Unity Issue 6

Plus Dane Group residents’ magazine Issue Six 2010

www.neighbourhoodinvestor.com

Engaging withyoung people

p13

Customer Annual Report 2009|10 edition

Promoting skillsand training

p22

Retrofit forthe Futurep6

Big Clean Upp10

Plus Dane UNiTY Customer Report2

Pól O’Gray, a tenant Board Member for Plus Dane,was appointed as a board member for the newNational Tenant Voice (NTV) organisation during theyear, following a rigorous selection procedure.

The NTV was set up to give tenants a greater say on the housing issues that affect them, and is advised and supported by a council made up of 50 social housing tenants from across the country.

The Board will work closely with the Tenants’ Services Authority (TSA), local government and other stakeholders to ensure that the voice of

hello

Board Member Pó l O’Gra y

This year’s report shows you how we have performed over the year and gives some real life examples of the work we are doing in your neighbourhoods.

Our job as a Neighbourhood investor has becomeincreasingly important as the world has become a much more uncertain place - politically and economically. Whilst the economic outlook is continually changing, we remain committed to maximising investment inneighbourhoods so that quality of life, choice andopportunity is enhanced.

Our seven promises, which were developed together withcustomers, identify how we will deliver our mission, whichwhen supported by our vision to spend less on running and more on doing, really allows us to put theneighbourhoods we serve in the lead.

2009|10 was the first full year of operating as Plus Dane,following the merger of Plus Housing and Dane Housing in 2008. This has allowed us to make further improvementsto the business and improve our financial capacity to serveyou even better and put more resources where they areneeded the most. You will see in this report some of theexamples of how the work we do in your neighbourhoodsreally is making a difference.

Customers continue to be the driving force of everything we do and the commitment, support and time that manycustomers give to us to help us ensure we are deliveringthe best possible service, continues to be outstanding.

In developing this report, we worked closely with ourCustomer Communications Focus Group, who wereinvolved in every element from content to the design andproduction. They asked to us to build on what we producedlast year, putting an even stronger focus on customerstories, once again using UNiTY as the way of delivering

Welcome to this edition of UNiTYmagazine, which is dedicated to our2009|10 Customer Annual Report.

Plus Dane UNiTY Customer Report 3

our performance information to you. Their input has been crucial and has made sure that this is a report that has been made by tenants, for tenants.

This involvement will be even more important over the coming year, as wework to develop our engagement approach to make sure that customersremain at the very heart of our service improvement and delivery, as well as developing our local priorities through the review of our neighbourhoodinvestment and influence plans.

We have made good progress this year but we know there is much more to do and we look forward to building on this success in the year ahead, working even more closely with customers to make your homes and neighbourhoods the best they can be.

Ken Perry Shaf ChoudharyChief Executive, Tenants Together ForumPlus Dane Group Chair

some 8.4 million tenants continues to be heard.

He said: “It’s a great challenge which I welcome.

“It will be fantastic to work at this level and have the opportunity to make a realdifference for tenants. I will also be able to bring back learning and best practice to benefit Plus Dane and the customers it serves.”

Working with customers, we have established a set ofseven neighbourhood investor promises. These are:

Increased investment in existing property

Creating great places to live

Increased community safety measures

Further supporting vulnerable customers

Further supporting resident involvement

Increased creation of local jobs

Increased supply and choice of homes

We hope that as you read the

pages of this magazine,we will show you themany ways in which we

are delivering ourpromises.

Ken Perry (left) chats with Phillip Ware

at an EverybodyOnline event

Shaf Choudhary, Tenants Together ForumChair (left) with Des F inley, Vice-chair

Home Standard4

In 2009|10 we continued to perform well, carrying out an average of 3,000 repairs every month, with atleast three out of four jobs completed at first attempt.Customer satisfaction with repairs has remained in the top 25%.

In Merseyside, 230 homes received either new heatingor boiler renewals and upgrades, making them moreefficient and cost effective to heat. In addition, 280 new kitchens and bathrooms were fitted.

In Cheshire, more than 80 properties benefited from new kitchens and 150 underwent additionalimprovement works, including 58 new roofs.

Increased investmentin existing property

How are we doing?Our Asset Management Team has been busy making sure that we are on track to deliverdecent homes and develop a sectorleading repairs service where everytenant experiences a consistentlyexcellent standard of service.

This year, working closely with our Asset Management Engagement Group (AMEG), we have:

■ Reviewed our Empty Homes Standard and agreed a new standard to make surethat homes are empty for a shorter timebetween tenancies.

■ Reviewed our Asset Management Servicedelivery and undergone a comprehensiveand thorough procurement process. This has resulted in the establishment of a Group-wide in-house trades team for repairs and gas servicing, as well asagreeing the contractors and componentsthrough the Fusion 21 framework toundertake all planned works.

■ Improved our repairs leaflet to provideadditional information about our serviceand advice on general DIY repairs.

■ Begun installing carbon monoxide alarms in properties with open flue fire appliances to improve safety.

■ Introduced extended appointment times at the request of customers.

In 2010|11 we will develop and improve our service by:

■ Building on and enhancing the role ofengagement and tenant inspectors.

■ Continuing to work with tenants to agree our ‘local offer’ to deliver a repairs servicethat reflects what you want in line with the Home Standard.

■ Rolling out text reminders for appointments to ensure customers have a ready reminder and reduce the number of appointments missed.

Upgrading heating systems

5Plus Dane UNiTY Customer Report

Throughout the year, we have been completing work to improve ‘hard to heat’properties in Cheshire.

Typically these are old solid wall or system buildsthat can be difficult and expensive to upgrade.

Properties on the Palmer Road estate in Sandbachfitted into this category and were also blighted by unsightly and often cracked brown tiling on the fronts.

This was all taken off and new cream cladding puton, free of charge for tenants. This process had theadded bonus of providing tenants with cavity wallinsulation to make their homes warmer.

Sam Arnold, who lives on the estate, said: “Thetiles and air vents were in a poor state and damp

was getting in, so this wasa really welcome job - it gives us a new sense of pride in our homes.”

Neighbour Tracy Goudie added: “The difference in our gas bill was amazing, we don’t use anything like as much. The housesgot a lease of life, it has lifted the whole estate.”

Upgrading heatingsystems in Cheshire

98%of you are satisfied

with repairs completed

Key Event. Ellesmere Port, offering people choice in their homes

During the year, we have been taking part in an innovative competition to turn an emptyVictorian end-terrace property into a pioneeringeco-friendly home of tomorrow, as part of theTechnology Strategy Board’s £17 million Retrofit for the Future project. The scheme aims to demonstrate how green technologiescan make existing homes more energy efficient and reduce carbon emissions.

We secured more than £107,000 from the project, the only scheme in Merseyside to receive funding and one of only seven in the North West, to transform the Wavertree property in Liverpool to meet the highest possible energyefficiency standards.

And, after a search to find someone to live in the city’s most eco-friendly home captured the imagination of the media, a family of four are due to move in.

Local artist and lecturer Diane McLoughlin, her husband David Cave and their two children Ella and Jimmy will live as they would elsewherewhilst technology and experts monitor the way in which the property transforms their energy use.

The family are active members of the projectteam and will be involved in evaluating the project as they settle into their home and enjoy its benefits over the long-term.

“Since we’ve got involved in this project, we’vebeen so impressed by the thinking behind it,” says Diane, 35.

“Going green shouldn’t be difficult to do, if people are going to change for the better then it should be easy to understand.”

Diane and David, 39, who runs his own engineering company, have been living with their children in a one-bedroom flat in central Liverpool - and are delighted with thedevelopment of their new three-bedroom home.

Retrofit forthe Future

Home Standard6

We do a lot of work repairing and maintaininghomes, but we also recognise that it can often be the smaller investments that can make big difference.

