Heart of the Matter Spring/Summer 2013

Welcome to my homePage 04

Real Life FeaturePage 07

Benefit changes timetablePage 08

Children’s design competitionPage 16

WriteStuff

The

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Scan here to go digital

Heart ofthe Matter

Spring/Summer 2013

What’sinside?

• To report a new repair, pressoption 1.

• To chase an existing repair,including checking or changingappointment times, press option 2.

• To check your balance, make apayment or rent enquiry, pressoption 3.

• To discuss the resident rewardscheme, ProPoints, use option 4.

• To speak to your CommunityHousing Officer or to report anti-social behaviour, pressoption 5.

Welcome from the Editor

Welcome to the first ‘Heart of the Matter’ for 2013.It’s a creative issue. We’vegot a budding author whoisn’t even 10 years old, athought-provoking articlefrom another customer andwe’re looking for an artist to redesign our ‘Welcome to your home’ card.

While we produce stories that we think you will findinteresting, we are alwayskeen to hear from you. Wouldyou like to write an article?Send in a photograph you’vetaken? This is your newsletterso it would be great if youcould be involved.

Maintenance operations are being transferred from Orbit Heart ofEngland’s in-house provider, Property Matters, to an outsidecontractor from 1 April 2014.

Punjabi

Property Matters

We are sorry to announce theretirement of Orbit Heart of England’sManaging Director, StewartFergusson. Stewart joined OrbitHeart of England five years ago andworked to make the organisation asuccess. He was particularlypassionate about reducing fuelpoverty and in the housing and careof older people. Vivien Knibbs,Executive Director, responsible forOrbit East and South, will now alsomanage Orbit Heart of England.

Welcome to…

Donna Nixon Editor

Follow us on Twitter@OrbitHeart

02 \ Spring/Summer 2013

Like us on Facebookwww.facebook.com/OrbitHeartOfEngland

When you call 0345 8 500 500…

To have your call dealt with quickly and efficiently by our Customer ServiceCentre, make sure you dial the right number and choose the correct options.

This decision has been based onthe recognition that the repairsservice has not been meetingexpected standards and OrbitHeart of England is committed toimproving customer experienceas well as value for money fromthe service.

Heating appliance servicing andrepairs is one of the first areas

to transfer. From 13 May 2013,Swale Heating Ltd is providingheating appliance servicing andrepairs. There are no changes to the way you report a heatingrepair, you still need to contactOrbit Heart of England’sCustomer Service Centre on0345 8 500 500 or [email protected]

Vivien Knibbs

If you want to make any improvements oralterations to your home, you need to getapproval from your local Housing Team. If youdon’t, you may be in breach of your tenancyagreement.We need to make sure that any improvements:• are carried out safely• are to a required standard• meet regulations.So please speak to your Community HousingOfficer or Maintenance Inspector before carryingout any alterations.

Over two million children live in families who can’tafford a day trip to the seaside – far less a simpleholiday. The Family Holiday Association (FHA)works to help families in difficult circumstancesget a much-needed break away from home.

Tenancy Support Worker, Duncan Holland, turned tothe charity to help give three families in the Stratford

area a holiday this year. All three families werestruggling with health problems and debt and hadn’tmanaged to go on holiday in years.

The FHA believes holidays matter and that a breakdelivers real benefits to both children and parentsand helps build happier, stronger families. It onlyworks with professional referral agents like Duncanand cannot deal directly with families. To find outmore, speak to your local Housing Team or go towww.familyholidayassociation.org.uk

Kurdish

Wish you were here

DIY

ProPoints is our resident rewards scheme. If youare in the scheme, you will continue to receivepoints for paying your rent on time and keeping tothe terms of your tenancy. You can get vouchersto redeem in over 20,000 retail outlets through theUK, as well as some local stores and suppliers.

For more information on how to join the schemeand where to spend your vouchers go to ourwebsite (www.orbitheartofengland.org.uk) orcall us on 0345 8 500 500.

