Winter 2011
The newsletter for Raven Housing Trust residents
embers of Surrey
Local residents and m
Unit and Raven dig
County Archaeological
es.
into one of the trench
Preston’s own “Time Team”
uncovers the past
Preston residents have been uncovering their local history
thanks to a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund. The
award of £28,400 paid for community archaeological dig
on the Preston estate, supported by Raven and the Preston
Community Archaeology Project, which will have involved
around 200 local people, promoting awareness, interest
and involvement in Preston’s fascinating history.
Archaeologist
or in 1952
Brian Hope Tayl
pot
al
iev
ed
m
ith
w
CONTINUES ON PAGE 2
What’s inside
2
6/7
11
Love to learn?
Your local community
news round-up
What do you think of
Raven’s services?
Before any housing was built on the Preston estate, local
archaeologist Brian Hope Taylor excavated a medieval
manor in an area near to Preston Lane and Marbles Way
in 1952. This November, amateur archaeologists worked
hard to try to uncover the flint foundations upon which a
wooden manor once stood.
3
8
12
Help for job seekers
HOT News/Mediation
works
Merry Christmas
from Jonathan Higgs
4
9
Dealing with debt
Green spaces
transformed
5
10
Getting off to a sure start
Your say in where the
money goes
www.ravenht.org.uk
News
News
Preston’s own “Time Team”
uncovers the past
News in brief
Rent clear weeks
CONTINUES FROM PAGE 1
Abby Guinness, community archaeologist at Surrey
County Council, explained: “There has been a lot of
disturbance on the site and it’s been difficult to find the
chapel walls that Brian Hope Taylor uncovered in the
1950s – possibly as a result of the subsequent building
in the area. However, this project will run until summer
2012, and there is plenty more we can do.”
Since 2008 a group of local residents have met regularly
to work on the finds and records and try to make sense
of the site. Although progress has been made, there were
several questions that can only be answered by re-digging
the original trenches, excavated between 1952 and 1954,
with the help of modern archaeological techniques.
Laurence Nasskau, Raven’s neighbourhood manager:
“A community excavation has never been carried out
on the Preston estate before. This project provides
local people with opportunities to
experience a new activity, meet
new people, work together as
part of a team, learn new
skills and improve local
historical knowledge.”
If you are charged rent for 48 weeks of the year, and
don’t have any rent arrears, the “rent clear” weeks
over Christmas will be 26 December 2011 and 2 January
2012.
If you have rent arrears or are subject to a Court Order
to repay arrears, you must continue paying during these
weeks.
John Butler new chair
John Butler has been appointed Raven’s new chair of the
board, replacing Mark Bennett who served for five years.
John has over 30 years’ experience in social housing
and a special interest in community regeneration and
partnership working.
Bronze IiP achieved
Raven has achieved bronze Investors in People (IiP)
following a successful review. 25 staff were interviewed
against a further 26 standards in addition to the core
standards usual for an IiP review.
Raven was first recognised against the IiP standard in
2005 and was successfully reviewed in 2008. We now
plan to go for gold in 2013, in line with our Flying
Higher strategy.
Winter fuel payments number: correction
Apologies for printing the wrong number to apply for
winter fuel payment, as appeared in the Autumn Raven
Times. The correct number is 0845 9 15 15 15.
Ecohouse site wins silver award
Artefacts found from
the dig in the 1950’s
More information about the dig can be found by visiting
www.surreycc.gov.uk/digpreston
Love to learn?
Free training dates announced
Thanks to everyone who registered
their interest in the first round of
training courses Raven is offering to
residents. The following courses will
be running in the new year:
Fundraising for a community event
16 January, 6pm – 9pm, Raven House
2
Raven’s microsite featuring
the Merstham Ecohouse
project, launched earlier
this year, has won silver at
the Chartered Institute of
Public Relations (CIPR) PRide
Awards in the “Best website
or microsite” category. Visit
Great start for
new service
Raven’s new SOS (Sheltered Outreach Service) for
Raven residents over 60 is now underway. The service,
which is being piloted in the Tadworth area, means
people can continue to live independently in their own
homes, providing extra support and linking them to
Raven’s existing sheltered schemes.
