Going Places Newsletter Spring 2011

Remember - need to pay gas bill£185.00!!

£5£5 £5

£5

£5

£5

Phone Stockport Homes

to speak to the Debt

Outreach Worker

T: 0161 218 1304

Please fill out form completely for employment consideration. Print and fax or mail when

completed.

Prospective employees will receive consideration without discrimination because of race, creed,

color, sex, age, national origin or handicap. We are an equal opportunity employer.

Personal Information

Last Name

First M

iddleDate

Street Address

Home Phone

( )

-

City, State, Zip

Business Phone

( ) -

Email Address:

What was your previous address?

How long at present

address?

_________ Years

________ Months

Are you over 18 years of age? Yes No

If not, employment is subject to verification of minimum legal age.

How long at present

address?

_________ Years

________ Months

Have you ever applied for employment with us?

Yes No

If Yes: Month and Year__________ Location______________________________

Social Security No.

- -

How did you learn of our organization?

Are you legally eligible for employment in the United States?

When will you be able to work?

Are you employed now?

If so, may we inquire of your present employer?

Have you been convicted of a crime in the past ten years, excluding misdemeanors and summary

offenses, which has not been annulled, expunged or sealed by a court? Yes No If

Yes, describe in full.

JOB APPLICATION FORM

Smith Robert John 21/1/2011

Going PlacesIssue 14: Winter - Spring 2010-11

Homechoice, Housing Options, Temporary Accommodation and Resettlement newsletter

Welcome...…to the January 2011 issue of the Going Places newsletter. This newsletter is for all customers and partners of the Housing Need and Support Service, including Homechoice, Housing Options, Resettlement and Temporary Accommodation. We hope you enjoy reading this newsletter. If you have any comments or suggestions for articles in the future, please contact us via the details on page 2.

Rehousing ServicesLocal Standards pages 14-15

H3 (Helping the Homeless into Housing) and Rehousing Services open afternoonOn: Wednesday 26 January, 1.00pm-4.30pm At: Housing Information Centre, 1 St. Peter’s Square

Welfare benefit reforms: how does it affect me? See page 11 for more information.

Come and have

YOUR SAY

2 Going Places - Issue 14 Winter - Spring 2010-11 www.stockporthomes.org

0161 474 4237

0161 477 2626

0161 474 4567

0161 474 2975

0161 474 3772

0161 456 0717

0161 217 6015

0845 608 8526

0161 474 3093

0870 120 4040

0161 477 9597

0845 303 0900

0845 790 9090

0161 217 6009

0845 46 47

0161 249 4080

0161 480 7248

0161 426 9101

0161 636 7525

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4

4

5-8

9

9

10

10

11

12

12

13

14-15

16

17

17

18-19

20

21

22-23

24-26

27

28

Housing Options

Housing Options(out-of-hours)

Homechoice bidding line

Homechoice enquiries line

Resettlement Team

Furniture Station

Housing Benefit

Job Centre Plus

Welfare Rights

Citizens Advice Bureau

Stockport Victim Support

Victim Support Line

Samaritans

Stockport Advice

NHS Direct

Alcohol and Drugs Service

Disability Stockport

Stockport RefugeeSupport Group

Greater ManchesterDomestic Abuse helpline

Allocations Policy Review

Homechoice: Help is at hand!

Pinpoint

Homechoice facts and figures

Homelessness Strategy

Halting repossessions

No one left out

VIPs: Volunteers Important People

Welfare benefit reforms: how does it affect me?

Homeless residents get creative for Christmas

H3 Group

Value for Money

Rehousing Services Local Standards

Well being workshop

Haunted Halloween at Brindale House

Brindale and Buxton visit ManchesterUnited Football Club

Resettlement Services

You said, we did

Quiz corner

Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit

Facts and figures

Get the best deal for your gas and electricity

Stockport computerised CBT @ Home Service: ‘Living Life to the Full Interactive’

Contents Useful numbers

Opening hours for the Housing Information Centre

Monday: 8.30am - 4.30pm

Tuesday: 9.30am - 4.30pm

Wednesday: 8.30am - 4.30pm

Thursday: 8.30am - 4.30pm

Friday: 9.30am - 4.00pm

www.stockporthomes.org

Homechoice newsUseful numbers

Allocations Policy Review

Over the past few months we have been working with Stockport Council to reviewits Allocations Policy.

We would particularly like to thank those of you who took the time to come to some of the meetings, completed questionnaires and emailed in your views about how we should be letting properties.

What has been clear is that there are a wide range of views as to how we should be allocating Council housing, but there are some areas where people have tended to agree, and these have been:

• The Policy should be made as easy as possible to understand, so people know why they have the points level they do (for example, there are too many categories of points and ‘priority’ groups).

• People in homes which are too large for them should be given a high priority for rehousing to ‘free up’ larger properties.

• Overcrowded applicants are finding it particularly hard to get rehoused.

• Rehousing applicants who might cause Anti-Social Behaviour is a real concern.

• A mix of people should be rehoused into Council housing, including people who are in work or training.

