Scottish Social Housing Charter and Annual Report 2017/18 · • Sharon Keenan, Chief Executive,...

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Scottish Social Housing Charter and Annual Report

2017/18

2 | Scottish Social Housing Charter and Annual Report 2017/18

3Scottish Social Housing Charter and Annual Report 2017/18 |

Contents

4 Introduction

6 Scottish Housing Regulator

7 About this report

8 About us

9 Governance

12 Staffing

13 Scottish Social Housing Charter

15 Services that matter most to Thistle tenants

16 Customer Satisfaction

17 Managing our income

19 Measuring value for money

22 Access to housing

25 Maintaining your home

28 Factoring Service

29 Customer Engagement and Communication

31 Community Development

35 Committee, Staff and Consultants

36 Financial Highlights


Last year continued to be a very challenging and busy year for the Association. The contract with Eon continued throughout the year only to be concluded at 31st March 2018, with the exception of work to 14 properties which is being taken forward by the Association and is now nearing completion.

Bringing this contract to a conclusion was a very difficult process which dominated the entire year and challenged everyone involved. We are very appreciative of the support and patience that we have received from residents involved.

As part of the current plans we are looking at the lessons that can be learnt from this process, which will involve appointing an independent company to carry out a resident satisfaction survey as well as meet with groups of residents in the community. We will keep all our customers advised of our progress and the outcome of this process.

In October 2017, the Association commissioned an independent review of its compliance with the Regulatory Standards of Governance and Financial Management. The review, completed in March 2018, identified a significant number of areas where the Association was not fully compliant with the Regulatory Standards of Governance and Financial Management. All of the issues raised within the report relate to governance, leadership and strategy.

The Scottish Housing Regulator has not been reassured by the steps taken by the Association and expressed concern surrounding the capacity of the organisation to achieve full compliance with the Regulatory Standards and outcome 2 of the Scottish Social Housing Charter in relation to communication with its tenants and residents.

As a result, to assist the Association, the Regulator has appointed a new statutory manager along with 5 new appointments to our Management Committee. Details of these appointments are contained within the report.

Whilst the Management Committee has taken the decision to appeal the Scottish Housing Regulators decision, we have welcomed the Statutory Manager and new appointees and will embrace any action that brings about positive change for the Association.

Our prime objective is to ensure that we work in the best interests of our tenants and stakeholders in Toryglen, and regard this period of change as an opportunity to explore how we can advance, with our service users remaining our top priority.

We have continued this year with the extended report which shows comparisons against other Associations which operate in the South Side of Glasgow with a view to making the information more meaningful and interesting. In this way you can see how the service we provide to you compares to that of other Registered Social Landlords which operate nearby.

IntroductionWelcome to Thistle Housing Association’s Scottish Social Housing Charter and Annual Report for the financial year 2017/18. This report sets out the Association’s financial position at the 31st March 2018, as well as our performance against the standards set out in the Scottish Social Housing Charter.


Pat Jamieson Chairperson

The creation of a Community Development Plan has been a priority for the Association during this last year and a number of very successful community events have taken place. The extensive community and stakeholder consultation sets out the views of residents and identifies their priorities for the area and highlights their needs and aspirations.

It is intended that the consultation will act as the catalyst for further work to bring forward initiatives to enable the community to engage and interact in a positive manner..

In addition to performance information, the report also contains a summary of our accounts for this financial year.

The Scottish Housing Regulator’s website contains much of the information that is provided in this report. You will find copies of the Association’s Annual Return on the Charter (ARC), Regulation Plans and Financial Returns by visiting their website at

www.scottishhousingregulator.gov.uk. You can also use this website to compare our performance with other Registered Social Landlords in the city or throughout Scotland.

There are clearly challenges ahead; however, I am confident that Thistle Housing Association will meet these challenges and become a stronger organisation as a result of this.

The statistical information that we provide is taken from the Management Reports which we provide for the Management Committee on a quarterly basis. These reports monitor the Association’s progress and performance across all of the key performance areas monitored by the Scottish Housing Regulator.

The information that we provide in relation to customer satisfaction is taken from the customer satisfaction survey which the Association carries out every three years. This survey is carried out by an independent consultant and the most recent survey was completed in February 2016.

This survey pre dates the Eon contract and we recognise that we require to carry out a survey that will provide the Association with current levels of satisfaction. To achieve this it is our intention to carry out a full Customer Satisfaction Survey early in 2019.

The Scottish Housing RegulatorThe Scottish Government’s Social Housing Charter sets out the standards and outcomes which social landlords should aim to achieve. The Scottish Housing Regulator assess and report on landlords’ performance against the Charter.

All of the information that is contained in this report is taken from the Annual Return on the Charter (ARC) 2017/18, which was submitted to the Scottish Housing Regulator by all Landlords in Scotland in May 2018.

The information contained within the charter is either:

• Statistical information about financial, contextual or other performance that can be quantified

• Customer satisfaction information derived from a customer satisfaction survey carried out by an independent body

| Scottish Social Housing Charter and Annual Report 2017/186

This report also provides you with an update in relation to our own Customer Satisfaction Survey and includes comparisons for you with local Associations which you will be familiar with; Govanhill, New Gorbals, Southside and Cathcart & District.