Doreen Power, 70, of Middlewich, Cheshire, waswidowed three years ago. Her husband had built theirkitchen a decade or so earlier and part of it had fallendown. Plus Dane’s trades team gave the kitchen acomplete makeover, putting in new units and flooring,and Doreen is delighted with the results.

“The work they did was brilliant. They did the job in good time, tidied up and even took away the old units. They were very pleasant people and I’m very pleased.”

Another job was at St Cyril’s Court in Liverpool, where four new kitchens were fitted to help disabledresidents use facilities more easily.

Maureen Finnegan, 63, of Liverpool was pleased withthe renewal of her kitchen, especially the choices shewas offered in units, shelving and flooring. “I’ve nothad a new kitchen for 17 years,” she said. “It was areal blessing to get the work done and the standard isvery good.”

Dolores Martin, 71, of Liverpool 7, needed extensivework doing to the pipes and plumbing in her home.She said: “Two very nice men came to do my repairs,they were both extremely pleasant, hard working,helpful and kept me informed each step of the waywhat they were doing.

“They completed the job very quickly and left theplace perfectly clean. I am 80% disabled and can feelvery vulnerable but they made me feel at ease andgave an excellent service.”


Maintaining ahigh standard

Diane believes the project can kick-start theredesign of the UK's social housing stock.

“If there’s going to be a real change in how wetackle climate change then older homes will have tobe refurbished, it’s not an option to just demolishand rebuild,” she says.

10 daysThe typical time it takes us tocomplete

non-emergency repairs

Retrof it family: Diane McLoughlin and her husbandDavid Cave with their children Ella and Jimmy

Work in progress: The retrof it development gets underway

Neighbourhood and Community Standard8

This year, we have continued working on the mainaspects that you have told us are important for yourneighbourhoods through our neighbourhoodinfluence and investment plans.

We understand that the look of a neighbourhood is a big part of how it feels. This year, with the supportof residents and partners, we have carried out anumber of environmental action days, including Big Tidy Ups and providing hanging baskets tobrighten up neighbourhoods.

Our grounds maintenance team, IN EnvironmentalServices (INES), also ‘clean and green’ theequivalent of 77 football pitches every two weeks.

But its not just us doing our bit to clean up theneighbourhoods we work in, you have also beengetting involved, with Plus Dane customers earningtwo awards for their green fingers:

■ Riverview Residents Association was named as“Outstanding” at the RHS North West in BloomAwards for their Healthy Living Garden, whichwas designed with Plus Dane’s In EnvironmentalServices (INES) team. The garden will be acommunity resource under the management ofthe association and the community will cometogether to grow a variety of fruit and vegetables.The team has been working hard over the pastyear to make this garden a reality, and haveraised more than £11,000 in external funding.

Creating great places to liveHow are we doing?

A ‘great’neighbourhood is hard to define. It is made up of many differentelements, much of which is determined by the look and feel. However,working with you to create and maintain neighbourhoods where peoplewant to live is a core part of being a Neighbourhood investor.

9 10out of

customers are satisfied with their new home

New Village Square development, Castlef ields Riverview garden


■ Introduced a new calendar of neighbourhoodinspections and walkabouts which aretailored to the needs of neighbourhoods.

■ Worked hard to be an influential part ofCheshire East’s new Choice Based LettingsScheme, a new way of allocating housingthat allows customers and existing tenants who want to transfer to apply forvacancies that are advertised widely in theneighbourhood, e.g. on the internet, in localcouncil offices, libraries and other areas.

■ Introduced a Group-wide free gardeningservice to vulnerable tenants who meet thecriteria. More than 600 tenants benefitedfrom this service this year.

■ Following your feedback, we have enhancedour visibility in neighbourhoods througheasily identifiable high-visibility jackets and waistcoats.

■ Our INES teams nowhave days dedicatedto each neighbourhoodto make sure any issuesare addressed quickly and effectively.

■ Our Income Management Team has workedwith our Financial Engagement Group toreview our approach to arrears managementand tenancy support aimed at “preventionrather than cure”, and amended the wordingin our arrears letters and rent statements.

■ A new tenant welcome pack has beendeveloped and approved for new customers,by our existing customers.

■ Direct debit frequency rates have beenincreased, giving you more choice on payment dates.

Working with our customer engagement groups, this year we have:

■ Buglawton was awarded a Merit for theircontribution to “breathing life into their community”in the Congleton in Bloom competition. A cluster of bungalows was awarded their very owncommunity garden where residents will grow their own flowers and vegetables, and more importantly, have an area where they can get together.

The regeneration of Castlefields in Runcorn, wherePlus Dane is working with a wide range of partners to deliver a multi-million Regeneration Masterplan,also made strong progress in 2009/10. It has now entered an exciting phase which will see thecompletion of the Village Square, providing muchneeded community, leisure and retail facilities. Theproject is funded by Halton Borough Council, theHomes and Communities Agency (HCA), Plus DaneGroup, WREN and Renova Developments Ltd.

Working with our partner Brouhaha International, wehave also received two prestigious awards for theannual World in Princes Park event - Black HistoryMonth’s Arts and Media Award and the NationalAssociation of Neighbourhood Management LocalEconomy Award.

77Our INES team ‘clean and green’ the equivalent of 77football pitches every two weeks

Plus Dane has been playing animportant role in helping to clean

up neighbourhoods with a series of communityclear up events.

In Cheshire, neighbourhood officers in Middlewich,who have a budget for community events on theirestates, used a little of this money to hire skips and provided staff to help residents on four estates get rid of general household items and bulky rubbish that they would otherwise strugglewith. The skips were filled very quickly and Plus Dane handymen used the extra time to help withother general litter collection in the area.

Amanda Thornhill, Plus Dane’s NeighbourhoodOfficer for the area, said: “The event was very wellreceived. Typical comments included “this is a great idea for single parents to get rid of their rubbish as they have no way of getting to the tip!”

Big Clean Up

■ Further developing the role of tenant inspectors, particularly around our empty home property standard.

■ Reviewing our grounds maintenancecontracts and providers.

■ Continuing to work with you to agree our‘local offer’ to deliver a tenancy and estatemanagement service that reflects whattenants want in line with the Neighbourhoodand Community and Tenancy Standards.

In 2010|11 we will continue todevelop and improve our service by:

Residents in Castlefields, Runcorn, are starting to reap the benefits of a comprehensive regeneration programme to transform the area.

To date, Plus Dane has invested more than £23 million in the project and is working inpartnership with Halton Borough Council, theHomes and Communities Agency, LiverpoolHousing Trust and the Northwest RegionalDevelopment Agency to help drive the area’sredevelopment. But while the financial figures are impressive, even more significant is the effect on the people who live there.

Chris Harrison, 63, moved to the area with hisfamily in the 1960s and has seen Castlefields go from model village to one with many problems and now back again.

Transformingneighbourhoods


Plus Dane IN Environmental Services (INES) staff at work

Big Clean Up


Plus Dane has been working to promote and celebrate the rich cultural diversity of many of the areas we work in, both in the workplace and in theneighbourhoods we serve.

We are committed to maintaining environments that are free from discrimination, victimisation and unfairness.

Our Neighbourhood investor vision includes a commitment to create and sustain thriving neighbourhoods where diversity is celebrated, exclusion is ended and wealth generated.

Our Something for Everyone (SfE) strategy details our approach to delivering equality and diversity to customers,stakeholders and staff over the next three years.

A group of SfE Diversity Champions plan events to get people talking and asking questions about age, disability, gender, race, religion and belief, sexual orientation and transgender.

Celebrating diversity

“It was a great place to be at first, there wereplenty of jobs, the pubs were full, there was a real party atmosphere,” he says. “It was so much better than the lives we’d come from. There was an expectation and optimism.”

But all this turned sour in the 1980s as thousandsof jobs were lost in the nearby industrial areas ofSpeke and Halewood. As people left in search of work the area began a downward spiral. Now,the area’s fortunes are swiftly turning around asregeneration work reaches its climax and Chris, an entertainer and talent booker who spent nineyears in the Navy, has moved into a new two-bedroom house near his old home.