We are currently amending the policy to try and reflect the views people have expressed, but this has been delayed by some proposals the Government have made that may affect the law on how we allocate properties. However, we hope to have some more details on the new policy by the time of the next issue of ‘Going Places’.

For more information, please contact the Homechoice Team on

0161 474 2975 or email [email protected]

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Legally, we have to let all properties through Homechoice

in line with Stockport Council’s Allocations Policy. This outlines factors such as what type and size of property people can apply for, what rehousing points people should get for their circumstances, and how people can ask for decisions to be reviewed.

Did YouKNOW ?

3Going Places - Issue 14 Winter - Spring 2010-11www.stockporthomes.org

4 Going Places - Issue 14 Winter - Spring 2010-11 www.stockporthomes.orgwww.stockporthomes.org

Homechoice features

Homechoice: Help is at hand!

Pinpoint

If you find the information provided by Homechoice hard to understand, read or translate, then you can contact the Homechoice Support Assistant, Laura Coombes.

What help is available from the Support Assistant?

• Face-to-face appointments if you require assistance filling in the Homechoice application and medical forms.

• A home visit if you are unable to visit the Housing Information Centre, for example, due to a disability.

• Information on getting registered with Homechoice and how your points and priority groups are awarded.

• Where to find the Homechoice advert.

• Guide you through the ‘bidding process’ explaining how it works and ‘bid’ on your behalf (if you are unable to bid yourself).

• A Housing Advice Surgery at the Wellspring every Friday from 12.00pm-1.00pm.

• Answer any other questions you may have about Homechoice.

For more information, please contact Laura Coombes,

Homechoice Support Assistant on0161 218 1088 or email [email protected]

You may have heard about Pinpoint, a Choice Based Lettings Scheme which covers the whole of the Greater Manchester area.

Stockport, along with nine other Councils and Housing Associations has agreed to advertise a small percentage of properties through the scheme. You can also bid for some private rented properties.

It provides customers with extra choice and reduces paperwork as there is no need for you to register separately with other organisations to bid for properties; you can simply use your Homechoice reference number to bid.

Properties are advertised on the Pinpoint website only and they can change on a daily basis, so it is a good idea to check the website regularly. If you don’t have internet access at home you can access it at your local library, or on the kiosk in the Housing Information Centre.

Visit www.pinpoint.org.uk to start searching for a new home!

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www.stockporthomes.org 5www.stockporthomes.org Going Places - Issue 14 Winter - Spring 2010-11www.stockporthomes.org

Homechoice information

Homechoice facts and figuresHere are some statistics about the Homechoice service which you may find interesting:

Bids can be placed in a number of ways (see the graph and table below).

• 97% of new applications have been processed within five working days (our Service Standard is 85%).

• A total of 459 applications had to be returned to customers because they had not been completed fully.

• There have been a total of 40,450 bids placed for advertised properties this year. Of these 3,651 were not eligible. If you are not eligible for the property you are bidding for, your bid will be wasted as it won’t be accepted.

Bid method No of Bids %

Website 25,324 63%

Automated telephone line 5,393 13%

Housing Information Centre 4,642 12%

Text 2,591 6%

Homechoice Team 1,281 3%

Homechoice Support Assistant

1,077 3%

Email 123 -

Post 10 -

Area Housing Office 9 -

Total: 40,450 100%

As you can see, bidding through the website is the most popular way to apply for a home. This is because it is easy to use and provides information on your bids and a range of other housing options. Also bids can be made at any time of day and weekends at your convenience. Customers bidding through the website can also see where they are placed for a property and can change their bids if they want to.

• There are currently 8,084 customers on the Homechoice register and of these 10% are Black Minority Ethnic (BME).

• 3,366 new applications have been received by Homechoice since 1 April 2010.

• 4,128 change of circumstances have been received for existing applicants since 1 April 2010.

• 661 new medical forms have been assessed during this period.



Property availability informationBelow is some information about different property sizes and types which you might find useful. It gives details about what areas have had the most and least number of properties advertised in 2009/10. This is helpful for you when you are considering what properties to bid for.

Total stock 445

How many became available 2009/10 70

Availability rate per year 15.7% (medium)Main areas where became available in 2009/10 Cheadle (21), Marple (13), Cheadle Hulme South

(11), Woodley (9), Hazel Grove (5)

Areas with very low or no availability in past 12 months

Didsbury Road (3), Larkhill (3), Marple Bridge (2), Bridgehall (2), Cheadle Hulme North (1)

Average points allocated for (properties let through Homechoice)

22 points (medium)

0 bedroom studios

1 bedroom flats with a 60+ age restriction

Total stock 131


Availability rate per year 26% (very high)Main areas where became available in 2009/10 Edgeley (6), Bridgehall (6), Bredbury (6), Hazel Grove

(5), Councillor Lane (4).


Brinnington (3), Heaton Chapel (2), Reddish North (2)


33 points (medium)

Studio

60+



Total stock 411


Availability rate per year 15.7% (medium)Main areas where became available in 2009/10 Brinnington (39), Offerton Estate (8), Woodley (6)

Cheadle (5), Cheadle Heath (5)


Heaton Chapel (4), Higher Hillgate (2), Hazel Grove (2), Didsbury Road (2), Cheadle Hulme South (1)


36 points (high)

Total stock 1770


Availability rate per year 6.3% (low)Main areas where became available in 2009/10 Edgeley (6), Bridgehall (6), Bredbury (6), Hazel Grove

(5), Councillor Lane (4).


