pch intouch newsletter - summer 2014

InTouchIssue 19 Summer 2014

make it happen

Inside this issue

Gettinginvolved with us

Working together

is great news Page 8

Going outside?Helpful tips to stay safe in the sunPage 9

SO LivingPage 3

Helpful advice about paying bills 0

Grow your own!See Page 12

Resident Scrutiny Panel Page 13

Inside3 Top Story4 New Graduate Surveyors

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It’s been over a year since the Bedroom Tax was introduced – Financial Inclusion Officer Vicki Sampson explains how her job has changed to make sure PCH residents get the help they need.

You’ll be able to find out how we’re doing in our Annual Report soon – if you’ve ever wondered what it’s about, it’s all explained on page 9.

There are opportunities for you to get more involved in your community by being a part of our newly renamed Resident Scrutiny Team or joining one of our community groups. It’s really important we hear what residents

Hello! Elaine Pellow

Chair of the Board

Elaine Pellow Chair of the Board

Hello InTouch Call us on 0800 694 3101

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think and it’s a chance for you to make sure your view is heard – find out more on page 8.

If you think a member of PCH staff has done something exceptional, you’ve got the chance to nominate them for a Beacon Award. Details are on page 12.

Setting things up for the future, Christina Smith and Joe Condon tell us about moving into one of our Shared Ownership homes in North Prospect on page 3, while new Graduate Surveyors Jack Endley and Paul Cant settle into their roles at PCH.

We’re doing lots across Plymouth to make our homes more energy efficient

and make sure they’re fit for purpose in the future too. Read about a Stock Condition Survey we’re carrying out on page 13, and find out about A Day in the Life of Contract Surveyor Roy Harris on page 6 .

We’ve also been looking at how you want to talk to us – as a result, there are some changes to the ways you can get in touch. Find out more on page 5.

There’s lots more in this edition too – I look forward to hearing what you think of it. Enjoy the read.

Hello and welcome to this Summer’s edition of InTouch. There’s a lot to tell you about.

5 Making connections6 Day in the Life...8 Get involved with us

10 Helpful advice for paying bills12 Nominate someone for an award

13 Looking after your home15 Letters page16 Contacts

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Top Story InTouch

SO LivingChristina Smith and Joe Condon have just moved into their new home in Floyd Close with 11 week old Faye. They’ve got their home through the Shared Ownership scheme.

Christina and Joe got their home through SO Living, a subsidiary of PCH which is offering affordable home ownership in Plymouth. You can buy a minimum of half of your home and pay rent on the part still owned by PCH as long as you meet certain criteria.

Christina said: “Hannah (Massey, SO Living Sales Officer) is amazing – if we had any problems, we could call any time. It’s a good way to get on the property ladder.

“It’s just what we wanted – 2 bedrooms and a garden is what everyone dreams of, it’s a perfect first family home.”

To find out more about SO Living visit our website or contact Hannah Massey on 0800 0778 748.

“It’s just what we wanted, a perfect first family home”

This means they’ve bought a share of their home and rent the rest from PCH.

Joe said: “My parents found out about the Shared Ownership scheme and we did a bit of digging. We weren’t originally looking for a new build as we didn’t think we’d afford it, we’ve been really lucky. We were looking all over Plymouth, but we really like it here. North Prospect’s certainly changed a lot from the past.”

plymouthcommunityhomes.co.uk

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Changes to adaptationsIs there an adaption to your house that would make your life easier?

PCH offers a range of adaptations for your home to help with any mobility or health issues. Most of the additions we make are things like grab rails and step reducers to make everyday life easier, but did you know we can also help with alarms for people with hearing impairments which use strobe lighting and vibrating discs? If you suffer any limitations in your home, read our adaptations policy and see what we can do to help. Our ‘On Demand’ service means you don’t need an assessment from an Occupational Therapist and we can install adaptations within four weeks.

From 1 August there may be changes in the way you contact us about these On Demand adaptations. We are currently looking at a range of different companies to see who provides the best quality and service, which may mean the contact details change.

We will let you know about any changes before they happen through our website and by post, and we’ll give you the new free telephone number you will need.They can then discuss with you what help you need and what we can do to help. If necessary they will also come out to your home to discuss your needs in further detail.