While there are fairly significant differences in terms of size, we are all delivering the same services which are used by the Scottish Housing Regulator to compare services nationally. Hopefully, this makes reading the report more interesting.

About this Report The Association is required to provide all of our customers with a report which details the performance of the Association against the Scottish Social Housing Charter indicators we have combined this with our Annual Report.


This stock transfer, as with all Scottish Homes Stock Transfers, was privately funded. This means that Thistle Housing Association borrowed the money to buy the houses in Toryglen from Scottish Homes. The value of the houses was determined by a stock condition survey.

Thistle Housing Association negotiated a £9.65m loan facility with Santander to support the transfer of houses from Scottish Homes. The only income that the Association generates is rental income, and it is this income that is used to pay the outstanding loan, maintain the houses and carry out the improvements required.

Thistle Housing Association is entirely self–sufficient financially.

The Association bought 1010 houses from Scottish Homes at the point of transfer and provides a factoring service to the 723 houses that had been sold through Right to Buy.

However, over recent years the Association has taken advantage of funding made available to Registered Social Landlords from Glasgow City Council to buy back homes in their area that are currently privately owned. The Association purchased 70 houses through this scheme. During this period houses were still being purchased through Right to Buy.

Both of the above activities have resulted in a current stock figure of 947. The Right to Buy for Registered Social Landlords came to an end on 31 July 2016, which will prevent this number declining in the future.

About Us

Thistle HA

Govanhill HA

New Gorbals HA

Southside HA

Cathcart & District HA

Number of houses 947 2569 2492 2291 580

The number of houses owned by each of the Housing Associations used in this report are detailed below.

Thistle Housing Association is a Registered Social Landlord and was created as a result of the transfer of stock from Scottish Homes in January 2001. The Association was created for the purpose of stock transfer and owns no other homes.

| Scottish Social Housing Charter and Annual Report 2017/188

The Management Committee is elected each year at the Association’s Annual General Meeting, which is attended by the members of the Association. The Associations’ Rules allow for a maximum of 15 members on the Management Committee and during the year 2017/18.

GovernanceThe governing body of a Registered Social Landlord is called the management committee or board of management. This governing body is the legal entity which owns the houses in Toryglen and, as such, must ensure that it meets with all its legal obligations as a Registered Social Landlord, and can meet its financial commitments. The governing body of Thistle Housing Association is the Management Committee.

Scottish Social Housing Charter and Annual Report 2017/18 | 9


Scottish Housing Regulator

The Statutory Appointments made through the Scottish Housing association’s intervention are:

• Mike Hanrahan, Statutory Manager

• Stephen Black, Chief Executive, Atrium Housing Association

• Michael Clarke, Chief Executive, Rosehill Housing Co-Op

• Bob Hartness, Finance Director, NG Homes

• Sharon Keenan, Chief Executive, Clydebank Housing Association

• Kenny Stocks, former Director Ardenglen Housing Association

These appointees were made in August 2018.

Funding Implications

The Association has a £9.4m loan remaining with Santander, which has supported the improvement works that have been carried out by Thistle Housing Association since transfer. The repayments of this loan are paid through the tenant’s rental income, which is the only source of income that the Association has.

The loan facility with Santander has attached to it a number of financial covenants which the Association had worked within over the period since transfer. A breach of these financial covenants would allow Santander to insist that new financial terms for the loan are negotiated.

The decision by the Scottish Housing Regulator to intervene has triggered a breach of the Association’s financial agreement with Santander. This has resulted in the Association having to re-negotiate its finance package with Santander which will result in an increase in the cost of finance. These negotiations are ongoing at present.


StaffingThe Annual Return of the Charter requires each Registered Social Landlord to return information about staffing levels, turnover of staff and levels of sick leave taken by staff.

Thistle HA

Govanhill HA

New Gorbals HA

Southside HA


Number of Senior Staff 3 5 5 4.60 1.89

Number of office based staff 17 73.1 58 61.09 9.46

Total office based staff FTE 20* 78.1 63 65.69 11.35

Direct Labour Staff 4 0 38 30.48 4

Staff Turnover 4% 6.43% 6.24% 9.26% 19.54%

Staff Sickness 1.07% 6.58% 2.73% 2.71% 3.40%

*total office based staff includes 2 cleaners that are employed directly by the association. FTE 18, which includes 1 temporary member of staff.

Staff Resources

These key areas of information inform the Scottish Housing Regulator about the staff resources, may indicate levels of efficiency and also highlight potential problems. For example, if staff turnover and sickness levels were high this may be an area of concern.

The information supplied in the Annual Return of the Charter is detailed below along with comparisons to other landlords.


The Scottish Government’s Social Housing Charter sets out the standards and outcomes which social landlords should aim to achieve. The Scottish Housing Regulator monitors, assesses and reports on landlords’ performances against the Charter. This is done through regulatory assessments, published analysis and thematic work.

The Scottish Social Housing Charter

The Scottish Housing Regulator published its National Report on the Scottish Social Housing Charter in August 2018. In this report, it highlighted the ‘Key Results’ of the Charter, and the performance nationally.

The Scottish Housing Regulator has also identified the services that matter most to tenants through consultation with tenants nationally.

We have compared these Key Results in the categories that matter most to tenants with the service that Thistle Housing Association delivers to its customers and the results are very positive.

