015 SUM MER 2
The magazine for residents of Watford Community Housing Trust
2 Update on our elections 6 Evening and weekend repairs appointments 10 What’s on in your community this summer
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New homes for Watford and Three Rivers
Welcome
to Gateway Magazine It was a great pleasure to visit the new tenants of Swannells Walk for their ‘Big Lunch’ event in June. The Trust completed this development of 27 affordable two and three bedroom houses in February and it has quickly become a friendly community. Swannells Walk is our first development in Three Rivers and an important milestone in our objective of building 500 new affordable homes by 2017. In June this year, new research was published by the National Housing Federation showing why it is so important that we reach this target. The research showed that Three Rivers is not only the most difficult area in the East of England to get on the housing ladder, it is the fourth most expensive area nationwide.
Meanwhile, house prices and private sector rents in Watford are also far out of the reach of people on low to middle incomes. This lack of affordable housing can have a huge impact on local communities. Many adults still live with parents, their first home still a distant dream – or are forced to move out of the area because they cannot afford to live locally. Some are unable to start a family because they cannot afford to move, or are trapped in overcrowded homes. We are determined to play our part in solving this crisis by building the affordable homes that are so desperately needed in Watford and Three Rivers. You can find out how we are doing on page 6. Tina Barnard, Chief Executive
Why wait to go digital?
You could win a tablet! To encourage more of you to use our online tenant portal, we are running a prize draw for a 7” Android tablet! You can access the following services without having to wait on the phone: f Report and check the progress of your repairs f Check your rent account f Check and update your contact details f Find out what’s new at the Trust …and much more! Last month we gave away a tablet to Helen Button from Hillrise Avenue. You could win too. To enter you simply need to log in to our tenant portal and fill in a brief entry form. If you haven’t used the portal before you will need to register for an account – this is a quick and easy process. Simply go to: www.wcht. org.uk/myaccount, click Register and follow the steps. You will need your tenancy number to hand (you can find this on any recent rent statement). WatfordCommunityHousingTrust
If you already have an online account, simply log in as usual at www.wcht.org.uk/ myaccount. If you have any questions drop us an email at doitonline@wcht.org.uk or call 01923 209067 To enter the draw visit www.wcht.org.uk/godigital
watfordgateway
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A message from your new Gateway Membership Team If you are a member of the Trust, you should have received information through the post about the election to the Gateway Membership Team which took place this summer. Hopefully you used your vote! What is the Gateway Membership Team? We are a group of 12 people who represent the members of the Trust. The team is made up of nine elected members from the Trust’s tenants, leaseholders and associate members, plus three co-optees. We place Trust membership at the heart of what we do. We used to be known as the Gateway Leadership Team but we recently changed our name to the Gateway Membership Team to make it more easily recognizable as the group representing the membership at the Trust. This was done as a result of members telling us they did not know who their representatives are at the Trust. What does the Gateway Membership Team do? We look closely at the service the Trust provides and the way it spends its money. We advise the Trust on how it can improve things, and we work alongside staff and other residents to make sure that its services provide
a real benefit to local communities. We have a direct link to the Trust’s Board, which is required to listen to members’ recommendations. Why is this important? We relay your ideas and concerns directly from you to the Board. They ensure that your voice is heard at the heart of the Trust, thereby influencing its decision making. All this is possible because Watford Community Housing Trust is a ‘community gateway’ which is legally owned by its members. There are only four community gateways in England! We want to hear from you! Please contact us at gmt@wcht.org.uk if there is an issue you would like us to look into. We are not here to deal with individual complaints (these should be raised with the Trust on 0800 218 2247 or at feedback@wcht. org.uk). However we are here to help the Trust look at the processes it uses in its day to day running, so if you feel there is anything that could be done differently please let us know!
Update on our Gateway elections This spring we ran our ‘Hidden Gems’ campaign to encourage more of our members to get involved in our decision making. Working with UK Engage, we ran a training course to help our members get the most out of engaging with us – topics included expressing yourself clearly in meetings, understanding and writing reports, and presentation skills. After completing the training, four members put themselves forward for election to our Gateway Membership Team: Chris Blackett, Howard Gould, Cheryl Hollingsworth and Naomi Welch. While Chris, Howard and Naomi have all been involved with the Gateway before, Cheryl is a new member who heard about us through our Hidden Gems campaign.