Brinnington (3), Heaton Chapel (2), Reddish North (2)


53 points (very high)

Total stock 630


Availability rate per year 15.2% (medium)Main areas where became available in 2009/10

Brinnington (60), Didsbury Road (12), Hazel Grove (6), Cheadle Hulme North (5), Cheadle Hulme South (3)


Offerton Estate (1), Heaton Chapel (0), Gatley (0), Reddish North (0), Bridgehall (0)


35 points (high)

1 bedroom flats

2 bedroom houses

2 bedroom flats



Total stock 3,077


Availability rate per year 4.8% (very low)Main areas where became available in 2009/10 Brinnington (25), Adswood (28), Offerton Estate (12),

Reddish North (12), Bridgehall (11)


High Lane (0), Great Moor (0), Councillor Lane (0),Marple Bridge (0), Compstall (0)


43 points (high)

Total stock 118


Availability rate per year 8.5% (low)Main areas where became available in 2009/10 Edgeley (4), Mottram Street (3), Hazel Grove (1),

Bredbury (1), Brinnington (1)


Reddish North (0), Heaton Norris (0), Councillor Lane (0), Woodley (0)



Total stock 123


Availability rate per year 4.1% (very low)Main areas where became available in 2009/10 Brinnington (2), Offerton Estate (1), Bridgehall (1),

Hazel Grove (1)


Cheadle (0), Cheadle Hulme North (0), Heald Green (0), Heaton Chapel (0), Heaton Norris (0)



3 bedroom maisonettes

3 bedroom houses

4 bedroom houses


Housing Options news

Homelessness Strategy

Halting repossessions

Together with Stockport Council we have beenbusy developing a new Homelessness Strategyfor the Borough.

The Housing Options Team provides advice and assistance to struggling homeowners who are experiencing difficulties with their mortgage.

The new strategy will be published in spring 2011, and will include actions agreed with our customers and partners under four main themes:

1. Access, knowledge and Information – focussing on how people access services, providing advice and raising awareness around homelessness.

2. Volunteering, enabling and support – looking at new ways of delivering services, linking with other strategies and work programmes, and targeting support to those most in need.

3. Prevention, sustainability and affordability – further developing homelessness prevention, looking at how tenancies and other accommodation can be supported and maintained, and contributing towards tackling issues such as worklessness.

4. Provision, planning and the future – exploring longer term opportunities for provision of accommodation and new services to those in housing need.

For more information, please contact Fiona Carr, Homelessness

Strategy Development Officer, on 0161 474 3726 or email [email protected]

i

The team has a dedicated officer who can make referrals to government schemes such as Mortgage Rescue, offer advice on welfare benefits and also help by using a repossessions prevention fund to stop households being repossessed.

Since January 2010 the officer has sent over 400 letters and visited over 180 households at risk of repossession to raise awareness of the help they could get. They have also personally worked

with over 80 homeowners to directly help them in stopping the repossession process. As a result of these efforts, there have been no homeless acceptances due to mortgage repossession in the whole of 2010.

If you or someone you know is struggling to keep up with mortgage payments, please contact Lisa Delezio at the Housing Options Team on 0161 474 4237 or email [email protected]



No one left out

VIPs: Volunteers Important People

In the early hours of 25 November a range of agencies held a ‘rough sleeper count’ across Stockport, only finding one person out in the cold.

Stockport Homes is setting up its very own

VOLUNTEERING SCHEME!

around homelessness prevention undertaken by agencies in Stockport. The Housing Options Team, in partnership with a dedicated Homelessness Outreach Drugs Worker, will visit anyone reported to be rough sleeping within 24 hours to offer advice and assistance. They aim to link people with the services they need to get off the streets, such as health, money advice and temporary accommodation.

If you have concerns about somebody sleeping rough, please

contact Heather McFarlane at the Housing Options Team on 0161 474 4237 or email housing.options @stockporthomes.org

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This fantastic opportunity is to let our customers and any members of the public volunteer for projects that support the work we do. Our volunteers could be working on one-off activities such as a clean-up of an estate, or longer term projects such as helping out at Temporary Accommodation Schemes.

Volunteering is enjoyable and also a great way for people who have been unemployed for a long time to gain some confidence, get their foot back

on the career ladder, give something back to their community or just to meet and socialise with others; and it looks great on a CV!

For more information, or to discuss the Volunteering Scheme or any

particular issues of employment, training and education, please call Martyn Preston, Employment Support Officer on 0161 474 2836 or email [email protected]

Sarah Higgins, Housing Support Point Officer and Martyn Preston - Employment Support Officer

The count was attended by a government representative using the very latest guidance and the success was a reflection of the teamwork



Welfare benefit reforms: how does it affect me?

Are you worried about how the Government is going to reduce the amount of money it spends over the next few years? Or how this may affect you?