The Scottish Social Housing Charter, Key Results 2017/18


Scottish Housing Regulator’s National Report on the Scottish Social Housing Charter, services that matter most to tenants.

Services that matter most to tenants Key Results 2017/18 All RSL’s nationally

Thistle Housing Association 2017/18

Overall tenant satisfaction Improved to 91% 96.43%

Emergency repairs response times Improved to 4 hours 1.88 hours

Tenants satisfied with the quality of their homes

Up to 88% 95.33%

Tenants satisfied that their rent is good value for money

Up to 83% 95.33%

Tenants satisfied with their landlord’s neighbourhood management

Up to 88% 95.88%

1st stage complaints responded to within timescales

Unchanged at 85% 100%

Average weekly rents Up to £76 £81.16

Anti-social behaviour responded to within timescales

Unchanged at 88% 100%

Average planned rent increase 2018-19 Increased to 3.2%3% houses

3.5% flats

The Scottish Social Housing Charter

95%of tenants satisfied with the quality of

their homes


Services that matter most to Thistle tenantsIn the survey that was carried out by Research Resource for the Association in 2016, the top three priorities were identified as;

Providing an

effective repairs service

Keeping rents and charges

affordable

Modernising tenants’ homes

We are very aware that the level of rents that are charged is a very important issue for all our tenants at this time. We will ensure that rent charges, and particularly the rent increases, will only be applied at the level required to deliver the work we need to do, and to meet the requirements of our business plan and loan facility with Santander.

A consultation exercise will be carried out with all tenants in relation to the rent increases that are being considered.

The Association delivers a very effective repairs service. Details of our performance are provided later in this report.

The Association has carried out a significant programme of improvements to its properties over recent years, including the application of External Wall Insulation, renewing roofs and replacing windows.

A stock condition survey has recently been completed which will determine the Association’s planned

maintenance programme in the coming years.


Customer SatisfactionAs well as the services that matter most to tenants there are many other aspects of the service delivery that are reported in the Annual Return on the Charter. The table below combines these results and compares them with the results from neighbouring organisations.

Thistle HA Govanhill HA New Gorbals HA

Southside HA


Tenants satisfied with overall service 96.43% 90.38% 91.79% 92.86% 97.88%

Tenants who felt the Association is good at keeping them informed

96.70% 96.48% 91.79% 98.72% 96.21%

Tenants satisfied with opportunities to participate

96.98% 95.14% 87.06% 96.34% 85.48%

Tenants satisfied with the quality of their home when they moved in

83.33% 98.84% 96.15% 96.15% 97.30%

Existing tenants satisfied with the quality of their home

95.33% 91.90% 84.58% 94.14% 94.51%

Tenants satisfied with management of neighbourhood

95.88% 85.81% 91.04% 95.79% 93.60%

Tenants satisfied that their rent is good value for money

90.93% 84.38% 82.59% 80.22% 93.80%

Factored owners satisfied with the service 76.81% 61.69% 69.96% 70.75% 97.50%

There is only one area of performance which is significantly lower than our neighbouring associations this is in relation to tenant satisfaction with the quality of their home when they move in. We have taken steps to address this by improving the level of decoration in void properties.. The information regarding the levels of tenant satisfaction is taken from the survey carried out by Research Resource in 2016. This survey relates to all of the services that we provide to residents on an annual basis.

The Association carries out a resident satisfaction survey every three years. The next survey will be carried out early in 2019. 96%

of tenants satisfied with the overall

service


Managing our income

Thistle HA

Govanhill HA

New Gorbals HA

Southside HA


No of houses 947 2569 2492 2291 580

Total Rental Income £3,955,482 £9,996,338 £10,489,963 £8,558,723 £1,987,010

Thistle HA

Govanhill HA

New Gorbals HA

Southside HA


Scottish Average

Rent Increase 2016/17

2.0% houses 2.5% flats 2.9% 2.9% 3.5% 3% 3.2%

The Association needs to ensure that the income generated through rent can meet the financial obligations of the business, therefore it is very important that this is managed efficiently.

Our rental income, along with that of our neighbouring Associations, are detailed below.

Income

Each year Registered Social Landlords apply increases to their rents. In the current financial climate all landlords must take into account the effect of rent increases on our tenants and the Scottish Housing Regulator has taken a keen interest in the rent increases that Associations are applying.

The figures below demonstrate that the rent increases applied by the Association are in line with neighbouring Associations.

Rent Increase

Average weekly rents

Property Size

Thistle HA

Govanhill HA

New Gorbals

HA

Southside HA


Scottish Average

2 apartment £57.82 £79.45 £69.10 £79.97 £61.61 £73.33

3 apartment £79.88 £84.70 £79.06 £89.64 £74.67 £74.94

4 apartment £88.33 £97.99 £90.14 £97.82 £85.31 £81.37

5 apartment £110.77 £116.07 £102.61 £103.16 £88.26 £190.39

Managing our incomeIn addition to comparing what rent increases have been applied by other associations, we also compare what the weekly rent charges are. This ensures that the rents that are charged by the Association are comparable to other landlords in the surrounding area. Details of the weekly rents per apartment size are shown below.

With the exception of the 5 apartment houses all of our rents compare favourably to those of our neighbouring associations. The association has taken steps to address this in its rent policy where we are applying lower rent increases to this property size.