Until 1 August you can still contact the On Demand team on 0800 988 7344 and let them know you are a PCH tenant.

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We’ve taken on two new Graduate Surveyors

InTouchplymouthcommunityhomes.co.uk

Jack Endley and Paul Cant joined PCH in February, starting a two year contract which will give them the industry experience they need to become Chartered Surveyors.

Jack and Paul will get experience of various surveying roles within PCH. At the moment Jack’s working on the North Prospect Regeneration, making sure he’s up to date with what we’re asking contractors to do, checking the building sites and carrying out some of the 12 month checks on new homes.

He says: “It’s a big adjustment going from being a student to this. In university, everything is based on ideal situations and the real world isn’t like that. I’ve already learnt lots. My degree gave me a good grounding, but now I’ve really started learning.”

Meanwhile, Paul’s working on adaptations, cladding and roofing projects. He’ll be visiting homes

Anti-social behaviourThere’s a new number to call if you want to tell us about anti-social behaviour outside of normal office hours – it’s 0800 028 7377. We’re using a new company to help us answer these calls, which will make it easier for us to continue improving how we deal with anti-social behaviour.

If you have any problems with anti-social behaviour during office hours, you can contact your housing team – all the numbers are on the back of every edition of InTouch and on our website too.

Recently, the government’s passed a new Act designed to empower victims of anti-social behaviour and give communities more of a say in how housing associations like PCH and other local agencies like the police and council respond to anti-social behaviour complaints.

We’re taking this opportunity to continue making improvements to the way we handle anti-social behaviour situations and make sure victims are at the centre of our actions.

To do this, we’ll be at events and community meetings to hear about your experiences of anti-social behaviour and how you feel we dealt with it.

If you want to see a draft of our new policy or have any comments about the policy you’d like to make, please email [email protected]

across the city to design adaptations from stairlifts to accessible bathrooms, working with contractors to get the adaptations done and making sure residents are happy with the results.

Paul completed his degree at Plymouth University and worked at Plymouth City Council in a similar role before joining PCH. He said: “Because this is a graduate role with structured training, it’s better in terms of long-term opportunities. It’s brilliant here – I really enjoy being at PCH.”

The plan is for Jack and Paul to swap roles after a year so they get a chance to cover all aspects of a surveyor’s role.

Empowering victims of anti-

social behaviour, giving you more

of a say

Jack Endley (L) and Paul Cant (R)


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InTouch

Whether you need to talk about paying your rent, report anti-social behaviour or tell us about an idea for the Money Tree Fund, we’re here to help. But not everyone is the same so we’re offering more options to suit your lifestyle.

You’ve shown us that the majority of residents prefer to use our City Centre Shop in Frankfort Gate to talk to one of the team. While more and more residents are choosing the shop, fewer are using their local housing office. From mid-June this year, you are welcome at our new Customer Centre at Plumer House, too. This might help you particularly if you’re in the north of the city.

Our housing teams are always ready and able to come out and see you where you live. They can come and see you individually in your home, or come to your community walkabout or event. Often we’ve found that that works better for people than coming to an office. All round it no longer makes sense to keep open the local housing offices. We will let go of our housing offices in Whitleigh, North Prospect and Estover

Making connectionsWe’ve been doing research into how you and other residents would most like to be in touch with us, and what’s most effective.

over the next few months. There will be plenty of information in those local areas to help you know what’s happening, when, and the other options open to you.

We’ve also noticed that more residents are preferring to go online to make contact with us, at plymouthcommunityhomes.co.uk. And we’ve tried to make things easier – you can even reach us on Facebook or Twitter if you wish - the details are on the back page of this magazine.

You can still call us on 01752 388300.

Often there’s no substitute for a chat, particularly if there’s something on your mind. You can at any time talk to our rangers or repairs teams out where you live, or our housing team who are based out in the communities more than ever.

We want to connect with you. If you want to find out more about your options, or about your local housing office closing, please contact your local housing team using the numbers on the back page.

A Day in the Life of…Roy Harris, Regeneration and Development Surveyor


Communications Officer Kevin Pickup spent a day with Roy Harris to find out more about what’s being done around the city to improve the appearance and insulation of PCH homes.