“I’ve watched the metamorphosis, especially in the last year when it’s really kicked in.Community spirit has started to develop again.

“This is what regeneration can do, it can givepeople hope. If the environment is right it can have positive impact on life psychologically.”

The scheme will include a new village square, due for completion in 2011, with shops that Plus Dane is investing more than £2 million into.

There will also be a new health centre,communitycentre, café andlibrary. This yeara play area forchildren wascompleted andcountless hoursof engagementprojects with local peopleare having areal impact,especially thoseinvolvingyoung people and challenging antisocial behaviour.

Castlef ields resident Chris Harrison


To make sure we succeed in delivering our communitysafety promise, we work closely with local people andpartners, such as the police, fire services and local primarycare trusts to adopt a joined up approach not only to fixproblems when they arise, but to try and prevent problemshappening in the first place.

As well as addressing some of the physical improvementssuch as door-chains and security lights and a 24-hourservice to victims of antisocial behaviour, we have alsoadopted an innovative approach to supporting perpetratorsof antisocial behaviour to help them remain in their homesand communities.

Increased communitysafety measures

How are we doing?Through our ongoing engagement withyou, we recognise that being able tofeel safe in your homes remains oneof your key priorities.

In 2009|10 we have:

■ Carried out securityimprovement programmesacross neighbourhoods thathad been highlighted as beingat risk by our work with thepolice and fire services. Forexample, securing windowsand installing anti-vandal paintin Sheil Park in Liverpool.

■ Secured funding to carry outsecurity improvements to 400homes in Liverpool 8.

In 2010|11 we will continueto develop out service by:

■ Establishing a CommunitySafety Task Group to reviewour current approach to managing antisocialbehaviour, hate crime and domestic abuse.

■ Continuing to work with tenants to agree our ‘localoffer’ to deliver a tenancy andestate management servicethat reflects what tenants wantin line with the Neighbourhoodand Community and TenancyStandards.

249The number of

antisocial behaviourcases we managedduring 2009|10


Throughout the year weorganised a wide range ofactivity to engage with andinvolve tenants and residents.This included organising anumber of events for youngpeople across Cheshire and Merseyside includingdrama, music, sport andtraining schemes.

Often the activities aredesigned to deal with a specificchallenge on a particular estate. For example, concernswere raised in Anfield,Liverpool, about young mendrinking alcohol to excess inthe evening.

To help stem this, we organisedfootball sessions which ranfrom 9-11pm, encouragingplayers to abstain.

Another project saw a ‘dry’ St Patricks Day event in Anfieldin which more than 70 people

enjoyed bands and otherattractions without drinkingalcohol. On the infamous‘Mischief Night’ (October 30th)and Guy Fawkes Night whenyouths can sometimes getinvolved in serious antisocialbehaviour, we ran a series of positive activities including a ‘pink party’ to raise money for breast cancer, trips to acircus, two skiing trips andcarting sessions aimed at atargeted group most likely tocause disturbances.

In Liverpool alone, policereported their best everstatistics for nuisance calls inthe areas we targeted duringthis period.

Other work underway tosupport resident involvementincludes an internet projectwhich was worked on withyoung people from AnneConway House in Liverpool and

Hungerford Road in Crewe. Called “movin on, movin in”, the site was created afterseveral workshops, work with a graphic designer and aresidential session.

In response to the murder of 16-year old Army cadetJoseph Lappin in the Evertonarea of Liverpool, we engagedmore than 500 local youngstersin the “say no to guns andknives” festival.

Some 178 people signed apledge to do all they could tochallenge violent culture.

But it’s not just the negativeside of life that we get involvedwith. We organise sports days,cookery sessions, computerprojects, family fun days andmuch more all year roundthroughout the neighbourhoodswe work in.

Engaging with young people

Cooking session at Bedford School, BootleBirthday celebrations at Hungerford Road

Charles Clarke of Walton, Liverpool, faced losinghis home because he took a stand againstantisocial behaviour and went from being the victim of trouble to being seen as the perpetrator.But, with the help of our support service, heturned the tables. We assigned him a supportofficer, who works with tenants accused of badbehaviour, encouraging them to resolve disputes.

Charles, 49, found out that his son had fallen in with a gang who were exploiting the teenager’s special needs. Despite being disabled, Charlesdecided to confront them.

“I dragged him away and they didn’t like it. Theystarted throwing bricks and eggs at the house,tried to force their way inside,” he says.

“The last straw was when a brick came through thewindow, in a room in which my granddaughter was

Valuable support

Throughout the year, we continued to commit more resources to dealing with antisocial behaviour.

Nicola Andrews, Neighbourhood InvestmentManager, has been given the role of reviewingcommunity safety across the board, looking at whatwe do, how we do it and most importantly how wecan improve.

But in addition to customer engagement groups,close partnerships with the police and otheragencies; it is the personal touch that often makes a difference to tenants.

As part of our partnership with Liverpool CityCouncil, we receive crime statistics reports and use these to help tenants cope with the aftermath of crime. For example, every Plus Dane tenant who has been burgled gets a visit from one of

our wardens to see if they need any support or crime prevention advice.

Peggy Tracey, 80, suffered two terrifying attacks on her property, with doors kicked in and windowssmashed for no apparent motive.

“It was a terrifying time,” she says.

“Plus Dane came round and were very good. They did all the repairs free of charge and installedsecurity lights around the property. I also got a littlecamera to see who is at the door. While I’m still very afraid, they helped me feel that little bit better.”

In another case, two neighbours in West Derby,Liverpool, were at odds over a disputed flower bedborder with the resulting ASB escalating. Our offerto build a small fence to accurately divide theirgardens was accepted and resolved the problem.

Elsewhere in Liverpool, homes in Sheil Park hadfallen victim to actual and attempted break-ins. Plus Dane staff, working together with MerseysidePolice and with funding from Liverpool City Council,

Tackling AntisocialBehaviour (ASB)

Norman & Charles (above) attend a Focus Group

sitting. I went after them on my mobility scooter,chasing them off and waving my stick at them.”

A neighbour saw Charles and reported him to theauthorities and Charles faced the prospect of anantisocial behaviour order and losing his tenancy.

“I never found out who reported me but I’d like toshake hands with them for all the good things that havehappened since,” says Charles, who has been married to Claire, 45, for 21 years and has two other sons.

“A housing officer from Plus Dane came to see me.Everything changed. I got all the help and support I needed. They also realised that my old house wasn’t suitable for me and my family because of my disability - and moved me to a two-bedroombungalow in an area with great community spirit.”

Charles’ son is now out of the gang and is beinghelped to find accommodation with Plus Dane that willsupport his special needs.

“If you have a problem with antisocial you need toreport it straight away - don’t retaliate,” says Charles.

Charles was offered the chance to meet otherresidents who had experienced similar problems,including Norman Hunt, a 53 year old former shippingworker from Everton Valley, who is chairman of the ASB Focus Group. The group meets once a month,with Plus Dane supplying meeting space, transportcosts, refreshments and the advice and guidance ofsupport worker, Karen Buttery. Karen is enthusiasticabout the benefits the group brings. “It can be veryexpensive to tackle antisocial behaviour,the process of evicting a tenantcan cost up to £30,000, soschemes like these are verycost effective.

“So far the results havebeen fantastic. A lot ofpeople say they don’t knowwhat we’re doing but theywant us to continue doing it.”


led a new ‘target hardening’ project to makeproperties more secure.

Measures such as extra security for windows, anti-vandal paint and the distribution of propertymarking kits have made residents feel safer in their own homes.

In Cheshire, a new partnership with local police inSandbach was launched to introduce No ColdCalling zones in streets inhabited by older people in bungalows. A community event explained thedangers of cold callers, and offered advice on howto deal with people on the doorstep, as well aswarning of specific scams. Signs and stickers were put up to publicise the No Cold Calling zone,and residents were also given special pens to mark their belongings.

