Newspoint Summer 2013 - Viewpoint Housing Association

Newspoint Summer 2013 - Viewpoint Housing Association

Newspoint
Summer 2013
living life to
The full:
photography
competition
NEWS
Editorial
Hello Readers!
Welcome to the summer edition of Newspoint,
your in-house magazine! At the time of writing,
Spring (in terms of weather) has just started and
bridal blossoms are out. In fact, Spring started and
stopped a few times and the nesting birds had to
begin all over again. The jury is out on the summer
weather, but here’s hoping for a fine one we can all
enjoy.
Once again, Viewpoint tenant activities are reaping
awards and the Craft Café was a finalist for a Care
Accolades Award that acknowledges outstanding
social services projects for adults and older people.
Well done to all who worked so hard on this lovely
idea.
Coming up is a photography competition for the
best picture to grace the cover of the Viewpoint’s
Customer Charter (the one formulated with
the help of the Charter Chatter events). All you
photographers out there, read on for more details...
Viewpoint has listed in this issue some of the
works taking place at different complexes. It gives
something of a picture of what is going on to fulfil
tenant requests, which we would not otherwise
know about.
There is an article in this issue from the VTRG Chair
Morag Murray. It reassures any doubters regarding
the power of the VTRG to bring about change in
Viewpoint and to deliver items the tenants and
residents request. It is well worth a read.
The idea for a Pets’ Corner in Newspoint has
been presented before, but we had no feedback
on it. However, we would still very much like to
have some pictures of pets with a description
(character, what he/she likes to do). Also, as usual
we welcome articles, jokes, poems on any subject;
feel free!
It would be good, too, to hear from tenants in
complexes outside of Edinburgh, eg. Fife. We
know the weather’s different, maybe more, and
would like to hear from you! Send everything to
[email protected] online, or by mail
to Melissa Esquerre (or phone) at Head Office.
Enjoy a wonderful summer!
Editorial Group
2 NEWSPOINT
ARE YOU
LIVING LIFE
TO THE FULL?
This is your
chance to enter
Viewpoint’s first
ever photography
competition!
Just send us a photo that
best captures LIVING LIFE TO THE FULL in
your complex/Care Home…. Perhaps you
are enjoying gardening like Tom in our front
page, or Henry on page 5, or maybe you are
busy organising the various social events
planned for this summer or loving spending
time in the Craft Café….
To enter, simply email your pictures to
[email protected] – or get your Coordinator
to send them straight to us.
Don’t have a camera? Don’t worry, you can borrow
a camera from the Coordinator’s office, or use your
phone/tablet.
Not feeling confident with cameras? To kick off our
competition we will be offering a basic photography
workshop on Thursday 25 July at Lynedoch House
(23 Lynedoch Place) between 2-3pm, led by our
Craft Café Tutor Tomasina Hurrell. It’s free for all to
attend and if you need help with transport please just
let us know.
After that, you will have until midnight on 18
August to submit your photos.
Judging will take place on Friday 30 August with an
exhibition and celebration at 47 Gillespie Crescent
where the winner and special mentions will be
selected by a professional photographer. The winning
photo will be used as the cover of our Customer
Charter, due to be launched in the autumn.
This competition is open to all Viewpoint customers.
If you have any questions you can contact Catherine
or Steve on 0131 668 4247. Look out for posters with
more details in your notice boards!
NEWS
Tap into it at Gillespie
Our popular
one-to-one
lessons at
Gillespie
continue to be
appreciated by tenants:
“Thank you so much for allowing me access to
this facility - it was superb. Mike Ellis is very
helpful and patient. I have learned a few things
today which are helpful for some of the projects I
want to attempt”
Paul M Sinclair
Fantastic News for our Craft Café
We were delighted to hear that we made it to the finals
of a national care competition again this year. Our Craft
Café project, in partnership with Impact Arts, seemed
to impress the judges as did the examples of the work
produced by our fantastically talented residents and
tenants.
The aim of the Care Accolades is to “recognise and
reward Scotland’s most outstanding social services
projects, services and initiatives”
There are 8 different award categories this year. We
were finalists in the category “Adults and Older People”,
and we are up against two other worthy finalists
Quarriers and Crossreach. Unfortunately we didn’t win
this year but the feedback given to us by the six judges
after our presentation at SSSC headquarters in Dundee
was very encouraging.
More good news: we have been successful in our bid
for £10,000 from the Care Homes Small Investment
Fund/Change Fund. Our bid was for money to set up
a Craft Café one day a week at Lennox House. The
judges said our entry was strong and very innovative
and that they looked forward to receiving our evaluation
report at the end of the year. We hope to have the new
Craft Café open by the end of the summer and we shall
keep you updated on our progress.
KiTe continues to connect
computers and sheltered
housing tenants
Kite and
Viewpoint
hosted a very
successful
‘Open Session’
at Old Farm
Court sheltered
housing
complex to
celebrate
Digital Unite’s
annual Spring
Online event. This is the one designated week of the
year (22-26 April 2013) where everyone is encouraged
to introduce someone new to the world of computing.