The support provided by sheltered housing officer
Theresa Mayer includes a phone call every weekday and
a visit twice a week. Residents get information about
other services including social care, health care and local
groups and can also join events and activities held at
Raven’s sheltered schemes.
Pat Maslin, daughter of one of the first clients taken on
by the service, said:
SOS has been absolutely wonderful. Theresa’s
help and support has been great for my dad and
given me peace of mind.
Before I picked up Raven Times and read about
SOS I was desperate. SOS means reassurance
for us, and dad can stay in his own home all
the time that he can, which is what he needs.
To find out more contact Theresa Meyer on
01737 813242.
Looking for work?
Finding work can be challenging, so Raven has teamed
up with two of our contractors to offer support and
work to Raven residents.
In spring 2012, up to six gas engineer apprenticeships
with Smith & Byford and four seasonal gardening jobs
with Burleys will be advertised. Although these jobs
will not be ring fenced to residents, both contractors
are funding training sessions to give Raven residents
the best possible chance of securing a job with them.
Participants will build confidence, identify strengths
and weaknesses, and learn to manage stress, be
motivated in a difficult job market and find other ideas
for employment. Courses will cover:
www.ravenht.org.uk/ecohouse
• support with your job application
Writing and designing a newsletter
27 January, 10am – 4pm
Raven House
Organising an event
1 February, 6.30pm – 9.30pm
Raven House
More courses will be advertised in
soon. If you are interested in joining
one of these courses, call
01737 272417 or email
[email protected]
Writing in plain English
16 February, 2pm – 5pm
Raven House
Raven Times | Winter 2011
01737 272400
• understanding the role and responsibilities of the job
• meet your potential employer
• preparing for an interview
Training will be held in January and February. To book
a place, contact Angela Ellis on 01737 272411 or email
[email protected]. If you’ve already said
you’re interested in an apprenticeship, there is no need
to contact us again as we will be in touch shortly.
www.ravenht.org.uk
Raven Times | Winter 2011
Merstham gets
its 5-a-day and mo
r
e
A new pop-up fruit
and veg shop and yo
uth club will
open in one of the
vacant units on Portl
an
d Drive, run
in partnership with
Merstham Commun
ity
Facility
Trust, Holistic Harm
ony CIC and Anita
Rhodes, a local
resident who will als
o work with young
people to
offer them work ex
perience in the shop
.
The decision to trial
the shop, which
opens on 9 January,
comes as part of the
Merstham regeneratio
n
programme, with th
e
aim of increasing th
e
health and wellbein
g
of residents.
The shop will open
from Monday to
Thursday between
9am and 1pm on a
three month trial,
depending on how
many local residents
Anita outside he
r Merstham
use the shop. The
cafe, Hunger’s
End
rear will be used for
a youth club for two
hours once a week, wi
th sessions
on DIY skills, money
management and co
mplementary
therapies, training ses
sions for local people
who want to
get back to work an
d volunteering oppo
rtunities.
For more information
contact
Angela Ellis on 0173
7 272411.
Need help
adapting your home?
People sometimes need changes made to their home so they
can continue to live there. Raven’s adaptations service helps
people with disabilities or who are vulnerable or elderly.
Adaptations may include rails, ramps or extra steps, lever
taps, additional lighting, flashing doorbells or key safes.
We can help victims of crime including domestic abuse to
make their home more secure with additional lighting or
door locks or to make people feel safer with spy holes, door
chains and sensor lighting. We also offer adaptations for
cultural or religious reasons, to people suffering with a long
term illness, and to people of any age, including children.
If you need some help to make changes to your home call
us on 01737 272400 to see if we can help you.