David Steele, 68, a retired retail worker was just one of the people who complained to us aboutsalespeople - who may or may not be genuine -plaguing the estate.

David said: “It’s been a good idea and I do feel

safer now it’s in place. When people you’re not sureabout are knocking on the doors, especially afterdark, it can get very frightening.”

Home safety measures

Sandbach No Cold CallersPartnership

£30,000Typical cost of an eviction

through antisocialbehaviour


People may need this support at different stages in their lives, for example, moving into your firsthome, or as a result of some change in personalcircumstances such as a health issue, bereavement,homelessness or drug/alcohol related problems.

Throughout the year, our neighbourhood teamscontinued to offer support, aswell as signposting torelevant partnerorganisations. Our specialist teams also offersupport acrossneighbourhoods to refugees, ex-offenders andthose causing antisocial behaviour.

Further supportingvulnerable customers

How are we doing?At Plus Dane, we see it as anessential part of our role to provideadditional support at times whenpeople need it most.

This year we have:

■ Continued to provide specialisthousing for the elderly, people with health issues or those facinghomelessness. A key achievementwas the opening of Heath View inCongleton, Cheshire, which offers 45 one or two bedroom apartmentsand a first class range of facilities.

■ Following the success of our Beat the Chill campaign in 2008 and thepositive feedback you gave us, inDecember 2009, we visited 700vulnerable customers to provideadvice and support on how to stay warm and safe over the winter months.

In 2010|11 we will:

■ Continue to work with you to agreeour ‘local offer’ to deliver a tenancyand estate management service thatreflects what you want, in line with theNeighbourhood and CommunityTenancy Standards.

■ Build on our partnerships with local organisations to deliver the Beat the Chill winter warmthcampaign, with the aim of reachingeven more people.

■ Continue to work with partners to deliver our support services.

£430,000- The value of 104 majoradaptations we carriedout, using disability information on more than 65% of ourcustomers

Ni staff help with snow clearing


“My parents didn’t love me anymore, we were always arguing and I had to leave. I’d just turned 16 and was upset and angryand sleeping on floors at friends’ houses and missing my schooling and exams. I had nothing.”

This is the story of Ryan, a young man who isone of the many people helped through ouraccommodation and support service for peopleaged 16-24 at Hungerford Road, Crewe, whichgives a new start and new hope to people whofind themselves homeless at a vulnerable age.

In the two years he has been receiving supportand accommodation, Ryan has been back tocollege, embarked on a Prince’s Trust course, is enjoying a work experience placement at alocal garage and is ready to move into his ownflat. He is also applying to join the Army.

“Hungerford Road has provided me with a lot ofdifferent life skills, learning about money, how tobudget, how to cook and clean and look aftermyself,” he says.

“It’s a very supportive environment, it’s helped tokeep me out of trouble.”

Hungerford Road exists to help support avariety of agencies working with young peopleand address what Plus Dane has identified as agap in local services. It also runs a ‘moving on’house to help those who need extra supportmaking the transition to living on their own, athree month floating support service for formerresidents and drop-in availability for formerresidents.

“I feel now that I’ve got the skills to move on andmake something of myself,” adds Ryan. “I’mhoping that going into the Army will make mymum and dad proud and they will see me in anew light.”

Hungerford Road

Ryan Hulme, Hungerford Road

£750,000- The amount gainedin unclaimed benefits

for customers


Plus Dane is helping many people throughoutMerseyside and Cheshire get their lives back on track through its floating support services,which offer a range support to help people to live independently.

Sarah Oselle came to this country from Uganda in 2002. Her husband at the time, a prominentbusinessman, had been accused of treason andarrested. Hearing that the police were coming for her, Sarah fled, taking her baby, Ariko, but makingthe heartbreaking decision to leave behind her twoother children.

“I arrived in freezing cold. I didn’t know where I was,where I would go, who would help me,” she says.

She was persuaded to seek asylum status and after an exhaustive application process, she wastaken to a centre in Dover then sent to live inHuddersfield where she faced a difficult battle tostay in the UK. She was eventually successful and,as she was granted indefinite leave to remain in theUK, decided to move to Liverpool.

Her relief that she was free at last was tempered by the fact she was suddenly homeless, jobless and penniless.

“I was sent to a hostel for the homeless. It was a very tough time,” she remembers.

“I was living with some bad people including one man who was a drug addict and racist.His abuse was constant, he used to scream at me and racially abuse me in the most horrible of ways. He really hurt me and I think then thatwas when I was at my very lowest.”

But things began to turn around for Sarah when,with the help of one of Plus Dane’s floatingsupport services, she was assigned supportworker, Jacqueline Connolly.

“Jackie was so accepting,” Sarah says. “She was so sympathetic and friendly. She built me

up again, she saw something in me that I couldn’t see in myself, she made me look at the future in a different way.

“With her help I was able to get a tenancy and acommunity grant - just a little bit of money butenough to allow me to move from the hostel.”

Sarah went on to take a foundations degree coursein Social Policy, Health and Housing at St HelensCollege and secured a place working on PlusDane’s Property Pool Review Project, where shegained valuable skills. She currently works shifts as an NHS support worker, earning just enough tomake her living.

She is now preparing for her son and daughter inUganda, now aged 11 and 15, to come and join her and Ariko, now aged 9, in their Edge Hill home.

“Jackie never stopped supporting me,” she says. “I pushed her hard and she never lost patience. She has such a passion for her job - everyone at Plus Dane is like that, they are really in it for the community even though sometimes they have very difficult challenges.”

Floating Support

Visitors at a F loating Support Event


Finance and debt support Sandbach tenant Bill Hillier, who had beenrunning a business selling decorative lightingto the retail trade throughout the North West,found himself with mounting debts as therecession deepened.

He was diagnosed with an illness whichprevented him from driving and left himunable to work and ended up in £46,000 ofdebt, with interest payments of £900 a month.

But, with the help of Carl Thompson, PlusDane’s Financial Inclusion Officer, Bill managedto get help and support to clear his debts.

“Carl was brilliant, he put me in touch withdebt advisors - he actually drove me to the meeting - helped me fill in forms and what tosay and even went with me to the court forthe bankruptcy hearing,” says Bill.

“The judge agreed that there were genuine reasons why I’d got into debt and there was no way I’d ever pay these off. He wiped theslate clean - it was a great feeling.”

Winter WarmerIn December 2009, more than 400 members of PlusDane staff, including gas fitters, accountants,electricians, housing managers, plumbers andadministration staff, visited customers to advise them on how to stay warm and safe in their homes during the winter as part of our Beat the Chill Campaign. Theyalso handed out gift packs containing useful items suchas thermos flasks, blankets and tea and coffee.

Working closely with customers and key partners such as the Merseyside and Cheshire Fire and Rescue Services and local Primary Care Trusts, wedevised a useful booklet providing information on arange of key issues such as how to save money onenergy bills, how to increase your income to pay bills and stay warm and healthy throughout the winter and how to avoid fire risks in the home. Beat the Chill Winter Warmth Campaign

Reaching out to elderly residentsAs part of our work helping tenants adapt to thedigital TV switchover, Plus Dane teamed up with a school in Cheshire to help vulnerable people.

Members of our Neighbourhood team worked withstudents from Eaton Bank High, an IT and technicalspecialist school in Congleton, Cheshire, to offerassistance to elderly residents who were struggling to get to grips with the digital TV switchover in theGranada TV region last November.

Students were given training and advice on how best they could support vulnerable residents to makesure that they were able to access their favouritechannels. Age Concern also offered tips on what kind of questions residents might ask and how best to get the message across.

Students and the Plus Dane team sent letters out to local residents informing them of the offer of support and then visited those residents who were most in need.