One of the biggest areas the Government is making changes to is welfare benefits; these are the payments some people receive when they are temporarily out of work due to things such as illness or having young children, or are too sick to work in the longer term. For example, you may get help with your rent and Council tax, or payments such as Job Seekers Allowance (JSA) and Income Support for your everyday living costs.

Whilst not all Stockport Homes customers will be affected by benefit cuts, it is useful to be aware of how your current income may change next year:

• Housing benefit deductions for other adults living at home will increase, meaning they will be expected to pay more towards the rent.

• Yearly benefit increases will rise more slowly, meaning the cost of living may get more expensive.

• VAT, the tax which is added to everyday goods such as food and clothes, increased by 2.5% in January, to 20%

• Lone parents on Income Support whose children are over five will be moved to JSA (providing they have no serious health issues), so must make themselves available for work.

• Child benefit levels will be frozen at their current amount.

• The baby element of child tax credits, currently paid until a child is one, will be abolished.

More changes will be introduced in 2012-13; we’ll all feel the pinch so start thinking about how you can save money or maximise your income now. Stockport Homes offers help with this including finding employment, budgeting, and signposting towards other specialist advice agencies.

Don’t let worries about finances affect your housing. If you

are struggling, please call the Housing Options Team on 0161 474 4237 or email [email protected]

i

Remember - need to pay gas bill£185.00!!

£5

£5

Phone Stockport Homes

to speak to the Debt

Outreach Worker

T: 0161 218 1304

Please fill out form completely for employment c

completed.

Prospective employees will receive consideration

color, sex, age, national origin or handicap. We are an e

Personal Information

Street Address

City, State, Zip

Business Phone

( ) -

What was your previous address?

Are you over 18 years of age? Yes No

If not, employment is subject to verification of minimum legal age.

Have you ever applied for employment with us?

Yes No

If Yes: Month and Year__________ Location______________________________ -

-

How did you learn of our organization?

Are you legally eligible for employment in the United States?

When will you be able to work?

Are you employed now?

If so, may we inquire of your present employer?

Have you been convicted of a crime in the past ten years, excluding misdemeanors and summary

offenses, which has not been annulled, expunged or sealed by a court? Yes No If

Yes, describe in full.

JOB APPLICATION FORM

Smith Robert

Temporary Accommodation news

Homeless residents get creative for ChristmasH3 (Helping the Homeless into Housing) and residents at the Temporary Accommodation Schemes were busy making hand-made cards for sale last Christmas. This was a greatopportunity for residents to manage a business project, learn new skills and show their artistic side!

H3 have their own bank account and all proceeds go into this and are spent on prorities declared by the group - for example, providing ‘welcome packs’ of household items to those moving in to their own tenancies following a period of homelessness. Such items are not always easily available to people leaving a crisis situation, so the money the group raises can make a real difference.

For more information on H3, please contact the Customer Involvement

Team on 0161 218 1969 or email [email protected]

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Hello, My name is Chrissie Ince, and I’m the Chairperson of H3. I’d like to introduce you to H3, what it stands for, and how we might be able to help each other.

H3 is a constituted community group which has been set up by residents of Stockport Homes’ Temporary Accommodation Schemes. Every committee member dedicates their time freely to supporting the homeless in Stockport. We do this to give something back for the help we received while we were living in homeless accommodation.

H3 holds bi-monthly meetings, which are open to anyone who is living in a Temporary

Accommodation Scheme or has moved into their own property. The meetings usually include lunch and cover a variety of subjects; we try to make them interesting, linked to real issues and fun. The group have opened a bank account and have been given some funding from Stockport Homes, and two of their contractors, Hughes Brothers and Rixonway Kitchens. Additionally, we have started raising funds through making Christmas cards, and a festive raffle. We need funds to run the group and provide the goods we give to the homeless.

If you would like to make a donation, attend a meeting or just contact us

for a chat you can reach us via Stockport Homes’ Customer Involvement Team on 0161 474 2862 or email [email protected]

Chrissie Ince

12 www.stockporthomes.orgGoing Places - Issue 14 Winter - Spring 2010-11

H3 Group Helping the Homeless into Housing

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Helping the Homeless into Housing


Rehousing Services

Value for Money (VFM)

You might be wondering therefore what Stockport Homes is doing to protect the public purse, and ensure customers’ rents and other funds are being spent responsibly. We have:

• developed automated bidding and on-line video advice to free up staff to help more of our customers;

• begun re-structuring the Homechoice and Housing Options Teams into ‘Rehousing Services’, ensuring that there is greater joint working;

• H3, the constituted group of current and formerly homeless customers, is actively fundraising and managing its own bank account;

• increased homelessness prevention activity, which is much more cost-effective than households having to go into temporary accommodation;

• worked with other agencies in Stockport to jointly fund services – for example, via Probation and Supporting People;

• operated the Housing Support Point, a single point of access for all Supporting People funded services in Stockport – thus reducing administrative costs;

• carried out cost comparisons with other areas to ensure that services in Stockport are providing excellent Value for Money;

• researched different suppliers of office and accommodation materials to ensure essential items can be obtained at a low cost;

• implemented a Volunteering Scheme to provide customers with valuable work experience, whilst providing cost-saving services, for example, gardening and painting;

• offered placements to student social workers to generate more money for the Temporary Accommodation Schemes;

• developed new rooms at the Temporary Accommodation Schemes to provide more places for homeless people; and

• carried out more outreach work, including to people sleeping rough. They are also giving more time and a more personal service to vulnerable homeless people.