3
Around Raven
Around Raven
Getting off to a
Sure Start….
Sub-let or abandoned
homes? Tell us about them.
What is ‘Sure Start’?
Sure Start is a government initiative
which aims to make sure that every
child has the best start in life. Anyone
with a child under 5 can use these
services.
An article in last year’s Raven Times highlighted the
problem of sub-let or abandoned Raven homes and
asked residents to report this to us.
Thanks to your support we have recovered five homes that
were either abandoned or sub let to someone who wasn’t
the legal tenant and we are investigating four more.
There are 20 Sure Start centres in the
area that Raven works in - for a list,
visit our website or call us on
01737 272400.
These homes can now be let to people in housing need,
which is good news for local people.
If you think that a home has been abandoned or sub let to
someone who is not a Raven resident, please report it. You
can do this on our website www.ravenht.org.uk, call us on
01737 272400 or tell your community housing manager
or neighbourhood warden. Reports can be anonymous but
we do offer a “thank you” reward for any reports that lead
to Raven gaining possession of a home.
What services are on offer?
Services vary in different centres
but usually include childcare, early
education, health advice and support
for pre-school children and families,
such as:
As part of our commitment to ensure the legal tenant is
occupying his or her home, you may be contacted by a
member of staff asking to carry out a home visit for a
tenancy check. During the home visit we will ask for proof
of identity, including photo ID, ie a passport or a driving
licence. If you don’t have either of these, please don’t worry,
there are other forms of identification we can accept.
•
•
•
•
Dealing with debt
Services are free although there may be
additional charges for some activities.
You usually have to pay for childcare
If you struggle to pay your bills the most important thing
is to not ignore the problem – it will only get worse.
The Citizens Advice Bureau publishes a sheet of top tips
for dealing with debt, which you can download from our
website. They advise that you focus on the important debt
such as electricity, gas or your rent. Use the tables below
as a guide:
Play sessions
Parent and toddler groups
Toy and book libraries
Help for families with children with
additional needs
• Support for parents looking for
training or work
You can get advice or help
with managing your
money from your local
Citizens Advice Bureau. Visit
www.citizensadvice.org.uk to find one near to you.
You can also call the Money Advice Service on
0300 500 5000 or check out their website for useful
leaflets and other information:
www.moneyadviceservice.org.uk
Type of debt
What could happen if you don’t pay?
Rent, mortgage or service charges
Could lose your home
Electricity and gas
Could be cut off
TV licence
Council tax
Maintenance for others
(for example child support payments)
Could have money taken from wages or benefits,
bailiff could be called to take belongings, fined or
even go to prison
Catalogue
Credit cards
Store cards
Personal loan
You cannot go to prison for not paying these bills but
you can be taken to county court for a judgement.
Not paying may affect your ‘credit rating’ or your
chances of getting a loan or mortgage in the future.
Bank overdraft
4
Raven Times | Winter 2011
01737 272400
but all three and four year olds are
entitled to free nursery education for
15 hours a week (for 38 weeks of the
year) and you may be eligible for tax
credits to help with the cost. Ask your
local centre for more details.
How do I find out more?
Visit www.direct.gov.uk and search
for Sure Start - there is lots of
information on the services provided
and you can search for your closest
centre. Or call your local Family
Information Service, for Surrey 0300
200 1004, West Sussex 01243 777807
or Sutton 020 8770 6000.
Any person, any question, any
cup of tea
The Red Oak centre in Merstham is a
custom-built building on the grounds
of Furzefield Primary School, where
staff have designed a space ideal for
children and parents.
Duane Kirkland, centre manager,
explains, “We are here for any person,
any question, any cup of tea. We try
to make sure everyone feels
welcome and safe here.”
As well as the Shining
Stars nursery, the
centre offers a baby
Looking after
man’s best friend
Raven has a new a leaflet to help explain our new pet
policy. The leaflet is for residents who own pets or are
thinking about getting a
pet, and also for residents
who may need advice
about dealing with
problems caused by
a neighbour’s pet.
