After my post a few weeks ago about our progress since I started 9 months ago, I promised I would give an update at how the 2024-25 budget has been set to meet our strategic aspirations at the same time and how we have been listening to what our tenants are telling us. We are committed to investing our resources in the areas which mean the most to our tenants and that was the main objective in arriving at this year’s budget. Like any budget process we cannot do everything we want to do but I think we reached a good compromise in what we have committed to. Overall, we plan to spend around £890 thousand more on maintenance than the previous year’s budget. We have committed to a strong kitchen and bathroom replacement programme as well as roofing, windows and doors. Following some kitchen replacement works, one tenant said….
“What a difference the new kitchen has made, we are so grateful and pleased with the workers thank you so much”
On top of our own resources, we have successfully drawn on Welsh Government funding to bring homes, needing significant investment back to a lettable standard. This helps provide much needed additional affordable homes at this time of desperate need. We also continue to run a Physical Adaptation Programme to help people remain in and live more comfortably in their homes, using Welsh Government funding. After some adaptation works, a tenant said….
“We would just like to say a very big THANK YOU to you for all you’ve done to get us a walk in shower…… It has made life so much easier, so again thank you.”
Within the budget we have provided match contribution to Welsh Government funding to make our homes more energy efficient, lowering energy costs for tenants. After a recent installation of a solar PV system as well as internal and external wall insultation one of our tenants said…
“We saw a difference straight away, the house is so much warmer, and when we do put the heating on, it doesn’t need to be on for very long and the warmth stays. Our property also benefited from solar panels with battery storage. We have found that this has made a massive difference with how much electricity we are needing to use from the grid and saves us a lot of money as a result.
My husband is going through chemotherapy at the moment, so having a warmer home, and not having to worry so much about the cost of our energy bills makes such a difference to us.”
We are continually listening and learning from tenants and investing in the areas which matter most. A good example of this was last year when we started our communal area re-decoration programme. We want to achieve a reality where all communal areas in CCHA flats feel welcoming and our tenants can feel proud to live in their homes. I know we are some way off this with some of our blocks. We know some have not been decorated for a long time but our tenants are telling us this is really important to them. This is why we was determined to ensure this year’s budget continued to support this re-decoration programme.
We have seen complaints and concerns raised by tenants around our estate maintenance for a number of years. As such, we have led significant work to make improvements in both appearance and the ongoing services we provide in our neighbourhoods. I am pleased to confirm we have set aside another £80 thousand this year for estate improvement works like revamped bin stores. In terms of service provision, we have expanded our cleaning and grounds maintenance teams listening to concerns raised by residents. I am really hoping to see a further improvement during this year for both estates’ appearance and service provision.
Whilst inflation is falling, for some tenants, it might not feel like it. As such, we have increased our hardship fund to £25 thousand, which we are using in a variety of ways to support those in need. Last year we used our hardship fund to help tenants in many ways including food vouchers, hygiene items and utility vouchers. Please get in touch to seek support!!
Keep an eye on our social media feeds as we plan to let you know the progress in some of these areas. I hope our tenants can see we are continually listening and designing our services and investing resources in those areas which mean the most to them.
Please get in touch if you want to know more!!
Brian