Communal Areas Policy

We take your safety very seriously. To help to keep you and your neighbours safe we have a Communal Areas Policy.

The Policy will make sure all communal areas are kept clean and clear at all times from personal items as they can:

  • Contribute to the spread of fire
  • Create accidental fires by their explosive nature
  • Prevent or reduce your ability to escape in the event of fire
  • Produce smoke
  • Hinder or prevent Emergency Services access
  • Injure people by causing trips and falls

This Policy is to help keep you and others safe from harm. We will do all we can to work with and support you to store your items in a safe place in your home.

Any items found in a communal areas will be removed immediately by ForHousing colleagues, to keep everyone living in blocks and extra care schemes safe from hazards.

We will keep your item safe for one calendar month, but there may be a charge for returning your belonging to you as there will be costs for storing your items.

Please encourage your friends and neighbours to clear away any items in communal areas, as storage for any unclaimed items may be recharged to the whole block as a service charge.

If we do remove an item from a communal area in a block or extra care scheme, we will leave a card to let you know what you need to do. We know no one wants to have their belongings removed. We will do all we can to work with and support you to store your items in a safe place in your home. These changes are happening to keep you and others safe from harm.

The Policy will make sure all communal areas such as corridors, stairwells, communal lounges and kitchens, stay clear from:

  • Rubbish and other items such as furniture awaiting disposal
  • Furnishings such as mats, pictures on walls, and flowerpots
  • Bicycles, motorised cycles, prams, scooters, wheelchairs and mobility scooters
  • Hardware such as tools, paint, garden equipment etc.
  • Personal items such as storage boxes / containers, toys, barbecues etc.

If you have any questions or need further support, please call our Customer Connect Hub on 0300 123 5522, or you can contact us using Live Chat that can be find in the right hand corner of the page.

If you would like to view a copy of the Communal Areas Policy, you can read it online here.