ProPoints

Heart of the Matter / 03

You could never accuse PaulTimmins of staying in one place.Originally from Doncaster, hemoved to the Isle of Wight beforearriving in Milton Keynes.

“A relationship went pear-shapedand she kicked me out,”explained Paul. “So I ended up being homeless for a while. I stayed at the YMCA beforemoving to Orbit Heart ofEngland’s Fishermead Hostelwhere I stayed for 15 months.Chris Mayers and Kath Chiles atFishermead were great and reallysupportive.”

Louise Stott, Community HousingOfficer, had recently taken overthe Milton Keynes area. She waskeen to build relationships withthe supported living hostels in the

area. “It’s all about partnershipworking,” she explained, “Andfinding out what people wantand helping them to move on.And in doing that, I met Paul.”

Paul had had a successful stayat the hostel but he was readyto move out and get on with hislife. Louise found him a onebed flat in Broughton, MiltonKeynes which Paul took.

Thinking of downsizing? Areyou 55 years or over? Wouldyou be interested in shelteredhousing? If so, we may beable to help you. Call 0345 8500 500 and ask to speak toSue Kavanagh.

Se necessitar deste documento traduzido (ou em formato diferente, impressão de maiorformato, Braille ou áudio), contacte o centro de apoio a clientes em 0345 8 500 500 ouenvie uma mensagem de correio electrónico para [email protected]

Portuguese

OrbitIndependentLiving

Do you have, or know someonewith, a visual impairment?

The Northampton Housing Teamare looking for customers tohelp them pilot software usingsmartphone technology. It will help people with a visualimpairment ‘hear’ writteninformation using their phone.

You don’t have to live inNorthampton.

If you are interested, pleasecontact Barbara Baldwin or amember of the NorthamptonHousing Team to find out moreon 0345 8 500 500.

Getting smart


An Orbit Heart of Englandcustomer welcomes us intotheir home.

“I’m chuffed tobits with it”

“I’m chuffed to bits with it. It’ssuch a nice place to live. I’vedecorated it, put my own touchesaround. I pay my bills. I take realpride in it.

“It’s been a rough three years.Having a relationship break-up,being homeless, losing touch with the family. I used to think the answers could be found at the bottom of a can of lager butnot any more.

“My parents have come down for a visit and they love my flat.And I’ve had an interview for ajob. Things are looking up now.”

Stratford-upon-Avon Time Bankhas exchanged 1200 hours ofhelp, training and friendship in its first year. The scheme, whichmatches ‘wants’ to ‘offers’ isproving so popular that it may beextended to Orbit Heart ofEngland residents beyondStratford-upon-Avon.

Help with gardens and homeimprovement projects, sorting out IT issues, teaching eachother languages, cooking andthe piano, lifts to and fromhospital: these are just some of the exchanges in the TimeBank. More are coming along all the time; projects are gettingdone and new friendships arebeing forged.

The Time Bank is jointly funded by Orbit Heart of England andStratford-upon-Avon Town Trust to help build a stronger, more self-reliant and self-sustainingcommunity.

If you are interested, Time Broker, Helen Bowie-Simpson,would love to hear from you on01789 585858 or email:[email protected]

COMMUNITYMATTERS

Orbit Heart of Englandcontinues to invest in a range ofinitiatives that help strengthencommunities and improve thequality of life for our customers.

Over the last year, we allocated£939,975 of communityinvestment funding to supportover 50 new projects.

Some of the projects we aresupporting this year include:• Increasing the number ofcustomers with internet access

• Support to help Orbit Heart of

England customers accesstraining and employment

• A dementia support workerenabling customers to liveindependently as long aspossible.

Polish

Jobs dayThis is the third year that OrbitHeart of England’s jobopportunities day has beenheld in Burton-on-Trent and itproved a success once again.

Simon Farneti, CommunityHousing Officer, said, “We knowthese days work. More than 300people attended. There wereover 100 jobs on offer, withsome exhibitors saying they hadunlimited opportunities. 55positions were filled on the dayand 91 interviews arranged.