So we decided to combine our weekly computer club
session at Old Farm Court with the Spring Online event
and encouraged our regular attendees to demonstrate to
the visitors how they use their computer. An invitation
was sent to all tenants residing in Viewpoint’s 15
sheltered housing units in Edinburgh. Along with the
computing, a lovely afternoon tea was served and we all
left feeling that the session had been a success.
Computer clubs continue to run in Lynedoch House
and Old Farm Court /Woodthorpe with volunteers and
participants having fun with technology in a variety of
ways. Apple iPads are becoming more popular as are
competitions and games. Photography is gaining ground
and the incredible number of videos on You Tube keep us
all amused. One of the most amazing ways of keeping
in touch with friends and family is through the webcam
either using Skype or Google Chat where you can see
the people while you talk to them whether they are in
Colinton or Canada, Lynedoch or London. It would be
excellent to be able to teach more people how to use
this very simple tool. Another popular activity is sending
electronic greeting cards which in fact cost nothing but
are animated and great fun to watch. Sadly iPads do not
support the animation!
A six-week Taster Course is just finishing its run at Old
Farm Court and this time one of the volunteers Jeff
Bagnall took charge and delivered an excellent course
making use of the giant TV screen in the lounge area.
Six tenants signed up to this course and four have
completed it. Because the taster course follows a
definite structure it is important to complete the six
weeks as missing even one week can leave quite a gap
in the learner’s knowledge.
Viewpoint and Impact Arts staff at the Care Accolades
award ceremony in May
Finally, KiTe was delighted to learn that it had been
shortlisted for the Scottish Charities Awards in the
‘Community Impact’ category. This is a very prestigious
event and we were very excited to have made it to the
final.
NEWSPOINT 3
NEWS
Health & Wellbeing — 26 September 2013
Following the success of our
dementia road shows last
year some tenants asked
that we have more of these
to include other issues
of interest to our older
tenants.
On 19 June, from 2 until 5
pm at Old Farm Court we
welcomed representatives
from Kitchen Canny, Energy
Savings Trust, Impact Arts, a
falls specialist from the NHS,
Age UK, the mobile libraries
service, Living it Up Edinburgh,
and Alzheimer Scotland
amongst others. These
organisations brought with them
information leaflets and were
available to chat about a variety
of tenants’ concerns. It was a
drop-in event with refreshments
provided and we hope you took
advantage of this opportunity to
get up-to-date information
about the various issues
affecting older people today.
A future event is planned
in Gillespie Crescent on
September 26 for those
who could not make the Old
Farm Court date.
We hope tenants will
come along and make our
visitors welcome, tenants
from other complexes
are also very welcome to
attend. Anyone who may
have travelling difficulties,
please get in touch with
your Coordinator or
Housing Officer who will
arrange transport for you.
Look out for the posters
and leaflets in your
complexes.
Annual Performance Update
Every year we update the Scottish Housing Regulator on our performance.
This data is compiled from all housing associations across Scotland and is
published on The Scottish Housing Regulator website. This is a snapshot of the
information we submitted for the period 1st April 2012 – 31st March 2013.
We re-let 140 properties and took on average 65 days to re-let them.
Rent loss due to empty properties (as a % of total housing income):
Total Rent Arrears due to Viewpoint at 31st March 2013 (as a % of total income):
Number of repairs completed:
% of Emergency repairs completed within 24 hours:
Average time taken to complete non-emergency repairs:
Number of evictions for non payment of rent or anti social behaviour:
Do you miss getting
your hands dirty?
Some tenants have been working to set up
a Gardening Club at Gillespie Crescent. If you
would be interested in joining, please get in
touch with Maureen or Bishala by visiting the
Gillespie office or phoning 0131 228 3284
4 NEWSPOINT
1.92%
2.63%
3,489
100%
6 working days
4
Tenant round-up
George’s bench
George Fairley
picture sitting
on his bench at
Gillespie Lodge.
The bench
has always
been known as
George’s bench
but it now has an
official plaque!
Tenants at Gillespie had a lovely coffee afternoon
to celebrate in early June.
Henry’s Garden at
Glenesk House
Henry Tyrell 84, was
delighted when Board
Memer Rob Rae visited
with tomato and
pepper plants for him!
A resident at Glenesk
House, Henry tends
part of the gardens as
a way of relaxing and
he feels it has kept him
fit. Initially, he created
a container garden for
his friend Marion to look out onto and over
the years this has expanded to beds and even
woodland planting.
Marion said, “Henry created the container
garden for me when we each moved in to
Glenesk. It gave me a lovely outlook from my
flat windows instead of a bare fence. It really
helped me settle in”.
The well-tended beds and borders give
a delightful welcome and are enjoyed by
residents, visitors, and staff alike.