We were hoping to be able to hold a Board election this year, however we did not receive enough candidates. You will be pleased to know however that Chris Meade and Judith Moores, who would have been standing for election this year, will continue to serve as tenant board members for the next three years. The results of the Gateway election will be announced at our annual general meeting on Monday 14 September. We are still actively searching for potential board and GMT members for the future so if this is something that might interest you, please contact Karen Airey on 01923 209061 or at karen.airey@wcht.org.uk
Celebrating local volunteers In June, we decided to mark National Volunteer Week with a ‘Thank You’ dinner to appreciate the volunteers who go out of their way to make Watford and Three Rivers a better place. The dinner, which was held at West Herts College, was attended by over 40 volunteers including representatives from local charities, residents’ associations, lunch clubs and community transport schemes. It was an honour for us to be able to hold this event for our local volunteers, who are the life blood of our communities. Take a look at the highlights from the dinner below:
Fix it Days Throughout the Spring and Summer, we have been holding Fix it Days to bring our services into our local community areas. A number of staff members from different departments have been available to help with repairs, tenancy advice and much more. We still have some Fix It Days left so look out for us in your area on the dates below: f Rookery: Eastbury Court lounge – 13 August f Radlett: Centrepoint centre – 18 August f Harebreaks: Community hub – 24 August f Boundary Way: outside the shop – 15 September
news
Tenant evicted after burglary complaint We recently evicted a tenant in Abbots Langley for a serious breach of tenancy conditions. Working alongside Hertfordshire Constabulary and Three Rivers District Council, we obtained an outright possession order for the property from a Court Judge after investigating the allegations the Trust tenant burgled a neighbour. The evicted tenant is currently on remand for burglary. We do not tolerate unlawful behaviour which breaches our tenancy and we will act quickly to investigate any complaints. The swift and decisive action we have taken with Hertfordshire Police means we are able to offer this affordable home to another person in housing need. If you have any concerns about nuisance behaviour in your neighbourhood, you can report it to us confidentially on 01923 209222, at www.wcht.org.uk or by emailing asb@wcht.org.uk
5 For many of us, the summer break means having the kids at home and more money being spent on the weekly shop – so now is a good time to start thinking about how to cut your grocery bill. Here are a few tips on how you can save money in the supermarket this summer: f Cheaper meals Pre-packaged food, such as prepared salads or ready-made sandwiches, can seem like an easy option but you can get a much better deal by buying the ingredients separately. The same goes for ready meals – which are not only more expensive but also less healthy! There is an excellent website by the food writer Jack Monroe on cooking cheap meals from scratch, which explains how to live on as little as £1 per day. It can be found at agirlcalledjack.com. She also has a book, ‘A Girl Called Jack’, which can often be picked up from local charity shops or borrowed from your local library. f Write a shopping list Planning your weekly shop in advance and choosing recipes that share ingredients can help you save money and reduce the amount of food you throw away each week. When you have a list prepared and stick to it, it’s so much easier to get only the items you need and avoid impulse buys.
Money matters
Seven ways to save money on your food shopping this summer f Look out for offers and coupons Always be on the lookout for coupons that could get you great deals on your food shopping this summer, or indeed any time of the year. Websites like freestuff.co.uk and supersavvyme.co.uk constantly have vouchers up ready for you to print off and reduce your total shopping bill. Make sure you’re collecting your loyalty points too; you’ll be surprised at how much they add up to at the end of the year. f Don’t rule out own-brand items They taste near enough the same as the big brands or amazingly even better, but with a much nicer price tag and can often be healthier (but make sure you still check the salt, sugar and fat content). Supermarkets will often try to sell more expensive goods to you by promoting offers which don’t necessarily work out cheaper than their own-brand products. Make sure to look on the bottom shelf too as this is where the better deals are usually hidden away.
