mhs homes newsletter | summer 2024
Welcome to your
summer newsletter
Take a look at
what’s been
happening in your
mhs community
mhs homes newsletter | summer 2024
Who we are
mhs homes and Heart of
Medway are part of the
mhs homes group.
We build and manage
homes for people who
need them most.
last year we housed
1,600 new
customers
Visit mhs.org.uk to find out
more about the work we’re
doing in your community.
Every year, we recognise the hard
work and love that goes into the
gardens in our supported living
schemes.
This year, judging was made
especially difcult by the quality of
gardens on show.
And the winners are…
Well done to the residents of John
Coopper House who won ‘best
communal garden’, and to Don
and Lorna Brown who topped the
‘best bungalow’ category.
For a full list of winners and runners up,
visit mhs.org.uk/garden-competition
mhs homes newsletter | summer 2024
Fire safety in your home
As part of keeping you safe in your home, we’re carrying out a fire door
inspection programme.
A fire door is designed to stop a fire and smoke from spreading. If you live
in a block of flats, your flat entrance door must be a fire door.
In the past three months, we’ve inspected over 900 doors in all blocks
that are five storeys or taller. We’re repairing and replacing any doors
that do not meet the required safety standards.
In the coming months, we’ll be expanding our fire door programme to
include blocks that are four storeys. By the end of March, we’ll have
completed over 4,000 inspections.
If you’re concerned about a fire door because it’s not closing properly
or looks damaged, please contact us at fire.safety@mhs.org.uk
If you have any building safety
concerns, we want to hear from you
at building.safety@mhs.org.uk
Liberty Gas
prize draw
We’re holding a monthly prize
draw for customers who meet
their first appointment date to
have their boiler serviced by
Liberty Gas.
An address will be pulled out of a
hat each month, with the winning
household receiving a £50
Love2shop voucher.
If you need to rearrange your
first appointment, you will be
added to the prize draw once the
engineer completes the visit on
the new date.
Preventing electrical fires
Aaron Kybert works in our fire
safety team. His job is to maintain
and service the fire safety
equipment and systems that are in
place to keep you safe.
Aaron says issues with electrical
items are a common cause of fire.
His top safety tips are:
Look for a British or European
safety mark on all plugs and
appliances
Try not to leave appliances
with a heat element, such as
tumble dryers, on overnight
Don’t leave laptops, phones
or other devices plugged in
and charging while you sleep.
According to Electrical Safety
First, children are likely to have
25% more electrical items in their
bedrooms than their parents’
generation did. So it’s important
that everyone in the family knows
how to stay safe at home.
Switched on Kids is a website
with interactive games and fun
quizzes to help children understand
how to use electricity safely.
www.switchedonkids.org.uk
Switched on Kids
mhs homes newsletter | summer 2024
Working with our partners
to keep you safe
Join us on an
area walkabout
We want to work with you to create
communities where everyone
can thrive. We’re running a new
programme of area walkabouts
and we’d love you to join us.
At a recent walkabout, residents
joined with members of our estates
team and local councillors to
share their knowledge of the area
and identify improvements.
Customers reported that some
non-residents were gaining access
to their block. Safety is our number
one priority and we immediately
booked inspections of all
communal entrance doors.
Join us on a walkabout and be part
of the changes you want to see.
The next walkabouts are on:
•
Tuesday 10 September –
Wayfield, Chatham
•
Tuesday 17 September –
Princes Park, Chatham
•
Tuesday 8 October –
Nolan Court, Tonbridge
and Maidstone
•
Tuesday 12 November –
Lordswood, Chatham
•
Tuesday 19 November –
Langley Park, Maidstone
•
Tuesday 10 December –
Weeds Wood, Chatham
If you’re local to these areas,
you’ll receive an email and a text
message with details of times and
meeting points. We’ll be expanding
our programme to include more
areas in the year ahead.
Your feedback is vital because
it helps us focus on the right
priorities. We’re listening and
taking action on what you tell us
to improve our services.
There are lots of ways you can get
involved. From volunteering as an
Help shape your services
estate champion to joining one
of our customer groups, you’ll be
helping us to improve services for
everyone.
Visit our website
mhs.org.uk/get-involved
mhs homes have been working in
partnership with Kent Police and
Medway Council to help tackle
anti-social behaviour, with the
launch of a new ‘Crimestoppers
Zone’.
It’s there to remind residents of
alternative ways to report criminal
behaviour.
Crimestoppers is an independent
charity that allows people to
provide information without
speaking to the police or
providing their details.
Residents in targeted areas of
Chatham have been receiving
fliers to raise awareness of the
service, with new signs also being
installed in several key locations.
Wherever you live, you can call
Crimestoppers anonymously on
0800 555111 or complete the form
at www.crimestoppers-uk.org
You have the right
to feel safe in your
home and your
community. Visit our
website or talk to one
of our team for information
on how to recognise, report
and get support for anti-social
behaviour.
mhs homes newsletter | summer 2024
Start preparing for
colder weather
The cold weather might seem a
long way of, but it’s a good idea
to start preparing now to make
sure your home is ready.