Woodthorpe
Bingo
Thursday night
is Bingo night at
Woodthorpe - very
popular with residents
and friends from other complexes too. On the last
Thursday of the month after bingo finishes, the
evening continues and residents relax with a glass of
their tipple of choice, good company, finger food and
light entertainment.
Alice’s
Birthday
Alice Farquhar
celebrated her 80th
Birthday on 15
May and hosted
a great party
at Inverard on
Saturday 18 May.
Happy Birthday
Alice!
NEWSPOINT 5
Tenant round-up
Meeting nn
Tony Be
Families First
David Thomson,
Old Farm Court
In my work and sport I
encountered many interesting
and well known people. Most of
you know I was a time served
tradesman. I also bought and
sold fairly substantial properties
which I enjoyed enormously, the
challenge was quite exciting and
rewarding.
One such property, my first
attempt, was acquiring the
Liberal Club premises in Kirk
Street at the foot of Leith
Walk in the early sixties. It
was quite extraordinary in that
the day I made the financial
settlement my lawyer handed
over a huge bunch of keys and
on investigating the premises I
found that the Management had
literally walked out leaving me
with a fully furnished premises,
many pictures, small statues,
tables, chairs and seating
forms. At the time I owned
a fourteen roomed Georgian
house in Stockbridge with a
considerable storage below
the large pavement areas. I
decided that I would select the
best artefacts and store them
under the pavement at 5 Circus
Gardens until time availed itself
to sell what I did not require.
I found this quite a task when
running a building company and
working seven days a week,
trying to control a substantial
labour force and a guest house
at Cramond Road South, with
also three children at boarding
school. However, I happened to
tell one of my regular customers
that on looking through my
treasures, I found an old brass
school type bell duly stamped
with congratulations to the
chairman and politicians on
their success at the elections
in 1920 engraved with the
name of the Hon Tony Benn and
the number of votes gained.
I informed my customer and
friend, Mr John Warrender, who
lived at Warriston Crescent,
who told me that he would be
down at the House of Lords
the following week to take
up his late father’s seat in the
House of Lords and would be
pleased to talk to Tony Benn MP.
I later spoke to Tony Benn MP
several times on the telephone
and we eventually agreed to
meet on May Day in Edinburgh.
This is a photograph of that
auspicious occasion, which I
have treasured ever since. It
was taken in the lounge of the
Carlton Hotel, North Bridge
where we enjoyed coffee
and biscuits. Mr Benn was
extremely pleased as he had
started to collect historical
items from his late father’s life
time. I was informed that the
bell took pride of place above
Mr Benn’s fireplace.
City Park tenants were delighted
to donate to Families First £25.00,
the proceeds of a raffle of two
beautiful knitted toys. These were
made and donated for this cause by
our tenant Charlotte Armstrong.
Age Scotland Seminar
at Lynedoch
Lynedoch tenants were happy to
welcome Age Scotland staff in April for
a very useful information session.
Musical afternoon by Newly Weds at City Park
After a sumptuous meal of roast lamb and pavlova, tenants and guests
at City Park were treated to a piano recital by highly acclaimed pianist
Maya Fleming. Maya played a variety of pieces, including some of her
own compositions to a packed audience in the dining room. Maya,
from Turkmenistan began playing at the age of five and studied at the
Conservetoire of Music in St. Petersburg (formerly Leningrad). Maya
has a daughter residing in Scotland and was introduced to tenant Jake
Fleming on a visit here. Their friendship grew and City Park saw its’ first
wedding in February of this year!
6 NEWSPOINT
care homes
Lennox House
Family members, helping and winning on the wine
to water staff! Not at all biblical, such great fun!
Tea for two? We had a lovely traditional
afternoon tea with homemade cakes, tarts and
scones while listening to Cole Porter songs, sang
by the lovely Morag. We sipped out of real china,
“very posh!”, friends and relatives had a great
time. We plan to hold this
every month.
Norman shared lunch
with his wife Catherine
on her birthday.
Thoroughly enjoyed
Catherine’s birthday and
thanked staff for going
the extra mile.
Sandra, Alex’s
daughter won the
beautifully knitted
jumper by Dawn in
the raffle.
Lara’s visit Carer Lara
popped in to show off baby
Max, the residents were
delighted!
Moira’s tulips “Who said
they wouldn’t grow?” The
tulips were planted by
Moira in one of our garden
activities.
Jimmy teaching Jill
some good moves!
Mini May Fair A fun time was had by all.
Thank you to all who helped and donated.
Special thanks to new Carers Chelsea and
Julio who ran a stall each on the day.
Is our boss a
little potty? Sarah
successfully ran the
plant stall at the fair
which was lovely as the
plants had been potted
from bulb and seeds by
some of our residents.
Children from Wardie Primary came and shared
their personal folders with residents telling the,
what they liked at school, what they were best at
and their hobbies. Residents took great interest as
they showed their work. A resident who used to be
a teacher said they were ”much smarter and better
behaved than any of her past pupils” the afternoon
was finished off with refreshments, along with a
quick rendition on the piano.