During the visits they helped explain what the digitalswitchover was and what equipment was needed. They also offered practical help, such as tuning boxesand programming channels.

Tenant Involvement and Empowerment Standard20

Further supportingresident involvement

This year, 51 residents have been involved in ourResidents’ Academy, taking part in courses suchas Healthy Eating and DIY for Beginners.

Customer feedback is an important part of makingsure that we continue to challenge ourselves todeliver the services that you want in the way thatyou want them. This year has seen a significantincrease in the number of customers involved indriving our business forward.

Customer groups have been established as anintegral part of our service improvement approach,covering specific areas of Asset Management,Income Management, Tenancy and EstateManagement and Lettings. Additionally, customerand staff teams were established to focus onCustomer Service and Leaseholder Services.

How are we doing?

Plus Dane is committed to encouragingtenants and residents to becomeinvolved in all aspects of our work.

There are many opportunities tobecome involved, ranging fromneighbourhood events, summer parties

and carnivals to boardmembership,neighbourhood panelsand other engagementforums and groups.

236The number of

complaints receivedand resolved

Members of the Asset Managementand Engagement Group


Plus Dane tenants appoint £32 million contract

In 2009|10, working with a wide range ofcustomer engagement groups, we have:

■ Reviewed suppliers and products for planned improvement works.

■ Undergone a thorough exercise toprocure a repairs service.

■ Developed an improved customer website.

■ Produced our customer annual report.

■ Enhanced our performance managementframework to align it to our engagementand governance structures.

■ Ensured that customers are now a regular part of our recruitmentinterview panels.

In 2010|11 we are committed tostrengthening customer engagementfurther by:

■ Introducing an enhanced engagement structure.

■ Reviewing our complaints process to include an opportunity for you to be involved.

■ Reviewing our approach to customersatisfaction reporting.

■ Recruiting and training 20Tenant Inspectors.

■ Introducing Mystery Shopper and Audit training for tenants.

■ Using our customer profile information to look at innovative ways to enhanceinvolvement opportunities.

■ Continuing to work with tenants to agreeour ‘local offer’ to deliver an engagementapproach that reflects what tenants wantin line with the Tenant Involvement andEmpowerment Standard.

Supporting resident involvement is at the heart of what Plus Dane does.

Everything from this report to major procurement projects comesout of consultation with the people we serve. When the contract for the £32 million repair and maintenance of 7,000 Plus Daneproperties in Merseyside was up for renewal, we decided the best people to decide who should provide property services fortenants, were tenants themselves.

Twelve volunteers from the tenants’ Asset Management andEngagement Group gave up 250 days of their time to read the 11 shortlisted tenders, interview the competing teams, visit worksites and call centres and speak to existing customers of those firms.

“Tenants want to know that if someone comes to their home they are going to do a good job, to have the tools to do the job quicklyand do a quality job, they have to have confidence that workers will respect their homes,” says Des Finley, 68, of Liverpool.

“I feel privileged that as a tenant I was asked to take part in theselection process. We got to pick the right team to carry out therepairs to our homes - it was vital that our voices were heard.”

Shaf Choudhary, 42, also of Liverpool, said: “People in Merseysideare going to notice the difference and can feel a lot more secure in how their landlord delivers repairs and maintenance of properties.“The whole thing is very inspiring; tenants are driving a better service as customers.”

Lilian Hazell, 67, of Sandbach Cheshire, adds: “You don’t often have the responsibility of deciding people’s jobs and lives, it wasonly after it was all over that we reflected on the enormity of it. But I feel we did the best for our fellow tenants.”

After the exhaustive process was over, the 12 were unanimous in awarding the contract to Plus Dane’s existing in-house tradesteam in Cheshire, which currently enjoys a 98% satisfaction rateamong tenants in the county, and a new Plus Dane trades team in Liverpool has now been formed.

The deal will have the added bonus of saving Plus Dane more than£500,000 in VAT with efficiencysavings on top of that of £150,000.This is money which can be used tofurther increase investment in thecommunities we serve.

£500,000- The amount saved in VAT through the

creation of a new Plus Dane Trades Team in Liverpool

Tenants Conference 2010

Gina Grain knows everything there is to know about energy conservation - but even she picked up useful knowledge from the one of the manyresident training courses we run.

The 67-year-old who lives in Holmes Chapel in Cheshire lived for a large part of her life in Rhodesia, now Zimbabwe, a place whereelectricity blackouts and water shortages were a fact of daily life.

“We had to find ways to make do,” says the motherof two. “Imagine having to use the same water toshower and flush the toilet with - that gives you anidea of how energy conservation is a necessary fact of life.”

Gina, a super-keen bridge player, gets involved in lots of Plus Dane activities – especially social events,which she believes are a vital part of our pledge to support the isolated. This year she took part incourses about home safety and saving energy.

“I don’t like paying bills,” she adds, “so although therewas a lot I already knew I did pick up some usefulknowledge to keep the house warmer and save money,such as putting foil behind radiators.

“Courses like these help people realise the dangers and give good advice,” she says.

“Plus Dane makes a difference and the staff work so hard. Their outreach work is very good at tacklingisolation, it’s just a shame that more people don’t get involved.”

Earlier this year residents were awarded certificatessubjects such as CIH Housing Level 2, MarvellousMeals in Minutes, Finding out about Energy, Recruitment and Selection, Equality Impact Assessment and Equality and Diversity.

At a graduation event at The Gateway, Warrington, there were speechesfrom residents like JohnKane, who gave amoving account of what he hadachieved.

Tenant Involvement and Empowerment Standard22

Pinehurst EstateA residents’ association in north Liverpool isthriving after taking a fresh approach to building a stronger neighbourhood.

The Pinehurst Estate Tenant and ResidentAssociation (PETRA) in Anfield has earned areputation as a focal point for the community,working with partners like the police, the local council and Plus Dane for the good of residents.

One of their pioneering approaches includesdesigning activities that young and old can do together.

The group puts on an impressive number of events,everything from circus skills to yoga, and also runsan environmental service which sees young people

250*The number of

engagement activitiesheld throughout

the year*More than half of

these specifically foryoung people


Mary Parrott of Heath View receives her certif icate to recogniseher contribution towards f inding out about energy in May 2010

P

tidying up the gardens of vulnerable people, putting up hanging baskets and growing organic fruit and vegetables.

PETRA’s latest event was a hugely popular talent show, with scores of people cheering on local acts.The under-18s category was won by dancers AmyMcFadyen, Lauren McFadyen and Sarah Taylor, whowowed the judges with their Lady Gaga-inspired set.The over 18s title was taken by dance comedy duothe Go Lightlys, consisting of Barbara Smith andMarge Drummond.

Terry Smith, 42, Chairman of PETRA, said: “Our work is all about breaking down barriers and creating astronger community built on respect and trust. Wealso like to have a lot of fun – it’s important to bringthe community together for events like these.”

51Residents have beensupported throughResident Academy

training

PETRA Environmental Team

The success of PETRA is one of the inspirations fora new push to revitalise the areas of Anfield, Countyand Kirkdale with a “coalition of the willing” that willcut through red tape. A taskforce called the NorthLiverpool Action Team, in which Plus Dane will takethe co-ordinating role, has been set up to tacklelocal problems such as antisocial behaviour andgrot spots, with a “just do it” approach. The groupwill consist of elected councillors, city officers andstaff from a diverse range of local organisations.


Increased creation of local jobs

How arewe doing?During these challengingtimes we recognise thatsupporting local people to get into training andemployment is increasinglyimportant if we are all to be successful in creating and maintaining greatneighbourhoods for people to live in.

As a Neighbourhood investor,we support people into workin a variety of different ways.

In 2010|11 we will:■ Continue to develop training and

employment opportunities bothwithin the organisation and throughworking with key partners.

■ Strengthen our links with schools,particularly looking at placementand apprenticeship opportunities.

