Transfer Special
StreetsAhead
The Newsletter for Borough Council of King’s Lynn & West Norfolk Tenants
IT’S A
“YES” VOTE
Welcome
Welcome to this edition of Streets Ahead the first of three that we will
send you between now and the planned transfer in late autumn this year.
Issue 6, January 2005
THIS ISSUE
Front Page
• Welcome
• Council backs tenant vote
• Thank You to Residents
Page 2
• News Update
• Council to continue with
an important role to play
To make sure that you are kept fully up-to-date, these
editions of Streets Ahead will be issued jointly by the
Council and Freebridge Community Housing.
Page 3
Council backs tenant vote
Page 4
At its meeting on December 20th the Borough Council of King’s
Lynn and West Norfolk backed the result of the ballot of tenants
and agreed to push ahead with the housing transfer.
In the ballot of tenants 5686 used their vote and of those,
76.5% voted in favour of the Council’s transfer proposal.
As well as considering the ballot result, the Council also wanted to
satisfy itself that the transfer met the conditions it set in its proposal.
These included the fact that tenants rights should be protected, that
money would be made available to modernise, improve and maintain the
homes, and that rents would be kept in line with Government policy.
A Big Thank You to
the Tenants
Councillor David Harwood, said: “On behalf of all Councillors, I would
like to thank the tenants of the Borough for voting in such large numbers
in this important ballot. We have always been concerned to make sure
that what you –the tenants – want and deserve, guides the Council’s
actions. This is made much easier when so many of you took the trouble
to vote. Clearly, some of our tenants voted against the transfer and may
be feeling quite anxious about the prospect of a change to Freebridge
Community Housing. We would like to reassure tenants that Freebridge
is looking forward to delivering high quality services and modern, wellmaintained homes for all tenants. Freebridge will of course, also be
asking all tenants how they think the new organisation is doing!”
• On the registration trail
• Your questions answered
• Meet the board
Page 5
• New era for Streets Ahead
• The £64,000 question
• Helping us all to ‘Wise-Up’
Page 6 - 7
• Lots of wonderful people, but
who will be on the shortlist
Back Page
• Wanted....four Freebridge
Newshounds
i
Permission
Needed:
Before the transfer can take
place, the Secretary of State for
the Office of the Deputy Prime
Minister must give his consent,
to the transfer taking place.
02 | FREEBRIDGE COMMUNITY HOUSING
News Update
Countdown to Transfer:
The target date for completing the transfer is late
autumn this year. It is not until then that Freebridge
Community Housing would become your new
landlord. In the meantime, the Council will remain
as your landlord and things will continue as usual.
The post of Chief Executive of
Freebridge Community Housing is
now being advertised nationally.
Staff News:
Both the Council and Freebridge Community
Housing are currently working hard to put
together the details of the staff they will need
for their respective services. Work done so
far indicates that most of the staff involved
in providing the services that will transfer will
move across to Freebridge Community Housing.
Those who do not transfer would provide
the Council’s retained housing service.
Council to continue with an
important role to play
Even after the transfer has taken place, the
Council will have a major role to play in housing
within the Borough.
The Council will still be
responsible for a number
of functions, including:
• The Homelessness Service and
providing Housing Advice
• Maintaining the Housing
Register and nominating
tenants to Freebridge
Community Housing and other
registered social landlords
across the Borough
• Identifying housing needs and
helping social landlords to
build new affordable housing
in the Borough
• Processing Housing Benefit
applications
All in all, the Council will
retain a range of functions
to enable it to provide a
comprehensive service to the
residents of the Borough.
FREEBRIDGE COMMUNITY HOUSING | 03
On the registration trail
The Housing Corporation is the
Government body responsible for
regulating the work of registered
social landlords. As promised
in the formal consultation
document, Freebridge
Community Housing is seeking
registration with the Housing
Corporation and the Council will
insist that it is registered before
the transfer takes place. So,
what does “registration” mean
and why is it so important?
To be registered as a social
landlord Freebridge Community
Housing will have to demonstrate
to the Housing Corporation
that it is in a position to
meet the high standards that
the Corporation sets. These
standards cover a wide range
of activities, not least the level
of service provided to tenants.
Once the transfer takes place,
the Housing Corporation
and the Audit Commission’s
Housing inspectorate would
monitor Freebridge Community
Housing on a regular basis
to make sure that standards
were being maintained.
The current plan is for Freebridge
Community Housing to be
registered in October 2005.
In the meantime, the Housing
Corporation will continue to
visit Freebridge Community
Housing to help them with
the registration process.
Your questions answered
Q. Is there anything that I need to do
now about the transfer?
Q. Will I have to move home when the transfer
takes place?
A. No. We will let you know, nearer the
time of transfer, what you need to do.