Red Nose Day Staff and residents involved themselves in raising money for charity.
Sarah offered to get a makeover by Olivia. Yikes”! Ahhh lovely…
Raj- is that really you? This was
another Red Nose Day makeover, Raj
looking very pleased with his new
look, whilst Olivia looks no different
with resident George.
NEWSPOINT 7
care homes
St Raphael’s
Bobby’s Girl was a great
success and enjoyed by
residents from both St
Raphael’s and Marian
House.
Mrs Glass celebrated her 90th Birthday in style
with a beautiful handmade cake from the kitchen
and entertainment from Sadie.
We had a new entertainer
Steve Worsley coming to
perform, who was a fantastic
success. He sang a mixture
of Frank Sinatra and other
big band classics. We hope
to have him back in the near
future.
Our summer trips are now organized and
start at the beginning of July. We have some
great places to visit including Ratho Barge,
North Berwick for Fish and Chips, Pentland
Plants for afternoon tea, Portobello for ice
cream, Saughton Gardens for a look around
the Rose Garden and many more. We are all
looking forward to getting out and about in the
sunshine (fingers crossed anyway!).
Easter was brilliant! We had an Easter Egg
Hunt and Easter Anagram chase around the
ground floor of St Raphael’s. 1st and 2nd prizes
were won along with baskets full of eggs. A
fantastic day had by all.
Red Nose Day – We celebrated Comic Relief by
decorating some yummy fairy cakes in a joint activity
with Marian House. We then sang our hearts out
and danced to Anita Watman with staff walking
about in their pyjamas or wearing something red. A
great day was had by all!
We had a visit from the Gorgie mobile
pets: a chicken, rabbit, snake, turtle,
chinchilla and hamsters. The residents
enjoyed stroking and even holding
the wee pets, some they had never
touched before. We always look
forward to a visit from them and we’re
sure they will be back later in the year.
8 NEWSPOINT
care homes
Marian House
We have been enjoying a variety of concerts
during the spring months. Sadie recently returned
from her work on the Cunard Line to entertain us
with a concert of shows songs and a wonderful
wardrobe of pretty dresses. Archie and Pat Little
who celebrated their 38th Wedding Anniversary that
day were treated to special request performances!
As you can see the happy couple were delighted to
be celebrating their special day with Sadie’s help.
The residents
were treated to an
impromptu Highland
Fling during Alan
Weatherhead’s recent
concert. Nancy Skeds’
granddaughter, Maisie,
performed a wonderful
dance for everyone.
Well done and thank
you again Maisie. Here
is a photo of Maisie
with her gran and mum
proudly watching in the
background.
SKYPE The residents enjoy the benefit of
Skype to speak to their families. This is a very
important communication link for families to
be able to see each other across the miles. We
have had some wonderful sessions of families
chatting over the net and, where even the
families’ pet dogs make an appearance.
Shared activities with the folks from St Raphael’s
The Easter Bunny Egg Hunt proved to be a hugely
successful day. Our residents especially enjoyed
the recent shared activities with their friends from St
Raphael’s.
Garden Club Hopefully now the
weather is improving
we will be able to get
the planters planted
and resume the
Gardening Club.
Viewpoint Voices Choir is proving very popular
with the residents and numbers from Marian
House are growing. What better way to enjoy
an evening in communal singing and after
to enjoy a lovely wee glass of wine. Purely
medicinal to loosen of the vocal chords of
course!!!!!
A Chocolate Tasting Session, Tea
Tasting Session and Wine and Cheese
Afternoon were activities all chosen
by the residents as something they
would like to try. Jessica, our volunteer,
brought in a variety of delicious cheeses
which the residents thoroughly enjoyed.
Of course a wee glass of wine helped
bring out the flavour of the cheese!!!!!!
Here is a photo of
Jess selecting the
different types of
cheese.
NEWSPOINT 9
tenant information
Dining Room and Lounge
- Croft an Righ
Nancy from Croft an Righ says: “I
thought you might like to see our
lovely dining room and lounge at
Croft an Righ now that it’s finished,
we are delighted with the result!”
New laundries at
Gillespie
Following months of planning
and consultation, our shiny new
machines are finally here! Last
year, Gillespie tenants asked us
to review the laundry service
provided at their complex. The
old domestic machines were
not designed to sustain a high
level of use and would break
down regularly, so it was decided
to replace them with faster,
more environmentally friendly
commercial machines.
Tenants there have been closely
involved in the development
of this project. The Gillespie
Tenants Working Group meets
with staff monthly to work
together on improving services
at Gillespie Crescent. Viewpoint
met with the group on two
occasions to discuss the project,
as well as holding additional
meetings open to all tenants.