Building CommunitiesHeart of the Matter / 05

Time Bank

To find out more about these initiatives or if you have an idea for a project, please contact Simon Lieberman or Helen Kendrick on0345 8 500 500 or email [email protected]

STOP PRESSNext Jobs Day – 17 July, Meadowside LeisureCentre, Burton-on-Trent. 9.30am – midday.

“We also ran several informalworkshops to help with CVwriting, interview techniques,starting your own business aswell as information sessionsaround work clubs and WelfareReform. People who attendedthem found them a great wayto get support and practicalhelp in finding a job.”

I like writing because I get to usemy imagination properly. I chosea children’s story because thenboth children and adults canenjoy it together. I’d like to write asecond book in the future called‘Talise the Tap Dancer’.

My favourite part of the book is when Ella, the talking rabbitand Harriet, the horse, fightTustis, the evil rat. But do theywin the castle? I also like theending where Ella finds a note on her pillow.

My plans to sell the book at themoment are to sell them for 50pmore than they cost to printeach, as I would like to donatesome money to the AirAmbulance charity.

Also, if I can write a book and I’m only nine, so can others ifthey work hard and put theirminds to it. They could becomean author one day just like Iwould like to be.

I would like to thank Orbit Heartof England for their great work

and support to get my bookprinted. Without their help, I wouldn’t have got this far so quickly.

Helen Kendrick said “Katie hadapplied for an award to help herpublish her book. Although shewas unsuccessful winning theaward, I was impressed she hadtaken the initiative to fill in theapplication herself. We had theskills and resources to help her to produce some copies of her book to start her on herpublishing journey.”

My name is Katie Bevan. I amnine years of age. I live inBidford-on-Avon, which is avillage in Warwickshire.

I have not long ago written myfirst book: ‘Ella the Jazz Dancer’.It’s about a 15 year old girlcalled Ella who makes somemagical friends – some of themnot so nice! The race is on toget to the magic castle first! WillElla get home safely – or not? • Helen Kendrick, Community Investment Officer, and Katie Bevan

In the last issue, Keith Lucas,a customer, asked if readerswould like to contribute to‘Heart of the Matter’.

One of the people whoresponded was Julie deBastion, from Henley inArden, who has written athought-provoking article on parenting.

“What do we want to pass onnow? What do we want to giveour children? Our patterns ofbehaviour go back a long way.We stand on the shoulders ofour mothers and fathers, ourgrandparents and great-grandparents and so on, wayback in time.

Before a pattern of behaviour is established between you andyour children, are you going torepeat what your mother said toyou? And how she said it? Wasit helpful? Or do you wish tochange it? How do YOU wantthe new relationship to soundand feel like?”


FIRST EDITIONby Katie Bevan, Customer

by Julie de Bastion, Customer

If you would like to write an article, let us know.

Email us at: [email protected] or write tous, using the FREEPOST address (details on the back page).

COVER STORY

“HAVE YOUR SAY”

Orbit Heart of England has signed up to theGovernment Work Experience programme tocombat worklessness amongst young people,aged 16 to 24, by offering them work experience.

Matthew Alexander was one of the young people towork at Orbit Heart of England’s offices in Stratford-upon-Avon.

“Having been unemployed since I left university, Ihave struggled to find work. This has caused me toput myself down and not believe that I am goodenough to get myself a job. Having been onJobseekers for a little while, they offered me a workplacement at Orbit Heart of England, which Ithought sounded a great opportunity. I applied andeventually was given a position on the HousingTeam for Leamington and Warwick.

“My time at Orbit Heart of England has taught me a great set of skills; for example, how to mailmerge, how to file, create flyers, work on reception, call other businesses and have customer contact which, for a shy person likemyself, was quite a stumbling block but is avaluable experience to have.

“Having the routine of going to work and enjoying ithas had a really positive effect on me. I’ve stoppeddoubting myself and I am thinking positively aboutmy future. I’m hoping that my time here onplacement at Orbit Heart of England will lead to apermanent position in the future but, even if itdoesn’t, it has given me the skills and confidence togo out there and do it somewhere else.”

