them to paul.adamson@contourhousing.co.uk Please, don’t forget to include your name, address & telephone number.

Head Office: Quay Plaza 2, 1st Floor - Lowry Mall, Salford Quays, Salford M50 3AH. Tel: 0845 602 1120. Fax: 0161 745 9393. Email: mail@contourhousing.co.uk. www.contourhousing.co.uk Contour Homes is an industrial and provident society (registered No. 23607R) with charitable status. A member of the Contour Housing Group.


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