■ Build on our approach to supporting and developing localsocial enterprises.

■ Work with tenants to identifyimproved ways in whichopportunities can be promotedacross the neighbourhoods inwhich we work.

In 2009|10 we have:■ Through EverybodyOnline, installed

10 reconditioned computers atBromley Farm in Cheshire, allowing30 local residents to access theinternet to look for jobs, accesssocial networks and carry out their hobbies.

■ Worked in partnership with Tesco to bring the prospect of over 500jobs to the Liverpool 8 area.

■ Employed 60 EnvironmentalRangers from a variety ofbackgrounds to keepneighbourhoods clean and tidy.

■ Secured 60 jobs for local peoplethrough the setting up of an in-house repairs team in Merseyside.


Work experienceWhen Phillip Ware decided toleave the Army and begin a newlife, he didn’t realise what abattle he would face.

The 25-year-old hoped to turnhis military experience into agood career but found thatwherever he went, doors wereclosed in his face.

“I was institutionalised,” he says.“I’d been in the cadets until I was16 and then went straight into theArmy. All I knew was the militaryway of doing things, militaryterminology.”

During his Army career, Phillipworked in Iraq as a humanresources administrator, recruitingIraqis to work for the Forces,interviewing candidates, sortingout pay and dealing withgrievances.

It was tough work and oftendangerous. But while his militarydiscipline had equipped him to

deal with hazards like explodingmortar shells, he found the jobmarket a tough place.

“It was difficult to know where tostart from,” he says. “When I wasgoing for jobs I was finding it hardto get through the interview stage.They ask you questions andexpect you to elaborate on youranswers but in the Army that’s not the done thing.

“I knew that I could do the jobs and that I had fantasticexperience but they didn’t see thisas relevant to business, it was alltoo military. I started applying forlower paid jobs and they wouldbrush me off as over-qualified.”

Phillip, a proud Yorkshireman,eventually signed on the dole. It was then he got referred to Training Network Group (TNG) and Future Jobs Fund, securing a placement with Everybody Online, a multi-partnership ICT-based social enterprise

in Merseyside supported by Plus Dane.

Here Phillip, who lives in theTuebrook area of Liverpool, wasable to put his knowledge ofcomputer systems and leadershipto good use, setting up projectsto help bridge the digital divide,helping people with no ICT skillsto access the educational, socialand financial benefits of internet.

He is now looking to the futurewith confidence as his placementcomes to an end and he beginsthe hunt for a job.

“I’ve got a lot of life experience tooffer and now I’m hopeful I canget a good job as I’ve got the sortof experience that will tick theboxes. I enjoy community work,even though the pay can be quitelow, but there’s a lot of satisfactionto be had making a change topeople’s lives and knowing you’vedone something worthwhile.”

Creatingopportunities


Another success story is Plus Dane’s IN Environmental Services (INES) team.

INES, a thriving social enterprise, was originally set up and support by a Neighbourhood RenewalFund grant and considerable support fromLiverpool City Council to create work for long-termunemployed people, those with vulnerabilities and ex-offenders.

Based in Toxteth, an area of Liverpool with highlevels of unemployment and barriers to work, the team specialises in cleaning up neighbourhoodsand turning eyesores into places of community pride.

Part of their work involves volunteering theirservices to improve the local environment,everything from cleaning up school grounds toproviding free hanging baskets for everyone who wants them.

“Our ethic is to try to get socially excluded peopleinto work,” explains head of environmentalservices, Joe Feeley.

“A lot of people come to us, they can’t read orwrite, they’ve got on the wrong side of the law formistakes that young lads sometimes make, theymay have a disability or come from a family wherethere have been generations of unemployment.

“They come into interviews with their eyes down,chins in their chests, no expectation that they’ll get the job. It’s up to us to draw these people out, give them a chance, help them, mould them.

“In three months people can go from anundesirable member of the community to adesirable one. They turn their lives around.”

One person who went through the process is James Brown, 25.

Jobless for over a year, the father of two finallymanaged to get back into employment through the Future Jobs Fund and INES.

The £32 million repairs and maintenance contract for Liverpool properties, awarded by Plus Dane tenants, had the additional benefit of safeguarding 60 jobs and creating 11 apprenticeship roles through the creation of a new in-house trades team for Merseyside.

It was people like Phillip Fitzgibbon, 28, who benefitted.

“My previous job was coming to an end and my girlfriend is pregnant,” he says. I faced the prospect of being a new father and on the dole.” Phillip, a plasterer, was just one of the dozens of local people offered work on the new Merseyside trades team.

“Everywhere else seems to be laying off but Plus Dane have been taking on at the right time. Getting a secure job took a huge weight off my shoulders,” he says.

Safeguardingjobs

Rewarding successChris Ogden, 25, an apprenticebricklayer with Plus Dane, scooped the Apprentice of the Year title for what his bosses called his “exceptional” attitude and commitment.

Congleton lad Chris, who had been a football coach andhad trials with Stockport County before injury struck, hasa reputation as someone who regularly goes beyond thecall of duty.

After breaking his foot, Chris, who works on adaptingproperties for disabled tenants, decided not to take timeoff, but came into the office on crutches and volunteeredto help out with admin work.

“Winning was a major shock - I thought it must be a jokeat first,” Chris said. “Plus Dane has been great to me -it’s a brilliant company to work for. They instil in us thatwe must do our very best for tenants and they are verysupportive in giving the workforce the training to do this.”


60 jobsHave been

safeguarded with the maintenance

contract

James Brown, INES (right)

“INES likes to employ local lads and I lived just round the corner,” says James, who has been working as an environmental ranger on gardens and landscapes.“They do a lot of work in this area, doing good jobs to make it a better place, so I was made up.

“If you look at some of the places we’ve worked on and think back to what they used to be, we can really say we’ve improved things, really made a difference.”

James, who is a big Liverpool FC supporterand enjoys spending time playing football with his children, has picked up lots of new skills while on the INES placement and is looking for work in the garden maintenance/environment trade.

One job that James is particularly proud of is the work the INES team did on the Greenhouse Project, a multi-culture play and arts scheme based in Lodge Lane.

“The area was getting a bit run down so it gave me a lot of satisfaction to see itgiven a new start, to see the kids playing there,” he adds.

Tenancy Standard28

How are we doing?We remain committed toincreasing the supply andchoice of homes, with almost1,500 new homes at variousstages of development,offering a number ofaffordable housing options.

This year we have:

■ Built 251new homesand invested £1 millionin both existing homes,and to provide 132 newhomes for older peopleand those with specialsupport needs.

� Helped over 100households to move into homeownership through our HomesHub teamand supported 20homeownersstruggling to keep up with their mortgagepayments to remain intheir homes throughthe Mortgage RescueScheme.

■ Developed and built 12 new two-bedroom semi-detached homesin Scholar Green,Cheshire, all foraffordable rent, aimedat couples and smallfamilies. The housescome with renewableenergy features suchas ground source heatpumps, water buttsand energy savingfittings and lightbulbs.

■ Started developing 24new apartments in the Queens-Bedfordneighbourhood ofLiverpool, a partner inEvolve NeighbourhoodRegeneration.

The development, atOriel Road, will providehigh quality, affordablerented accommodationfor people over the age of 55.

■ Held 30 tenant eventsacross Cheshire and Merseysidespecifically related to environmentalactivities.

■ Secured over £100,000funding from theTechnology StrategyBoard’s Retrofit for the Future project.

In 2010|11 we will:

■ Continue to do morefor the environment byworking with tenants toenhance our approachto sustainability, notonly in constructionand maintenance ofhomes, but also in themanner in which weoperate.

■ Work with ourengagement groups toenhance the way weprovide and promoteadditional services.

Edgewater Park, Cheshire

Increased supplyand choice of homes

We undertake all our activities in aresponsible manner and are continuallyworking to improve our constructionmethods to make sure we use the most modern and environmentally friendly techniques and materials. Thiswas recognised inour nominationfor threeawards in theSustainableHousingAwards during2009.

