Autumn / Winter residents meeting 2023
Summary
Autumn / Winter residents meeting
Wednesday 22nd November 2023
Attended by:
Residents:
Debbie, Miro, Nat, Aaron, Brian, Yves, Isabelle, Declan, Sebastian, Abi, Max, Ian, Rob, Amanda, John (Keats Estate), Esther, Fissal, Natasha, Andrew, Ian, Andreas, Iwona, Lachlan, Hannah, Nell, Rich (chair)
Representing Southern Housing:
Carl Dewey - Director of Repairs and Estate Transformation
Billy Blankson - Home Services Officer
Norma - Estate Caretaker
Local Councillor:
Sam Pallis
The meeting
We had a high turnout of residents and were glad to welcome Southern Housing’s Director of Repairs and Estate Transformation - Carl Dewey, as well as regular attendees, Home Services Manager - Billy Blankson, Norma the estate Caretaker and local Councillor Sam Pallis - who raised some important, challenging questions based on what he has heard from residents.
The main purpose of this meeting was to be able to demonstrate the serious range of issues we’ve been experiencing on the estate and communicate our frustrations to Southern Housing regards their standard of service in managing the estate.
Content and themes
Residents spoke of a range of shared issues, both in communal areas and within their homes. Leaks, damp and mould came up as an increasingly widespread and serious issue that Southern Housing have pledged to escalate their response to. Security concerns featured broadly, with the Director defining problems that should be being responded to as an emergency issue. Other themes of frustration centred on disrepair throughout the estate, the condition of planting and flower beds and perpetual issues with lifts and lighting. The increasing service charges that we are paying on the estate was strongly questioned, particularly in light of a set of services seen as sub-standard at best; at worst - negligent. And the issue running through all of the above - the failure of communications within the Southern Housing system: residents unable to report issues; jobs not being carried out; details disappearing; residents having to chase and constantly report and re-report problems with no resulting action; and even encountering problems progressing through the complaints process further down the line.
Residents and councillor’s observations and suggestions
Constructive ideas and suggestions were raised as to how Southern Housing might make improvements. Residents believe that many of the issues on the estate have arisen from a general lack of regular maintenance and would like to see Southern Housing better address issues earlier, before they grow worse. Residents also identified problems caused by issues going unaddressed, including concerns around safety and anti social behaviour. There was discussion about the potential benefits of listening to residents and better harnessing our feedback, knowledge and lived experience, something that Southern Housing are apparently keen to do.
Our local councillor Sam Pallis also listened to what was being said and emphasised the need for Southern Housing to be more proactive on getting to issues at an earlier stage, identifying a pattern of things being left for long periods, leading to worsening issues that then become harder and more expensive to fix. He also pointed out that many residents are having to escalate to the complaints process, Housing Ombudsman and legal action in order to get things done, which overall creates a lot more hassle, inconvenience and cost for everyone involved.
Response
Our visitors listened and absorbed what residents had to say and agreed that the current state of things is unacceptable. The Director made some interesting suggestions of actions to be taken to begin a constructive process of improvement.
ACTIONS DISCUSSED:
Damp, mould and leaks
This is currently a serious and widespread problem on the estate and was identified as requiring urgent attention. It would now be helpful to get as many effected residents as possible to report / re-report any issues. A letter will be sent out by Southern Housing with more information in an attempt to reach as many residents as possible and determine why the leaks are happening in order to resolve the problems. We’ve also added a page on the estate website dedicated to damp, mould and leaks where residents can find guidance and links.
Communications & reporting issues
We heard that the reporting process is currently being scrutinised. There are plans to bring the process back in house with Southern Housing managing reported issues, rather than United Living. This is expected to happen in June. The Director would also like to work with the Residents Association to improve the process of using the repairs portal, in the hope this will be a more convenient and effective way of reporting issues.
Service charge
Residents have questioned the current service charges being issued, both at our meeting and via a co-signed letter sent by residents of our estate to Southern Housing. This has resulted in a review by Southern Housing, who are contacting a range of relevant departments internally for more information. When the process is complete they’ll respond to clarify the points raised and future charges should include a more clear and detailed breakdown.
Walkabouts
We found we should be getting walkabouts with Southern Housing four times a year. The Director stated given the unacceptable level of unaddressed issues on the estate, this should be prioritised and moved up to monthly walkabouts, with all residents welcome to attend in order to identify problems and contribute to a dialogue about what positive actions could be taken. He stated he would make sure to attend the first walkabout. When this series of walkabouts begins details and timetables will be shared on the estate website.
Thanks to all that came along and contributed to this meeting
The Residents Association and our local Councillors will follow up on the discussed actions and feed back any developments via the estate website and future meetings.
