METRA. Housing Co-operative ANNUAL REPORT

Transcription

1 METRA Housing Co-operative ANNUAL REPORT

2 CONTENTS Meet Your Management Committee Letter from Metra Chair Tenant Involvement, Empowerment and Customer Care and Tenancy Home and Financial Viability Neighbourhood & Community and You Said, We Did Feedback Form MEET YOUR MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE Sheila Little Secretary Peter Lawrence Treasurer (Stepped down September 2017) Abigail Maya Chair Maxine Hastings Patricia Walker Peter Little Maisie Williamson Anthony Molloy Committee Member Committee Member Committee Member Committee Member Co-Optee Metra Housing Co-operative is managed by your Committee, who are unpaid volunteers. They meet at least once every month to monitor how the TMO is performing and to make important decisions about the management of the TMO. Committee members receive training and support to help them carry out their role. 2

3 Dear all, welcome to our 2016/17 annual report. LETTER FROM METRA CHAIR As you may know, the last 12 months have proved challenging as we have attempted at all costs to maintain the service as much as possible and ensure that the customer (the residents) have not suffered a detrimental impact and still receive the benefit of being part of a TMO under very difficult operating circumstances. We find ourselves yet again in a challenging financial situation we have a huge pension liability combined with a year on year reduction in our allowances meaning that we are in deficit. This is a situation we have found ourselves in before. Last year was the same and the landlord, Watmos provided us with a Letter of Comfort which confirms that there is faith in us and that we are still a viable going concern. We have attempted to address this issue robustly this year and for those who may remember, we had a special general meeting earlier in the year (May 2017) to propose changes to our rules which would allow for instance us entering into a contractual relationship with others in the Watmos group, e.g. Ethelred and Thorlands TMO s who are based in Kennington and Camberwell. The situation this year however is that we technically cannot afford to have 2 full time paid staff members and so entered into negotiations with Thorlands TMO to share resources. However, whilst in the midst of this conversation, our own TMO Manager, Julia Marshall unfortunately resigned which then left both ourselves and Thorlands with no manager. As stated before we technically cannot afford to have 2 full time members of staff but we want to try and continue to run the service for the benefit of our residents. This means relooking at what we do and how we do it, therefore, we want to give ourselves a period to look at running the services of all 3 estates not by reducing services but doing things differently. This will include the Manager (Mr. Chris Christou) and staff of Ethelred TMO working more closely with us and you may from time to time see them in the office. However, likewise, it will mean sharing Pauline from the office with others in the London group and you will not see Pauline in our office 5 days per week. We have also formerly changed the name of METRA and on official documents and on posters around our estate you may see the name METRA (Magdalen Estate Tenant Management Organisation), however, we will still fondly be known as METRA. On a final note, we still encourage participation from our residents to discuss our services and ways to improve or do things differently and if you wish to get involved we ask that you contact the office where a friendly and professional member of staff will gladly receive your enquiry. We are happy to support those of you who may have childcare responsibilities by helping out with childcare costs and welcome the opinion and input from young families on the estate about fun things for them to do or get involved with. As per last year, I would like to sign off by saying that I would like to take this opportunity to thank all residents, staff, committee members and even our contractors for your patience and support and particularly going forward in this time of transition and look forward to the year ahead. Abigail Maya Chair 3

4 TENANT INVOLVEMENT, EMPOWERMENT AND CUSTOMER CARE Metra Housing Co-op and Watmos have a wide variety of ways for residents to get involved, and we do our best to try to encourage you to take part in the many opportunities for involvement. Our residents can choose how they want to be involved and how much time they want to commit. There are different levels of involvement too, ranging from simply completing satisfaction surveys or attending social activities to becoming a member of the Metra Committee, or becoming a member of the Resident Inspector Team. For a full list of the opportunities for involvement refer to your Community Handbook. Last year we organised a number of social activities, including coach trips, a Christmas event, an open day and a charity fun run. We would like to organise more activities this year. If you have any ideas what you would like to see please complete the section at the back of this report and hand it into the office. 6 x Social Activities 5 x Estate Inspections 3 x Charity Events 3 x Newsletters 1 x Open Day Resident Services Panel and Resident Inspectors Team A Residents Services Panel (RSP) has been implemented in London and is made up of residents across the 3 London TMOs. The RSP will carry out a variety of tasks including fundraising and scrutinising policies and procedures to ensure they are resident friendly. In the near future there will be a London Resident Inspectors Team (RIT) Resident Inspectors audit the TMOs and Central Teams to ensure the services provided are of excellent quality. They make recommendations on how things can be improved. Training is provided to the residents involved in these groups, so if you would like to be a part of one or both groups please let us know. Being involved in your TMO, even in a small way, is the best way to ensure your voice is heard and your opinions and ideas get listened to. Complaints We try to deal with service complaints at the first point of contact, however on occasion this is sometimes not possible so we follow a clear, simple and accessible complaints procedure, and formally respond to all service complaints within 10 working days. We also have a comments and compliments folder in our reception area, so residents can leave us feedback or suggestions on any service area. TENANCY Empty Properties Metra s aim to re-let our empty properties as quickly as possible to ensure we minimise rent loss. We do this by working closely with Lambeth Council and Watmos Surveyors. We are improving every year and have improved our re-let times from 13 days to 10.5 days. In 16/17 we re-let 2 properties and both of those new residents returned their moving in survey and said they were satisfied with the whole process of moving into their new home. Rent Collection Our rent arrears have increased this year. We set a target of 2.80% and we achieved 3.53% by year end. We will continue to do all we can to ensure our residents have all the support they need to maintain their rent accounts and keep their home. 92% of residents said they were satisfied with the way their rent account was managed. This year we evicted one tenant for rent arrears. Sometimes tenants struggle with paying their rent, however it is best that they engage with the TMO staff so they can ensure tenants receive all the support available to them and they do not lose their home. Tenancy Visits We have begun our programme of tenancy visits this year, We are hoping to have visited all our properties by March 2018 to complete a tenancy visit A tenancy visit is an opportunity for us to visit you at home to ensure everything is ok with you and your property. It is your opportunity to tell us about any repairs you may have, discuss your rent account or any support you need and also to discuss with us the different opportunities for involvement. We may also complete a profiling questionnaire with you, if one hasn t already been completed. 4