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As a Regeneration and Development Surveyor, Roy is part of a team of seven in the Cyclical Maintenance team. This is part of the Regeneration and Development team and specifically looks at the refurbishment of existing PCH buildings. Roy covers all PCH properties and estates throughout the city carrying out the External Wall Insulation Programme and has managed the Prior to Paint contract in south of city - which is every PCH property south of the A38.

He tries to spend about three hours a day in the office and the rest on the road visiting PCH properties and regeneration projects throughout the city, covering around 20 miles a day

driving to various parts of the city from Plympton St Maurice to Barne Barton, Southway to the Barbican to check works being carried out.

Roy says: “When I stop to look back, it is amazing at how much we have achieved over the past four and half years for PCH residents. No two days are the same and part of my role is always looking for ways to improve properties and improve residents’ lives.”

Arriving at his desk at about 8am each morning, at the moment Roy is heavily involved with the refurbishment works taking place on all PCH split house flats, Cornish units and steel clad

houses. This is a project working with British Gas to reduce carbon output levels improving not only the appearance of properties in Plymouth, but also helping to reduce heating costs for residents.

Roy says: “In total, it is planned that 4,000 non-traditional properties will be cladded in the next two years and work is afoot to obtain further funding to clad our traditional houses.”

Today, Roy has three areas to visit. Part of his job requires him to ensure that Health & Safety on work sites is adhered to and that everybody knows what they are doing.First on our schedule is a property in

“I’m always looking at ways

to improve properties and

with it, residents’ lives”


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Kedlestone Avenue, West Park which has just had new external insulation cladding covering the concrete panels. We are here to check the quality of the work and make sure that the resident is happy. This is one of 233 homes that have recently been improved with insulation and mortar cladding in this area. Residents have a choice of five colours to paint the outside of their houses, so the street is looking very fresh and colourful.

Mr Smith, a PCH resident in West Park says: “The work that has been done on my house has been very good and it has improved the look of the area.”

Next we head to Whitleigh where there is a large project to clad 967 properties in the area. At the moment the contractors are working on the cladding and replacing the front door canopies. While here, Roy meets British Gas Resident Liaison Officer, Ian Hayes. This opportune meeting allows them to talk about the waste produced by the building

work and how it will be cleared as the contractors work their way around the properties.

Roy says: “I think in this job communication is very important. Being able to talk to residents and contractors about the same things ensures that the work gets done to a satisfactory standard.”

Roy continues: “As we had a very wet winter, it has meant that we are slightly behind schedule on this work as we need three clear days to apply the finish colour top coat to the property. This has meant that there has been scaffolding up longer than we hoped, so discussions with residents about when the work can be done are very important. It has caused a bit of a backlog, but we are working with the contractors to look at ways to catch up.”

There is still time to go and visit a third area today. We head to Mountstone Flats, Stonehouse to check the outside paintwork that was recently

done. This is part of a Prior to Paint project to refresh the buildings and to modernise the internal and external communal areas.

While here Roy notices a blocked drain and makes a note of it so that he can inform the repairs team.

Roy said: “My job means that I meet with residents on a daily basis and our residents can raise various issues throughout the day. I am trusted to take ownership of these and try to ensure that any problems are dealt with or passed to the relevant team to action.”

Roy continues: “I’m always looking to put PCH in a positive light, always looking at ways to improve properties and with it improve residents’ lives. If we can help install a gate to keep a wandering dog in or make a team aware of a blocked drain, it all helps to improve the environment we work and live in.”

InTouch

We work better when you get involvedWe are always looking for ways to get our residents involved in what we do – how we deliver services and make decisions that affect our communities. Here’s what we’ve got going on at the moment.


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Resident Involvement Accreditation (TPAS) and ways to get involvedIn the last InTouch we described how we’re working towards national TPAS accreditation – a marker of how we put residents at the heart of what we do. Since then we’ve had the results of our self-assessment and over the next 18 months will be busy putting the recommendations in to practice - for example, understanding and responding to diverse needs. We invited 500 residents to come to a ‘taster day’ to show how they can be part of the involvement strategy work – more on how that went in the next edition!

