Housing gets the thumbs-up from tenants

Results from the recent tenant satisfaction survey show the highest levels of satisfaction amongst Hull's council tenants since the first survey was carried out in 2000.

The council, the biggest landlord in the city, carried out the survey last October and out of a random selection of 5,004 tenants (one in every five), just under half replied (49.7 per cent). The results show that:

• 89.2 per cent of those tenants were satisfied with their housing service in 2010, compared with 83.9 per cent in 2008
• 84.1 per cent of tenants are satisfied with the repairs and maintenance service compared with 81.1 per cent in 2008
• 85.4 per cent of tenants are satisfied with the quality of their home compared with 82.1 per cent in 2008
• 81.9 per cent of tenants are satisfied that their rent represented value for money compared with 76.5 per cent in 2008

Nationally, we compare very well too. We are currently fifth in the national 'league table' out of 27 other housing providers that have published their results.
Only the antisocial behaviour part of the service saw a slight decline in the levels of satisfaction (45.9 per cent satisfied with the outcome on their report of antisocial behaviour in 2010 compared to 47.8 per cent in 2008).
"Overall, the survey results are excellent news for the council," says Angela Dunn, head of social care and housing.
"And even though we are no longer required to carry out this survey by the government, because it offers our tenants the opportunity to tell us what they think about how we deliver our services, we intend to continue it."
The next tenant satisfaction survey is due to take place towards the end of this year.

Exchanging council homes

Would you like to 'swap' your home with another council tenant? As a secure council tenant you can mutually exchange homes with other secure council tenants, housing association tenants, charitable trust tenants and council tenants from other local authorities.
Mutual exchanges usually involve two tenants but exchanges involving three or more tenants are possible. When an exchange takes place everybody must move on an agreed date so that none of the homes are left empty. If you move without written permission from us you will have to move back to your original home.
As a Hull City Council tenant, it is free to use the House Exchange website - a national mutual exchange website - which allows you to search for people to exchange homes with, locally and nationally. You will need to register with House Exchange before you can search for properties. To register visit
www.houseexchange.org.uk
For more details about how to exchange your council home speak to your housing officer or visit www.hullcc.gov.uk and click on Hull HomeSearch and then Mutual Exchanges.

News in brief

Tenants' Forum The next Tenants' Forum meetings are on Tuesday April 19 , 1.30 – 4.30pm and Monday May 16 10am – 12 noon, at the Guildhall. For more details about these meetings ring 300 300 and ask to speak to the tenant participation team. New members are always welcome. New Bilton Grange Residents' Association (NBGRA) NBGRA meets the first Tuesday of each month at St.Philip's Church, Amethyst Road. Tuesday April 5 meeting starts at 7pm and the May 3 meeting starts at 2pm. The group are introducing a new meeting start time schedule from June. Further information will be available at their April meeting. Everyone welcome. Arcon Drive & Lindsey Place Residents' Association The Association's next bi-monthly meeting is at White Lees Court, Arcon Drive, 2pm, Friday May 27. All welcome. Denaby Court Residents' Association The Association meets the last Friday of each month at the Balfour Community Centre, Balfour Street. Their next two meetings will take place on Friday April 22 (because of the Royal wedding) and Friday May 27. All welcome. New Ings Residents' Association The Association meets the last Thursday of each month at Sutton Golf Club at 7pm. All welcome. Get involved on Facebook Want to see the latest ways of getting involved with the housing service, find out about up and coming events or post a comment? Visit our tenant participation Facebook page at www.facebook.com/hulltp Tenant news pages are moving Following the decision to cease production of Hull in print as a way of helping the council meet savings targets of £65m, the tenant news pages are moving to a new home. You can find out where they are moving to, by reading April's edition of the 'Housing performance and news' newsletter (sent out with your quarterly rent statements), visiting the tenant participation's Facebook page (see the Get involved on Facebook item above) or the council's website at www.hullcc.gov.uk/housing Service improvement group meetings in April and May Antisocial Behaviour Wed 6 Apr, Thur 5 May Customer Access Fri 15 Apr, Fri 13 May Disability and Housing Thur 14 Apr, Mon 9 May Empty Homes Wed 26 Apr, Tue 24 May Estate Management Thur 21 Apr, Wed 11 May Homelessness Thur 27 Apr, Thur 26 May HomeSearch & Lettings Thur 19 May, (meetings are bi-monthly) Rent Management Thur 12 May, (meetings are bi-monthly) Repairs Tue 12 Apr, Tue 10 May Tenant Involvement Thur 7 Apr, Tue 17 May Young People to be arranged Dates may be subject to change. For more information contact the tenant participation team on 300 300 or email tenant.resident@hullcc.gov.uk

Council praised for tackling tenancy fraud

The Department for Communities and Local Government has praised the council for its efforts in tackling the problem of tenancy fraud.

We have received 108 reports of tenancy fraud from members of the public so far and as a result we have regained possession of 20 properties and are investigating a number of other cases.

Tenancy fraud takes many forms and includes:

• council tenants swapping homes without the council's consent
• people staying in a council property without informing the council after the legal tenant has left the property or died
• obtaining a council home by giving false information
• council tenants letting out their home without the council's knowledge or permission

To report tenancy fraud:

• visit www.hullcc.gov.uk
• call 300 300 (8am – 7pm Monday to Friday, 9am – 1pm Saturday) or 318 484 if it is out of hours
• email TenancyFraud@hullcc.gov.uk
• visit your nearest customer service centre or information point

All reports will be treated in the strictest confidence and can be given anonymously.

Tenant Inspection - what's involved? In March's magazine we told you about our programme of tenant inspection and that we were recruiting volunteers. Perhaps you are interested but want to know more about what to expect? If you are recruited you will receive full training on the various methods of inspection, such as conducting interviews, talking to focus groups, or carrying out site visits. The inspection itself takes about two weeks and you will need to be available more or less full time. Your inspection team then writes up its findings as a report and presents them to the council, so you will receive support and training around report writing and presentation skills. "Tenant Inspection gives you new skills, helps you meet new people and looks great on your CV," says James Russell, STAR (Supporting Tenants and Residents) Service Coordinator. The next inspection will take place this summer so if you're interested email star@goodwincentre.org or call STAR on 485918.

Can you claim housing and council tax benefit? With council rents going up this month, some tenants may be eligible to claim housing and council tax benefit. If you are on a low income and under 60, having savings and capital less than £16,000 (you may qualify even if you do not receive any other benefits) 60 or over, having savings less than £16,000 or receiving pension credits (your income, savings and capital are worked out for the pension service) You may be able to claim and receive these benefits. Either collect and complete an application form from any customer service centre (CSC) or information point (IP), or telephone 300 300 and ask to make a telephone claim or request a home visit. For more information about how to make a claim or to use the online benefits calculator to find out if you should claim, visit www.hullcc.gov.uk/housing and click on housing and council tax benefit. If you need help to work out your weekly/monthly income and expenditure or need debt advice, you can either talk to your housing officer, ring 300 300, or visit your local CSC or IP and ask for a copy of the council's Hard Times Pack that has an income and expenditure sheet (Budget planner) inside.