5 HOME Day to day repairs We know that day to day repairs is one of the key areas that our residents are concerned about most. This year we reported 389 day to day repairs of which all were completed within the allocated target. Depending on the severity of the repair there are varying timescales in which to carry out repairs. 100% of our emergency repairs were closed within the 24hr target 100% of our urgent repairs were closed within 5 day target 100% of our routine repairs were completed within 28 day target Gas Services We have a contract with Smith & Byford to carry out all our annual gas services. During the service all gas appliances and smoke alarms are checked to ensure they are safe and in good working order. This year, 99% of our gas services were completed within 12 months of the previous service. It is vital for the safety of all residents that we work with our contractor to ensure gas services do not go over the 12 month anniversary date. Major Works Investment Following the transfer of properties from Lambeth to WATMOS in 2012 our estate has had 3.2 million investment. Some improvements have been made to properties in the form of new kitchens, bathrooms, re-wires and asbestos removals. Other improvements have been made to the estate including drainage upgrades, re-asphalting balconies and stairs and road widening. Decent Homes 100% of our homes are currently at the Decent Homes Standard FINANCIAL VIABILITY Management Costs Repairs Costs Cleaning Costs Other Service Costs The graph above shows how every 1 is spent. METRA Committee understand that residents want value for money and we do what we can to ensure this is achieved. The METRA Committee, have worked hard this year to ensure all financial decisions represent good value for money. Our finances are audited by an independent company and WATMOS to ensure they are transparent The table below shows how we spend the allowance money we receive from WATMOS Management Costs 146,673 Repairs Costs 31,294 Cleaning Costs 110,171 Other Service Costs 48,752 5

6 NEIGHBOURHOOD & COMMUNITY We have worked hard over the last year to make sure our estate is a clean, safe and pleasant place to live. The STAR survey carried out in December 2016 showed that 86% of people who responded said they were satisfied with Metra as a place to live. The top three service priorities for Metra residents who responded to the survey were: Repairs and Maintenance (60%) Quality of Home (51%) Keeping Residents Informed (38%) The top three problems for Metra residents who responded to the survey were: Rubbish or Litter (56%) Car Parking (49%) Dog Fouling/Dog Mess (46%) We want Metra to be a clean and well maintained estate where residents are proud to live. Estate Inspections We carry out quarterly estate inspections checking all areas of the estate for repairs, cleanliness and fire safety. Residents are invited to join us on these inspections. Times and dates of the inspections are advertised in our newsletters. Anti Social Behaviour Metra have a clear procedure when dealing with Anti-Social Behaviour. All reports are taken seriously and are treated as Anti social behaviour and dealt with in line with WATMOS anti social behaviour policy. However we are only able to take ASB action when residents make reports of a problem to us. Reports can be done in writing, in person, be or over the telephone. All reports are dealt with in strict confidence. WATMOS now has professional recording equipment available which can be used to gather evidence where there are on going problems of noise nuisance. Car Parking We have an ongoing service level agreement with WING Parking to monitor the car parking across the estate and to ensure that vehicles are parked safely in designated bays. This is to make sure that there is emergency services access to the estate at all times. 42% of METRA residents who responded to the STAR survey thought their neighbourhood had improved over the last 3 years. Our Housing Officer carries out weekly inspections of communal areas checking for fire safety risks and ensuring there are no potential fire hazards. YOU SAID, WE DID Introduced a new parking enforcement scheme from January 2017 at the request of residents. Provided different opportunities for involvement We developed a menu of opportunities which detail the different ways residents can get involved in Thorlands TMO/WATMOS With WATMOS we have implemented the Residents Services Panel and have 4 METRA residents who are part of the panel. 6

7 " FEEDBACK FORM In order to improve the way in which we provide information to you, we would welcome your comments. Please can you complete this form and return it to: Metra Housing Co-operative Magdalen Lodge 81 Drewstead Road, Streatham, London SW16 1AX Alternatively, you can return this form to your local TMO office or your comments to What do you think of this year s Annual Report? How do you think it could be improved? What else would you like to see in the Annual Report next year? Do you have any other comments about Metra and our services? Your name: Your address: 7

8 If you need help reading or understanding the contents of this leaflet, please contact your TMO Manager who can arrange any of the following: Large print, Braille, Audio tape, or other languages. METRA Housing Co-operative Magdalen Lodge, 81 Drewstead Road, Streatham SW16 1AX Tel : Fax: metra@watmos.org.uk Printed on FSC Certified material from responsible sources