Starting on 7 July, we’ll be out with Trevor the Trailer asking your views about how you would like to be involved – it really is your chance to influence things, so come and chat. You can find the dates in your Learn For Free leaflet.

And finally, are you part of a PCH group already, such as our Resident Scrutiny Team. Our resident groups take many forms – some are structured panels, some much more informal. But they are all vital – both to improving how we do things here but also as great opportunities for individual residents to improve their own life and work prospects – by representing their communities. If you are interested in setting up a group in your area please contact the Communities Team on 0800 917 9457.

Annual Report and STAR survey – letting us know how we’re doing

The Annual Report tells you what we’ve done, how we’ve done it and what we’re planning to do in the future. If you want to check what we do with your rent, what our priorities are or how we’ve made improvements to your community and Plymouth as a whole, you can find it in the Annual Report.Everything we do is based on what we promised you when we took over Plymouth City Council’s housing stock almost five years ago and the feedback you’ve given us since then.

We’re always looking for ways to find out what your opinions are. Soon, there’ll be another STAR survey, where we ask you what you think about how we’re doing.

Our Annual Report will be published later this year. You’ll be able to see it on our website, but if you’d like to have a copy sent to you let us know – contact Charlotte Edwards on 01752 388366.


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In Plymouth, 80% of the skin cancers that are diagnosed could be prevented if people take precautions against getting repeated sunburn.

To protect you and your family from the worst effects of the sun, follow the SMART message:

Our priorities and improvements to your community and Plymouth are categorised into nine main areas. In the Annual Report, you’ll be able to read more about how we are:

Staying safe in the sun

Spend time in the shade between 11am and 3pm

Make sure you never burn

Aim to cover up with a t-shirt, hat and sunglasses

Remember to take extra care with children

Then use factor 15+ sunscreen

We’ll be visiting some of you over the summer to tell you more about sun safety, but if you’d like to know more, contact Livewell on 01752 431633 or visit sunsmart.org.uk

1Making our homes and organisation

more environmentally friendly

2Building more homes

and improving the ones we already

have

3Improving the

appearance and safety of our

neighbourhoods

4Making it easier for you to get in touch

with the right person at PCH

5Working with you and

others in the city to create places where people want to live

6Supporting local

businesses and the local economy

7Making sure that

PCH is fit for purpose for the future

8Strengthening our commercial arm so that we can invest surpluses in our

communities

9Enhancing the

wellbeing of our residents and staff

SMART

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Financial inclusion


This time last year, we spent a Day in the Life of one of our two Financial Inclusion Officers, Vicki Sampson. A year on, she explains what’s changed and what help is available for anyone struggling to pay their bills.

“The major change that’s come into effect since last year is the bedroom tax – it means we’re working with a lot of middle aged people who we wouldn’t have worked with before, as a lot are choosing not to eat so they can pay the bedroom tax. It’s partly a generational thing - a lot of over-50s were brought up without a lot of debt and taught to live within their means. It means we’re issuing a lot of food vouchers and helping people apply for Discretionary Housing Payments (DHPs), although these payments are only a short term measure.

change, so you may be entitled to a payment now and there is government money set aside just for this.

It’s harsh, but the reality is if you’re affected by the bedroom tax your choices are to downsize or stay where you are and pay. There are certain circumstances where people can be exempt from paying and we’ll always try to help people make the most of the money they have.

Your rent, Council Tax and TV Licence are still the most important bills to be paid – the rent keeps a roof over your head and the others can lead to criminal convictions if you don’t

We try to help increase people’s incomes too by looking to see if they’re entitled to any other benefits – for example, if someone’s disabled, they could be entitled to the Personal Independence Payments and we can look into that.

As we’re only a year into the bedroom tax, we’re just starting to see the full force of it. We do have a transition team, with an officer dedicated to helping people downsize and another officer to help people with DHPs as there are now so many applications.I’d definitely encourage people to apply for a DHP, even if they’ve been turned down before. Circumstances


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pay. Even though there’s been some talk of it, not paying your TV Licence hasn’t been de-criminalised yet.