Set up your Direct Debit and be a winner! Paying your rent and service charges by Direct Debit gives you peace of mind that you are always on top of your payments. Plus, if you switch to Direct Debit you will be entered into a prize draw for a 7” Android tablet. Last month Louise Armsden was our lucky tenant and you could be the next winner! Call us on 01923 209111 to set up your Direct Debit by 24 July and you will automatically be entered into the draw!
f Avoid using your debit/credit card in store Try using cash when paying for your items rather than your card. That way, however tempted you are to go over your budget, you have to walk away in the end. f Buy reduced price items Try and leave your shopping until later in the day – that’s when you’re more likely to find the items that have been marked down. If something is close to its use-by date, you can always keep it in the freezer and have it on another day. f Freeze fruit and veg If you only use half an onion you can always freeze the other half instead of throwing it away. This applies to lots of other types of fruit and veg too!
Pay your rent on a smartphone or tablet The allpay Payment App is available to download free from the Apple App Store, Google Play or the Windows Phone Store – and it means you can pay your rent from a smartphone or tablet. It’s the easy way to keep your account topped up, and it securely stores Payment Reference Numbers, bank details and payment amounts – so you can use it anytime, anywhere in confidence. Search for ‘allpay’ in your device’s app store.
New homes for Watford and Three Rivers Watford and Three Rivers has a desperate shortage of affordable housing. Did you know that Three Rivers is the most expensive area to get a mortgage in the East of England – and the fourth most expensive area in the whole of the UK? Watford, meanwhile, also has very high house prices, while average private sector rents are now around £1,200 per month. We want to play our part in solving this crisis: that’s why we have a target of building 500 new affordable homes in Watford and Three Rivers by 2017. Here is an update on some of the homes we have recently completed and developments we have in the pipeline.
Swannells Walk As featured on our cover page, we held a ‘Big Lunch’ at the play area in Swannells Walk in Mill End in June. This is our first development in Three Rivers and consists of 27 affordable two and threebedroom homes. Kelly Scears (pictured), who lives in one of the new homes with her partner and one-year-old daughter Issie, said: “It’s lovely, we’re really happy. We were in a studio flat before and now we’ve got so much room we almost don’t know what to do with it!”
Meriden At the end of June we submitted our planning application for 131 new homes (including a flexi care housing scheme for older people), shops and a community space. If we receive planning permission we hope to achieve a site start on Phase 1 in February 2016. Details are available for viewing on our website at www.wcht.org.uk/ meridendevelopment.
North Watford Police Station We have been consulting local residents on a proposal for new affordable homes on the site of the former North Watford Police Station off the North Orbital Road. Details can be found at www.wcht.org.uk/ northwatfordpolicestation.
Parsons Court, Moor View We completed a block of nine new homes in Moor View, off Vicarage Road (pictured on the right) in March. The homes, which will be formally opened by Richard Harrington MP this summer, had been built on redundant garage space belonging to the Trust – making better use of our assets.
Rembrandt House We are providing 31 homes for affordable and social rent as part of a new housing development at Rembrandt House. We are proud to be part of this project, which will bring this West Watford landmark back into use and see a total of 107 homes being built on the site.
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Hemming Way At 28-46 Hemming Way we aim to replace 10 bungalows with a new development of 32 apartments. This would provide more spacious and better quality homes to people in Watford and Three Rivers, while also making a big improvement to the park entrance, making it a safer and more attractive space. However, we know that moving house can be difficult. In addition to providing a Home Loss Disturbance payment of £4,900 to the tenants who have had to move, we have also given one-to-one support at every step of the process. This has included helping the tenants to find a suitable new home, and assisting with removal arrangements such as carpeting and decorations. For some of the tenants, the process helped them to move to a home that is more suitable for their needs than a bungalow. We met up with some of the tenants who have moved on, and this is what they had to say.
Beryl and Charles Beryl and Charles Cain moved from Hemming Way to Rutland Lodge, a sheltered housing scheme in central Watford. As a flexi care scheme, Rutland Lodge has care staff on site, while the Trust’s Scheme Officers also attend the scheme regularly to help tenants live independently. As the couple are both in their 90s and Beryl has difficulty walking, they find the scheme is well suited to their needs.
“We are very content here,” said Charles. “The flat is very comfortable and the staff did everything they could to make the move easier for us.” “We are very lucky,” added Beryl. “The staff here are absolutely wonderful and we don’t know what we’d do without them.”
Doreen and Tamera Doreen and her teenage granddaughter Tamera moved to a 2-bedroom house in Harris Road, around the corner from Hemming Way, in April.