•
Turn your heating on to make
sure it’s working as it should
•
Check your radiators are
heating and that they don’t
need bleeding
•
Make sure your boiler service
is up to date and call us to
book one in if you need to
•
Test your smoke alarms weekly
•
Check your pre-payment
meter is working and you
have credit. If you can, add a
little extra each month
•
Make sure all of your lights are
working inside and outside
•
Know how to turn of your gas,
power and water supplies in
an emergency
•
Check your door locks are
working.
It’s better to prevent any problems
before they happen. If you need
to raise a repair, it’s a good idea
to do this before winter arrives.
If you’re worried about paying
bills or you’re struggling to make
ends meet, we’re here to help.
Call us on 01634 565333.
Charity screening
of psychological
thriller Gaslight
7pm on Wednesday 9 October
Woodville Theatre, Gravesend
Book your tickets for a screening
of the classic 1940s psychological
thriller, Gaslight, at the Woodville
Theatre in Gravesend.
The film introduced the term
‘gaslighting’ to describe the
devastating efects of emotional
abuse.
We’re proud to be sponsoring this
event for domestic abuse charity
Oasis. Tickets cost £10 each and
the proceeds will go towards the
charity’s work supporting individuals
and families experiencing and
recovering from domestic abuse.
To book, visit mhs.org.uk/tickets
If you bought your home using a
shared ownership scheme you
may be considering staircasing.
It’s where you buy further shares in
your home so you own more of it.
Why staircase your home?
•
Reduce your monthly rent
•
The more you own, the more
you benefit from future house
price increases.
There is absolutely no obligation
to staircase. It’s about what’s right
(and afordable) for you now and
in the longer term.
If you want to find out more, call
our sales team on 01634 565333 or
email sales@mhs.org.uk.
Supporting you to
own a bigger share
of your home
Thirty-four years ago, we made
history as one of the first housing
associations created by the transfer
of former council homes.
Many of those original council
tenants are still with mhs homes,
including Shirley Welsh who’s lived in
her home for 55 years.
“I've always been very happy here. It’s
a great community, people look afer
each other.” Shirley is pictured with
Nadia Baker, her mhs housing ofcer.
Building communities
for 34 years
mhs homes newsletter | summer 2024
Help us understand your needs
We want our services to be fair,
available and accessible for
all our customers. That means
understanding more about you,
your needs and preferences.
Part of this is recording what might
be called individual or additional
needs. Perhaps you have a
disability that means you need
time to answer the door, or you
need some extra help with letters
and forms.
We also want to record other
protected characteristics such as
your ethnicity to support fairness
and equality. And we want to
know about your communication
preferences so we can tailor our
communication to your needs.
It might feel like personal or
sensitive information that you
don't want to share. But by
understanding more about you,
we can provide inclusive services
that fully support everyone.
MacKenzie’s story
MacKenzie moved into their
ground floor flat in 2022.
Unfortunately, there were issues
with the flooring.
“I have limited mobility and I
use a walking aid,” MacKenzie
explained. “It became a real
struggle.”
MacKenzie reported these
issues but was frustrated that
because we didn’t have the
right information about their
needs as someone with multiple
Next time you call us, let
us know about any support
needs you or someone in
your household has. Speak to
our team on 01634 565333,
or you can email us at
contactus@mhs.org.uk.
disabilities, we didn’t ofer the
support required.
The repairs have now been
completed and MacKenzie is very
happy in their home. We have
updated their personal records,
so we’re able to tailor support in
the future.
The Priority Services Register
(PSR) is a free UK-wide service
which provides extra advice and
support, including when there’s an
interruption to your electricity, gas
or water supply.
The register is free to join. It helps
utility companies, including energy
Extra help and support
suppliers, electricity, gas and water
networks look afer customers
who have extra communication,
access or safety needs.
For example, if you use medical
equipment/aids which use
electricity or water, the PSR will
prioritise help during prolonged
supply interruptions.
To register, visit www.thepsr.co.uk
‘I have limited
mobility and use
a walking aid’
Thank you to everyone
who responded to our
survey on our individual
needs policy. Look out
for more information in
your next newsletter.
mhs homes newsletter | summer 2024
Defibrillator
installed at local
community hub
We partnered with building
contractors, Niblock, to install a
defibrillator at a community hub
in Chatham.
Residents, community
representatives and children from
a local primary school attended
the unveiling of the life-saving
equipment.
Damian Morrison, who organised
the works for mhs homes, said:
“There are very few defibrillators in
the area so it could make a huge
diference to someone in those
vital minutes before emergency
services arrive.”
•
See your balance
•
Access your statements
•
Book repairs
•
Set up a direct debit
•
Manage occupants
•
Manage repairs
•
Update your details
Watch our ‘How to’
video to register
Have you registered to
use
Account yet?
How you think we’re doing
Tenant Satisfaction Measures (TSMs) have been introduced by the Regulator
of Social Housing to assess how well landlords are doing in providing good
quality homes and services.
We spoke to more than 1,500 customers to ask what you think of the
services you receive. This is what you told us...