All of this comes in challenging times: nationally, homelessness has increased by 14% more than the same time last year, and is set to rise in Stockport. Welfare benefit cuts will undoubtedly put more pressure on households already struggling to meet everyday living costs. Demand for Stockport Homes and Housing Association tenancies will undoubtedly increase, but the number of available properties is scarce.

But be assured... Stockport Homes will continue to ensure that customers receive value for money in the services it provides, and will work in partnership to support vulnerable customers affected by cuts to public funding.

If you would like to suggest a VFM idea, please contact Simon Welch,

Head of Rehousng Services on 0161 474 4237 or email [email protected]


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The news recently has been full of stories about how the Government is trying to save money and make public services more efficient.

Rehousing Services

Rehousing ServicesLocal Standards

We have been consulting with customers about how we deliver our service, and the standards we should be setting. We have been asking what is important to you when you seek advice on your housing options or apply for a new home, and the targets we should be aiming for.

The main themes from your responses have been:

• You want clear, easy to understand information – on-line, in booklets, newsletters, letters and at the Housing Information Centre.

• You want to be able to see or speak to member of staff as soon as possible when you have a problem you need to discuss.

• You want your application for rehousing processed as quickly as possible.

• You want help applying for properties when you need it.

• You want to know where your application is up to and your prospects for rehousing.

To make sure our service meets these needs, we are proposing the standards and targets explained opposite.

What do you think? Are they the things you feel are important? Are they challenging enough? Are the priorities right?

Remember we have limited resources, so for example, if we make more staff available for interviews, then they cannot be processing application forms at the same time, but we want to make sure our priorities are the same as your priorities when designing our service and setting standards.

Please let us know your views by contacting, Kim Hooley in

the Homechoice Team on 0161 474 2875 or emailing [email protected]

14 www.stockporthomes.orgGoing Places - Issue 14 Winter - Spring 2010-11

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Rehousing Services

Your Housing Options

Your Homechoice Application


Local Standard Target

1 Comprehensive on-line housing advice videos and information guides (also available as booklets), reviewed as needed and updated with customers.

100% of updates undertaken with customer involvement.

2 Advice interviews available to all customers to discuss their Homechoice application and housing options, including home visits where required. Follow-up advice letters provided in a timely manner where requested.

Interviews available within an average of five working days. Follow-up advice letters sent within an average of three working days where requested.

3 Help and advice in accessing work and training opportunities to improve range of housing options available.

Assistance provided within 10 working days whenever support requested.

4 Fast track interviews available for customers who are immediately homeless.

100% customers interviewed the same day where immediately homeless (and visits to notified rough sleepers within 24 hours) .

5 An accessible, centrally located Housing Information Centre where customers can quickly be seen by a member of the Homechoice Team, and a range of on-line advice and information is available.

100% of customers seen by a staff member in less than five minutes, or additional staff cover provided.

Local Standard Target

1 Application forms (new and updated) and medical assessments processed in an efficient and timely manner.

All forms processed within an average of 10 working days.

2 All letters in plain language, reviewed as needed and updated with customers.

100% of updates undertaken with customer involvement.

3 Support available to place ‘bids’ for customers needing extra help.

100% of customers needing and requesting support assisted.

4 Annual statement for all Homechoice customers stating bids placed, and future rehousing prospects.

100% of customers sent a statement each year.

5 Newsletter produced twice a year with editorial input from customers, providing information on rehousing prospects, Homechoice performance and budgets.

Newsletter produced twice a year.



Well being workshopProject Worker Susan Bell and the team at Strathclyde House have been running a four week rolling programme “Well being workshop”.

The workshop is centred around creating a supportive network and building engagement with residents, focussing on the physical and psychological effects of stressful situations and tools and guidance for promoting independent living. The programme involved:

What is stress and anxiety? Developing an understanding of the definitions and early warning signs.

Relaxation and breathing exercise.Reducing stress levels.

Construction building. Fun activity using newspapers and tape to build various objects whilst not speaking to one another for 10 minutes.

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) strategies. Exploring responsibilities, understanding feelings and behaviours that may trigger situations (see page 28).

Positive thinking. Exploring thinking styles, how attitude can reduce stress.

Healthy eating. Identifying a healthy eating plan.

The overall feedback from residents has been outstanding – 100%!

One resident quote:

It seems it took so long waiting trying to be strong, but when the good news comes, the past seems to have past by equally fast!

“

”

If you have any ideas

for temporary accommodation or would like further information, please contact Gary Stretton, Temporary Accommodation Manager on 0161 474 4237 or email [email protected]

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www.stockporthomes.orgwww.stockporthomes.org


Haunted Halloween at Brindale House

Brindale and Buxton visit Manchester United

A ghoulishly good time was had by all who came along to Brindale’s Halloween party. Parents and children alike donned spooky costumes and enjoyed fiendishly fun party games.

