Agenda item

A presentation attached by Clarion

Members received a presentation which gave an overview of Clarion’s work and development.

Members made comments, asked questions, and received responses as follows:

·         Councillor Sennitt Clough asked Carl Grimmer regarding the subcontractors and the term rigorous used in the procurement, how exactly are they procured, how are they held to standards and if this can be answered what percentage of agency operators are currently working in Fenland? Carl Grimmer responded that 2 years ago they went through a round of procurement, this was broken into regions then subcontractors were invited who had an interest in working for the team to make an application. He continued that the application is based on two key elements one being price, which is priced against a National Housing Federation schedule of rates which is a commonly used document for a number of local authorities and housing associations who operate under volume 7.2, the subcontractors are asked to bid against that with an idea of how much work might be sent their way on a plus or minus rate, that is one element of the scheme and on the latest round this accounted for 60% of the scores. Carl Grimmer stated that the second element is based around a number of quality questionnaires, which looks at how they are going to set themselves up to deliver services in the Fenland area with examples of work that they have completed before and contracts that they have ran, how they will engage with the customer and how they will meet the SLA, which is just a few of about ten different criteria asked, and once the submission has been submitted there is a panel of people who will look at all of those quality submissions and review them with a score of one to five with one being poor and five being good. He added that the panel will agree on the overall score, this will be carried out on every subcontractor within the region that way an agreed understanding and agreed submission of what their final score would be, then the combination of the price and quality will determine who the contract will be awarded too. Carl Grimmer stated that in order for the subcontractors to be held to account there is a formal National Subcontractors meeting with each contractor each month that is led by Clarion’s own internal procurement team but also has involvement from the area manager and himself as appropriate that is if the contractor is working well, but if the contractor is causing problems then the meetings will be increased so the work can be monitored and targets set. He added in relation to agency subcontractors, currently there are none and all the workers are directly employed.

·         Councillor Sennitt Clough asked which department in Clarion is the largest user of agency staff? Carl Grimmer replied that he is not able to answer this question. Councillor Sennitt Clough stated she would like to come back to the question about holding the subcontractors to account and the monthly meetings that were talked about, and asked does this information come through from residents, and how does Clarion receive information about the subcontractors not meeting standards? Carl Grimmer responded there is a process in place where 10% of jobs completed by subcontractors will be post inspected, with there being a long-term partnership agreement with the subcontractors to get the best from both parties, monitoring is limited, however, if the post inspections prove or show that the work has not been completed to the standard required they will be asked to attend a meeting and the issues addressed. He continued that there is a formal monthly meeting that is minuted, and residents feedback is featured within that meeting and the subcontractor is monitored in accordance with the service level agreement, for example, to respond to an emergency within 24 hours or to respond to a routine job within 28 days, and this is managed locally so any evidence of a job failing can be picked up quickly. Carl Grimmer stated that the subcontractors are also subject to the random TLF Leadership Factor Customer Satisfaction Surveys that come through to the office and if there is a poor score this can be picked up and any issue addressed, but the resident will contact the office directly if they are unhappy with the standard or level of work being provided. Sally Greetham added that there are specialist contractors for a range of work, for example the performance measures that are in place for Swale who look after the gas and oil, but there are other contractors that look after lifts and also contractors that look after air source and heat pumps plus contractors that look after water testing, all these contractors have a similar raft of performance targets in place. She stated that some of these performance measures are included in the Clarion Commitments which can be found on the website under the section on Building Safety.