There are fewer agencies we can go to now for extra help, but we’re still working to support people and are always looking for other ways to tackle problems. We can still help people if they can’t afford white goods or carpets, for example, but a lot of this help comes from charities and we have to remember that they’re not an unlimited resource.

Jo (West, the other Financial Inclusion Officer ) and I now have Phillippa – she’s our admin apprentice and deals

the first time due to a change in their circumstances and we will visit them, go through the options and offer help if they need it.

I’d say if you’re starting to fall behind with payments or need help managing your money, don’t be afraid to get in touch with the Rent and Money Advice Team 08000 280350.”

with referrals and carries out the initial phone assessments for us. She’s made a massive difference, we’re out more now doing back to back appointments without having to come back and do paperwork.

Our dedicated Income Recovery Team will try and assist anyone who starts to fall behind. The earlier we are able to make contact with our customers the better, as besides taking recovery action they will also help and advise on what is required to manage their rent and other payments. They will also help with benefit queries or backdate requests. People are still being affected by the bedroom tax for

Helping everyone who struggles with

paying their bills

“The earlier we are able to make contact with our

customers, the better”


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Has a member of staff gone above and beyond the call of duty to help you? We want to hear about it.

Twice a year, we run the Beacon Awards to recognise PCH employees who show excellent customer service. It could be anyone who has been supportive and professional as they go about their day-to-day job.

Not only could this give you a healthier diet with more fruit and veg from your own back yard or local green space, but it could also cut down on your food bills, improve your whole family’s physical and mental health and make better use of our green spaces.

We at PCH are always looking at ways to help our communities with health and wellbeing. That’s why we’re working with sustainable food experts Tamar Grow Local to look into how we can help and encourage residents and communities to grow fresh produce.

Over the next few months project manager Simon Platten from the award-winning community interest company Tamar Grow Local is looking at how PCH can better use green space for producing food, for example for allotments, orchards or community growing. We’re hoping residents will suggest ways of producing food from their own homes or from community green spaces – even just a pot on a window sill can make a big difference.

Simon said: “I’ve already been impressed by how much PCH does over and above just housing – from planting fruit trees in North

Nominate a staff member for a Beacon Award

Ever thought of growing your own?

As a resident or leaseholder, you can nominate any member of staff who you think is deserving of the award.

Our Executive Management Team will go through the nominations and we’ll announce the winners in a future edition of InTouch as well as on our website and on social media.

The deadline for nominations is 30 June.

If you’d like to make a nomination, contact David Jory, Customer Liaison Officer on 01752 388386 or email [email protected]

Prospect or sowing seeds in West Park. This project is just the start of many more activities.

He went on: “Anyone can grow their own so don’t think you need land, specialist skills or expertise. It’s quite simple to grow salad, herbs and small fruit plants on your very own kitchen window sill.”

PCH Chief Executive Clive Turner said: “This is a really exciting project. There are already over 60 community growing projects in Plymouth and we hope we can work together with tenants to create more, especially with Plymouth aiming to become a Sustainable Food City, and reduce food costs while promoting good health.

Look out for the free Window Sill Gardening courses due in July – details are in the Learn For Free leaflet or contact Ryan Huws in the Communities Team on 388361 or email [email protected]. And if you’d like to get involved in a community growing project in your area, let Ryan know.


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Resident Scrutiny Team Your Voice, Our Voice Do you know about our Resident Scrutiny Team? Could you be part of it? Or have you got an issue you’d like us to look at? We’re at an exciting time in our development and we’re looking for some new members to help us make even more impact for PCH residents. You may have known us as the Customer Assurance Panel in the past. We’re a group of residents with an important role to play – making sure our communities are getting heard and receiving the best service possible.

We want to help PCH achieve their vision of providing better homes, better lives and better communities. So we always approach residents’ issues constructively and positively. Because we’re all residents, we’re well placed to know what those issues might be and we act in the interests of everyone. Central to our belief is trust.

So one month we might be talking to residents in one of our estates about their experiences around the Repairs Service; the next it might be about the Money Tree Fund in North Prospect. We can’t take on individual queries or complaints about individuals’ homes (there are other routes for that). But we’re very happy to consider any housing issues which

are affecting PCH residents. That’s why our line is ‘Your Voice, Our Voice’.