£2million- the amount invested byPlus Dane in the new £11million Village Square

development inCastlefields, Runcorn


Overcrowding is a common problem in homes, but less well-known is the challenge of under-occupancy.

People like Martin Horn, 41, and his disabledsister Joanne, 40, were left in a four bedroomhouse with big bills and facilities that wereunsuitable for Joanne’s disabilities when theirfather died.

We helped them to move into a modern, eco-friendly property in Castlefield’s, Runcorn.

Martin and his sister are delighted with their new home. “When we walked in our eyes lit up.It’s ground floor entry, open and light, there’s a walk-in shower, it’s eco friendly and there’ssmaller bills. It’s brilliant.”

“Plus Dane have been with us every step of the way, they helped sort out bills and transferaccounts when my dad died and it was all a bitmuch for me. We wouldn’t have been able tomove to the smaller home we needed withouttheir help.”

Providing theright homes

Martin Horne and his sister Joanne

K ings Head Close, Runcorn

A new £5.9 million state-of-the-art extra carescheme for retired people opened its doors inCongleton in March 2010 and is setting thestandard for future schemes to be judged by.

Among its residents is Rachel Malcolm, 85, a former nurse who was living alone in a high-rise flat, but after cracking her spine in a fall came to stay with her daughter in Congleton. Determined not to be a burden on the family, Rachel was referred to Heath View and says now: “I’ve neverhad it so good.”

“I’m so very happy here,” she adds. “Everyone is so nice and it’s a lovely place. There’s alwayssomething on to do, I have a lovely apartment and views over the fields. The staff here can’t doenough for you, I feel really lucky to have a place like this to live out the rest of my life.”

Heath View

Many people find themselves in a vulnerableposition when the split with a partner. Financescan be a major worry, with private rents andproperty prices beyond the reach of most singlepeople, especially when children are involved.

Plus Dane has been increasing the supply andchoice of homes to deal with lifestyle changes just like these. Two men - Philip Brown and Geoff Scotton - are among those benefitting.

28-year-old security specialist Phillip Brown was left feeling decidedly insecure when a long-termrelationship broke down six years ago and he was forced to give up the home he owned with his ex-partner and move back in with his parents.“It was not ideal but the only option,” he says. “I wanted to own a home but the housing market was going bananas and there was no way I could afford to buy.”

As time went on Philip was beginning to think he’d never find the home he dreamed of until hecame across the HomesHub.co.uk website andread about our shared ownership offers. Thescheme allows people to buy a share of between25%-75% to move in. Customers typically lay downa smaller deposit than normal and pay a reducedrent on the remaining share, which is owned by a housing association.

You can buy more shares as you can afford themand eventually own the whole property if you wantto. You are also free to sell the share on the openmarket if you want to move on. It suited Philipperfectly and he was able to buy a newly built home on the Great Hall development off Cambridge Road in Ellesmere Port.

“I decided to sell my car and take the plunge,” he says. “Without this help I wouldn’t be able to get on the property ladder. It was a great feeling to get the keys and step through the door of my own home again after having to live with my parents for so long.

Increasing choice

Arnold Tasker

£5.9million- the amount invested inthe development of HeathView, a state-of-the-artextra care scheme in

CongletonRachel Malcolm

Another resident, Heath View’s joker-in-the-pack,Arnold Tasker, 79, lived in the former St Mary’s homefor the elderly that was knocked down and replaced by Heath View. He was one of the first to move in to a luxury two-bedroom apartment and is full of praise for his new home.

“There were a lot of things wrong with St Mary’s,” says the former milkman and chemicals worker. “It was very run down, there were swarms of ants in the summer and very little space.

“Heath View is like a five-star hotel. Being here makes me very happy and I feel very lucky becausethey have thought of everything that the elderly personneeds. You can’t fault Plus Dane, they’ve doneeverything for us.”

Among the facilities on offer in 24-hour care, a bistro,TV lounges, games rooms, internet suite, hair salon,laundry, health and well being suite, keep fit classes,arts and crafts days, landscaped gardens and muchmore. There are 45 one and two bedroom apartmentswith a full range of support services that allow

people to access care and help to maintain theirindependence and choice and continue to play anactive role in the community.

“Coming here has given me a new lease of life,” says Arnold. “I lost my wife, then a long-term partner. I thought I was going mad – at one point I was talkingto the walls. Here I’ve made so many friends, I love tolaugh and tell jokes and everyone is so friendly andgets on so well.”

The project, which received a £1.7 million grant fromthe Homes and Communities Agency (HCA), was led by Plus Dane Group and construction was carried out in partnership with J&S Seddon (Building)Ltd. Residents were fully involved in consultationsabout the design of the building and the facilities onoffer, making sure the finished product was exactlywhat they wanted. “It’s an amazing place, you onlyhave to look round it,” Arnold adds. “All homes for the elderly should be like this one.”


“I finally feel as if I’m back on track.”

Geoff Scotton is someone else who feels he has his life back under control. After a divorce and the financial fallout that followed, Geoff walked into a home he had thought beyond his reach.

Geoff, 40, is one of Plus Dane Group’s Rent-to-HomeBuy customers, people who want to own their own property but need time to save and plan.For his two-bedroom home in Hereford Drive,Netherton, he has the option of paying rent - ataround 20% less than the going market rate - for five years while he decides whether buying is right for him.

But for Geoff - who shares his home with his sonAlex,18 - the decision will be an easy one.

“I was going through a marriage separation and had to find a new place,” he says. “I’d come from a life where I had a nice house, a garden - a lovelyhome. All of a sudden I was looking at grotty bedsits because I couldn’t afford to buy a home.

“If it wasn’t for HomesHub, I don’t know what I’dhave done. Being here is the best therapy I couldhave wished for.”

Philip Brown settles intohis new home in Ellesmere Port


This year, we have once againbeen working closely withcustomers and key partners to develop the campaign andincrease its reach to providesupport to as many people as possible.

Here are some of our top tips forstaying warm and saving moneythis winter:

■ Check whether you can savemoney by changing yourenergy supplier.

■ It is recommended that youturn your thermostat to 21°Cduring the day. Turning downyour thermostat by just 1°Ccould reduce your energy billby 10%.

■ Set your heating to switch onjust before you get up and toswitch off after you have goneto bed. If it is very cold, setyour heating to come on earlierand go off later, rather thanturning up the heating.

■ Set your hot water to atemperature between 43°Cand 60°C.

■ Reduce draughts by keepingdoors closed and only heatrooms that you are using.

■ Use energy saving light bulbswhere possible. Remember toturn lights off when you are notin the room.

■ At night, close your curtains orblinds as this helps to keep theheat inside your home.

■ When using your kettle, onlyboil the water that you need touse. When cooking, select thecorrect saucepan size, onlyuse the water that you needand use a pan lid.

■ Use a microwave wherepossible as they use less energy than conventional ovens.

■ Switch off appliances when notin use, rather than leavingthem on standby.

Stay healthy this winter by:

Staying activeIf you are able, try to move aroundat least once every hour. Try to

exercise as much as youcan but consult a doctorbefore you do a lot ofexercise.

Wearing the right clothesThe best way of retainingbody heat is to wearseveral layers of clothes.

Eating wellFood is a vital source of warmthand energy, so try to have regularhot meals and drinks.

Getting a Flu JabIf you are aged 65 or over, or youare at risk of developing a seriousillness if you catch the flu, you willqualify for a free flu jab.

To find out more about getting aflu jab, please talk to your doctor,call NHS Direct on 0845 4647, or visit www.nhsdirect.nhs.uk

Financial SupportDid you know that we can offeryou information, advice andsupport on:

■ Claiming benefits.■ Claiming grants and loans.■ Managing your rent account.■ Managing any debts you

might have.■ Reducing your household bills,

particularly energy bills.■ Applying for credit if you

need it.

