From Paradigm Housing
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Welcome to your April news from Paradigm
We will close at 5:30pm on Friday 3 May for the Bank Holiday.
We hope you enjoy this newsletter and find it useful. If there's anything you'd like to learn more about next month, please email us at Communications@
ParadigmHousing.co.uk.
Can you help us improve our homeowner offer?
We're dedicated to improving our homeowner experience and we need your help! Last year, over 80 homeowners worked with us to pinpoint areas for improvement.
We're now looking for customers to form a Service Review Group to help us look into the identified improvement areas including:
Designing a way for homeowners to regularly voice their opinions, interact with our teams and seek clarity
Reviewing and sharing feedback on service charge communications
Helping us to understand how well our current website meets your needs.
It will take just one hour a week, which includes reading, individual tasks and meetings. All meetings will be in the evening and any other tasks can be completed when it suits you.
The first meeting will be held on Monday 20 May and we will share information for you to read in advance.
Participants who actively engage throughout the eight-week review will receive a £100 Love 2 Shop voucher, which can be used in a range of high street shops.
If you're interested in joining this initiative and shaping the homeownership service, please fill out the form linked here by Wednesday 8 May: https://forms.office.com/e/fhaKsafKKW.
We look forward to collaborating with you!
Advanced notice about increased costs
Many of you pay service charges for a range of services to your block or estate. We want to let you know that service charges will be increasing and you will receive a letter about this in May. We understand that this may cause some concern, which is why we wanted to give you advance notice and explain why the increase is necessary.
Your service charges pay for things like the cleaning and maintenance of communal areas, the upkeep of internal and external decoration and repairs to communal areas such as lifts, entry systems and lighting. Some of you will also pay for your heating through your service charges. This year, we have had to renew insurance and ground maintenance contracts, so you may see an increase in the costs of these two services.
We strive to provide high-quality, value-for-money services to all our customers. Unfortunately, like everyone else, our costs have increased and we need to raise our service charges to continue the current standards and provide the necessary services.
We're here to help
We understand that an increase will be difficult. You will receive more information in the coming weeks but, in the meantime, if you're struggling financially, please get in touch by calling 0300 303 1010. You can also take a look at the Support Hub on our website.
Helping us improve our services to you
We are constantly reviewing all the feedback we get from you and use it to improve the way we work and the services you receive. And it's now easier to see how we are performing against the targets we set.
In April 2023, the Housing Regulator introduced the Tenant Satisfaction Measures (TSMs) which require all social landlords, like Paradigm, to collect data in a standardised format. This makes it easy for you to see how we are doing, compared to other similar organisations. You can find out more about TSMs by watching this video:
Our performance
We’ve published figures from April to December 2023 and will continue to update these four times a year. This gives you an idea of how we’re performing, including what we’re doing well and where we need to improve. We’ve been monitoring these results closely, trying to understand what is driving them, and putting in place improvements to our service in response.
Our Customer Service Offer and Customer Care Standards
Customer Service Offer
Customers have helped us to develop our Customer Service Offer which sets out the services you can expect from us. We have used all the feedback we get from you to look at what's important to you and what you want us to do. You can see our new offer below.
Customer Care Standards
Our Customer Care Standards set out how we will deliver our services to you. They are the promises we make to you about the level of customer care you can expect to receive from us.
We've been busy updating these standards to make them clearer and more transparent. You can find out more about these standards here.
Unhappy with the service you have received? Please tell us
As you can see from our Customer Care Standards, we want to provide you with an excellent service. However, we accept that sometimes we get things wrong and when we do, we want to put them right.
If you're not satisfied with our service, please tell us. The simplest and quickest way to deal with a problem is to discuss it with a member of our team by calling us on 0300 303 1010. Where we can, we will aim to resolve the issue with you then and there.
If you still feel dissatisfied or wish to make a formal complaint you can do so at any time by emailing us on ContactUs@ParadigmHousing.co.uk, or filling out this form on our website.
Spring cleaning!
As spring approaches, you may be doing some spring cleaning to prepare for the warmer months.If you have any unwanted items or bulk waste that need to be disposed of, please use the household recycling centres provided by your local council. You can view your local facilities on your council website. Please do get rid of rubbish responsibly - any bulk waste that is dumped in or around your estates may result in an increase in costs for everyone on the estate.
Supporting our customers with energy debt
In September of last year, we were awarded £30,000 by HACT (Housing Associations' Charitable Trust) to support customers with energy debts.
We managed to use this money to help a total of 36 customers completely clear any energy debt they had. Read one of the stories below from our colleague Rosebell, who helped a customer in Milton Keynes :
"During a window installation programme, I spoke to a customer who told me that his windows had been allowing heat to escape, resulting in wasted energy and high heating costs. He racked up a debt of £3,000 due to his health circumstances, and with him being unable to work, he didn't know how he was going to pay. I told him about the HACT fund and helped him gather evidence to apply for the funding. He called me to tell me the good news that all his debt was cleared, and he couldn't believe it. He told me that he has now got his life back again, and a huge weight was lifted off his shoulders."
If you are struggling to pay your rent or bills, we are here to help. Call us on 0300 303 1010.
Hi Ava, how should I report suspected drug activity at a Paradigm property?
Hi there, you should call us on 0300 303 1010 or email ContactUs@ParadigmHousing.co.uk to report drug activity. You should also report this to the police on 101. It's important to provide specific details about the location, the individuals involved, and any other relevant information. Reporting drug activity can help maintain a safe and secure living environment for everyone.
Join our team
We've got a whole host of vacancies available that might be the perfect fit for you. From Electrician to Carpenter, check out our roles here.
We're more than a housing association. We’re a growing business committed to delivering excellent services to customers and building a great place to work, where everyone can belong.
If you’d like to make a positive impact on the lives of our customers, while developing your career in a professional and supportive environment, we’d love to hear from you!