Measuring value for money

Managing Rental Income

Over recent years there has been much discussion about how Registered Social Landlords can demonstrate that they provide value for money. Within the Scottish Social Housing Charter the Scottish Regulator groups a number of activities together which they use to measure the value for money that Landlords are delivering.

This section of the report provides you with information about the categories that the Scottish Housing Regulator looks at when considering value for money. The first of these is how it manages its income.

The rental income that is generated by Registered Social Landlords is considerable and one of the key aspects that requires to be considered when discussing value for money and efficiency is how good landlords are at collecting their rental income.

It is the responsibility of the Registered Social Landlord to manage our stock effectively and efficiently to ensure that it remains financially viable. As rental income is the Association’s only source of income, managing this area of the business is critical to the Association’s financial viability.

In addition to this, the Association must ensure that it assists tenants as far as possible in meeting their obligation to make their rent payments. This is particularly challenging in light of the changes that are being introduced through Welfare Reform, and remains a high priority for the Association.

The Association has been very successful in supporting tenants through the changes that have been implemented in Toryglen so far. At 31st March 2018 there were only 83 tenants in Toryglen who had a rent arrear of any description.

Housing Benefit/Universal credit

Tenants of social and private rented accommodation can apply for Housing Benefit to assist with their monthly rent payments. Before the Government started rolling out its Welfare Reform programme the housing benefit which a tenant was entitled to was paid directly to their landlord. However, Welfare Reform and the introduction of Universal Credit will introduce significant changes to this system.

When a tenant moves onto Universal Credit their rent will no longer be paid directly to Thistle Housing Association. It will be paid directly to the tenant who will then have to make payment to the Association.

The Association has a considerable number of tenants who are in receipt of Housing Benefit. At this point we

are guaranteed to get this rent paid directly into their rent account. When the new system is fully introduced there is a risk that in the first instance there may be a considerable amount of tenants who have difficulty managing the new system.

The Association has prepared for the introduction of Universal Credit by reviewing the role of the Housing Officers and the provision of a Welfare Rights Officer. These services will be reviewed over the coming year when the impact of the roll out of Universal Credit is realised.

This presents a risk to the Association which we will monitor very closely, particularly in relation to the provision of our Welfare Rights Officer’s services.



Thistle HA

Govanhill HA

New Gorbals HA

Southside HA


% of rent collected 100.15% 99.69% 99.53% 98.04% 100.72%

Housing Benefit Analysis

The graph below details the number and percentage of tenants that are in receipt of housing benefit of any description.

Thistle HA

Govanhill HA

New Gorbals HA

Southside HA


Housing Benefit Recipients 612 1708 1731 1544 332

% of overall tenants 64.6% 66.5% 69.5% 67.4% 57.2%

At present the Association receives two thirds of its income directly through Housing Benefit. When the changes to welfare reform are fully introduced this figure will change dramatically and we will have to collect a much greater amount directly from tenants.

However, by looking at the above information, we can see that our neighbouring associations are affected

to similar extents by the proposed welfare reform changes. This risk to the future collection of rental income is, therefore, not only relevant to Thistle Housing Association, but a risk that the sector as a whole is faced with.

This is an area of the business that we will continue to monitor very closely.

Percentage of collected rent due

The Association relies heavily on making sure that the maximum amount of rent due is collected to ensure that the financial commitments of the Association can be met. The collection of rental income is therefore closely monitored. The information below states the level of rental income which was achieved in the financial year 2017/18.

As the rent is due on the 28th of the month this figure can include rent payments that have been made in March which are for the April rent payment in the following financial year, which results in the actual rental income being slightly higher than the annual rent. 100%

of rent collected



Thistle HA

Govanhill HA

New Gorbals HA

Southside HA


Gross Rent Arrears % 2.74% 4.70% 5.14% 5.79% 6.16%

Total Value £ £108,546 £475,004 £541,076 £497,807 £122,927

Rent arrears

To consider how effective the Association is at assisting tenants to pay their rent we need to look at the rent arrears figures.

The gross rent arrears figure that is collated for the purpose of the Scottish Social Housing Charter includes current and former tenant arrears. A former tenant arrear occurs when someone leaves their house and there is a balance on their account which they have failed to pay.

This is a very good performance for the Association and demonstrates that the staff review and introduction of a Welfare Rights service have been effective. At 31st March 2018 only 83 cases, less than 10% of our tenants had any rent arrears on their account.

Former Tenant Arrears

Thistle HA

Govanhill HA

New Gorbals HA

Southside HA


Former tenant arrears £22,799 £143,513 £162,345 £163,557 £27,691

Former tenant arrears occur when a tenant ends their tenancy without paying all of the rent due.

The Scottish Housing Regulator includes Former Tenant Arrears within the Annual Gross Rent Arrear figure.


Access to Housing

Managing Void Houses

The second most significant area of the Association’s business that affects the rental income is how efficiently it manages houses when they become empty. When a tenant leaves their home there is a period between that and a new tenant being allocated the house.

During this period the Registered Social Landlord does not receive any rental income for the house. This is therefore money that is lost to that Association. Unlike a rent arrear, which a tenant may pay at some point, money that is lost through a house being empty can never be recovered.