·         Councillor Booth stated he has raised a number of issues for a number of projects which are Net Zero projects such as Springfield Road, and Garden Lane which was shown in the presentation, and from talking with residents these complaints are not being dealt with in real time. He appreciated there is a process in place but he has heard from residents of examples where there are still issues with contractors two years down the line and times where he has intervened as a local Councillor and not had satisfactory answers and the time scale has been far too long. Carl Grimmer responded he does have a lot more engagement with the Planning Investment Team and these issues have been discussed, particularly around some of the early properties where there were problems and feels that this has now been acknowledged by the Planning Investment Team. He stated that whilst he cannot discuss this in the meeting, he is willing to have a meeting with Councillor Booth outside of this meeting and take his points away to see if they can be resolved. Councillor Booth asked if Clarion would look at the process of how they get feedback from residents and how they keep residents informed? Kirsten Wildman responded they take on board everything Councillor Booth has shared and stated Clarion are in the process of reviewing how they manage complaints so the feedback will be fed into that process.

·         Councillor Roy stated he would like to ask Yvonne Ogden if there are surveys that are used to engage local communities as he understands there is feedback from the residents that use Clarion housing stock, but for the communities around that housing stock, does Clarion interact and engage with the surrounding community? Yvonne Ogden responded Clarion do work with communities and residents through the Resident Community Team to look at undertaking surveys and inform residents about events going on within the areas advertised.

·         Councillor Carney stated that Neighbourhood Response Officers (NRO) and Live Smart Managers are the first point of contact between tenants and Clarion Housing, asking how much involvement do they have with the sub-contracting jobs or maintenance jobs? Councillor Carney also asked if there were enough NRO and Live Smart Managers to oversee the number of properties there are within the district? Sally Greetham reported that Clarion is currently looking at how frontline services are managed she feels there are the right numbers, but the delivery model is being looked at to see if there are any improvements that can be made as it is important that the NRO and Live Smart Managers are out and about as much as possible which is what the aim is. Carl Grimmer added that with the jobs required within the Live Smart Scheme there has been a lot of processes put in place to enable Live Smart Managers to raise work directly through a new system called CFS, Clarion Field Service System, where work can be booked directly, this offers a more slick and smoother process which has made a difference to the booking system.

·         Councillor Barber stated she had noted on the Clarion Commitments it states to maintain building safety and she would like to draw attention to Roman Court which is a now redundant home for the elderly in Leverington with this building having been empty for several years and nothing seems to be being done and recently a young child was inside and fell down a hole, with this building now becoming a danger to the public and something needs to be done urgently. Paul Norman responded this building has been through an options appraisal which has taken longer than expected, there should be an outcome about the future of this site within the next three months, but he was not aware of the incident with the child and will look into this. Sally Greetham added there has been security on patrol and the site has been regularly checked. Councillor Barber questioned if the fence was going to be repaired around the site? Sally Greetham could not comment at this time, but it will be looked into.

·         Councillor Foice-Beard asked Yvonne Ogden coming back to the previous question about working with the communities, how does Community Engage work and is there a process on deciding what projects or training goes where? Yvonne Ogden responded a variety of different indicators are looked at as to where the money is allocated for the future and what that will deliver and that will go from looking at community insight, industry deprivation and left behind areas to focus on where this needs to be then on a local level the team work with local partners to understand what the need is in an area, and work with the residents involvement team to understand what the residents need, there is also an officer in Fenland who works closely with the partners on the ground and with housing officers. She added that there are some national initiatives that can be brought into a local area like the Shooters United that was offered to Orchard School, and there was also an issue of anti-social behaviour on Lime Avenue, so Clarion worked closely with Orchard School and the local Youth Sport Centre, so those young people were part of the diversion reaction scheme. Yvonne Ogden stated that there is a Community Ambassador programme which is a national programme, which has been delivered very successfully within the Fenland area. Councillor Foice-Beard asked if the information is collated and evaluated and, if so, are Clarion able to share some success stories or not so successful stories? Yvonne Ogden replied in the affirmative, all the partners involved collate a report on a quarterly basis and there is a range of numerical KPI’s around the numbers that are engaged, number of volunteers and volunteering hours and the people that progressed into employment or into training. She added that case studies are looked at where things have happened and where people have had success stories then at the end of the production period there is a meeting with the partners involved to look at whether it has delivered what was planned and what the learning has been, which is all captured on an investment page which Clarion are happy to share with the panel.

