Welcome to the latest Stockbridge Village Community Voice update, we hope you had a lovely festive period and we wish our readers a Happy New Year.
As 2024 drew to a close, we held our last Community Voice group meeting of the year.
I’m pleased to share the latest news and updates covering key discussions from our December meeting. Our group is made up of myself and other tenants who live in the Stockbridge Village area.
We work with ForHousing to take action on things that affect our neighbourhood and signpost challenges with partners when it’s needed.
We understand that tenants, like me and you, want to have our voices heard and be able to influence what happens in our homes and communities.
Let’s get into the essential updates from our December Community Voice meeting.
Steph Tomlinson, Chair of Community Voice
As Community Voice members, we meet with ForHousing to talk about any concerns or worries people have.
ForHousing listens to our feedback and works with us, the council, and other organisations to improve our neighbourhoods together.
Stolen bins are still an issue for the shops by Round Hey, and there are currently no bins at the back of the shops. ForHousing told us they are looking into ordering a bin anchor to secure the new bins.
ForHousing gave a Grounds Maintenance update and shared that the two biggest issues are fly-tipping and pest control. We encourage everyone to report all cases of fly-tipping, especially as it can link to problems with pests.
You can use the Fix My Street website to report issues such as fly-tipping, broken street lighting, or even dog poo. There will also be estate walkabouts planned for 2025, ForHousing will share these dates soon.
Negotiations are still ongoing for the future of the Ploughman’s Pub. A consultation took place on Tuesday, December 10, at the Volair Sports Centre, which gave us a chance to share our opinions on the building’s potential demolition. We’ll share progress on this once we’ve had an update from ForHousing.
We also discussed the future of Brandhearth House and the proposal to redevelop it into bungalows. We were reassured that no tenants are being asked to leave their homes. Instead, ForHousing has a system that when a home becomes vacant, it is not relet.
By continuing to listen and learn from our experiences, ForHousing is committed to improving its services for tenants.
The Repairs Service Excellence Group had its first meeting in October, where involved tenants shared their views on the repairs service with ForHousing’s Repairs and Maintenance and Gas Compliance Teams.
They are already making great progress, with their priority for the first year focussing on changing the way performance is monitored.
You may already know that Liberty, who carry out repairs and maintenance to your home, is now under the ownership of Wates.
Going forward, Wates will carry out any repairs or maintenance to your home which includes damp repairs, roofing, plastering and grounds maintenance.
Liberty will carry out any heating and compliance repairs including gas, electrical safety, and boiler repairs and servicing.
We’ve listened to tenant feedback and learned what’s important when it comes to your repairs. Wates’ investment, experience, knowledge and understanding of social housing repairs will help us deliver an improved service for tenants.
Positive changes have already been taking place, including a steering group which has been set up with tenants as members.
At our last meeting, we asked ForHousing about issues with the rock wall insulation for homes in our neighbourhood. This is still an ongoing discussion and will be a part of the budget meeting in January. We’ll update you on a potential programme for maintaining the insulation in the next Community Voice update.
ForHousing shared an update on the Performance Team, who have been busy working on the way performance is reported in the Community Voice packs. New graphs and 12 satisfaction measures have been introduced, which will be used to make practical decisions to improve services.
ForHousing reminded us how important phone surveys are for gathering tenants’ opinions. Last year the team gathered about 100 survey responses a month, but with the new measures, there has been an increase in responses.
It’s important for us, as tenants, to have our voices heard, as every response helps shape and improve the services we rely on.
ForHousing gave us an update on the Employment Support Team, who provide 1:1 tailored support to people living in ForHousing homes from ages 16 onwards. This voluntary program is tenant-led, so tenants have the opportunity to see officers as often and for as long as they want to.
Since April last year, the team has secured over 120 employment opportunities and helped tenants increase their combined salaries by nearly £2 million. The team also stays with people for a minimum of three months after someone gets a job, just to check that they are settling in.
We’re happy to share that the local Stockbridge winners of ForHousing’s Be Proud Awards were announced and even featured in the papers! Congratulations to the SV Galaxy Football Club, Jasmine McDonald, the Stockbridge Ramblers, Lawrence MacIntosh, and Carol Gilligan for their dedication in supporting our community.
Our beloved Safari Kids Club has also received a prestigious King’s Award for Voluntary Service – the highest honour for voluntary groups in the UK! We want to thank all the volunteers for their hard work in creating a service that positively impacts countless families in our neighbourhood.
ForHousing has also launched a campaign to support those who may need help with their pension credit. If you need extra support this winter, please do get in touch with ForHousing’s Neighbourhoods and Income teams. They will happily share more details about the service and check your eligibility, you can find contact details here.
We were updated on the different community funds ForHousing supports our neighbourhood with, and we will share a full budget breakdown later this year. If you’d like more details on eligibility and how to apply, you can find this information here.
A new youth-focused task group is potentially in the works once the Stockbridge Community Matters (SCM) group is set up and running. We can share updates on this once more progress is made.
In exciting news, Volair Sports Centre has launched GymX, which is a unique gym membership for young people. This included general gym access, group fitness classes and unlimited access to swimming. You can find more details on what they offer here.
ForHousing is focused on an ongoing recruitment campaign to boost the number of more involved tenants, to consider things such as grounds maintenance, cleaning, and even a ‘mystery shoppers’ group.
If you are interested in representing your local community and working with ForHousing to make improvements, please get in touch here.
ForHousing wants to understand what matters most to us and we really appreciate more tenants giving their time and input to groups like these.
We’ll continue to share future updates with you. Do spread the word about the tenant newsletter with your family and friends, this is published every three months, and you will be able to view the latest version here.
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27/01/2025