The Scottish Social Housing Charter contains information regarding two aspects of the process. Firstly, it asks Associations to report on the average amount of days that it takes the Association to let an empty house and, secondly, it asks for the amount of money that the Association has not collected in rent because a house has not been let. This is referred to as void or rent loss.

Relets and Voids

Thistle HA

Govanhill HA

New Gorbals HA

Southside HA


Number of lets 80 194 173 173 55

Average days to re-let a house 13.99 40.15 15.64 18.67 24.16

Void loss as a % of rental income 0.33% 1.09% 0.29% 0.46% 0.40%

Rent Loss £13,019 £110,143 £30,415 £39,184 £7,924

In addition to minimising rent loss there are a number of other reasons that allocating houses efficiently and effectively is important. Firstly, as a Registered Social Landlord we have a responsibility to provide houses for applicants who demonstrate housing need. Ensuring that houses are empty for as short a period as possible enables the Association to do this more efficiently.

It is also very important for the community that there are not a lot of houses lying empty for a long period of time. This can very quickly have a detrimental effect on people’s perception of an area and its popularity and desirability as a place to live.

Average days to re-let

a house

13.99


Access to Housing

Number of New Voids

Thistle HA

Govanhill HA

New Gorbals HA

Southside HA


Number of empty houses that arose 64 233 182 161 56

%age of lettable houses that became vacant 6.76% 9.91% 7.32% 7.68% 9.88%

Thistle HA

Govanhill HA

New Gorbals HA

Southside HA


% age of new tenancies to existing tenants sustained 94% 92.11% 95.24% 97.56% 100%

%age of new tenancies to homeless applicants sustained

100% 92.59% 96.00% 93.02% 100%

%age of new tenancies from the association housing list sustained

89% 87.02% 94.81% 90.18% 100%

%age of tenancies through nominations sustained NA NA NA 100% NA

%age of new tenancies through others sustained 75% 57.14% NA 100% NA

Tenancy SustainmentLets where lets have been sustained for more than 1 year

Ensuring that tenants can maintain their tenancy over a prolonged period of time is evidence that the allocation and tenancy support system is working. The Scottish Housing Regulator monitors performance in this area by asking RSL’s to provide statistics on tenancies that have been sustained for more than one year.


Access to Housing

Legal Actions

Thistle HA

Govanhill HA

New Gorbals HA

Southside HA


Total number of notice of proceedings issued 18 25 10 20 4

Number of court actions initiated 3 6 3 15 0

Number of properties recovered because rent had not been paid

0 6 3 14 0

Number of properties recovered because of anti social behaviour

0 0 0 1 0

Number of properties recovered for other reasons

0 0 0 0 0

Unfortunately when tenants don’t pay their rent sometimes the association need to revert to taking legal action. In the year 2016/17 the association did not have to evict any tenant for unpaid rent.

Number of Abandoned HousesIn addition to houses where the tenancy is ended in the correct manner the Association has to deal with houses where the resident leaves without giving any notice to Thistle Housing Association. We often find out that these houses are empty through neighbours and then have to serve a notice on the property before we can recover the house. These houses are referred to as Abandoned Houses.

Abandoned Houses

Thistle HA

Govanhill HA

New Gorbals HA

Southside HA


Abandoned Houses 2017/18

3 17 12 16 0

court actions initiated

3

Maintaining Your HomeThe Scottish Housing Regulator collates various information from Registered Social Landlords that helps them to assess the quality of the repairs service that Landlords deliver to their tenants.

In this section we will explain to you what these are and show how the Association’s performance compares to that of our neighbours.

The Association carries our repairs and maintenance to its houses under a number of categories, which are detailed below;

Reactive RepairsA reactive repair is the type of repair that most of our customers are familiar with. This is the day to day repairs that are identified by you and reported to this office. We react to your request for a repair and process this in line with our policy.

There is no way in which to manage the volume of reactive repairs as they are created through individual needs. In 2017/18 the Association processed 4234 reactive repairs, and 99.8% of these were carried out right first time.

Cyclical MaintenanceCyclical Maintenance is a category of repairs that are carried out in a cycle, such as annual gas maintenance. This type of repair is planned and implemented by the Association. We are in control of this process and we know how many houses will require annual inspections carried out.

of reactive repairs carried out right

first time

99.8%



Maintaining Your Home

Planned Maintenance ProgrammeThe planned maintenance programme identifies the renewal of individual components within houses, such as kitchen and bathroom replacements. The Association has recently completed a stock condition survey which will inform the Association’s future planned maintenance programme.

Special ServicesThese are repairs and maintenance that are required for the multi-storey blocks. These include items such as lifts, water storage tanks, chutes and laundries, which are not present in any other properties. Some of this maintenance is carried out in a cycle the same as the gas maintenance.

Medical AdaptationsMedical Adaptations are items of work that are carried out in tenants’ homes which support them continuing to live independently, such as walk in showers or handrails.

The Association carried out 25 medical adaptations which allowed tenants with changing needs to remain in their homes. It took the association an average 8.08 days to complete these works. This work was funded by Glasgow City Council.

Repairs PerformanceReactive repairs is the part of the repairs service which the Scottish Social Housing Charter uses to assess the quality of the service which customers receive. The Scottish Housing Regulator has carried out consultation with tenants and this has demonstrated that the quality of the reactive repairs service is a very high priority for tenants and residents. Our Customer Satisfaction Survey identified the delivery of the repairs services as one of our customers top three priorities also.