·         Councillor Sennitt Clough asked, to follow on from the last question to Yvonne Ogden, the term engagement is used a lot what does that mean? She added that on the presentation it stated 1,289 young people were engaged and asked what exactly does that mean? Yvonne Ogden replied it is an interesting terminology for this project with the word engaged helps relate to the amount of young people attending youth sessions the Shooters United sessions or the Wisbech Community Farm Project who are physically engaged in that process, being supported, and getting involved.

·         Councillor Sennitt Clough asked Sally Greetham is there still a Resident Liaison Officer that talks to residents in the community and, if so, can she talk about the effectiveness of those officers? Sally Greetham responded there are Neighbour Response Officers who are the frontline team and are the point of contact when it comes to community engagement, they are tasked to respond to complaints, anti-social behaviour, initiate any community engagement, check to make sure cleaning contractors are doing their job, and to check estates are maintained. Councillor Sennitt Clough asked if this was effective? Sally Greetham answered it is rated through customer satisfaction, looking at the rate of anti-social behaviour and the upkeep of the estates.

·         Councillor Nawaz stated he would like to address anti-social behaviour as, in his view, the process Clarion have in place seem to take a long time to sort out and can really affect the victims so asked if there are any measures in place for a quicker resolution and are there any figures that can be shared on events and cases showing how long it took to resolve? He also asked are there any plans to bring disused houses back into use and what tools does Clarion have at its disposal to address privately used houses that have fallen into disrepair? Sally Greetham responded private properties would not fall into the remit of Clarion housing and with its own housing stock there is a clear target around reletting any properties that do become empty which are referenced to in the occupation numbers. She continued in terms of anti-social behaviour the length of time is looked at and a case is opened, contact is made with the resident with an understanding that some cases can be complicated and drawn out, at every step the complainant is kept informed about solutions and what Clarion propose to put in place, for example some of the tools used are talking to the other party, offering mediation if there is a dispute between parties and leasing with other agencies involved. Sally Greetham stated there are other tools used in worst case scenarios where legal advice is given or repossession action is taken to evict customers.

·         Councillor Nawaz asked if there were any emergency measures in place for extreme cases of mental and emotional abuse? Sally Greetham answered every case is risk assessed and if there is any threat of violence the response time will be quicker, and injunctions can be put in place within 24 hours, and this is why Clarion work hard with other parties and agencies like the Police and the local Council to be able to speed up certain cases where there is a threat of violence or drug dealing.

·         Councillor Nawaz asked if there is a programme in place to fit solar panels to properties and what sort of budget is there for this? Dan Read responded there is the Clarion 2050 Strategy solar which this falls under, all the roofs across the whole organisation have recently been mapped with the information being received a few weeks ago and has given the team every house roof size and overhang, shading and most importantly what output the solar panels can have. He continued that the strategy sets out that all roofs from next year forward will be considered to have photovoltaics (PV), some of the PV installations that were undertaken in the demonstration phase here in Fenland had the inline solar installed in this part of the roof, which is the preferred option, from a maintenance perspective, cost effectiveness and a customer perspective with all of the roofs due to be replaced between now and 2050. Dan Read stated that these panels typically have a 60 year life cycle so there is a separate work stream where there will be solar planted on top of existing roofs and all the structural surveys and necessary checks will be carried out before work starts, so solar is very much part of the future plan along with unlocking back up storage systems.

·         Councillor Carney asked, with all gas boilers, does Clarion provide Carbon Monoxide Alarms for every property? Carl Grimmer responded that when checks are made at the properties the alarms are checked and at the minimum if there are no alarms a battery powered Carbon Monoxide Alarm will be fitted.

