Customer Service Officer is worthy award winner

Dawn Northwood is a winner with her colleagues – having just scooped South Staffordshire Housing Association’s employee of the year award.

A customer services officer, Dawn triumphed over five other nominations to become the outright winner with over a quarter of the votes cast.

Dawn couldn’t believe the news. She said: “I am in shock at being voted Employee of the Year and feel really chuffed. I feel that the previous employee of the year, Heather Skelton, is a hard act to follow as she raised over £5,000 for the MS Society but I will do my very best.”

Debbie Elliott, the association’s chief executive, said: “Dawn’s colleagues nominated her because of her excellent customer service skills, she also frequently goes over and above the call of duty and nothing is too much trouble for her.”

The winner gets to choose a charity that will benefit from a series of fundraising events throughout the year. Dawn has nominated the MacMillan Nurses to benefit from this year’s work as they nursed her father, when he was ill with cancer and were a great support to her family.

(Released 1st April 2007)

Savings in Hand for Landlord’s Repairs Team

Hi-tech handheld computers have been put to the test by a leading housing association’s repairs workforce – and are saving the organisation around 100 work hours every week.

South Staffordshire Housing Association has issued PDAs – hand-sized, mobile communicators – to six operatives to see how much it speeds up their work repairing common faults at residents’ homes, like leaky taps and stiff doors.

And the test period showed that it saved around 100 work hours during a normal week, along with 10 per cent on mileage, and is predicted to cut paper use by around 100,000 sheets a year.

The systems will now be rolled out to all 50 operatives working for South Staffordshire Housing Association’s own repairs team by the end of the year in an ongoing drive to improve efficiency, boost green credentials and maintain the high service levels for repairs that the organisation is already achieving.

The move represents a £40,000 investment by the housing association, which is this year celebrating its 10th anniversary.

Adrian Eggington, assistant director of housing with South Staffordshire Housing Association, said the pilot scheme was launched because they wanted to actively seek ways of further improving efficiency and tackle “green” issues, like cutting the organisation’s carbon footprint.

“We generate around 100,000 pieces of paper each year dealing with responsive repairs,” he said.

“What we are doing is bringing in PDAs to replace that system. We will save in processing invoices but also in actually bringing about customer service improvements.

“When a tenant calls in with a repair, this is put into the system and a message is then electronically sent to an operative who can see exactly what is reported on their PDA and then schedule the work.

“This means the possibility of a job sheet being mislaid or overlooked is removed, and it makes the system more efficient. And making it a paperless operation is helping to reduce our impact on the environment.”

A full assessment of the results of the pilot scheme is now being carried out by the housing association, based at Acton Gate, between Stafford and Wolverhampton.

(Released 3rd April 2007)

Cash Pot Available for Good Causes

Community groups across South Staffordshire are being invited to apply for a slice of a £8,000 sponsorship package from a local housing association.

Each year, South Staffordshire Housing Association, based in Acton Gate, sponsors local groups, charities and community organisations to help them with their day-to-day activities.

Among the 2006 beneficiaries was First Expressions Early Learning, in Featherstone, which received £200 towards materials and ongoing costs.

Lisa Boniface, the organisation’s manager, said: “We rely on donations, so this money is greatly appreciated.”

South Staffordshire Housing Association is keen to hear from local groups who need funding to support their work. Community organisations should contact the association on 01785 312000 for an application pack.

(Released 24th April 2007)

Scheme Helps Residents Remain Independent

Vital adaptations that help older residents stay independent in their own homes are being done in as little as three days thanks to a pioneering approach from landlord South Staffordshire Housing Association.

In many areas of the country, tenants can wait up to two years for work like ramps and conversions of baths to showers while local authorities assess the work and allocate the necessary Disabled Facilities Grant (DFG).

In a ground-breaking scheme to cut the amount of time its tenants have to wait for adaptations, South Staffordshire Housing Association has teamed up with South Staffordshire District Council to carry out the work as soon as possible and then negotiate any grant funding retrospectively.

Extra work is also being done by the local authority to cut the time it takes to allocate DFGs. This has been slashed to just two to three weeks from a previous expected wait of several months.

The radical move has seen waiting times cut to just days in some cases, to the delight of tenants, some of whom had been waiting for two years for work to be carried out.

Resident Cyril Porter, one of the first residents to benefit from the new grants system, said: ”I would like to thank everyone in connection with the transfer of my bathroom to shower room. It is a great asset to me.

“I had been waiting two years for this to happen before South Staffordshire Housing Association stepped in.

“My daughter and I are over the moon with everything that was done and the way the work was carried out.”

The new system involves South Staffordshire Housing Association working closely with South Staffordshire District Council and Staffordshire County Council, and employing its own occupational therapist to make assessments.

Once an assessment has been made, a list of any necessary improvements needed is agreed with the council. Then the housing association’s maintenance team gets the work done as quickly as possible.

The costs of this new way of working are split 50/50 with the district council, with both organisations investing £100,000.

More than 60 people are currently going through the South Staffordshire scheme, with a backlog cleared thanks to the new approach.

Sue Rowley, South Staffordshire Housing Association’s director of operations, said: “Although it’s not our legal responsibility to fund adaptations, we listened to our customers and have increased our bathroom investment programme to more than £350,000 a year to meet the demand.

“By putting in the extra cash, we’re reducing demand on the council’s list and helping people who are unable to use the bath in their home. So it’s good news all round.”

The housing association also provides other forms of support to applicants, including the installation of grab rails, lever taps, interim steps and light fittings.

(Released 25th April 2007)