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Welcome to your May newsletter
We'll be closed on Monday 29 May for the bank holiday, but you can still report an emergency repair during this time on 0300 303 1010.
Emergency repairs include:
– no heating or hot water, which we will respond to within 24 hours
– a flood or an uncontainable leak
– a situation that is posing a health and safety risk
– complete blockage to the only toilet in your home.
Service charges
If you pay service charges, you will be receiving a letter over the next few days stating what you need to pay from 3 July.
Most people will see an increase in their service charges. We know this is a difficult time for a lot of customers, so to make things easier for you, we have set a limit on how much your charges could increase compared to what you paid last year. The maximum increase will be £10 per week.
We have made significant efforts to limit these increases in service charges, but we know that, despite this, some customers may still find it challenging to pay this increase. We have provided this cap on service charges alongside limiting rent increases for tenants and shared owners to 7% this year.
Your service charges pay for a range of services that are essential in maintaining your home and ensuring it’s a safe and pleasant place to live. These services may include 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 personal heating through your service charges.
We don’t make any profit from service charges – we only collect money to pay for what we have spent, including our administration costs. We regularly review our services to make sure we get the best possible value for money.
Like everyone else, our costs have increased, and this is why service charges are going up for most customers.
If you have any questions, please take a look at our FAQs. If you’re struggling financially or are worried about paying your rent or service charges, please get in touch by calling 0300 303 1010. You can also take a look at the Support Hub on our website. We’re here to help.
Partnership working with Tiggywinkles
Our Estates team recently identified some areas of land owned by Paradigm, which would be perfect for supporting Buckinghamshire’s famous wildlife hospital Tiggywinkles with animal releases after they have been in their care.
Tiggywinkles is a specialist hospital offering free support to wildlife in need. Using the best veterinary care available, they are dedicated to rescuing and rehabilitating all species of British wildlife. When they are ready to be released, our sites may help release them back into the wild and improve our natural environments.
While there is no guarantee the animals released there will make it their home, it will provide them with a safe environment while they find their way back in the wild.
Why not visit the Tiggywinkles visitor centre during the half-term break?
Attention all gardeners
We know many of you like taking care of your gardens, and we’d love for you to share your gardening achievements with us, so why not share a picture with us to win a £25 gardening voucher?
Even if you don’t have a garden in the traditional sense, don’t worry! You can still join the fun by sending us photos of your favourite container or pot.
Please submit photos of your garden to communications@paradigmhousing.co.uk by 15 July for your chance to win.
Good luck to all the green fingers out there!
The sun has got its hat on
As the sun gradually begins to make an appearance, we wanted to remind you of some of our top tips so we can stay #SaferTogether this barbecue season!
· Always make sure your BBQ is on a flat surface away from bushes, shrubs and garden buildings/furniture
· Never use petrol to light a BBQ, you should only use designated firelighters
· Make sure BBQs are at least 10 metres away from any building
· Never leave a BBQ unattended, keep an eye on smoke levels, and once finished, ensure BBQs and firepits are fully extinguished before you leave them.
Stay in the loop!
#DrivingImprovement in our communities
You said that in your estates, some of our green areas could be used to plant trees and flowers to improve the look and feel of your local area.
We planted Trees at Caleb Close, Luton, and Fullers Close, Chesham, and planted shrubs at Antigua Way, Milton Keynes.
Look out for more improvements coming soon!
#DrivingImprovement in our Older People Schemes
Thank you to everyone who spoke to our colleagues when they visited our Older People Schemes over the last few months. You gave us some really useful feedback and we’ll be letting you know what action we have taken – keep an eye on the noticeboards in your communal areas.
Your Customer and Neighbourhood Officer is now holding monthly drop-in sessions at your scheme, please take the opportunity to talk to them and let them know about any problems or issues.
We were so pleased to see lots of customers come together to celebrate The King's Coronation.
Congratulations to Cherry Orchard, one of our Older People's Schemes, who went to so much effort to host their event, they won a hamper of goodies to help support future events!
Introducing our new look Support Hub
We’ve made some changes to our Support Hub to make it even easier for you to find what you need. Why not look at our support pages for:
Join our team
From Estates Officer to Roofing Technician to Communications Officer, we’ve got lots of vacancies currently available.
We are more than a housing association. We’re a growing business committed to delivering excellent services to our 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!