Brindale House was transformed in to spooky cavern, adorned with carved pumpkins, cobwebs, and homemade decorations, thanks to the artistic talents of children attending Brindale’s After-School Club.

October’s edition of Brindale News contained a spooktacular colouring competition and the young winners (pictured opposite) received prizes for their artistic efforts.

Residents of Brindale House and Buxton Road Centre, who are fans of the team, attended the Champions League fixture to watch their side triumph in a 1-0 win over the opposition. Transport and refreshments were provided by Stockport Homes, and a fantastic night was had by all, as United edged closer to the knockout stages of the competition.

After contacting the local Premier League Football Clubs, Elaine, a Project Worker at Brindale House managed to secure 12 free tickets for Manchester United’s Wednesday night home game against Bursaspor.



Resettlement news

Resettlement ServicesMany of you will already have met some of the staff from Resettlement Support Services, either during your time in temporary accommodation, at Resettlement afternoon surgery at 1 St. Peter’s Square, or when you accepted your new home and received support from one of the Resettlement or Tenancy Support Officers.

The Resettlement Service offers support from Generic Officers and a range of specialist officers including a Teenage Parents officer, Furnished Tenancy officers, Deposit Scheme, Mediation, Black Minority Ethnic (BME) (helping customers from diverse backgrounds) and Tenancy Support Officers.

The Resettlement Service provides support in many ways including helping you set up your new tenancy, accessing benefits and furniture, setting up your gas and electricity supply, help with budgeting and on-going support to help maintain your tenancy.

Tenancy Support Officers also help when people have been in their tenancies and have encountered problems managing their tenancy.

We involve and consult our service-users and invite them to our ‘Focus on you’ events. These events are held every two months and you are invited to come along, join in and have your say on your experience of the Resettlement Service. The events are enjoyable and we provide a free lunch to all who attend. Our next ‘Focus on You’ is on 17 February 2011, 10.30am to 1.00pm at The Salvation Army Hall in Heaton Norris. We look forward to seeing you there!

As a team we recently received an award for ‘Our commitment to developing and delivering the ‘Focus on You’ Focus Group for Resettlement and Tenancy Support customers, which are very supportive and enjoyable events, enjoyed by staff and customers alike’.

Focus on You

Meet the Resettlement Team!


Resettlement news

Pre-Tenancy Officer

Award Winning Team

We have recently recruited to the exciting and ground breaking new post of Pre-Tenancy Officer. The role of the officer is to provide advice and information to those people seeking accommodation with Stockport Homes.

The Pre-Tenancy Officer will be facilitating workshops throughout the Borough and at the three Temporary Accommodation Schemes.

The workshops will run at a variety of times (days / evenings) and will include information relating to understanding a tenancy agreement and your responsibilities as tenant, positive ways to maintain your tenancy, the benefits system, budgeting and ways of accessing essential items to set up home with.

Further information will be publicised in the next issue

of Going Places, at Temporary Accommodation Schemes, and at the next Resettlement ‘Focus on You’ meeting.

Focus on You

One of our team members Karena Law received an award for the most customer compliments during 2009/2010.

Karena and the team are all extremely proud of the awards we received this year.

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Customer Involvement news

You said, we did

Temporary Accommodation

You wanted more information on allocations and how Homechoice works.

Geoff Binns, Rehousing Services Manager, attended a H3 meeting and provided the group with more information on how Homechoice works.

You wanted us to provide ‘starter packs’ of essential items for people going into and moving on from temporary accommodation.

H3 successfully bid for the Stockport Homes Community Fund, and are raising more money from a raffle and Christmas cards to pay for these.

You wanted more information / pictures of the Temporary Accommodation Schemes before moving into them.

Temporary Accommodation information leaflets have been produced for each scheme in consultation with residents, and will be provided by Housing Options Officers to new residents.

You wanted more practical classes at temporary accommodation to help with life skills.

Cooking classes are now held at all of the schemes, with money management being rolled out.

Focus on You meetings

You wanted us to follow-up on service-users after they had left the service to check they were managing ok.

Tenancy Support Officers now contact former service-users after six, 12 and 24 months.

You wanted more hands-on and craft activities at ‘Focus on You’ meetings.

Chrissie Ince, Chair of H3, attended to demonstrate card-making which H3 have been doing for Christmas.

You wanted advice on how to get back into work after sickness.

A speaker from Stockport Take-Up Partnership attended and answered questions.

You wanted more information on Skills for Life courses.

These are now a standard agenda item at each ‘Focus on You’ meeting.

You said

You said

We did

We did


Quiz corner

Health and HousingWord SearchAfter Christmas and New Year we might all end up feeling under the weather; thiscross-word contains a few common ailments and things you can do to beat the winter blues.