The washing machines and
dryers were installed in mid April
by our chosen provider, Domestic
Laundry Services. Lee Groves,
DLS representative, was on
hand to help tenants get to grips
with the new machines. So far,
feedback has been very positive
and we look forward to an
improved laundry service for all.
10 NEWSPOINT
New automatic door
opener at City Park,
St Andrews
Tenants at City Park, including
Mrs Pauline Lusk (photographed)
are delighted with a recently
installed automatic door opener. “The big door was very heavy
and awkward to open and we are
pleased that a solution has been
found.”
New carpets for
Lynedoch House
“A BIG THANK YOU to all
Viewpoint staff for our new
carpets in Lynedoch’s Old
Building. And THANKS also to
the carpet fitters, who were
skilled professionals, courteous
and friendly during the two
weeks they were with us”.
Scott Moffat
Dell Court
What a difference! Sash
and case window repairs
and replacement took place
in Dell Court during the
month of April.
Before
Had a repair done?
Let us know how we performed
and you too can win!
Congratulations to Dorothy Hewson,
Northwood House who received a £50
M&S voucher from Mark Lawrie, Senior
Maintenance Coordinator. Keep your
repairs feedback forms coming and you
could be our next lucky winner!
After
tenant information
Welfare Benefits Update
By the time Newspoint goes to print the
implementation of some of the Welfare
Reforms changes may have commenced,
by and large the majority of Viewpoint
tenants will notice no difference.
Over April and May I have visited 5
complexes, holding informal road shows
to give some information and hopefully
allay some fears about these changes.
From April 2013 “the under occupancy charge”
commenced. This impacts only on those who are of
“working age”, receiving Housing Benefit and are
deemed, in welfare benefit law, to have extra bedroom(s).
Viewpoint has only a few tenancies which fall into this
category . If you have been affected by this and would like
to speak to me my details are below.
From June 10th 2013 Personal Independence
Payment(PIP) will replace Disability Living Allowance(DLA)
for new claims. From 7th October it is proposed to start
inviting those aged between 16 and 64 on 8th April 2013
and in receipt of DLA to claim PIP. If this applies to you do
not ignore any correspondence received from Department
of Work and Pensions, although it is an invitation to claim
PIP, DLA will cease at a given date. These reviews will be
ongoing through to 2017. Please contact me if you would
like advice or assistance with this.
Universal Credit(UC) has been introduced in selected
areas of Greater Manchester and Cheshire from 29th
April 2013 and will be gradually rolled out through the
country from October 2013 through to 2017. UC replaces
6 existing benefits paid to people of working age who
are unemployed, sick or on a low income, UC will be a
single monthly payment paid in arrears & will include any
payment due for rent.
If you have any concerns, queries or require assistance
with any of the above changes or any other Welfare
Benefits please contact me, Elaine Rosie, 0131 662 5144,
[email protected] or at head office.
Why not become a
Viewpoint member?
Viewpoint seeks to ensure that we have a broad-based
membership which reflects our constitution and the
communities we serve and which welcomes members
who have an interest in our work and support our
purpose.
As a member you will be entitled to receive a copy of
Viewpoint’s Annual Accounts each year and
• Attend and vote at Annual or Special General
Meetings
• Seek election to the Board of Management
• Vote in any elections to the Board If you are interested in becoming a member, please
visit our website or contact Dorry McLaughlin,
Secretary, who will arrange for further information and
an application form to be issued to you.
Supportive Community or
Nuisance neighbours?
One of our aims as your landlord is to ensure:
• Tenants live in well-maintained neighbourhoods
where they feel safe.
This can cover a range of areas which includes the
resolution of neighbour disputes.
Following some good discussions between staff
and the Viewpoint Tenants Representative Group,
we agreed to set a target of 20 working days to
resolve our anti social behaviour cases. This means
that if you experience any anti social behaviour from
a neighbour we will take the following action if you
report an incident to us:
• Arrange a time to meet with you to hear what has
happened and the impact it has had on you.
• We will be clear with you about what we can and
cannot do to help.
• We will investigate the incident, speak to any
witnesses and speak to the person who is alleged
to have been anti-social.
• We will discuss our Good Neighbour Agreement
with them and ask them to sign up to it.
• We will work with other agencies that could
provide support, mediation or other relevant local
authority agencies.
• We will liaise with the local community police
where appropriate.
• We will issue warnings and take legal action where
appropriate.
• We will keep the person who made the complaint
updated on our progress and send you a letter
outlining what we have done and when and why
we are closing the case.
We are not always going to be able to resolve
antisocial behaviour cases your satisfaction. It may
well be that we do not have the authority to take the
action we would like to. One example is if we want
to take a case to court, we are then at the mercy of
the Sheriff as to whether there is sufficient evidence
for them to grant a decree for eviction. We need
our tenants to work with us to behave in a manner
which is respectful to their neighbours and the
neighbourhood they live in.
We know that the vast majority of our tenants are
great neighbours and we are committed to ensuring
that you live in well maintained environments where
you can feel safe and enjoy living in a peaceful and
inclusive community.