Kate Hunt, District Housing Manager forLeamington and Warwick Housing Teamcommented, “When I was asked if I would beinterested in taking on a work experience personfor a number of weeks, I jumped at the chance.

“With worklessness being one of the four keypriorities for us, I wanted the Leamington andWarwick Team to be involved and give someone achance to learn new skills and have experience ofworking in a field that is challenging, yet rewarding.

“Matthew has been fantastic. He has shownincredible enthusiasm, passion and innovation and

the team and other departments havenothing but praise for him. We wish him allthe very best for the future and hope oneday to see him working for Orbit.”

Julie Hill, HR Development Manager, said,“Matthew was part of the pilot project and

his success and that of others in the scheme hasreinforced my view that this is something that weshould offer on an ongoing basis, across all ofOrbit. The young people have been given theopportunity to gain practical skills but it is theincrease in their confidence and self-belief that isthe real achievement.”

• Julie Hill (HR Development Manager),Matthew Alexander, Kate Hunt (District Housing Manager).

To view details of our currentjob opportunities, go towww.mybrighterfuture.org.uk


REAL LIFE FEATURE

“I’ve stopped doubting

myself and I am thinking

positively about my future”

Man of experience

Find out moreor contact our Money Advice Service on 0345 8 500 500.

April• Under-occupation:deductions from housingbenefit for sparebedrooms started.

• Localised Council Taxsupport schemes began(see page opposite).

June• Disability Living Allowancewill be replaced byPersonal IndependencePayments for newworking age claimants.

July• The overall benefit capwill be rolled outnationally from 15th July.This will limit the amountin benefits that ahousehold can receive.For couples with orwithout children and/orsingle parents, the limithas been set at £500 perweek. For single people,the amount has been setat £350 per week.

October• Universal Credit will beintroduced for new benefit

MONEYMATTERS

The Government is making changes to thebenefits system over the coming months.Here’s what’s happening and when.

Benefit changestimetable


2013claimants and existingclaimants who report achange in circumstances.Universal Credit willreplace a range ofbenefits, includinghousing benefit, and willbe paid as a singlemonthly payment direct toyour bank account. Youwill then be responsiblefor paying your rent. Wesuggest setting up a directdebit if you haven’t doneso already; contact yourAccount Officer to do this.

• From October, somepeople receiving DisabilityLiving Allowance (DLA) willhave to claim PersonalIndependence Payments(PIPs) instead. You will beinvited to apply betweenOctober 2013 andOctober 2015 if:

– your award for DLA expires;

– you become 16 years old; or

– if you report a changein your condition.

October • People receiving DisabilityLiving Allowance (DLA)will be invited to apply forPersonal IndependencePayments from October 2015.

2015

April • Existing benefit claimantswill start to move toUniversal Credit from April2014. The Government isplanning for everyone tohave made this move byOctober 2017.

2014

Council Tax Benefit is alsochanging. The Governmentdecided that local councils will set the rules on howreductions in Council Tax are administered.

Councils have been told to makesavings. Some councils havekept the old system of CouncilTax Benefit and are makingsavings elsewhere. Othercouncils have reduced theamount of benefit available forCouncil Tax. This means that insome areas everyone of workingage is now required to pay partof their Council Tax (between

5-30% of the bill), regardless of their income. People ofpensionable age are protectedfrom any reduction to the benefitthey received under the oldCouncil Tax Benefit scheme.

You can contact your LocalAuthority for more information or go to our website (MoneyAdvice Service; click on WelfareReform and find the ‘Changes to Council Tax Benefit’ page).

April saw the start of theGovernment’s under-occupancycharges for working agecustomers. 14% of your rent islost from your housing benefit ifyou have one spare bedroom or25% of your rent from yourhousing benefit if you have twospare bedrooms. You areexpected to make up thisshortfall from other income sothat you can still pay your rent.

If you are thinking aboutdownsizing, consider theHomeSwapper service. Thismatches people who are under-occupying with others who arelooking to move to a largerproperty. It is free to use for OrbitHeart of England customers.