The leaflet tells you:
• how to apply for
permission to keep a pet
• how to look after your pet responsibly
• how your pet affects your tenancy agreement
• what to do if you are having trouble with a
neighbour’s pet
• what we can do about nuisance pets
• what to do if you suspect an animal is being neglected.
For a copy, call 01737 272400 or pick one up from
our offices.
www.ravenht.org.uk
Raven Times | Winter 2011
clinic, play groups, clubs, parenting
courses and the ‘teeny tiny tea bar’.
“There is also a great outdoor space
with room to play and the Red
Oak chickens - raised from eggs by
children in the nursery - are a special
attraction. Everything we do here is
about engaging with children and
parents to provide a high quality,
flexible and accessible service”.
“They always make time for you”
Michelle, mother of three children,
has been using the Sure Start centre
in Hurst Green for the last year:
“I go for playdays and to toddler
groups. The staff have helped me,
giving me advice about courses and
also helped me with finances.
One of the best
things is just
being able to
pop in and
have someone
to talk to. They
always make
time for you”.
Extended child
benefit for some under18s
Child benefit can be extended for up to 20 weeks if your
child is 16 or 17 and has left education or training. They
need to have registered for work, education or training
with a ‘qualifying body’ and you will need to apply for
an extension.
Who qualifies for the extension?
If your child is aged 16 or 17, and has left education or
training that counted for child benefit, you may be able
to get these extra weeks. To qualify, your child needs
to be registered with any of the following - known as
‘qualifying bodies’:
• in England - the local careers service or Connexions
• the Ministry of Defence, for example if your child is
waiting to join HM Forces
• a similar organisation to others in this list in any
European economic area country
5
In Your Area
In Your Area
Preston
Road now on list
Watermead residents have complained to Raven
about the state of the road surface. We have reported
this to Surrey Highways and the road is now on their
programme for resurfacing although it may not happen
for some time. It was not given top priority as it is not
on a bus route and is not a through road.
New proposals to
regenerate Preston
Banstead, Hooley and Woodmansterne
Horley
Peter Barnett is the new
community housing manager
for Banstead, Hooley and
Woodmansterne. Peter comes
from Knightstone Housing
Association and takes over
from Renato Bondonno, who
recently retired.
Eleven new car parking spaces for residents living in an
area of Crescent Way which previously had no direct
access onto the road has been welcomed. Permits have
been issued to eligible residents and the area patrolled
by UKPC on Raven’s behalf. Burleys will also landscape
the area, including planting two new trees and some
native hedging.
New community housing
manager
Wildlife in Preston
After Raven residents and staff worked hard to clear
the Marbles Way pond in the summer, the pond is
now being enjoyed by many different kinds of visitors
- including a grey heron. This photo was taken at the
end of October. Grey herons are unmistakable: tall,
with long legs, a long beak and grey, black and white
feathering. They enjoy any kind of water – garden
ponds, lakes, rivers and estuaries and can be seen at
any time of year as they do not migrate.
Banstead
Reigate & Banstead Borough Council are asking for your
views on their plans to regenerate Preston, including the
new Banstead Leisure Centre.
Peter Barnett
On your bike!
Work to install a bike store at Eastgate
was put on hold due to some confusion about its location.
Residents are being consulted to clarify where they would
like this to go and work will go ahead once this has been
decided. Please contact Peter Barnett if you have a view.
You have until 6 January 2012 to have your say on the
Preston regeneration draft Planning Framework. Visit
www.reigate-banstead.gov.uk/prestonregeneration
to find out more, or visit the public exhibition, on
until 6 January.