Overall satisfaction with the service provided by us... 81%
Tenant Satisfaction Measures
Where you think we need to do better
43% satisfaction with our approach to handling complaints
68% satisfied with the time taken to complete your repair
56% satisfied with the way we handle anti-social behaviour
54% satisfaction that we listen to your views and act on them
Your feedback and experiences are helping us set our priorities and make
sure we focus on what’s most important to you.
We’ve already made some changes including a triage process to speed
up our response to anti-social behaviour, and taking on additional staf in our
contact centre and repairs team (see opposite page).
Look out for more updates on how we have listened to you and acted on
your feedback.
79% satisfied with repairs
we carry out on your home
78% satisfied that your
home is well maintained
86% satisfied that your
home is safe
85% agree that we treat
you fairly and with respect
66% satisfied that we keep communal
areas clean and well maintained
Thank you to everyone who took the time to share your
views. In the year ahead, we’ll continue to measure
your satisfaction, in line with the new regulations.
Read our full performance results at mhs.org.uk/TSMs
mhs homes newsletter | summer 2024
Nicola works as a Liaison
Ofcer in our Customer Team.
What does your job involve?
My responsibilities include raising
repairs, helping tenants to resolve
anti-social behaviour, and
supporting vulnerable tenants.
What do you enjoy most about
your job?
I love being out and about and
meeting our customers in the
community. No two days are
ever the same and I adapt my
approach in every situation. I
always try to make a positive
diference to people.
When I’m most proud to work for
mhs homes is when we pull together
to support our communities. There
was a major power outage in one
of our areas and customers were
so grateful to us for checking in on
them over the weekends, as well as
week days. It made me feel proud
to be involved.
Meet Our Team
Your feedback and experiences
have helped drive the redesign of
key services you receive.
You’ve told us we need to answer
the phone more quickly, and fix
repairs sooner. You’ve also told
us we can do more to improve
estates.
We’ve listened to you, and we’re
putting the right people in the right
place, with the right skills.
We’re introducing a new team
structure to prioritise what’s most
important to you.
The changes will help you get to
know our teams better. You’ll be
able to build relationships with the
people providing your services,
and you’ll see increased visibility of
our teams visiting your area or your
home.
The changes we’re making
•
Increasing the number of
people in our contact centre
to reduce call waiting times
You’ve helped to redesign our service
•
More people managing
tenancy and neighbourhood
services to improve the way we
handle anti-social behaviour
•
Dedicated roles to support
customers who are moving
home, or need help to pay
rent, benefits advice or
access to support
•
Additional staf to focus on
listening to your feedback
and learning from complaints
•
Building our in-house repairs
and home improvements
team to reduce the use of
sub-contractors
•
More grounds maintenance
staf and caretakers to keep
your estates clean and well
maintained
•
A new team for waste
management to meet new
waste disposal regulations
•
More estate service ofcers to
support communal repairs and
maintenance and a gutter
clearance programme.
You’ve told us we need to answer the
phone more quickly, and fix repairs
sooner. You’ve also told us we can do
more to improve estates.
More information will follow
in your next newsletter, but
please bear with us as we
introduce these changes.
mhs homes newsletter | summer 2024
Housing
Ombudsman Service
The Housing Ombudsman Service is
a free service that looks at customer
complaints about their landlord.
You can contact them at any
time if you’re not happy with
something, or for independent
advice and guidance.
They will usually only investigate
if you’ve already complained to
us and we have responded, so
please tell us first. We want to put
things right if we’ve got it wrong.
If you need to contact the Housing
Ombudsman, you can do so by:
Telephone: 0300 111 3000
Email: info@housingombudsman.org.uk
Website: housing-ombudsman.org.uk
Get in touch
Email contactus@mhs.org.uk or you can call us on 01634 565333.
mhs.org.uk
mhshomesgroup
@mhshomes
@mhs_homes
The new school year is fast approaching. It can be a time of added
stress and financial pressure, but we’re here to help.
Our Customer Support Fund ofers small grants up to £100 to help
you pay for one-of items, like school uniforms and essentials.
If you’re over the age of 18 and haven’t been awarded a grant from
us in the last year, you might be eligible. Visit our website and search
for ‘Customer Support Fund’, or call us on 01634 565333.
Back to school support
Stationery set
giveaway
To help you tick ‘stationery’ of your
back to school shopping list, we’re
giving away 50 free stationery sets
and water bottles.
All you need to do is scan the QR
code and fill in the form, or email
us at newsletter@
mhs.org.uk.
Numbers are limited,
so don’t delay.
Tell us how you want to
receive your newsletter
We hope you’re enjoying your newsletter.
We’ll send this out to you three times a
year in April, August and December.
We’re committed to producing your
newsletter in a way that looks afer the
environment. We use recycled, carbon-
balanced paper which is 100% recyclable.
If you prefer not to receive a copy through
the post, you can request to receive a
digital version via email only. Alternatively,
you can choose to opt out entirely.
Scan the QR code or visit
mhs.org.uk/customer-newsletter
to find out more.