NEWSPOINT 11
tenant information
Repairs by
appointment – it’s here!
Viewpoint is now able to offers tenants a Repair by
Appointment and also a Maintenance Officer by
Appointment too!
The team (from the left) Graeme
Swanson, Claire Bauld & Mark
Scott.
Introducing the
new Asset &
Procurement Team
In view of the growing
need for more specialist
planned works to maintain
all properties at the level
they should be, Viewpoint
have recently formed a new
section within their Housing &
Property Services Department.
The Asset & Procurement
Team will be responsible for
planning, implementing and
completing all forms of work
to meet and maintain the ever
growing requirements and
expectations placed upon
Viewpoint.
When your complex is
to receive any form of
planned work, the team will
place a newsletter on your
notice board as well as on
Viewpoint’s website showing
the plans to be carried out
over the coming year. Where
works are to a single property,
the resident will be informed
by letter directly.
If you have a query over
any planned works to your
development, do feel free
to contact the Asset &
Procurement Team on
0131 6684247 or by email
[email protected].
12 NEWSPOINT
For non-emergency repairs
tenants will now be offered an
appointment on a morning or
afternoon which is convenient
for you. If we need to send a
Maintenance Officer to inspect the
repair to help us diagnose what
is needed, we will also be able
to offer a morning or afternoon
appointment.
It is important that you supply
the repair centre with your
up-to-date telephone contact
number, if you have one.
• All appointments will be offered
within an am (8am - 12noon) or
pm (12.30 - 4.30pm, 3.45pm on
a Friday) time period.
• When booking an appointment,
you will not be given a specific
time, just an am or pm time
slot, but you will be able to
choose a specific day of the
week (Monday to Friday) that is
most convenient for you. If you
have a particular requirement
within a time period then please
inform the repairs centre of this
when you call.
Appointments for an inspection
with a Maintenance Officer
• You will be able to arrange
an appointment for the
Maintenance Officers visit
at the time you request the
inspection.
• All Maintenance Officer
appointments will be offered
within an am (9am - 12noon) or
pm (1 - 4pm) time slot. When
booking an appointment, you
will not be given a specific time,
just an am or pm period.
• After the inspection, if repairs
are necessary, an order will be
raised and we will contract you
to make a suitable appointment.
What will happen if the contractor
or Maintenance Officer misses an
appointment?
• Hopefully they will know in
advance if they cannot make
the appointment. Whenever
possible, the repair centre will
contact you before the scheduled
appointment, apologise and
rearrange another appointment
date, which is convenient to
yourself.
• If an arranged appointment is
missed without you having been
contacted, then please inform the
repair team immediately on
0800 345 7347
What happens if I need to
rearrange the appointment?
• If you know in advance that you
will be unable to keep an arranged
appointment, please contact the
repair team to reschedule the
appointment.
What will happen if the
appointment is missed by me?
• If an contractor or Maintenance
Officer calls at your home for
an arranged appointment and
finds no one in, the job will be
cancelled. A card will be posted
through your door informing you
that someone has visited, but
has been unable to gain access.
(The card will have the Viewpoint
or contractor’s logo on it). If you
still wish the repair or inspection
carried out it is your responsibility
to contact the repair team who
will reissue and rearrange the
repair or inspection.
This is a new service for us and we
will be monitoring closely how well
we deliver this. We will monitor our
contractor’s performance and we
will be looking for your feedback to.
Please tell us when it works as well
as when it doesn’t!!!
tenant participation
From the VTRG
D
uring these first months of 2013, I along with
some of the Committee have been busy
attending what has sometimes seemed like
interminable meetings! Some have been with Viewpoint
management as we try to keep our promises of being
your voice to Viewpoint, promoting your interests and
holding Viewpoint accountable to you.
Some of these meetings have been to discuss the
proposed Tenants’ Charter which proved to be a good
way for us to get to know some of you and to hear what
really matters to you. This is important if we are to see
that Viewpoint lives up to its stated aim of keeping
tenants at the heart of all it does. It is also important if
we are to effectively assess Viewpoint’s performance as
a landlord, which tenants will be required to do in the
very near future.
In the course of the Charter Chatter meetings, it became
apparent that some tenants still labour under the illusion
that the VTRG does not/cannot have much influence on
Viewpoint – “They don’t listen anyway”. The slowness
with which the Viewpoint mills grind may reinforce that
idea but, believe me, the Association is having to take
notice because of the legislation that gave rise to the
development of the Charter. At the recent Fife Forum,
one tenant asked me whether tenants are now
beginning to realise that the VTRG can make a
difference. The answer is that indeed they are, because
we can make a difference if you help us.
We are able to tell management frankly - indeed bluntly
- what we think, what the problems are, and to suggest
ways of dealing with them. This says much about the
relationship of mutual respect which has developed
between Viewpoint and the VTRG. I have no doubt that
this has not been easy for the Association!