“We only had one bedroom in the bungalow so we had to share. It’s great to have our own space now,” said Doreen. “In some ways I miss sharing but really it’s for the best, especially the age Tamera is now.” “I definitely prefer having my own bedroom!” Tamera added. “I really like it here.” Doreen added: “I can’t fault the Trust for the support they’ve given us. I got the house I wanted, I got the area I wanted, I have nothing bad to say about it. We’re just down the road from where we were before so we can stay in touch with everyone, it’s great. “I just want to say a big thank you for the help they’ve given us, it’s been amazing.”
Leslie Leslie has moved to a bedsit in Hollytree House, a sheltered housing scheme in the Courtlands area. Like all the flats in our schemes, it has an emergency pull-cord so Leslie can call for help if he needs it. For extra piece of mind he also wears a mobile alarm button, known as the Lifeline, which he can use if anything happens to him at home.
“I like it here, it’s a very nice place,” said Leslie. “There’s a shared lounge where the tenants can meet up and there are lots of activities, clubs and things. You can join in if you like, or you can keep yourself to yourself if you prefer. It’s up to you how you manage your life.” “I got lots of help during the move,” he said. “When this place became available they did it up nicely for me. It had a walkin bath but I said that’s not right for me, I’d find a shower much easier, and they changed it just like that.”
Update on our services Have you tried our Handy Person service?
Repairs and planned maintenance: 4 steps to better services!
If you’re over 60, disabled, or on a low income, you might be eligible for our Handy Person service. This includes the following:
We are improving all the frontline services we offer, to ensure you have a better customer experience while we achieve the best value for money. Here are four of the changes we are making to our property services.
f Assistance with moving small pieces of furniture or taking down curtains. f Installing washing machine into existing pipe work (depending on weight of machine). f Fitting shelves. f Putting hooks on walls and hanging mirrors and pictures. f Replacing existing light shades, tubes, bulbs and fuses. f Simple draught proofing. f Replacing WC seats. f Moving and assembling small pieces of furniture. f Fitting smoke alarms (battery operated only). f Bleeding radiators. f Installing doorbells (battery operated only). f Fitting curtain rails and hanging curtains. f Small cosmetic repairs to paintwork, varnish and wallpaper where the tenant provides suitable materials – maximum 1 hour work at the Trust’s discretion. f Fitting towel rails (not heated)
f Extended appointment slots We want to make our repairs service as efficient and stressfree as possible, and after listening to your comments we have now launched our extended evening and weekend repair appointments. Our operatives will now be available to work in your home until 7.30pm on Thursday evenings and from 8am until 12pm on Saturdays. You can book an appointment online at www.wcht.org.uk/repairs, by emailing repairs@wcht.org.uk, or by calling 0800 2182247 f Reviewing our repairs service We will be setting up a dedicated group of staff who will be working alongside our tenants to see how we can make further improvements to our repairs service. As part of this we will be looking at how we use sub-contractors, as there may be more efficient ways of doing things. f Planned maintenance – getting better value Currently, we use a number of different contractors to deliver planned maintenance jobs such as kitchen, bathroom and roofing works. To make sure we get the best value for money, we will be tendering for a single contractor to deliver these works. If successful, this new contract could potentially last 10 years. It was great to hear your views, thank you for your feedback. We expect this new arrangement will go live in April 2016. f Bringing our ‘voids’ service in-house
The service is mainly available to those who are 60 years of age or older, or aged 18 to 59 and assessed as disabled. It may also be available if you are vulnerable or on a low income (on means tested benefits), but we will need to assess your circumstances. We have a limited budget for the Handy Person service so we look at each application on its merits. For further information or to get an application form, please contact us on 01923 209194 or adminhousing.communities@wcht.org.uk
We have been looking at how we can get better value for money from our ‘voids’ service. This is where we repair empty homes so we can re-let them to tenants. We found that if this service is carried out by our inhouse Gateway Repairs Team (GRT) instead of external contractors, we could make significant savings. As the GRT are already repairing our tenanted properties to a very high standard, it makes sense to expand this service to all of our homes. This not only means we are creating more jobs for Watford and Three Rivers, but will have more money to invest in better homes and services. The new in-house service will go live in September.
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How we performed from Jan 2015 – Mar 2015 f Satisfaction with staff behaviour
Our target 82% How we did 84.6%
Up or down?