·         Councillor Imafidon asked Carl Grimmer about whether there is a portal where tenants can log their complaints online, how often do the UPVC doors and windows get changed in the properties and what is the life span of these products. Carl Grimmer responded residents can log a repair directly online through a system called OREO which has been in place for the last 12 months, the resident can log online and use the system to log their repair and a slot for the repair to be undertaken which is convenient to the resident. He stated that there are ongoing stock condition surveys which look at the remaining life of key components within properties, each case is different depending on how the property is looked after but there is an estimate that the lifespan of a composite door and UPVC windows should be typically 25-30 years, however, if there is a failing the Responsive Repair Team will pick this up and if the item cannot be repaired it will be replaced. Councillor Imafidon stated he would like a direct contact number for Clarion because as a councillor residents do approach them to help with their situations. Kirsten Wildman stated that there is an email address that can be shared which will fast track through to the team.

·         Councillor Booth acknowledged that there is an email address, but this has been reported to be slow to answer and respond to the initial requests which can be frustrating for residents and for them as councillors trying to help residents within a timely manner. He asked if this can be investigated as this system is not responsive enough? Kirsten Wildman thanked Councillor Booth and stated this is useful information and will be investigated.

·         Councillor Roy asked Kirsten Wildman if it would be helpful to Clarion if they knew who the local ward councillors are as residents will go to their local councillor first if they are not sure or not computer literate or for other reasons they are not able to speak to Clarion directly and as has been pointed out the direct line is not working efficiently enough. Kirsten Wildman acknowledged the feedback and stated that this is something that needs developing and that is being looked at.

·         Councillor Booth stated he has raised this issue a couple of years ago originally around the empty properties at Thorney Toll which he was updated by Dan Read but since then nothing seems to have materialised so asked for the latest update on when this work will be completed. Dan Read responded he agreed this has taken too long, the options appraisal has been completed and once the results come in there will be a conclusion within the next three months around what will be done with that asset. Councillor Booth stated he understands that there was an agreement in place already that FDC were going to buy some of the properties and Clarion were going to buy the rest and asked is that not the case anymore? Dan Read replied broadly speaking that is still the plan but it is working out the cost and getting the figures right which will take two to three months. Councillor Booth stated he was a little disappointed with this answer as there are 1700 people on housing waiting lists and some of those people could have been housed by now. Dan Read apologised for the length of time this project has taken and the timelines that were spoken about earlier are the ones that are being worked with now.

·         Councillor Mrs Davis asked that when a family is being resettled what weight is given to trying to keep them in the same locality as there are instances where the families do not have access to a vehicle and have now got to take the children 15 miles to school. Sally Greetham replied that the vast majority of the homes are elected through Home Link and anyone who applies to Home Link will go into a banding system depending on their particular needs then they can bid on Home Link for whatever property they choose so it puts the ownership in their hands as to those decisions. Councillor Mrs Davis stressed what she would like to know regardless of points how much weight is put on families to try and keep them local. Sally Greetham stated the choice based letting system is a good way of allocating homes because the choice is with the individual as to where they bid for homes.

·         Councillor Booth referred back to the question asked about gas and oil as his understanding is that Swale dealt primarily with gas in past presentations and information has been asked in the past about oil fired boilers particularly in rural Fenland so is Swale now dealing with the oil-fired boilers or are they effectively subcontracted out? Carl Grimmer responded he did not have the answer but will find out and report back to Councillor Booth.

·         Councillor Booth asked about future development, in past presentations there has been an idea about what the future might hold, in this meeting there has been indications of discussions but not what number of houses there will be available to help with the Fenland backlog as Clarion is the main housing provider. He asked how many houses are there available in the pipeline within the next two, three, five years? Dan Read responded at present there are none that are under contract within the near future, but Clarion is always looking in Fenland at new development and new contracts and do aim to build homes in the area if possible. Councillor Booth asked if Clarion are in talks with any major developers? Dan Read answered yes there are discussions happening but that is all that can be said at this stage.

Members noted the information provided in the annual review of Clarion Housing Group.