We’ll be recruiting for new members in July. As a member of the team we ask you to give up a few hours a month for meetings and research. We will meet your travel and care expenses and provide light refreshments. They are a really good way of raising your skillset, learning more about PCH or just meeting people in the PCH community for a common purpose. We ask that you are keen to learn new skills and share ideas, are a good communicator, good at listening and questioning and naturally positive and enthusiastic.

If you’d like to get in touch, either about becoming a member of the Resident Scrutiny Team or about an issue you’d like us to look at, please just get in touch with Jay Vickers on 01752 388480 or [email protected]

Over the last five years, we’ve been keeping our promise to provide you with Decent Homes. Now we’re nearly at the end of that programme, we’re looking at what we’ll need to do to make sure your home is looked after in the future.

To do this, we’re carrying out a Stock Condition Survey (SCS) which’ll help us gather information about the condition of our properties so we can plan what we’ll need to do to keep them in good condition over the next 30 years.

From August, we’re asking contractors to visit 4,000 of you,

Looking after your home in the future

covering all the types of property we own. It’ll take about three months to do all the visits, and if your home is one of those we’d like to look at you’ll get a letter from us soon.

We also want to create an environment in which our communities can thrive, so we’ll be looking at things like garages, landscaping and lighting. Up until now, we’ve focused on Decent Homes so this’ll be the first time we’ve assessed these.

We’ll keep you updated in future editions of InTouch and on our website.

Malcolm Clancy – Chair, Resident Scrutiny Team


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Want to find out if you could save money on your energy bills? Call Plymouth Energy Community on 01752 477117 to find out if they could help.

RecyclingIf you’ve got some items like old

washing machines, fridges, TVs or

computers to get rid of, did you know

there are local groups who can collect

and recycle them for you?

Recycle Plymouth on 01752 268254

Collectrical on 01752 781 295

Absolute Recycling on 01752 780774

Livewell promotes

healthy lifestyles

for everyone in Plymouth

through a range of

services and activities includ-

ing healthy eating work-

shops, stop smoking clinics

and guided walks. For more

information visit

livewellplymouth.co.uk, call

01752 437177 or email

[email protected]

Home Food can

bring hot, freshly

prepared meals to your

door from £5 per day.

Meals can be delivered 365 days

a year and you can even add a tea

time sandwich and a slice of cake.

For more information call

01752 305140 between 9am

and 3pm or visit plymouth.gov.uk/

communitymeals

Do you want to find

out more about the

people who live in your

community?

We hold regular Equalities

Cafes to give you the chance to

hear from people from all areas

of our community. We invite

people to speak to us based on the

protected characteristics listed in

the Equalities Act. To find out about

the next one, check the PCH

website and social media sites.

Would you like us to visit

you at home?

We want you to get the most out of your home

and community and so we want to hear if there’s

anything we can do to make this easier.

We’re offering to visit you at home to find out if

there is anything we can do to support you. You do

not have to take up this offer but it would be great

to hear from you.

If you’d like a visit from a Housing Officer please

contact your local housing team – all of our details

are on the back page.

You never know what’s around the corner. While we look after the building, we don’t insure against

your furniture, clothes and the other things that make a

house your home – all things which could be damaged

by things like theft, fire and flood.The My Home Contents Insurance scheme has been

designed for housing association tenants and lets

you pay weekly, fortnightly or monthly for as little as 84p a week. For more information, call 01752 388333 or 01752 388335.There’ll be more about the difference home insurance

can make in the next InTouch.

Contact us online! Find us at: plymouthcommunityhomes.co.uk twitter.com/PlymCommHomes facebook.com/ PlymouthCommunityHomes

W

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Dear PCH...

We always want to hear what you’ve got to say. If you’ve got something you’d like us to include, email [email protected] or write to:

InTouch NewsletterPlymouth Community HomesPlumer HouseTailyour RoadPlymouth PL6 5DH

Please include your name and contact details. We will not print your details in full. We reserve the right to edit letters. The views published are the views of the contributor and may not be those of Plymouth Community Homes.

What have you got to say?