You list details of your home andthe type of property that you arelooking for on the HomeSwapperwebsite. It then finds othertenants who have a home thatmeets your requirements andwho might be interested in yourproperty. When a suitable matchis found:• you get a text message oremail

• log onto HomeSwapper to seethe home you have beenmatched with

• if you are interested you thenvisit the property.

To register, go towww.homeswapper.co.uk Ifyou don’t have access to theinternet or need help using

HomeSwapper, contact yourCommunity Housing Officer. Ifyou are unable to log ontoHomeSwapper’s websiteregularly to check your matches,you can get them sent to you by post.

If you don’t want to move butyou are finding it difficult to copewith reduced housing benefit,don’t forget that Orbit Heart ofEngland offers a free andconfidential Money AdviceService. You can get help withbudgeting and ways of reducingyour outgoings and maximisingyour income.

HomeSwapper

Orbit Heart of England has heldvarious drop-in events highlightingthe impact of welfare reformacross the region including:

• Corby, Irthlingborough and Northampton,Northamptonshire

• Henley-in-Arden, Studley,Stratford-upon-Avon, Alcester,Warwickshire

• Barwell, Leicestershire.

Contact our Money AdviceService if you are unsure how thechanges will affect you.

All change Welfare Reformevents

You can find more information on all these topics on ourwebsite at www.orbitheartofengland.org.uk/moneyadviceor contact our Money Advice Service on 0345 8 500 500.


As John Peel once said, “I never make stupid mistakes.Only very, very clever ones.”Mistakes are a part of life; weall make them. The trick is tolearn from them when theyhappen. That is true fororganisations as well asindividuals.

At Orbit Heart of England:

• nearly a quarter of a millioncalls were dealt with by theCustomer Service Centre last year

• we completed over 65,000repairs to our properties in 2012

• we have over 16,500customers across theMidlands.

So, on occasions, things don’t go as smoothly as we would like.

We are constantly reviewing the feedback we get on theservices we provide – especiallywhere we’ve got it wrong and a customer has to make aformal complaint. Our aim is to learn from it and, mostimportantly, change things sowe get better and customers get an improved service.

These are just some exampleswhere things had gone wrong.We reviewed each complaint,learnt from our mistakes andmade changes.

• Teams have been retrained onmanaging and recording anti-social behaviour cases to

make sure customers are keptinformed about progress.

• Following problems at the endof a tenancy (where acustomer went into arrears),staff have been briefed on theneed to provide clear adviceabout arrangements at theend of a tenancy.

• Dealing with correspondencehas been improved in ourOrbit Independent Living teamafter a customer’s relative hadproblems with poorcommunication.

• There were problems withpeople smoking at a shelteredscheme. After a review, thedesignated smoking area forcustomers was moved to abetter location.

The Customer Scrutiny teamhave been looking at how wellthe agreed ‘empty property’standard is being met.

Cleanliness of properties wasone of the main concerns weidentified. So, after muchdiscussion, improvements were

agreed with key staff and put in place. The Board werepresented with our findings,which showed them thatcustomers were playing anactive part in holding theirlandlord to account for theirservices.

Customer satisfaction with how their complaint is handledis next for the CustomerScrutiny treatment. This will be completed by June 2013.

Go to our websitewww.orbitheartofengland.org.uk/scrutiny for regular updates onthe projects.

And finally, a bigthank you goes to Maurice AbneyHastings who has left CustomerScrutiny after a very successful year.£

INVOLVEMENTMATTERS

UpdateCustomer Inspectors havereported big improvements inthe cleaning of properties letto new customers. Furthercustomer inspections areplanned throughout the year.

by the Customer Scrutiny Team


“Teams have beenretrained…to makesure customers arekept informedabout progress”

Under themicroscope

ChallengingChangingCustomer Scrutiny

Orbit Heartof England

Last year, we had a major review of the Customer Involvementservice at Orbit Heart of England. We wanted to create a newvision for a great service. Here are the results.