Comments We know it is important to you that our staff are courteous, professional, and that they keep their promises to you. Since January 2015 we have been measuring satisfaction with staff behaviour, and are pleased that we are ahead of the target we have set for ourselves. We are aiming for 90% by March 2016.
f Percentage of tenants satisfied that the Trust listens to their views and acts upon them
Our target 73% How we did 63.8%
Up or down?
Comments It is important to us that you feel we are listening to you, so we are disappointed that this is not where we want to be. We hope that by continuing to improve our services and acting on your feedback, more of you will feel that we are taking your views on board.
f Percentage of tenants satisfied with overall services
Our target 83% How we did 80.6%
Up or down?
Comments Overall satisfaction with our services remains high, although we narrowly missed our target.
f Percentage of tenants satisfied with the quality of their home
Our target 83% How we did 83.2%
Up or down?
Comments Again, we are pleased to be ahead of our target. While 83.2% is a total for the whole year, the actual figure for January to March was even better at 84.3%.
f Percentage of tenants satisfied with repairs and maintenance
Our target 78% How we did 78.2%
Up or down?
Comments Satisfaction is increasing as we improve our repairs service, and we hope it will rise further as new changes such as extended appointment times are introduced.
f Average wait time for calls to our Customer Service Centre
Our target 40 seconds How we did 45 seconds
Up or down?
Comments We know it is important to you that you are able to get through to us quickly, so we have been working to reduce your wait time on the phone; this has gone down by 24% since December.
f Efficiency savings
Our target £700,000 How we did £737,000
Up or down?
Comments We want to achieve the best value for money from the services we provide to you, so we have set a target of saving £1.7 million by March 2016, which we are well on our way towards achieving.
What’s On... From outdoor cinema to arts and crafts, there’s a whole host of activities!
20th August
The Big Screen
The Parade, Watford High Street Enjoy the sun with a bit of outdoor cinema. Back by popular demand, the Big Screen will return showing big hits and classic movies with a few treats on the side. For more info, go on their website at www.watfordbigevents.co.uk
Cassiobury Park Green Gym
Every Wednesday
10am-1pm
This summer, help transform Cassiobury Park and your health through practical conservation activities including managing wild flower meadows, creating wildlife habitats, deadwood hedging, bramble bashing, landscaping and food growing. You will learn new skills while getting active and fit outdoors. For more information contact The Conservation Volunteers at gg-watford@tcv.org.uk or on 07717 494476. 18th August
Autumn Hanging Baskets 10am-12pm and 2pm-4pm, Burston Garden Centre This event, exclusively for members of our Nifty Fifties group, is a chance to make hanging baskets for the autumn with friends. Bring your own basket (or buy one of the day) and pay for the plants you want – the garden centre will supply compost and fertiliser for free. For more information on attending or joining the Nifty Fifties, contact Jackie Tyrrell at jackie.tyrrell@ wcht.org.uk or on 01923 209293.
Nifties Knit and Natter
2pm-4pm, Harebreaks Community Hub
17th August
(and third Monday of every month)
This friendly new craft group for members of our Nifty Fifties group is a great opportunity to get out of the house and socialise! For more information about joining the Nifty Fifties contact Jackie Tyrrell at jackie.tyrrell@wcht.org.uk or on 01923 209293.
Herts Pride 2015
22nd August
10am- Cassiobury Park
The annual event is back with a list of great acts ready to perform, the market zone for all of your summer bargains, and some free Health and Wellbeing advice at their stands. The event is free to attend but if you want to get that little extra and see the Cabaret marquee, order your wristbands for £5 beforehand or £7 on the door. For more information go to www.hertspride.co.uk
Community at the Colosseum
31st October
Watford Colosseum
Mark October 31st in your diaries for our next big community event, Community at the Colosseum. Following on from our ‘Watford 2014’ event last year, this year’s event promises to be a huge day of family fun with live music, entertainers, giveaways, refreshments and so much more! More information coming soon!