As well as letter and email, you’ve been letting us know what you think via social media…

Clive Turner@ClivePCH Very pleased today to welcome Simon from @TamarGrowLocal to@PlymCommHomes to help support our ambitious agenda for community food growing.

Philippa Davey @PhilippaDavey All the joint working that @PlymCommHomes does with us, schools, residents and @DC_Police is invaluable. Makes us a true community.

AlisonSeabeckMP @alisonseabeck At opening of new library in #Northprospect Fabulous @PlymCommHomes. This has been a long journey but transformational. Well done

Johnny Mercer @johnnymercer81

For the people of #plymouth. Good people work there in my experience. Thanks for all you do @PlymCommHomes

Computer fan!Back in March of last year, I took up the offer of Learn For Free computing for beginners. The course got me ‘hooked’, so much so that I then enrolled on a 5 week course with Plymouth Adult Community Learning Services (PACLS). This gave me a more intense knowledge of what a computer can do.

As a result of this ‘Computers for Absolute Beginners’, I then enrolled again with PACLS to do a more intense 15 week course which covered many more aspects of computing skills. The course was facilitated by a brilliant tutor, called Andrew Lavender, who taught us at “our pace”, not his. In each of the two hour sessions we learned all the basic skills, plus a great many new ones, including design of posters/invitations; shopping/banking on-line; customising our own computers; downloading/streaming from the internet; downloading photographs and customising them; PLUS a great deal more.

If there are any PCH residents who, like me, were/are scared of computers, I can highly recommend these courses. It is amazing just what you can do with a computer

Roger Lee-Smith, Honicknowle (via email)

Making sure a wet room dries upI have progressive osteo-arthritis so when I first heard that PCH were not only doing refurbishments of kitchens and bathrooms but I also had the option of a wet room, I was thrilled.

Since having the wet room fitted I have totally regretted my decision. It has never drained away properly and I am always having to rely on family or friends to mop up excess water which has not drained. I have reported this when the bathroom was half flooded and was told the drainage pipe is too small to cope with the amount of water flowing, the pump can only drain so much and it will probably keep happening because of this, well that’s GREAT!!!

The flooring was also a bad choice as no matter how many times I get it cleaned it still looks dirty.

Of course I am grateful to have had my kitchen and bathroom done but I so wish I had never chosen a wet room it was a big mistake.

A Long, Southway

We’re sorry Miss Long has been having problems with her wet room. Since receiving her letter, we’ve visited her home and found that there is a problem with the pump. We’re now working to get this repaired and have also offered her some tips which should make using the wet room easier.

Wonderful PaintersI’ve just got to write to say the painters that have been correcting the paint work on our flats at Mountstone Rd, Stonehouse are truly wonderful, not only do our flats look better but they are not too proud to step up and do extras. Their names are Vince and Steve.

Nothing is too much trouble. Vince cleans up after everybody and leaves it looking spick and span. Helpful and polite and not work shy.

J Pay, Stonehouse

Newsletter Translations

Plymouth Community HomesPlumer HouseTailyour Road, CrownhillPlymouth PL6 5DH

01752 388300 [email protected] plymouthcommunityhomes.co.uk

Contact numbersRepairs 0808 230 6500Out of hours repairs: 0800 917 9459 (5pm to 7am)

Debit/Credit Card Payment Line0844 557 8321

Head Office 0800 694 3101

City Centre Shop01752 389778 Estover Team 0800 917 9496Devonport Team 0800 917 9497Whitleigh Team 0800 917 9498North Prospect Team 0800 917 9499

Anti-social behaviour out of hours hotline 0800 028 7377

Housing with Support Team0800 917 9452

Communities Team0800 917 9457

Leaseholders 01752 388094

Environmental Services0800 917 9455

Gas Servicing 01752 388028/388030

Printed using materials from sustainable sources

Plymouth City Council contacts Enquiries (including waste and out of hours)01752 668000

Report fly tipping01752 304147

Housing options01752 305496

This document is suitable for recycling

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Charitable Industrial and Provident Society registration No: 30637R

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pch intouch newsletter - summer 2014

Documents

bills page

new home

affordable home ownership

sure pch residents

subsidiary of pch

joe condon

member of pch staff

shared ownership homes