Scottish Social Housing Charters categorise repairs into emergency and non-emergency repairs and the service is assessed on how efficiently the repairs are carried out and how many repairs are completed on the first visit.


Thistle HA

Govanhill HA

New Gorbals HA

Southside HA


Total Number of Repairs Completed

4234 7910 8706 6517 1390

Average number of repairs per property

4.47 3.41 3.50 3.18 2.40

Average time taken to complete emergency repairs (hours)

1.88 2.16 1.60 1.93 2.18

Average time taken to complete non-emergency repairs (days)

2.64 5.26 4.39 4.33 4.82

% repairs fixed first time 99.88% 96.38% 98.92% 96.35% 95.60%

% tenants satisfied with repairs carried out in last 12 months

95.92% 90.42% 99.30% 97.20% 93.55%

Maintaining Your Home

Reactive Repairs

The Association’s performance compares very well in terms of the delivery of the repairs service in all categories.

Scottish Housing Quality Standard (SHQS) and Energy Efficiency Standard for Social Housing (EESSH)

The Scottish Housing Quality Standard was introduced in 2004, and sets a minimum standard which all Housing Associations must meet. Further to this in March 2014 EESSH was introduced to drive the improvement of energy efficiency of homes throughout Scotland.

Currently 67.69% of our properties meet the SHQS. This is due to one element which is the lack of controlled entry door systems in 306 properties. The association will seek an exemption in relation to this one element.

100% of the associations’ properties currently meet the standards required in the EESSH.

repairs completed

4234


2013 tenants

2016 tenants

2013 owners

2016 owners

Overall satisfaction 93% 96% 77% 77%

Keeping people well informed 95% 97% 83% 91%

Providing Opportunities to participate 91% 97% 65% 89%

Satisfaction with quality of Customer Care 97% 98% 78% 80%

Convenience of Opening Hours 94% 95% 84% 87%

Treating customers fairly 98% 98% 77% 90%

Satisfaction with Repairs Service 90% 94% N/A N/A

Satisfaction with out of hours service 89% 97% N/A N/A

Level of Satisfaction with home 93% 95% N/A N/A

Think house represents good value for money

74% 91% N/A N/A

Owners satisfied with service provided NA NA 77% 77%

Factoring presents good value for money N/A N/A 37% 58%

Satisfied with Management of neighbourhood

94% 96% 87% 93%

Thistle HA

Govanhill HA

New Gorbals HA

Southside HA


% factored owners satisfied with the service they receive

76.81% 61.69% 69.96% 70.75% 97.50%

Factoring ServiceThistle Housing Association provides a factoring service to the 786 home owners in Toryglen. This service can vary significantly for owners who live in a tenement flat and therefore regularly receive a service in relation to common repairs, from those owners who live in a terraced or semi-detached property.

Regardless of the service provided, all home owners in Toryglen receive a Statement of Services from the Association.

As with any other service we deliver we measure the quality of the service delivered and the levels of satisfaction of the owners with the service. The table below details the information that was collated in the Customer Satisfaction Survey in relation to owners’ services. This information is also reported in the ARC and therefore the performance of our neighbouring Associations is also included.

Factored Owners Satisfaction – based on 2016 survey

of factored owners satisfied with the

service they receive

76.8%


Customer Engagement and CommunicationOur customer survey asked respondents about communication methods they use to obtain information about the Association. Newsletters were the most popular option for tenants (93%) and owners (75%).

47% of our residents have no internet access and 100% of them stated that they would not use a website to obtain information about Thistle Housing Association.

Customer Satisfaction Survey Comparison

2013 tenants

2016 tenants

2013 owners

2016 owners

Overall satisfaction 93% 96% 77% 77%

Keeping people well informed 95% 97% 83% 91%

Providing opportunities to participate 91% 97% 65% 89%

Satisfaction with quality of Customer Care 97% 98% 78% 80%

Convenience of opening hours 94% 95% 84% 87%

Treating customers fairly 98% 98% 77% 90%

Satisfaction with Repairs Service 90% 94% N/A N/A

Satisfaction with out of hours service 89% 97% N/A N/A

Level of satisfaction with home 93% 95% N/A N/A

Think house represents good value for money 74% 91% N/A N/A

Owners satisfied with service provided NA NA 77% 77%

Factoring represents good value for money N/A N/A 37% 58%

Satisfied with management of neighbourhood 94% 96% 87% 93%

It is very important that we compare our current performance to what has gone previously in anything that we do. It is only by comparing performance that we know if things are getting better or if indeed, are getting worse.

The table below compares the outcomes of the survey that was carried out in 2013 with what you told us in the most recent survey in 2016.

This survey is carried out in a three year cycle and the next survey will be carried out early in 2019.


Thistle HA

Govanhill HA

New Gorbals HA

Southside HA


Complaints in relation to equalities issues 0 0 0 2 0

Stage 1 Complaints received 119 43 75 60 20

Stage 1 Complaints upheld 119 23 48 38 17

Stage 1 Complaints responded to within timescale 119 42 75 59 20

Stage 2 complaints received 2 17 25 15 0

Stage 2 Complaints upheld 2 10 17 9 0

Stage 2 complaints responded to within timescale 2 17 23 15 0

Customer Engagement and Communication

Anti Social BehaviourOne of the key aspects of making sure that Toryglen is a good place to live is the management of what we refer to as, ‘anti-social behaviour.’ This is behaviour by any resident which prevents other residents from enjoying the peace of their own home, or disrupts this in any way.