Way heron
The Marbles
Sutton
terne
Woodmans
Epsom
Banstead
Hooley
Preston
Merstham
l
il
h
d
e
R
red
Raven sponso
s
Christmas tree
Raven on the
A year-long project to raise customer satisfaction with
is drawing to
Cromwell, Rivers and Flowers estate and at the Dome
a close.
average in
Satisfaction amongst residents was found to be lower than
put together
was
last year’s customer satisfaction survey. An action plan
Rivers estate
with changes including holding a community day on the
the number of
for the first time to build community spirit; increasing
behaviour on the
youth activities for young people to reduce anti-social
ts to parking,
Cromwell estate; and a range of environmental improvemen
s.
estate
lighting and green areas on all three
te
Results of the action plan were published on our websi
and South
l
Centra
ll
Redhi
area
www.ravenht.org.uk: visit in your
to find out more.
Dorking
Horley
Crawley
Crawley
Community housing manager Peter Norris said: “Raven recently built a
number of new homes in the Crawley area and this project demonstrates
our ongoing commitment to also improving the environment for our
existing stock.”
6
ts the
Aallya Cherry cu
arren Court’s
ribbon at Trew
g
car park openin
Raven Times | Winter 2011
01737 272400
New parking controls, including bollards along the
footpath to prevent cars parking across the pavement
or grass, an access road marked as a private road, a
marked out turning area and permits issued to eligible
residents, have been brought in to address problem
parking at the back of Douglas House and in Primrose
Avenue following consultation with residents. This was
a problem because:
• Access to the rear of Primrose Avenue was being
blocked, one reason why the council wasn’t collecting
waste.
• Larger vehicles – including the fire brigade and
council refuse lorries – could not come, go and turn
around with confidence.
Oxted
Hurst
Green
Lingfield
East
Grinstead
Ribbon cutting marks car park opening
Residents from Trewarren Court, Crawley marked the completion of a
project which improved the area behind their homes with the resurfacing
of the area with attractive permeable block paving to create a much
improved new parking and drying area.
New Primrose
parking controls
• Drivers who don’t live or aren’t visiting someone were
parking in the area.
r area
u
o
y
n
i
w
e
N
Redhill
Customer satisfaction
project draws to a close
Crescent Way
improvements
Lindfield
Haywards
Heath
Burgess
Hill
www.ravenht.org.uk
New spaces for Court Lodge
Elsewhere in Horley, Court Lodge residents were pleased to learn that work
is starting in December on some new parking spaces including a disabled
parking space for Thornton Close. This will include nine spaces in Thornton
Close, four spaces in Thornton Place (in front of 65/66) and five spaces in
Court Lodge Road (outside 263-285).
Merstham
Merstham girls kick off
Raven is a proud sponsor of Merstham
FC’s U18s girls’ team, with kit funded
by the central Community Investment
Committee. The team is already playing a
blinding season, having won six matches
and drawn one just two months in.
To find out more about the team’s
fixtures and other football club news,
visit the club’s website:
www.mersthamfc.co.uk
Raven Times | Winter 2011
Merstham FC U18s girls
7
Around Raven
HOT Neomweoswnership team
from the h
New chair calls for new members
Tricia Brennan, the new resident chair of the Homeowners
Forum, wants to encourage all homeowners to attend
the quarterly forum meetings at Raven House. The forum
gives homeowners the opportunity to discuss all areas
of homeownership and the issues that affect day to day
living. You can come and ask questions, learn what has
been achieved and meet other homeowners.
If you can’t come to meetings, send your questions
through the homeownership team or to Tricia who will
raise them for you as an agenda item or will obtain a
speedy response if you need a quick answer. Email Tricia
on [email protected] or contact the team on
01737 272400, email: [email protected]
Next forum meeting
The next forum meeting will be held at Raven House on
15 December 2011 at 7.30pm. The main agenda items are
Raven’s community investment programme and parking.
Going Green
Raven repairs team goes green
Homeowners forum
Homeowner’s views are important.
Owning a property has many facets, do not feel
alone, join the group.
Make contact with other home owners at our
friendly forum meetings.
Every homeowner has the opportunity to raise
issues.