However, if this is to continue, we need your help. You
need to tell us what you need, would like to have or
would want to change. Change and improvement have
to come from you. Always remember that Viewpoint is
answerable to you; it’s not the other way around. Staff
are not there to dictate to you or to control how you live
your life; they are there to make it easier for you to live
your life as you wish. I repeat what I have said many
times before - if you do not speak, Viewpoint cannot
be expected to hear.
Another tenant at the recent Fife Forum said that
nobody from the VTRG came to their complex. If
invited, we WILL come so please ask us or speak to us
via your Rep, or contact me directly and you can be
assured that Viewpoint will be told and, together, we can
make the Association what we would all like it to be.
Morag Murray, VTRG Chairman
Chrissie Wilkie
Great feedback for new leaflet
A small group of VTRG Reps met with Michelle Gilhooley (Operations
Manager) and Ross Oliver (Management Accountant) to develop
a leaflet explaining how tenants’ service charges are set. Service
charges cover the cost of providing additional services in complexes,
for example gardening, laundries, and cleaning of common areas.
Explaining how these charges are set can sometimes be difficult, so
we are all are working together to produce a leaflet that helps clarify
this process.
We were distressed to hear
of the sudden passing of
Chrissie Wilkie, the Minute
Secretary of the VTRG, on
May 20th. Chrissie worked
hard for the VTRG over
several years so she will
be much missed. We share
the grief of the tenants
of Glenesk whom she
represented so well and for
whom she worked tirelessly
and for whom she cared so
deeply. We give thanks for the
touch of the sunshine of her
life upon ours.
The first meeting was very productive with lots of great feedback. A
few more meetings are planned for later this summer and we hope to
have the new leaflet ready for distribution in the autumn.
Viewpoint management are very appreciative of the Reps who are
giving up their time for this project.
NEWSPOINT 13
tenant participation
Telecare and Out of
Hours Service
Have you pulled the pull
cord in your flat during
the night or at a weekend
and spoken to Hanover or
Astraline? What do you
think of the service they
provide on Viewpoint’s
behalf? We are planning to
tender for this contract and
would appreciate your help
to ensure we get the contract
just right. We want to make
sure the contract conditions
meet your needs and also
would value your opinion
on the contractors who
tender. If you would like to
get involved, please contact
Catherine Louch or
Mark Scott on
0131 668 4247 or email
[email protected]
Scrutiny & Scones!
Tenant scrutiny is a way
of giving tenants greater
influence and ability to hold
their landlords to account,
by exercising more power
over the business decisions,
governance and performance
of their landlord. Would you
be interested in helping us
develop a tenant scrutiny
approach at Viewpoint which
would involve you assessing
our performance? This
autumn, we are planning
to take part in a Landlord &
Tenant Scrutiny Programme
which is run by the Scottish
Government for tenants and
staff. Please get in touch if
you’d like to take part. We
might even manage some
“Scrutiny Scones”! Please
contact Catherine Louch,
0131 662 5134 or email:
[email protected]
for more information or to
take part.
14 NEWSPOINT
It started with a cake…
A big thank you to all those tenants (and
there were over 60!) who came along to
our Charter Chatter events and then the
Bacon Buttie Banter session. The cakes
and the bacon rolls didn’t stop you from
talking and telling us what really matters
to you!!
All of our chatter, banter and munching
was worth it. We have developed our
first Viewpoint Customer Charter. Our
Charter describes our commitment to
our customers focused on 7 key areas:
Our commitments to our customers:
Service area
Commitment
1. Customer care
We aim to deliver services right first time
and say sorry if things go wrong.
2.Communication
We aim to communicate effectively and
are open, transparent and honest in our
communication with everyone.
3. Customer Participation
We aim to provide a range of opportunities
for customers to get involved in shaping and
monitoring our services.
4.Home
We aim to provide and maintain quality
accommodation which meet the Scottish
Housing Quality Standards and our
customers’ expectations
5.Tenancy
We aim to let our homes fairly to applicants
and existing tenants.
6.Community
We aim to work with others to create safe,
secure, active communities where our
customers thrive.
7. Value for
Money
We aim to ensure customers receive value
for money through their rent, fees and
service charges.
Within the Charter we explain how we
will meet these commitments; it also
details service standards that we will
monitor. Our plan is to launch the Charter
in September at a half-day Customer
Conference. Meantime we will be
holding a competition with our tenants
and care home residents to design the
front cover of the Charter – look at the
news page for details of how you and your neighbours can get involved.
YOU Said, we listened
Housing Support Plans
Due to feedback from
tenants and staff
about the duplication
of information on the
housing support plans
part 1 and part 2 we set
up a working group to
review this. The working
group was initially made
up of staff to review the
forms. Once this was
done, we spoke to tenants
in various complexes and
asked tenants to complete
them with us to get their feedback. Initial feedback has been
positive as the forms are asking questions at the correct time
(for example the name and telephone number of your Doctor
is asked after you have moved into your new home in case you
need to change them) and there is less duplication. If you have
any comments on the housing support plans, please let your
coordinator know or Michelle Gilhooley, Operations Manager.