T L V E G E T A B L E S C T F T

Z X D C C O U N S E L L I N G T

S W X D O K N M E D I C A L E Y

C L P I H D R Z X J T O X D B B

S F J S A A E G D G E L P F U N

R I Q A O N K P C W D E L U H K

G I F B Z R Q E R H E A L T H Y

R F M I J M X U V E G D R L E E

J S O L K Y J Q R Z S W C F P X

F Y B I H S D E N T I S T A W E

G Q I T Y N W E L L B E I N G R

E J L Y G V I T A M I N S O Z C

D G I B I P P G P Z M Z Q X N I

S V T K E V J A Q I P Z U G Z S

C V Y K N X M E D I C I N E B E

Y Z A S E H R I A B S G C S P P

HEALTHYVITAMINSVEGETABLESDISABILITYDEPRESSION

MEDICALMEDICINEEXERCISEHYGIENEMOBILITY

COUNSELLINGDENTISTWELLBEING


Partner Agency news

Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit

All tenancies (from April 2011)

If you have friends, relatives or anyone over 18 living in your home, they may be expected to pay towards the rent and Council Tax depending on their age and income. The amounts they are expected to pay are called non-dependant deductions and are fixed by the Government.Non-dependant deductions for Housing Benefit (HB) and Council Tax Benefit (CTB) are going to increase from April 2011.

Housing Benefit:

The lower rate of £7.40 per week is increasing to £9.40 per week £17.00 per week is increasing to£21.55 per week £23.55 per week is increasing to £29.60 per week £38.20 per week is increasing to£48.45 per week £43.50 per week is increasing to£55.20 per week £47.75 per week is increasing to £60.60 per week

Council Tax Benefit:

The lower rate of £2.30 per week is increasing to £2.85 per week

£4.60 per week is increasing to £5.70 per week £5.80 per week is increasing to£7.20 per week £6.95 per week is increasing to £8.60 per week

Discretionary Housing Payment (DHP) grants are to be increased. These are payments we can sometimes make if your Housing Benefit or Council Tax Benefit is less than the full amount of rent or Council Tax.

April 2013

Housing Benefit to be reduced by 10% for tenants in receipt of Job Seekers Allowance for more than a year.

Tenants of social Landlords (from April 2013)

Housing Benefit to be limited for working age tenants who are deemed to be under occupying, in other words have more bedrooms than the household requires.

Tenants of Private landlords (from April 2011)

The £15 top-up currently payable on rents below the Local Housing Allowance (LHA) will be removed when claims are reviewed.

Please see below the latest information on how the proposed WelfareReforms will affect Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit.


Partner Agency news

Local Housing Allowance (LHA) will be based on the 30th percentile of local market rents rather than the 50th percentile. Market rents are set by the Valuation Office Agency.

There will no longer be a five bedroom Local Housing Allowance rate. The maximum level customers can get is for a four bedroom property.

There will be maximum rate caps, so that Local Housing Allowance weekly rates in any area cannot be more than:

£250 for a one bedroom property

£290 for a two bedroom property

£340 for a three bedroom property

£400 for a four bedroom property

(These caps will probably only affect customers if they live in London, especially in the centre of London).

The size criteria for private rented sector properties will include an additional bedroom if a customer or their partner has a need for overnight care that is provided by a non-resident carer.

There will be transitional protection for up to nine months for existing customers who see a reduction in the Local Housing Allowance rate.

Local Housing Allowance rates will be reduced to a lower amount, so that about three in 10 properties for rent in the area should be affordable to people on Housing Benefit. At the moment about five in 10 properties in each area are affordable to people receiving Housing Benefit.

From April 2012

The shared room LHA rate will apply to all single claimants under the age of 35 who do not have children. This is based on properties where the tenant has a room of their own but shares all or some of the facilities (for example, a living room, kitchen or bathroom). This currently applies to single claimants under 25.

From April 2013

LHA rates to be uprated in line with the Consumer Price Index (CPI) instead of the Retail Price Index (RPI). This means the level of this benefit will increase more slowly than in previous times.

For more information, please contact Stockport Council’s

Housing Benefits section on0161 217 6015.

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Performance news

Facts and figures

Housing Options ServiceNumber of visitors to the Housing Information Centre: 12,049People prevented from becoming homeless: 315Total number of decisions about homelessness: 165Full-duty decisions: 56Non-priority decisions: 100

Main reasons for homelessness:• Asked to leave by parents: 20%• Domestic violence: 18%• Required to leave accommodation provided by the Home Office: 11%• Loss of private rented accommodation: 9%

Average wait for an interview: 8 minutesAverage number of days to answer letters: 1% of customers from a Black Minority Ethnic (BME) background: 11%

Housing Options – Service standards

The Housing Options Team is a very busy service; last year they interviewed 1,918 households in need of housing advice and at risk of homelessness. At the same time the team strives to ensure that customers are provided with good quality support; as a result the following service standards have been drawn up in consultation with our customers.

Standard Target Outcome

Customers approaching reception at the Housing Information Centre to be seen within five minutes.

90% 100%

Customers with appointments to see a Housing Options Officer to be seen within 10 minutes or less.

10 minutes 8 minutes

Customers who approach the Housing Information Centre to be fairly or very satisfied with their visit overall.