Anti-Social behaviour can involve a very wide range of complaints and can require the participation of a

number of other agencies who we work very closely with, such as Police Scotland and Glasgow City Council.

In 2017/18 we received 47 complaints of anti-social behaviour, which were all resolved within the timescales set by the Association. The table below compares this performance with neighbouring Associations.

Thistle HA

Govanhill HA

New Gorbals HA

Southside HA


Number of Cases reported 47 128 19 165 23

Number of cases resolved 100% 91.41% 100% 96.97% 100%

In the customer satisfaction survey 2016 96% of tenants said that Toryglen was a very good or fairly good place to live. Owners were slightly less satisfied with the management of the neighbourhood with 93% stating that the area was a very good or fairly good place to live. Both of these results are excellent and both have increased since we last carried out the survey in 2013, which is another excellent result for the Association.

ComplaintsThe association has a Complaints Policy and Procedure in line with the SPSO Model Guidance. Whilst we endeavour to get our services right first time, in reality we recognise that this does not always happen and welcome complaints from our tenants and service users. By monitoring and assessing the complaints that we receive, we learn where mistakes have been made and improve the service provided.

The number of complaints we have received is high in comparison to our neighbouring associations. Of the 119 complaints received, 113 were attributable to the major works contract throughout the year.


Community DevelopmentOther than the direct services which we provide to residents in Toryglen, we know that there are many other factors which contribute to making Toryglen a good place to live.

LOOKING BACKIn the last 12 months, the Association have been able to provide many more social calendared events. These events have delivered high levels of engagement and resulted in stronger relationship building between residents, partners and the community as a whole.

Here’s some of our highlighted events:

• Children’s Christmas Workshop and Grotto• Christmas Afternoon Tea• Burns Supper Ceilidh• Easter Family Fun Day • Macmillan coffee Morning

Thistle are committed to working closely with our customers to provide the best level of service possible. We believe this can only be achieved through active engagement and meaningful communication. To show our commitment towards building stronger

relationships with our customers, we have employed a dedicated Community Development Officer. This role will aim to work towards supporting our customers to meet their challenges and aspirations for a better community.


Recent partnership working has proved to be a success through our recent events:

• ‘Toryglen as it was’ Project

• Housing awareness at School parents days

• Glasgow Children’s Summer Food Programme.

An extremely successful partnership project delivered by the Association was the ‘Toryglen Summer Club’. Working with Glasgow City Council and Jeely Piece, THA delivered the Summer Club over the full 6 week school holidays in our Community hall, providing families and children with activities and healthy meals five days a week.

The objective of the club was to provide healthy food and activities to families who may struggle with these additional costs over the school holiday period. Healthy meals and activities were delivered to 155 children throughout the period of the project..

The Club was a resounding success, highlighting the need for these types of projects in our area. The Association were delighted to deliver this project to the Community and look to build on this success with similar projects going forward.

Community DevelopmentPart of our Strategic Objectives is ‘Working in partnership to enhance an active and resilient community’. We believe developing stronger partnerships allow us to achieve this objective.


The robust Community Consultation that was undertaken included:

• A Community survey posted out to all our customers residents to complete

• An open community day, inviting all residents to come along for discussion

• Focus group discussions with Toryglen community groups and stakeholders

• Consultation with children from the local primary school

A few of the highlights taken from the Community Consultation included:

• “78% agreed or strongly agreed that Toryglen is a good place to live”

• “70% agreed or strongly agreed that Toryglen has a strong sense of Community”

• “86% agreed or strongly agreed that the quality of housing in Toryglen has improved in recent years”

• “Residents would like to see more social activities and opportunities for people to meet”

• “Residents would like to see a cleaner Toryglen”

Community DevelopmentEnsuring the future focus and direction for the needs and aspirations of the Toryglen Community, we carried out a community consultation. Independent Consultants were employed to deliver the consultation and produce a Community Action plan. This action plan provides an overview of Toryglen and highlights the feedback and opinions of our customers.


Guided by the results of the Community Action Plan, the association aims to generate positive results for all Thistle HA residents. We are looking forward towards making Toryglen a better place to live!

THA have been striving to get closer to our customers - however it doesn’t stop there. In the coming year we want to further develop that relationship.

The Association are now working from the Community Action Plan to produce a strong, realistic and results based 3 year Community Development Plan. This plan will incorporate projects and programmes directly based on the needs and aspirations of the residents. The projects and programmes delivered will aim to provide the residents with a more vibrant and resilient community.

Very recently we have secured £30,000 funding from Fusion21 to provide a 12 month project to the Toryglen Community. Based on the information and feedback from the customers in the Community Consultation, we will deliver the “Go! Social” project. Residents will have the opportunity to engage and participate in their community further through the:

• Go! Social Community Café• Go! Social Exercise Classes• Go! Social Primary Youth group• Go! Social toddler and carer group

Year on year, we look forward to engaging with our customers at every opportunity. Building a strong relationship with our Community is at the core of everything we do.