Raven’s in-house repairs team has
changed over to a range of ecofriendly and responsibly sourced
tools and products. The new products
include paint brushes made from
sustainable wood, biodegradable
paint trays, biodegradable paint pots
and painting rollers made from 100%
recycled materials.
Open dialogue is positively encouraged.
Working as a team has achieved good results.
But does it really work? A man who had been arguing with
his neighbours to the point where the police where being
called out every week, explains: “After four years at war we
started talking to each other like normal human beings. It
was difficult at the start, but the mediators made us realise
we could sit down and talk things through like adults.”
Relations improved quickly as they talked. By the third and
final meeting mutual understanding had grown and one
Early intervention can prevent a concern becoming
a problem.
Green space transformed
Reasons for attending the forum; a setting to air
views, concerns and ideas with other homeowners.
This autumn Raven ran three projects
designed to improve green spaces for
residents.
couple actually gave the other a lift there. “It needed to be
handled in the right way because tempers were flaring. That
is what the mediation service did. They diffused matters
and allowed us to talk. I would recommend it 110%.”
Mediation can also help nip misunderstanding in the bud.
A couple with young children complained about noise
from next door, especially at night. They were losing sleep
and felt stressed thinking that this noise was made in
order to get back at the husband because he was a loud
snorer. Their neighbours felt upset about these complaints,
especially because the couple thought the noise was on
purpose when in fact it was due to the new heating system
pipes and birds living in the eaves, something they had
already reported to the council.
At their meeting, the snorer began apologising for any
disturbance while he was waiting for an operation for
this problem. To his surprise his neighbours replied that
they had never heard his snoring. They were only upset
that the couple thought they had been deliberately noisy.
When it emerged that the noise was a plumbing problem,
the couple quickly acknowledged they had jumped to
conclusions. With new understanding and goodwill, they
decided to join forces and tackle the council together.
Mediators are there for you. Are you willing to give
it a try? See the leaflet enclosed with this issue for
more details.
8
and
ainter
p
,
r
o
l
h
ay
Rob T corator witteam
de
irs
s repa
Raven’
New ideas and initiatives are discussed for the
benefit of all.
Mediation works with
problems large or small
Mediation helps people in dispute to reach an agreement
that suits them all. East Surrey Community Mediation
works with people to resolve disagreements quickly
and confidentially without the expense and trouble
of going to court.
Mario D’Andrea, Raven’s service
delivery manager who brought in
the changes, explained: ‘We are
constantly reviewing our working
practices and small but positive
changes like these can make all
the difference to our impact on the
environment. The products reduce
waste going to landfill and ensure
that as much as possible of the waste
that is generated is biodegradable.’
Raven Times | Winter 2011
01737 272400
In Horley, Raven staff and residents,
in partnership with Surrey Wildlife
Trust, cleared brambles and weeds,
planted native plants and climbing
plants on the walls and created three
beautiful natural wood seats and three
raised beds.
enjoys
Carleigh Whyton ple
an orchard ap
In central Redhill, a beautiful carved
wooden bench, in a design chosen by
residents, has been put in place for
residents to enjoy the fruits of their
labour after transforming their green
area with new flowers beds, climbing
plants, fruit trees and a colourful play
area using wooden animal cut outs
to add to the fence line which the
children can paint.
In Woodhatch, three raised beds were
put in for residents to start growing
their own food and flowers, along
with a composter and a water butt.
Tackling problems with damp
At Raven, we get more complaints
about damp at this time of year, often
as a result of increased condensation.
You can minimise condensation by
reducing the amount of moisture
you produce, improving ventilation,
reducing the number of cold surfaces
in your home and by keeping your
home warm enough. Top tips include:
• dry wet clothes in the bathroom
with the door closed and window
open, not over a radiator
• cook with pan lids on (this also
helps to save energy)
www.ravenht.org.uk
• keep kitchen and bathroom doors
closed to prevent moisture escaping
around your home
• try to use your heating on a low
but consistent temperature (around
18°C) rather than on a high level for
a short period.