When I’m cleaning
windows……
We’re planning to tender for our
window cleaning contract over
the coming months and would
value your input. We know this is
an area which you look for value
for money balanced with a great
service. If you would like to help
us find a contractor who will
provide that please get in touch
with Catherine Louch or Mark
Scott on 0131 668 4247 or email
[email protected]
Annual Tenant Meetings – Local Surveys
Thank you to all who have taken part in letting us
know about the services provided at your complex,
by completing our Local Tenant Survey. We use
the results from these surveys to form the agenda
for our Annual Tenant Meetings at each of our
complexes. We then agree what action to take with
you at your complex and create an action plan for
your complex. Your Coordinator or Housing Officer
will be happy to share this with you, if you’ve not
already seen it.
You can see from the graph that, in general
terms, the main areas for us to work on from
2012 were the gardening and repairs services and
our communication. We listened and changed our
gardening contractor to Greenfingers and introduced
a new repairs contact with MITIE. The recently
developed Viewpoint Customer Charter has a focus
on communication which will assist us to improve in
this area.
Unfortunately the response rate is not as high as we’d
like. Please do take the time to complete the surveys
when they arrive on the door mat. If you need help to
complete it, just ask, we’re happy to assist. Hopefully
you can see that by giving us your feedback, you can
make a difference!
NEWSPOINT 15
announcements
Staff News
Welcome to:
Diletta Favro
Mark Scott
Weronika Gruszka
Aloysius Ssennyonjo
Claire Bauld
Nafisa Hussien
Carlos Morgado
Christina Sneddon
Chelsea Stevenson
Judith Morrison
Valeriano Pinna
Megan Ormond
Sandra Ashton
Emma Ingan-Eng
Inga Laing
Adam Lipowczyk
Giulio Melfi
Jenny Lyn Rosales
Hannah O’Malley
Iona Lyell
Janice Green
Emma Ralston
Maria Dominguez
Keziah Flucker
Jieun Kim
Diana Subtil
Sharon Welch
Joyce Brown
Claire Cameron
Barbara Alexander
Nicola Bowden
Anna Williams
Carole Drennan
Maribel Alvarado
Ethel Samera
Marta Parada
Celestialuz Relampagos
Antonia Vier
Louie Tapayan
Jennifer Montgomery
Natalie Smith
Leanne has been with Viewpoint for 5 years.
She started off as a Carer in Marian House and then
moved on to work at St Raphael’s. Leanne has
recently joined our Housing department as Mobile
Coordinator. She is enjoying her new position and
is looking forward to continued working with the
Housing team.
Claire started work within the Assets and
Procurement team as an Administrator at the
beginning of April. You can reach her in the office
on Thursdays and Fridays. Claire’s role is to assist in
the delivery of asset management and procurement. One of Claire’s key tasks is to ensure effective
communication with tenants on forthcoming planned works.
Congratulations
Not pictured: Michelle Gilhooley, Margaret Budge & Angela McInulty
16 NEWSPOINT
4 South Oswald Road, Edinburgh, EH9 2HG
tel: 0131 668 4247
fax: 0131 662 0700
email: [email protected]
web: www.viewpoint.org.uk
Goodbye to:
Welcome to Leanne Birnie
and Claire Bauld
To our successful
Coordinators who passed the
Best Practice in Dementia
Care Course: Iza Knyt (West
Richmond Street), Angela
Kennedy (Facilitator), Joyce
Smith (Woodthorpe), Jackie
Anderson–Tighe (Mobile
Coordinator), Karen Bradley
(Glenesk) and Charlie
Swanson (Kilravock)
Viewpoint
Viewpoint Housing Association Ltd.
Scottish Charity No. SC005619
A Scottish Charitable Housing Association
Office Opening Hours
Monday – Thursday
Friday
9am – 5pm
9am – 4.30pm
If you have an emergency when the office
is closed, pull the cord of your alarm call
system or telephone 0800 783 3615
Ways to Report a Repair
Repairs Desk direct number:
0131 662 0688
Freephone repair number:
0800 345 7347
Email:
[email protected]
Online:
www.viewpoint.org.uk
Let us Help
If you would like this Newsletter in
large print or CD, please contact your
Coordinator or email admin@viewpoint.
org.uk. You can also request a copy by
phoning 0131 668 4247.
Viewpoint Voices
Join us at
Viewpoint head
office every
second Thursday
at 6.30pm. Come
and have a cup
of tea, a wee
blether and a sing-a-long with Moira,
our wonderful pianist and find out if it’s
something you would enjoy doing.
You don’t need to be an experienced
singer or even have perfect pitch, just
be an enthusiastic and supportive
participant and come for a giggle!
For further information please contact
Donna Macleod on 0131 668 4247.