Read our blog atwww.oheexcellentjourney.wordpress.com

If you want to help shape the future of Orbit Heart of England and its services by getting involved, please [email protected] or call Julie Clarkson on 01789 404430.

Every year we will aim to provide involvementopportunities in theseservice areas:• Customer service andcomplaints

• Customer involvement• Repairs and maintenance• Customer communications• Your local community• Rents and service changes• Value for money• Planning for the future.

We want the involvementopportunities to suit yourinterests and fit in with how youwant to get involved. You don’thave to come to meetings tohave your say. You can getinvolved:• from the comfort of your ownhome

• locally (such as customer orestate inspections, localmeetings)

• across Orbit Heart of Englandor nationally (such as focusgroups, service improvementgroup meetings etc).

What’s new?

Want to know more?

What’s different?

Over the past 18 months,Orbit Heart of England hasbeen planning for the future tothe year 2020. We haveresearched with ourcustomers, staff and otherswhat kind of organisation weneed to be to carry ondelivering the services youneed and how we can growand improve those services.

From this research, we haveworked out what our ‘vision’is. As part of that, we havechanged our purpose from‘Building Brighter Futures’ to‘Building Communities’. Wewanted to reflect that wearen’t just a house builder orhouse provider; we want to bea major part of thecommunities we work in. Youwill start to see ‘BuildingCommunities’ on leaflets,newsletters and so on as westart to use it in all ourcommunications.

Our new vision and purposehave also helped set ourbusiness plans for the nextfinancial year.

Buildingcommunities


Making changes

“We want to be amajor part of thecommunities wework in.”

A DAY IN THELIFE OF…

Lorraine Mansfield Business Development Manager,Orbit Independent Living

It’s a fact that more people areliving longer in the UK. Statisticsestimate that 23% of thepopulation will be aged 65 andover by 2035. And there arealready more pensioners thanchildren under 16 in the country.Maintaining an independentlifestyle as we grow old isincredibly important and OrbitHeart of England’s IndependentLiving developments aredesigned to provide independent,safe and secure new homes forthe over 55s.Lorraine Mansfield developsspecialist housing for olderpeople, making sure that facilitiessuch as assistive technology areavailable to customers to enablethem to live independent lives.This is her day.

08:30Arrives at Queensway Court,Leamington Spa. Currently underconstruction, this new £25 milliondevelopment for over 55s will include178 one and two bedroom apartments.Lorraine has a meeting with the ProjectManager and contractor to look atinterior fixtures for the kitchens.

1 1 :30Meeting with Jeremy Wright, MP forKenilworth & Southam, to show himhow Orbit Independent Living haveupgraded two schemes in Southam(Watton’s Lodge and St Wulstan’sCourt) with the latest digital warden calltechnology. They also examine plansfor the development of Victor HodgesHouse, a new independent living withcare scheme in Southam, again withassistive technology. When finished, allthree schemes will be linked so they

• St Bede’s takingshape

• Lorraine takesMP, JeremyWright, throughdevelopment plans

• On site to checkprogress


can work together providing supportand back-up to each other.

1 4:30Lorraine drops into St Bede’s,Bedford, to make sure the project is progressing. Orbit IndependentLiving is refurbishing two Victorianvillas to form apartments andcommunal areas (including arestaurant, hairdresser and cinema)along with 104 one and two-bedroomapartments. 53 of the apartments areavailable for shared ownership.

1 5:30She just has time to make a quickvisit to an extra care scheme run byanother provider for people withlearning disabilities with extra care.It’s an opportunity to knowledgeshare and exchange information.

1 7 :00It’s back to the office to catch up onemails before getting ready to go outfor the evening. But that’s work aswell. Lorraine’s talking to a WI groupabout extra care.

GREENMATTERS

Fuel poverty affects 4.75 millionhomes in Britain and is set toincrease. Orbit Heart of Englandis working hard to address thisissue and help customers getthe best possible deal on theirenergy bills.

We have teamed up withiChoosr, a leading tariffswitching organisation, to helpnegotiate a cheaper energy tariffon behalf of customers whoregister for our Switch & Saveinitiative.