Community Development

LOOKING AHEAD


Committee, Staff & Consultantsat 31 March 2018

Management Committee

Staff Consultants and Other Services

Pat Jamieson, (Chair)

Brenda Wilson, (Vice Chair)

Mary Twydale

Sadie Boyce

Sandra Gordon

Lillian Devine

Pat Cannon

Tricia McLean

Ann Gavin

Anne Knape, (deceased)

William Nixon, (resigned)

Stephen Black Co-optee

Charlie Millar Co-optee

Senior StaffGrace McColgan, Director

Jim Naismith, Finance Manager

Daniella Sprott, Operations Manager

Assistant ManagersLorraine Quinn, Assistant Operations Manager

OfficersAngela Welch, Housing Officer

Tracy McLaughlin, Housing Officer

Andrew Harvey, Housing Officer

Rakesh Gupta, Housing Officer (Temp)

Brian McQuade, Finance Officer

Linda Quinn, Factoring Officer

Lesley Johnston, Welfare Rights Officer

Larry Kilkenny, Maintenance Officer

Kelly McGuiness, Maintenance Officer

Carly Monaghan, Community Development Officer

AssistantsJackie McKinlay, Housing Assistant (Allocations)

Kathleen Torrance, RepairsAssistant

Debbie Falconer, Repairs Assistant

Support StaffSandra Wallace, Receptionist Part Time

Donna McVey, Receptionist Part Time

Site and Domestic StaffTommy Cox, Handyman

Tony McDonald, Handyman

John Doig, Maintenance Caretaker

Harry McCusker, Maintenance Caretaker

Joyce Moweta, Office Cleaner

Kathy Peden, Cleaner, Sheltered Complex

Auditors:Scott Moncrieff Chartered Accountants Statutory Auditor 25 Bothwell Street GLASGOW G2 6NL

SolicitorsBTO 48 St. Vincent Street Glasgow G2 5HS

BankersBank of Scotland Commercial Banking 110 St Vincent Street Glasgow G2 5ER

Registered Office:26 Glenmore Avenue Toryglen GLASGOW G42 0EH


Financial Highlights for the year to 31 March 2018

Statement of Comprehensive Income Highlights

INCOME £

Rents (Net of Bad Debts) 3,972,690

Factoring Management Fee 51,065

Bank Interest 17,329

Wider Role Income 4,926

Surplus Right to Buy Sales 41,691

Deferred Grants 177,404

Grants/Owners Major Works Income

1,723,804

Medical Adaptation Grants 76,462

Total Income 6,065,371

Deficit for the Year

During the year the Association had to pay for its share of the major works programme to tenant’s homes and communal areas which completed in March 2018. Some of this work was capitalised as noted below however this investment in our properties has resulted in a deficit on the Statement of Comprehensive Income for the year to 31 March 2018 of £555,977. This expenditure was forecast and in line with our Business Plan and presents no concern.

EXPENDITURE £

Tenants Major Works/Cyclical Repairs

2,055,110

Owners Major Works Expenditure 1,723,804

Reactive/Void Repairs 538,212

Depreciation on Assets 963,304

Management Expenses 881,787

Factoring Management Expenses 155,152

Wider Role Expenses 28,108

Interest Payments 275,871

Total Expenditure 6,621,348

Where each £1 of Income was spentMajor/Owners works/Cyclical Repairs 63p

Reactive/Void repairs 9p

Depreciation on Assets 16p

Management Expenses 14p

Factoring Expenses 2p

Wider Role Expenses 1p

Interest Payments 4p

Deficit -9p

A 63B 9C 16D 14E 2F 1G 4

Chart Title

A B C D E F G

63p

9p

16p

14p

2p1p 4p

Deficit -9p


Cash at Bank

At 31 March 2018 the Association had £3,674,266 in its bank accounts

Investment in Housing Properties during the year

Amount capitalised following the major works programme was £3,175,897

Santander Bank Loans

At 31 March 2018 the Association had loans outstanding of £9,400,000

The intervention by the Scottish Housing Regulator in August 2018 means that the Association broke its loan agreement with its lenders, Santander. The bank has been supportive of the Association and we are working with them to ensure a new financial package can be agreed and in place prior to the end of the current Financial Year, however we are aware that the terms of any new package will not be on such favourable terms as we previously had.

RESERVES

The Association’s reserves position at 31 March 2018 is as follows:

Revenue Surplus £10,160,593

Memberships 159

NET ASSETS £10,160,752

Statement of Financial Position Highlights

of loans outstanding

of net assets

£9.4m£10.1m


The creation of a Community Development Plan has been a priority for the Association during this last year and a number of very successful community events have taken place.

“

”

housing association ltd.

developing abetter community

Thistle Housing Association26 Glenmore AvenueToryglenGLASGOW G42 0EH

Telephone: 0141 613 2700Fax: 0141 613 2727Email: [email protected]

Registered in Scotland as a Charity SC044426Property Factor Registration Number PF000379

Scottish Social Housing Charter and Annual Report 2017/18 · • Sharon Keenan, Chief Executive,...

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Transcript of Scottish Social Housing Charter and Annual Report 2017/18 · • Sharon Keenan, Chief Executive,...