Listening to our customers Turning your feedback into action
Last year we asked all of our customers to take part in an independent survey about our homes and services. There was a great response to the survey with 3,862 customers across the Group taking part and sharing their views. As a result of your great feedback we have taken action and introduced a range of improvements to our repairs and maintenance service.
Upgraded repair timescales You told us that timely repairs are the most important part of our repairs service so we are delighted to share news with you about our improved responsive and heating repair timescales. This is what you can expect from our upgraded responsive repairs service:
Repair category
Repair timescale
Repair description
Repair example
4 hours
Repairs that present a health and safety risk and/or cause real danger to people or property.
Unsecure door/ window causing security issue.
Urgent
4 days
Repairs that cause significant inconvenience but are not a health and safety risk.
Containable leak.
Routine
17 days
Minor repairs that are not urgent.
Plaster patch to wall.
30 days
External repairs that due to their nature need to be completed outside of the MOT programme.
Fence and gutter repair not covered by MOT.
60 days
Jobs where the work either costs more than ÂŁ500 or takes more than a day to complete.
Rebuild brick wall.
Emergency
External works
Major works
Heating repairs You told us you were unhappy with the service being provided by our heating contractors so we have: ww Undertaken a rigorous tendering process which prioritised the quality of service provided to customers. ww Appointed Phoenix Gas Services to deliver all our gas servicing and repairs. ww Implemented faster response times and penalties if the service falls short. ww Changed the way you can report a repair. You told us you wanted to deal with us directly so all heating repairs can now be reported to our customer services team. This is what you can expect from our new heating repair service:
Repair category
Emergency
Repair timescale
Repair example
6 hours
No heating or hot water. (Winter period only 1 Oct – 31 Mar)
(irrespective of time of year, nature or customer vulnerability)
Uncontrollable water leak. Report of gas leak, carbon monoxide or fumes.
For all emergency repairs an engineer will attend and make safe, fix the problem or provide alternative heating until the problem can be resolved as per the timescales below: 5 days
10 days
Non-urgent
15 days
Gas combi boiler repair. Fire back boiler, solid or oil fuel appliance repair. Solar thermal system repair. Room thermostat repair. Radiator value repair. Dripping radiator repair.
Gas Tag: life-saving gas safety technology As part of our ongoing commitment to providing safe homes for our customers, we are installing new life-saving gas safety technology in all of our properties. You will be some of the first tenants in the country to benefit from this ground-breaking gas-tag technology which will help to keep you and your family safe from the dangers of carbon monoxide poisoning. We have already begun to install a ‘gas safety tag’ to every home. The barcode tag is attached to your gas meter and the process of fitting the tag takes just 20 minutes. Life-saving safety checks will be captured using a smartphone app – allowing the work to be monitored in real time. There is no charge to you for this additional safety feature. Phoenix Gas Services will contact you when it is time to tag your gas meter. Alternatively, a gas safety tag could be added to your meter by a Property Plus operative who is undertaking planned maintenance works at your home.
Rapid response triage pilot A new rapid response triage pilot has been launched to ensure that all emergency repairs are dealt with as swiftly and efficiently as possible.
RAPID RESPONSE
Just like a nursing triage, when you call us to report a repair, our experienced triage team will diagnose your repair and give it an appropriate classification. If your repair is categorised as either an emergency or urgent job it will promptly be passed to our new rapid response team. The team, who are dedicated to dealing with these crucial repairs, will be dispatched to you in their new rapid response uniforms and vans. Once the pilot period has ended the project will be evaluated and if proven successful, it will be further developed and rolled out permanently across the business.
MOT programme Our award-winning MOT programme makes sure that every home in a neighbourhood has an external home MOT upgrade within 5 years to tackle minor external repairs and decorative work. Feedback from customers in the areas where we have already delivered the service show increased levels of customer satisfaction. So that all of our customers benefit from this great service, as quickly as possible, we have increased the size of our highly skilled MOT team. When the MOT team arrive at your home they have a checklist of work which may need doing including: ww Gutter clean and repair
ww Fence repairs
ww Front and back door cleaning
ww External window paintwork
ww Soffit and fascia paintwork
ww Window handles, hinges and stays repairs
ww Uneven slabs to front and rear paths
ww Broken or misted window glass repair
How do you rate the quality of the work carried out?
“Fantastic, really happy” Mrs Davies
Were you happy with the team that carried out the works?
“Most definitely, they were polite and helpful — first class.” Mr Edwards
You can find out when your home is due for an MOT upgrade and other planned improvements in the next section.