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Events at Leavesden Green Community Hub Leavesden Green Community Hub, off Clarke Way, is a space where you can hold social events, sports activities and community meetings. Boasting a large hall and a number of meeting rooms, plus kitchen facilities and high speed wi-fi, the Hub is available to hire at low rates – visit www.wcht.org. uk/hallhire to find out more or call 01923 679664. Stay in touch with what’s happening by following ‘communityhubs’ on Facebook. We have a full programme of events every week at the Hub, plus we are holding some special activities there just for the summer. Summer events f Artskool Academy, 2pm-4pm, 3 August, 10 August, 17 August f Petting farm, 11am-2pm, 27 August
Every week... Mondays 9.30am-11.30am The Hub Café Join us at Leavesden Green’s community café every Monday. Call 01923 679664 for more information. Mondays 9.30-11.30am and 1pm-3pm Let’s Play Soft play for toddlers. Call 07794 841264 for more information. Mondays 5.15pm-7pm Celtic Hearts Irish dance for children aged four and over. Call 07786 252 587 for more information. Mondays 7.30pm-8.30pm Yoga With Jayne Soft play for toddlers. Call 07794 841264 for more information. Mondays and Thursdays 7pm-8pm Fit Camp Hertfordshire Four-week fit camp to help you get into shape. Visit www.24fitcamp.co.uk for more information.
Plus:
Tuesdays 6pm-8.30pm Saturdays 9.30pm-11.30am Tae Kwon Do For children and adults of all abilities. Contact Lorraine Leventis on 07930 368240 for more information.
f Free fitness sessions f Street dance workshops f Cooking workshops f Wii fit events
Wednesdays 4pm-6pm Box Cleva Health and wellbeing programme for young people, based on boxing techniques. Email steve@boxcleva.net for more information. Thursdays 5pm-7pm Youth Theatre Free sessions for 13-16-year-olds provided by Watford Palace Theatre. For more information email participation@ watfordpalacetheatre.co.uk or call 01923 810307. Fridays 9.30am-10.30am All-Fit with Ali £5 per session for over-16s. For more information call Ali on 07889 631986.
Find out more at www.facebook.com/communityhubs
Also... /watfordcommunityhousingtrust @watfordgateway
Fridays 11am-3.30pm Five Ways Friends Club Wellbeing clubs for the over-55s and their carers provided by W3RT. Call 01923 216967 for more information. Monday-Friday Shining Stars Pre-school Morning and afternoons, term time only. Call 07964 727367 or visit www.shiningstarspreschool.co.uk for more information.
get in touch
Contact us For routine enquiries, please contact our Customer Service team by email at enquiries@wcht.org.uk
Have your National Insurance number to hand...
If your enquiry is an emergency, please call 0800 218 2247. 0800 numbers are now free to call from both mobiles and landlines while you are within the UK. Postal address Gateway House, 59 Clarendon Road, Watford WD17 1LA
The Trust cannot answer questions about the following: Please call the numbers below... For questions about:
f Housing Benefit f Applications for housing f Pest control f Council tax ...call Watford Borough Council or Three Rivers District Council
If you call our Customer Services team or Income team, our staff may ask for your National Insurance number for security purposes, so please make sure you have this to hand when you get in touch. 01923 226 400 01923 776 611
This is something we do to keep your account details as secure as possible. We need to keep our records up to date so we have enough information to verify that the person we are speaking to has authorisation to discuss your account.
020 3567 6900 01923 776 611
Our staff normally ask for three pieces of personal information when you call, such as your date of birth, address or telephone number. We are now asking for National Insurance numbers as an additional layer of security. This can then be used to verify your identity when you call back and ensure that we do not discuss your details with anyone who is not entitled to the information.
For questions about:
f Refuse collection/recycling ...call Veolia/Watford Borough Council or Three Rivers District Council For questions about:
f Water supply For issues with the clean water supply to the whole house/street/area call Affinity 0845 782 3333 For issues with blocked drains and sewage please call Thames Water
0845 9200 800
For questions about:
Please be reassured that we hold these details completely securely and do not share them with third parties.
f Disabled parking badges ...call Hertfordshire County Council
0300 1234 050
For questions about:
f Lost energy top-up card ...check with your supplier.
Your Feedback is important to us. You can let us know what you think in many ways: • Via our website: www.wcht.org.uk/feedback • By email at: feedback@wcht.org.uk • By telephone on: 0800 2182247 • In person to any member of staff • In writing to Gateway House, 59 Clarendon Road, Watford, Hertfordshire WD17 1LA • And by completing satisfaction surveys
Don’t forget you can check your account online. Simply go to: www.wcht.org.uk and click ‘My account’.