The more people who sign up –the bigger the potentialreduction in bills. Energysuppliers compete to offer thebest deal to those who register.

Thousands of people havebenefited from similar schemesacross the country, withaverage savings of £122 onhousehold fuel bills.

The offer is available to anyone,whichever way you pay,including direct debit, pre-payment meter or online.The scheme will start lateAugust 2013. For moreinformation, contact theCustomer Service Centre on 0345 8 500 500.

Orbit Heart of England hascompleted a major installationat Loxley Court, a 40 flatsheltered scheme in Coventry.

Following consultation with theresidents, air source heat pumps(ASHPs) and solar photovoltaic(PV) panels have been fitted,which should lead to lower

energy bills and lower carbonemissions.

ASHPs take heat from outsideair boosting it to a highertemperature using a pump. This is then used to heat theradiators. PV panels use daylight to generate electricity to heat the communal areas.

After the consultation, themajority of customers were keen to switch over to the newsystem. Once agreed, theinstallation happened quickly.Storage heaters have beenreplaced by slimline radiators,the PV panels are in place on the roof and the ASHPs are upand running.

Hot air

Customers at Stour Courtenjoyed a visit from theSustainable Investment team.As well as advice on energysaving, the team gave outpower down plugs and othergoodies, all designed to saveenergy. Leamington & WarwickHousing team had an equallyimportant role on the day – theybrought cakes, refreshmentsand a quiz. Jason Edwards,Housing Assistant, visited all theproperties to make sure thatany customers who hadn’t beenable to get to the meeting hadthe chance to raise anyconcerns or get odd jobs done.

All powerful


Switch & save

The Government isconsidering makingtenancy fraud a criminaloffence, which could leadto a prison sentence.

We take tenancy fraud veryseriously. We want to makesure that people who accessour services are entitled tothem and to make sure thatpeople who are waiting forrehousing or need to movehave the best possible chancesof doing so.

Tenancy fraud

A ‘mutual exchange’ eventtook place in Warwickshirerecently. It was an opportunityfor people who wanted tomove to discuss their propertyrequirements.

Held at Leamington Spa, theevent was run in partnershipwith several local housingassociations, including OrbitHeart of England.

“It was well attended andpeople said it was useful to beable to chat informally withtheir landlord,” explainedNaomi Williams, TenancySupport Worker. “Working withthe other housing associationswas a real advantage becauseit gave more choice for ourcustomers.” A follow-up eventis being planned in the nextfew months.

Swopshop


“I’m the new Community HousingOfficer, responsible for customersand properties in and aroundKettering.

I have been with Orbit Heart of England for six years but, as I amnew to the area, I am looking at wayswhere we can develop thrivingcommunities and build brighterfutures. It would be great to hear fromany one in Kettering with ideas abouthow you’d like your local communitiesto develop. To get in touch, call me on0345 8 500 500.”

New face: Alan Allton

Examples of tenancy fraud

• Where a tenant moves outand sublets the property tosomeone else

• Keeping on a tenancy whilenot using the property as themain residence

• Leaving a property withoutgiving notice (known as‘abandonment’)

• Failing to tell us when atenant leaves or dies

• Passing or selling on the keysto someone who isn’t entitledto them

• False statements orrepresentations to obtain atenancy

• Swapping homes withanother tenant without ourpermission.

“People said it was useful to chat informally with theirlandlord.”

• Alan Allton

If you know of any Orbit propertythat may be abandoned,unoccupied or you suspecttenancy fraud, please contact usand let us know. You can call oremail us (0345 8 500 500 [email protected]), visit or writeto your local housing office. Youcan contact us anonymously ifyou wish.

If you think you may fall into oneof the tenancy fraud categories,take action now. Makearrangements to give up theproperty quickly or talk to us foradvice as soon as possible.

Counting the cost Fly-tipping is on theincrease and customersare the ones who pay for it.

The cost has to be met throughyour service charges or CouncilTax. It is also a criminal offenceand those caught could be finedup to £20,000.