Our leaflet “Reducing condensation
and mould in your home” has plenty
more information and tips. For a copy,
or to discuss any problems you may
have with damp, energy use or fuel
bills, contact Raven’s energy officer
Alistair Laban on 01737 272493,
email [email protected]
Raven Times | Winter 2011
9
Community Involvement
Community Involvement
Your say in where the money goes
We recently asked you to take part in our
second annual budget setting survey to tell us
how we could make savings or invest in new
initiatives. 144 people took part and came up
with over 120 great ideas.
A resident focus group reviewed all of the ideas and chose
the best ones which they have asked Raven to investigate
further. These include:
• Offering a free handyman service for tenants who have
just moved in to their new home
Save money by...
Yes
No
• Offering residents the opportunity to pay for their
kitchen or bathroom replacement to happen sooner.
Setting up volunteer scheme for
Raven residents
83%
17%
• Offering four dates rather than two for monthly direct
debit payments
Setting up a shared garden scheme
81%
19%
Setting up a furniture recycling scheme
98%
2%
Reviewing the opening hours of the customer
services centre
76%
24%
Carrying out major works while people live in
the home (previously empty property)
91%
9%
Offering additional direct debit incentives
82%
18%
Invest more in...
Yes
No
Skills training
80%
20%
Apprenticeships and social enterprise
85%
15%
Helping you reduce your fuel bills
86%
14%
Focus on...
support for
new tenants
You said...
What happens now?
Shaping our
new strategy
We’ll be sending out surveys in the
new year to all young people on our
database asking for your ideas about
what we should be offering to local
young people in the future and for
your feedback on any activities you
have been involved in. Please look
out for it.
Raven will now investigate each of the ideas and assess
how feasible they are. We will also look at how much
money needs to be invested initially, and what the overall
savings or benefits to residents will be.
Junior wardens
recognised for
achievements
We will let you know when some of the initiatives will
start and how they will benefit you in the next issue of
Raven Times.
Raven has been running junior
warden schemes, aimed at young
people aged 8-12 years, since 2006.
whose winning idea is to “provide gardening tools and
training to encourage residents to grow their own fruit
and veg”. Emma wins £50 for her idea and we will put
her idea into action in 2012.
Raven’s Residents’ Federation has chosen to look at
what support we give to new residents in their next
scrutiny review. They have asked Raven Reporters, our
team of residents inspectors, to investigate. The team
will interview new tenants over the coming weeks and
we will be able to report back on their findings in the
summer issue of Raven Times.
We did
We have changed rent statements to provide clearer information
about payments.
…the way Raven organises gas safety
appointments for sheltered schemes isn’t good
value for money
We will now make sure all gas safety checks in each sheltered
scheme are completed on the same day.
… there are some weaknesses in the code of
conduct for our contractors and trades team
The code of conduct has been revised with the help of the repairs
service improvement group. Call 01737 272400 for a copy.
…, as an older person, you did not like
being called in the evening by our customer
satisfaction research company, Explain
We have changed the lists given to Explain, so that people over 60
are only called between 11am and 3pm.
... you need more storage space at Trewarren
Court, Crawley.
We installed eight new storage sheds for big items like bikes and
prams.
If you would like to have your say and influence the decisions which are made about your home and neighbourhood,
please contact the community involvement team on 01737 272473 or e-mail [email protected]
Raven Times | Winter 2011
01737 272400
This year, based on feedback from
young people who’d been on previous
schemes, we changed things slightly.
Schemes ran in three areas at the
same time, with some joint visits
including a trip to a fire station and
to Chessington, which proved to
be really positive as young people
developed relationships between
groups as well as within their groups.
Young people also chose an active
community task in each area; so
young people on the Rivers estate in
Redhill, for instance, chose litter as
their theme, organising litter picks
and putting up posters designed by
them explaining to their neighbours
why litter was bad.