We work closely with our partners,including local credit unions, tohelp you get the best deal.

To find out more contact us on:

0500 026 079 - Residents inCheshire and Staffordshire

0800 169 2988 - Residents inMerseyside and Lancashire

Many of you have told us that you value our Winter Warmthcampaign, which offers information and advice on ways toreduce your energy bills and stay warm and healthy over thewinter months.

Winter Warmth energy advice


PerformanceinformationPerformance plays an importantrole in achieving our aim toprovide excellent and efficientservices. Performance helps totell us how we are doing andwhere we can be even better.

At its simplest, performance management is about practical ways of improving how we dothings in order to deliver better outcomes for customers. We collect lots of facts and figures to monitor how well we are doing and we set challenging improvement targets for the coming year.

Some of the PI’s (performance indicators) we produce are collected by other housingassociations across the country which helps us to compare how we are doing. Our aim is that we perform in the top 25% of housingassociations in the country.

To assist us, we use a company calledHouseMark who have been running abenchmarking service for 10 years and are well established, successful, recognised and used by over 750 housing associationsacross the country.

We have submitted our yearly data toHouseMark and are currently waiting forvalidation and publication of our report. Once we are in receipt of this, we will be sharing ourperformance against our peers in future editions.

Units owned Units managed Managed by others Non-social housing Total Turnover

11,302 4,482 323 194 16,301 £52,946,000

In the first full year of trading, the financialperformance of the group has exceededexpectations as a whole as efficiencies continue tobe driven throughout the business and opportunitiesfor growth have been realised. The results are

welcomed with some caution as the economicclimate will continue to present challenges duringthe coming year. However the results provide astrong platform on which to build future provision.

Income £’000

Rent receivable net ofidentifiable service charges 40,360

Service charges receivable 1,559

Supporting people funding 1,773

Development andmanagement services 4,283

Sale of housing properties 1,637

Private contract and other income 2,374

Income from finance leases 430

Joint venture income 228

Interest and investment income 47

Surplus on the sale of fixed assets 1,512

54,203

Expenditure

Management and service costs 14,168

Repairs and maintenance 17,369

Depreciation and impairmentof fixed assets 1,753

Provision for bad or doubtful debts 190

Cost of property sales 1,835

Other costs 6,724

Interest payable and similar charges 9,980

Corporation tax 459

52,478

Retained surplus for the year 1,725


2008/9 2009/10 Best 25

Average time to complete a repair - Merseyside 8.5 days 8.7 days 10 days

Average time to complete a repair - Cheshire 9 days 7 days 10 days

Percentage of customers satisfied with repairs service - Merseyside 82% 98% 83%

Percentage of customers satisfied with repairs service - Cheshire 94% 98% 83%

Percentage of properties not meeting Decent Homes standard - Merseyside 14.00% 1.10% 0.82%

Percentage of properties not meeting Decent Homes standard - Cheshire 1.60% 0.79% 0.82%

Percentage of homes with valid gas certificates - Merseyside 99.5% 98.8% 100%

Percentage of homes with valid gas certificates - Cheshire 99.8% 99.5% 100%

Home Standard

In April 2010 the TSA announced ‘The Regulatory Framework For Social Housing in England from April 2010’, which focuses on a co-regulatory approach. This included the introduction of six standards know as the TSA standards, where housing providers must demonstrate outcomes for tenants.The TSA Standards and requirements are:

Standard Requirement

Tenantinvolvement andempowerment

Home

Tenancy

Neighbourhoodand Community

Value for money

Governance andfinancial viability

■ Customer service, choice and complaints■ Involvement and empowerment■ Understanding and responding to diverse needs of tenants

■ Quality of accommodation■ Repairs and maintenance

■ Allocations■ Rents■ Tenure

■ Neighbourhood Management■ Local area co-operation■ Antisocial behaviour

■ Value for money

■ Governance■ Financial viability

Tenant Inspectors Launch Event


2008/9 2009/10 Best 25

Current rent arrears percentage - Merseyside 5.91% 4.50% 2.38%

Current rent arrears percentage - Cheshire 4.68% 2.96% 2.38%

Average time to re-let these homes - Merseyside 34 days 29 days 27 days

Average time to re-let these homes - Cheshire 37 days 58 days 27 days

Percentage of customers satisfied with their new home - Merseyside 84% 87% 94%

Percentage of customers satisfied with their new home - Cheshire 91% 92% 94%

Rent Due - Merseyside £23,507,829 £26,580,728

Rent Due - Cheshire £15,504,184 £16,085,117

Number of homes that have been empty this year - Merseyside 668 518

Number of homes that have been empty this year - Cheshire 424 480

Tenancy Standard

2008/9 2009/10 Best 25

Percentage of customers whose gender we know - Merseyside 99.50% 99.50% 100%

Percentage of customers whose gender we know - Cheshire 93.70% 96% 100%

Percentage of customers whose age we know - Merseyside 93% 91% 98.74%

Percentage of customers whose age we know - Cheshire 79% 88% 98.74%

Percentage of customers whose ethnicity we know - Merseyside 74% 78% 95.41%

Percentage of customers whose ethnicity we know - Cheshire 62% 78% 95.41%

Percentage of customers who we know has a disability - Merseyside 70% 71% 86.55%

Percentage of customers who we know has a disability - Cheshire 34% 65% 86.55%

Percentage of customers whose religion we know - Merseyside 53% 66% 63%

Percentage of customers whose religion we know - Cheshire 19% 63% 63%

Percentage of customers whose sexual orientation we know - Merseyside 48% 66% 56.60%

Percentage of customers whose sexual orientation we know - Cheshire 2.70% 57% 56.60%

Tenant Involvement & Empowerment

2008/9 2009/10

Number of ASB cases raised - Merseyside 200 195

Number of ASB cases raised - Cheshire 32 54

Neighbourhood & Community

Plus Dane GroupBaltimore Buildings13-15 Rodney StreetLiverpool L1 9EFt: 0151 708 0674

Plus Dane GroupShepherds Mill Worrall Street Congleton Cheshire CW12 1DTt: 01260 281 037

©2010 - This publication has been written & designed by Plus Dane Group’sKnowledge, Innovation & Performance Team working alongside the CustomerCommunications Focus Panel.

This document is available in other languages, onaudio format, in large print or in Braille by request.

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If you have any comments about UNiTYmagazine, please let us know - if you like it, tell us why, if not, tell us how we can make itbetter. We also welcome any ideas for storiesthat you might have, and would love to talk topeople who would like to take part in ourregular columns or have news to share. You can contact us in the following ways:

Call our Communications Team on 0151 522 1349, or write to us via SarahMoston, Communications Team, Plus DaneGroup, Smithdown Office, 4 SmithdownPlace, Liverpool L15 9EN. You can also e-mailus at [email protected]

www.neighbourhoodinvestor.com

Contact us!

Our Neighbourhood Investment and Influence Plans are used toensure that the right services are in the right place to meet the local needs and aspirations of the communities we serve.

The plans reflect the priorities oftenants and neighbourhood forumsby identifying what is important tothem in their neighbourhoods, andso will continue to form the basis of our approach to developing our‘local’ offers.

This autumn we are keen to hearthe views of as many people aspossible and will be using a range of different ways to do this including neighbourhoodforums, neighbourhood events, our websitewww.neighbourhoodinvestor.comand postal questionnaires. We want to hear about where you think we are performing well, as well as where you think we need to improve.

Your thoughts, views andopinions will then be collected and pulled together into our revisedService Standards andNeighbourhood Investmentand Influence Plans to ensure the right services are in the right place to meet the local needs and aspirations of theneighbourhoods we serve.These plans will be agreed and in place from April 2011.

Neighbourhood Housing Off icer

Tenant engagement

Neighbourhood Consultation Event

Your opinion matters

Documents

Unity Issue 6