80% 88%

Provide written confirmation of housing/options advice interview within 72 hours.

100% 100%

10% of housing advice cases to be quality assurance checked by a manager and to ensure they are in-line with best practice.

10% 10%

(April 2010 – September 2010)

The following facts and figures are designed to show you how well the services in this newsletter are performing against standards agreed with our customers, and the amount of people who we provide with support.

www.stockporthomes.org 25www.stockporthomes.org Going Places - Issue 14 Winter - Spring 2010-11www.stockporthomes.orgwww.stockporthomes.org

Performance news

Temporary accommodation

Temporary accommodation in Stockport is in high demand; Stockport Homes therefore works hard to ensure people are provided with advice to prevent them from becoming homeless, and where this cannot be stopped it aims to ensure that they are helped to move on to their own accommodation as quickly as possible.

Temporary accommodation – Service standards

Housing Options – Service standards (cont.)

Scheme Number accommodated

% from BME groups Average length of stay (days)

Families 87 13.7% 76Single men 58 8.6% 66Single women / mums and babies

45 8.8% 65


Provide accommodation that is clean, safe and meets the Temporary Accommodation Re-let Standards.

100% 100%

Ensure that the reception and communal areas are clean, tidy and safe. 100% 94%Maintain appropriate standards of safety and security throughout the accommodation.

100% 100%

Make an appointment with each new resident to explain the services available to them within the scheme.

100% 100%

Provide all residents with a needs assessment interview within two weeks of entering the scheme.

100% 96%

Hold regular resident meetings, at least every six weeks and more often if necessary and provide feedback to service users from each meeting.

100% 97%

Inspect repairs at Temporary Accommodation Schemes (ensuring job satisfactory, area clean and safe).

100% 100%

Provide appropriate information, guidance and signposting in relation to other services, liaise and make referrals where required in relation to service-users individual needs.

100% 98%


Homeless decisions to be made within 33 working days (where all required information is available).

85% 90%

All homeless decisions to be checked by a manager to ensure they are in-line with legislation, best practice and case law.

100% 100%

Visit rough sleepers within 24 hours of notification. 100% 100%


Performance news

Facts and figures(April 2010 – September 2010)

Repairs at Temporary Accommodation Schemes

Resettlement Service

At the end of this period 103 cases closed:

Making the Temporary Accommodation Schemes pleasant and safe places to live depends upon making sure repairs are done to a high standard and on time. To help with this, residents are involved in health and safety checks and

encouraged to report faults whenever they see them and are involved in monitoring performance and making suggestions for improvements to the repairs process.

Scheme Total repairs ordered Orders completed within target %Families and off-site 36 34 94%Single men 9 9 100%Single women / mums and babies

16 14 86%

Overall 61 57 74%

80 successful

22 remained in properties but disengaged

1 died.

The Resettlement Team provide support to new and existing tenants in setting up and maintaining their homes. This support can be for up to two years, depending on the tenant’s needs and whether they wish to continue being involved with the service.

197 referrals received

6,167 hours of support given to 167 households

1,644 home visits

103 cases closed


Customer news

Get the best deal for your gas and electricityStockport Homes Energy is a new price comparison service that allows you to compare gas and electricity prices and arrange a transfer to the cheapest provider.

The service, powered by Energylinx, compares your usage with all the major suppliers to find the best deal that matches your personal situation.

You can access this service over the telephone by calling the freephone number where an agent will guide you through the process, or you can do it on-line.

The service is accredited by Consumer Focus, a statutory organisation, via its Confidence Code. This means that you can be confident that the service you are using is reputable and 100% impartial.

Great savings. Easy to use and so quick!

(Customer saved £203, August 2010)

To see how much you could be saving call 0800 410 1245 (call is free of charge if made from a landline) or log on to www.stockporthomesenergy.org.uk (free internet access is available at your local library).

You can pick up a copy of a leaflet explaining the service

from your Area Housing Office or on our website www.stockporthomes.org

“”

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28 Going Places - Issue 14 Winter - Spring 2010-11 www.stockporthomes.org

Partner agency news

Accessing our servicesIf you would like a copy of this newsletter in large print, Braille, on audio tape or CD, please contact the Social Inclusion Team on 0161 474 2860 or email [email protected]

A free interpreting service is available if you need help with this newsletter. Please telephone Stockport Interpreting Unit on0161 477 9000. Email [email protected]

Stockport computerised CBT @ Home Service

If you’re feeling sad, anxious or worried, our interactive self help service could help.

About the serviceSelf Help Services offers a home-based Computerised Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (cCBT) that can help you to identify and change unhelpful ways of thinking. Over a six week period you can access cCBT from home via an internet connected PC, with weekly support available through our telephone support co-ordinator.

For more information please contact: Sean Collins,

Telephone Support Co-ordinator c/o Stockport cCBT at home serviceTel: 07908 071123Email: stockportathome@ selfhelpservices.org.ukOr visit: www.selfhelpservices.org.uk

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‘Living Life to the Full Interactive’

Going Places Newsletter Spring 2011

Documents

Transcript of Going Places Newsletter Spring 2011