The schemes are also
now AQA accredited,
and young people
were presented with
certificates at a
celebration evening.
Congratulations to Emma Gavin from Tadworth,
Rent statements are confusing
10
Raven Fledglings
Redhill youth club
officially opened
The mayor and other VIPs visited
Redhill Youth Club on Thursday 27
October, with young people serving
up some delicious food and creating
graffiti art to mark the occasion.
The club runs on Fridays from 7pm
to 9.30pm at the Youth Association
Building behind Liquid and Envy.
Young people aged 11 and over can
play pool, table tennis, xbox, wii and
board games.
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Since September Raven has used a new way of finding
out what you think of the services we provide. We now
employ a specialist research company called Explain to
phone you to find out what you think of key services
soon after you have received them, such as a repair,
window cleaning or communal cleaning.
It’s early days and we are still tweaking the surveys so that
you and we are confident that the results paint an accurate
picture of what you think of the services we provide.
However, the early results show that you rate us highly for
being helpful, polite and friendly but generally less well in
being able to deal with the repair or question raised. We
will publish the results in greater detail in the next issue
of Raven Times and discuss the results with the Residents’
Federation.
www.ravenht.org.uk
Raven Times | Winter 2011
11
Around Raven
Seasons Greetings from Jonathan Higgs
Many of you are no doubt busy with
preparations for the Christmas holidays,
whether that’s shopping, cooking or
making arrangements to catch up with
family and friends.
Of course, this time of year can also be
difficult for some, particularly those that
have no family members nearby. Feeling
you’re part of a community and knowing there are others
that are looking out for you is important for all of us.
This year, Raven has supported local charity Loveworks,
which reaches out to people who may be isolated or
struggling. Loveworks has supported some of our residents
locally in recent years with Christmas gifts and swimming
sessions for parents, so it felt good to be able to return
some of that goodwill.
Not everyone can give money to causes such as these, but
many of us can give our time. At Raven, we want to invest
in our communities, and already encourage our own office
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North Neighbourhood Panel:
26 January 2012, 7pm-9pm
Venue: Banstead Day Centre, The Horseshoe, Banstead
Central Neighbourhood Panel:
26 January 2012, 7pm
Venue: Portland House, Merstham
South Neighbourhood News
Sue Young, neighbourhood manager, sent our first South
Neighbourhood News out in August giving a round up of
events that had taken place in the south, with information
If you would like a translation of this newsletter, please
tick the language you require, write your name and
address below and return to us. We can also provide the
newsletter in large print or on audio-tape. Please tick the
appropriate box below and return to us.
French r
staff to take part in community events and activities that
we run – their chance to get out and see what’s going on
where you live, and make a difference
to our neighbourhoods.
In 2012, we will launch a volunteer scheme
where you can give your time to a whole
range of projects in and around Raven.
I hope some of you will feel you can
support this as your contribution
will be valuable.
Whatever your faith, I hope you
have a happy and peaceful
holiday and wish you the
best for the year ahead.
Jonathan Higgs
about Raven staff and homes in the area.
The newsletter asked if you would like to attend future
neighbourhood panels or receive further newsletters. You
told us that you wanted a regular newsletter but do not
want regular meetings.
So South Neighbourhood News will be sent every three
months to people living in Reigate, Horley, Dorking,
Crawley, Lindfield and East Grinstead. If there are events
in your area that you want publicised or issues about your
community, please contact us. We are happy to support
and promote activities in your local area.
If you want a south neighbourhood panel meeting in
future, we will revive these if there is enough demand.
Urdu r
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LARGE PRINT VERSION r Audio CD r
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Address
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Return this form to Communications at the address below.
Raven House,
29 Linkfield Lane,
Redhill, Surrey, RH1 1SS
Editor: Susan Lea
Telephone: 01737 272 400
Website: www.ravenht.org.uk
A charitable Industrial and
Provident Society
Registration number 30070R