Orbit Heart of England can alsotake action against anyone ifthey are reported for dumpingrubbish.

Please remember that it is morecost effective to contact yourlocal council’s collection serviceor household waste centre thanbe faced with increased servicecharges, a fine or the risk oflosing your home.

If you need to speak to someoneabout rubbish or fly-tipping inyour area, speak to yourCommunity Housing Officer on 0345 8 500 500 or contactyour local EnvironmentalServices Team.

Customers in Kineton,Warwickshire were unhappy withtheir communal gardens. Thearea was dark and overgrownand a hot spot for fly tipping andnuisance behaviour.

Community Housing Officer,David Dutton, worked with theresidents to improve the area.The ground was subsequentlycleared and landscaped. Just intime for the summer.

Kineton clear up


Ukraine to UKBriar Croft Extra Care scheme in Stratford-upon-Avonplayed host to visitors from Age Concern Ukraine.

The aim of the visit was to show the visitors what can be achieved inolder people’s housing and how the extra care scheme works. EmmaWilliams, Extra Care Support Provision Manager at Briar Croft, said“This is a fantastic example to show our visitors how older peoplecan remain living independently in their own home with support asand when they need it.”

COMPETITIONCORNER

Heart of England Housing Association Ltd (exempt charity). Registered office: 10 Greenhill Street, Stratford-upon-Avon, CV37 6LG

Please noteIf you need this documenttranslating or supplying in adifferent format, large print,Braille or audio, please contactour Customer Service Centre on 0345 8 500 500 or email us at [email protected]

Contact usIf you want to get in touch you can call us on 0345 8 500 500, or if you prefer you can [email protected] website iswww.orbitheartofengland.org.uk

Picture perfectAre you a budding artistunder 16? We want toredesign our ‘Welcome toyour home’ card, which goesin each sign-up pack and isgiven to every new customer.Can you come up with anattractive picture? What doyou think our Welcome cardshould look like?

The entries will be judged by apanel of customers. The winner

will have their design turned intoa card and will be featured inthe next ‘Heart of the Matter’.They will also win a £20 HighStreet Voucher.

You can use paint, pen orcrayon – the rest is up to yourimagination. Put your entry onan A5 piece of paper. Theclosing date for entries is 31July 2013. Send your entries,with your name, age andcontact details on the back, toour FREEPOST address below(no stamp needed). Mark as‘Summer HOTM competition’.

Send your answers to: Marketing and Communications Team,Business Excellence, FREEPOST RRXZ-RSUR-SHLA, Orbit Heartof England, 10 Greenhill Street, Stratford-upon-Avon, CV37 6LG.

The last competition asked foryour money saving hints andtips. You didn’t disappoint usand came up with some greatideas. We’re printing the bestones here.

• Measure water in your mug soyou only boil what you need(make sure the element iscovered by water).

• Put foil behind radiators toreflect heat back into the room.

• Mix tap water and a littlelemonade together and usethem in a vase. This keepsyour flowers fresh for longer.

• Use energy saving light bulbs.They use less electricity andlast 10 times longer.

• Don’t leave TVs, DVD players,computers etc on standbybecause this uses electricity.

All of your tips were put into ahat and and we pulled one outas the winner: Congratulations toMiss Scallon, Coventry; she winsa £20 High Street Voucher.

• To clean a teapot, cups, mugsor vase, fill it with water, dropa denture cleaning tablet andleave for 24 hours.

TERMS & CONDITIONS: By entering, you agree to haveyour name printed in the newsletter or online if you area winner / runner-up. Competitions are only open toOrbit Heart of England customers. We cannot returnindividual entries.

Join us……on Facebook. Join ourFacebook page to catch up withthe news, be part of ourdiscussions and find out what’sgoing on. We’re building acommunity online and we wantyou to be part of itwww.facebook.com/OrbitHeartOfEngland

‘Like us’ before 31 August 2013and we’ll put your name into aprize draw. Miss L Berry,Leicester ‘liked us’ and won a£20 High Street Voucher.


Competition winner

Documents

Heart of the Matter Spring/Summer 2013