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Message about early closure 1 July
Our Customer Service Team is attending an event on the afternoon of 1 July from 3pm to 5.30pm. We will change to our out of hours weekend service at 3pm so will still be able to answer your calls. If it's not urgent, please consider emailing enquiries@paradigmhousing.co.uk or waiting until Monday to call when we will be happy to help.
General news
Cost of living rises - help is at hand
Many of us are being impacted by the cost of living crisis – everything is going up, particularly the cost of fuel and energy.
Rents have also gone up in line with the formula set by the Government. We raise rents because, like many other organisations, our costs are going up and we need to be able to maintain our services to you. As services are costing more, your service charges may also have increased.
We recognise that this is making life difficult for some households so we are increasing our focus on how we can support you if and when you need it. You can see how you can get involved with this below in the article Get involved in a focus group on our customer support offer.
How to find help
- You can find more information in the Support Hub on our website here.
- If you are having difficulties, contact us as soon as possible by calling our Customer Services Team on 0300 303 1010.
- There are grants you may be eligible for, some of these are:
- £400 support with energy bills for all households, this is in addition to the previously announced £150 council tax rebate for those in bands A-D
- a £650 one-off cost of living payment for those on means tested benefits
- a one-off £300 pensioner cost of living payment
- a £150 cost of living payment for those on disability benefits.
To find out what you are entitled to depending on your circumstances, read the latest government factsheet here.
Check out our Support Hub...
For more information on any of the topics below, please go to the Support Hub on our website here.
- Foodbanks
- Help into work
- Managing your home
- Managing your money
- Your energy
- Your family
- Your wellbeing
Gardening competition - do you have green fingers?
We know that many you take pride in looking after your garden, so why not share a picture with us for your chance to win a £25 gardening voucher? Or if you fancy yourself a seasoned gardener with green fingers and would like to offer tips which will be featured in our next newsletter then please get in touch.
If you don't have a garden, then you can still join in by sending us a photo of your favourite container or pot.
Please submit photos of your garden or gardening tips to communications@paradigmhousing.co.uk by 15 July for your chance to win.
Good luck!
The Great Paradigm Litter Pick!
Members of Paradigm staff organised a litter pick at our Chiltern Heights estate in Little Chalfont recently.
Buckinghamshire County Council provided litter pickers and refuse bags and sent along a road sweeper to help with the clean up. At the same time the Estates Team and our contractors carried out grounds maintenance work and a clean up of the bin store and communal areas which left everywhere spick and span.
The sun shone and everyone got stuck in. Over 15 bin bags were filled, with most waste being recycled, composted or turned into energy!
A number of residents came out to see what we were up to and all were really positive about the clean-up.
Why not organise a litter pick in your community? Just contact your local council for more information.
Paradigm On Track
You told us you wanted better communication when waiting in for an appointment - and so we have launched Paradigm On Track, a great new service to make life easier when you’re waiting for a repair or servicing engineer.
Once your appointment is booked, you will now receive a confirmation text message. After the appointment you will receive another message inviting you to give your feedback on how everything went.
From 1 July you will be able to track the engineer's journey to your home on a map via your mobile phone and communicate directly with them to give them any instructions for their arrival.
We hope that this new system will make it easier for you to plan your day around appointments!
Working together to improve our services
Get involved in a focus group on our customer support offer
We all have times when we need a little extra support and we are looking at ways we can best help you when you hit these bumps in the road.
We're considering how we can support you to maintain your home and tenancy, find financial support and help with your general wellbeing. We have already created a Support Hub, details above.
If you would be interested in joining a focus group, then please email Customer.Involvement@paradigmhousing.co.uk. The focus groups will consider the detail of what our offer is and look at our proposed policies and procedures.
Have your say and shape our future
Your opinion matters to us
We understand that you want more ways to interact with us and often prefer to ‘self-serve’ rather than calling us. We're looking to improve how you contact us - this could include an improved telephone service, and introduction of more digital services.
How you have helped...
Customer feedback will be helping to improve our websites. A huge thank you to the 15 customers who joined the website workshops held in May. We'll let you know any developments with the website and the customer portal as they happen.
Here to help
Hi, I am Daria, a Rent and Service Charge Manager in the Finance Department and have been at Paradigm since November 2020. I love working for Paradigm!
My job involves communicating with internal and external customers to ensure all rents are set in accordance with the tenure type or lease and in compliance with regulatory standards. I take lead responsibility for:
- calculation of the rents and service charges
- communicating the changes to customers
- dealing with business and customer queries
- ensuring that service charge accounting is in line with professional accounting standards and current legislation
- ensuring Value for Money (VFM) for customers.
The best part of my role is providing expert advice about rents and service charges, that adds value and has a positive impact on the business.
Outside of work, I am kept busy by my 17-yr old daughter and 15-yr old son!
Home of the month
We're pleased that four new homes are now ready to house families living or working in Aylesbury Vale at Twelve Leys in Wingrave, Aylesbury.
Three of the homes are for rent and one for shared ownership, with seven more following in July!
Right to buy scheme
We’re aware of the Government’s announcement about the extension of the Right to Buy scheme.
We need to wait to see the detail of the policy before deciding exactly what this means for us as a business and for you, our customers.
In the meantime, if you are interested in buying the home you currently rent from us, please visit our page about buying your home or contact the Sales team as below.
Want to work for us?
We're hiring
If you are interested in working for Paradigm, check out our job vacancies on our website here. It could be the start of a whole new career!
We are currently looking for skilled technicians, housing, H&S, finance staff and more!
And finally...
Photo competition
We hope you all had a great Jubilee weekend! A big thank you to all those who sent in their photos.
And the winner is...
Mike Chard from Harries Close, Chesham. A £20 voucher will be on its way to you shortly!