When will my home be improved? As a fair landlord, we plan home improvement work based on fixed timescales. ww Kitchens are replaced when they are at least 20 years old ww Bathrooms are replaced when they are at least 30 years old ww Boilers are replaced when they are at least 15 years old ww External doors are replaced when they are at least 30 years old ww MOT upgrades are carried out once every five years ww Electrical tests are carried out once every five years
For more efficiency and savings, our teams work on an area-by-area basis. So instead of fitting a kitchen in Castlefields one day and Minsterley on another, they work together to replace all kitchens meeting the criteria in a particular street, at the same time. When your kitchen, bathroom, boiler or front door is due for replacement there is no need to call us. We will contact you well before our teams are working in your area. You can use our map below to see which area you are in. Then, check on the 10 year schedule of home improvements overleaf to find out when our teams will be in your area. There are two dates on the schedule as our teams work on a five-year rolling programme.
ww Gas safety tests are carried out annually
Customers are often disappointed when we tell them that they are not yet due for a kitchen, bathroom or boiler upgrade but when we explain how we plan our works to treat everyone fairly, they usually understand. Customer services team
Harlescott SY1
SY1
SY13
SY2
SY11 SY10
Postcode area one SY1
SY4 TF10
(not including Harlescott)
Harlescott Harlescott properties in SY1
TF6 SY3
Postcode area four SY5
TF6
Postcode area two SY2
SY6
TF8
SY10
TF10
SY11
TF11
Postcode area three
TF1
TF12
TF3
TF13
SY3 SY4
SY13
TF4
SY1
TF1
SY2
SY5
TF4
TF3 TF11
TF8 TF12 TF13 SY6
1. Find your area 2. Check the work schedule overleaf
Ten year schedule of home improvements Planned maintenance Kitchens Bathrooms Boilers External MOT External doors Electrical testing programme
Postcode area one
Harlescott
Postcode area two
Postcode area three
Postcode area four
2022/23 2027/28 2019/20 2024/25
2021/22 2023/24 2019/20 2020/21 2026/27 2028/29 2024/25 2025/26 2020/21 2021/22 2022/23 2023/24 2025/26 2026/27 2027/28 2028/29 Will be reviewed with kitchens and bathrooms and at your annual gas servicing check 2021/22 2023/24 2019/20 2020/21 2022/23 2026/27 2028/29 2024/25 2025/26 2027/28 As required following renewal inspection carried out during MOT upgrade This will be determined by the date of your last electrical test, tests are on a five year cycle and cannot be refused
When will you improve my home? If your kitchen, bathroom, boiler or external doors do not fit the age criteria listed overleaf, they will continue to be repaired until sufficiently old enough and we are next in your area. Electrical testing and the external MOT are done on a five-year cycle.
What if I don’t know the age of my kitchen, bathroom, boiler or front door? If we think that something in your home might be due for replacement, we will contact you well ahead of the time when our teams are due to visit your area. We will arrange to carry out a brief survey of your home. We will be able to tell you if you qualify for the home improvement.
Will I have time to prepare for the work? Yes! We will give you plenty of notice. In the case of kitchens and bathrooms, you will also be asked to choose from a range of fittings and tiles. We will be able to advise you how to make life easier during the work. Remember, our teams are experts, specialising in the work that they do. And because we organise home improvements efficiently, area-by-area, we make sure that all the people, equipment and fittings are available when they are needed. So even a new kitchen can be fitted in a week, with just a day or so the following week to complete the final touches.
Giving us access to your home It’s really important that you let us carry out planned improvements to your home as we cannot 0300 300 0059 www.severnsidehousing.co.uk Brassey Road, Old Potts Way, Shrewsbury, SY3 7FA
guarantee that we will be able to source and repair old parts. This could lead to your home having mismatched replacement parts and it taking us much longer to complete your repair.
Keeping you safe As part of our planned maintenance work, we carry out safety checks which are part of our legal responsibilities as your landlord and required by law. This work includes: ww ww ww ww
Annual gas safety checks Electrical tests every five years Managing asbestos Servicing and maintaining passenger lifts in blocks of flats ww Ensuring that all our schemes and communal areas are fire safe ww Carrying out gas servicing and repairs ww Six monthly fire door checks We carry out this work to keep you and your family safe. Failure to allow us access to your home to carry out these vitally important safety inspections is a breach of your tenancy, which could result in the loss of your home.
Keeping appointments When we contact you to let you know we need to visit your home to make improvements or carry out safety checks, please help us to save money by agreeing a convenient time for us to visit and keeping that appointment. Every year we spend over £60,000 on missed pre-booked appointments – money that could be spent improving even more homes.