A. No – you will continue to live in your home as
before. The transfer refers to the ownership of the
housing transferring from the Council to Freebridge
Community Housing. It is not the same type of transfer
as when a tenant transfers to another property.
Q. Why do we have to wait until the
autumn for the transfer to happen?
A. It is very important that both the
Council and Freebridge Community
Housing are satisfied that everything
is in place before the transfer takes
place. As mentioned in other articles
in this newsletter there are a number
of specific tasks, such as registration
with the Housing Corporation, that
do take some time to complete.
HELPLINE STILL OPEN
If you have a question about
the transfer you would like
answered, you can ring the
Council’s freephone Transfer
Helpline on 0800 0015 005.
If you, or someone you know,
would like this newsletter on
audio-tape, please call the
Council’s Helpline and we will
arrange for a tape to be sent
to you.
Q. What will happen to our rents this year – who
will set the level of increase?
A. As the transfer is planned for late autumn 2005
the Council will set your rent increase in April 2005,
Freebridge Community Housing would be your
landlord by the next time the rent is reviewed in
April 2006 and rent increases would be in line with
Government policy as explained in the Council’s
offer document.
04 | FREEBRIDGE COMMUNITY HOUSING
Meet the Board
“Meet the Board” will become a regular feature in which we profile members of Freebridge Community
Housing Board of Management. After transfer, it is the Board that will make the decisions about your
housing service, in much the same way as the Cabinet has done with the Council.
In our first “Meet the Board” we profile 3 of the five tenant members and two of the five
independent members on the Board.
Independent members
Tenant members
Phillip Anderson (Chairman)
Phillip has been a tenant in King’s Lynn for over 30 years. He has found that joining his local
community centre and serving on the committee as vice chairman and centre manager has opened
up new paths like (working together projects) the single Regeneration programme. He hopes to bring
to the board the experience he has gained from his voluntary work and working with people. He sees
one of the most important parts of being a Board Member as making sure that the views and opinions
of the tenants are not forgotten.
Irene Gammon
Irene was brought up in a Council house. Following Nursing training she spent some years as a
missionary nurse and later became involved in homes for the elderly, working in a team, and in
a managerial capacity. She also worked with the church amongst women. These areas of work
required a caring attitude and highlighted the importance of relating to others. Since moving to King’s
Lynn she has become involved with the local tenants’ group, and then the forum group, T.O.W.N,
to put the needs of all tenants of the Borough at the forefront when any issue is discussed.
Paul Leader
Paul has been actively involved in tenant participation for over 8 years. He is committed to Tenant
Involvement and Empowerment and has attended many training events as a Tenant on behalf of
West Norfolk Tenants. He is a member of the Government’s Tenant Sounding Board and has given
presentations at different venues across the country on Tenant Involvement, showing much of our
good practice. He is also a School Governor, and has been for over 8 years. His passion is for housing
and education, which are both things that affect the communities that we live in. He is also a Norfolk
Constabulary Community Volunteer at North Lynn Beat Base. He says that he will bring his passion for
community matters and problems, and try to pass that passion onto others wherever he can, resulting
in more and more people getting Involved and Empowered.
Anita Barnard
Anita has worked with national and local charities in West Norfolk for over 20 years, providing a
range of services for vulnerable people. In particular, Anita devotes much of her time to managing
and developing housing and support services for homeless people and women and children
experiencing domestic abuse. She has considerable experience of working in direct partnership
with the local community and at board level and is currently a Non Executive Director of King’s
Lynn & Wisbech Hospitals NHS Trust. Anita is an experienced Justice of the Peace and is passionate
about social justice for all and is looking forward to her new role on the Shadow Board.
Jon Allen (Vice Chairman)
As a Company Director in manufacturing industry for the past 18 years, Jon has broad
management experience and knowledge of financial and legal matters. Since 1994, Jon
has worked at Burall in Wisbech, where one of his goals is to turn the recent change
to employee – ownership into a special benefit for both the staff and the business. Jon
believes that tenant involvement is key to a successful housing organisation.
05 | FREEBRIDGE COMMUNITY HOUSING
FREEBRIDGE COMMUNITY HOUSING | 05
StreetsAhead
The Newsletter for Borough Council of King’s Lynn & West Norfolk Tenants
Issue 1, January 2005
New era for Streets Ahead!
You’ll have noticed that Streets
Ahead has changed size. So many
of you voiced your approval of
the five ‘tabloid sized’ editions
of the ‘Streets Ahead Transfer
Special’ newsletters, that it seemed
appropriate to follow suit.
We hope you’re enjoying the larger
text and space this affords us all.
Should you have any comments to
make, or indeed ideas for stories
and topics please write to:
Rita O’Donnell
Tenant Participation Team
King’s Court
Chapel Street
King’s Lynn
PE30 1EX
The £64,000 question
The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister’s ‘Innovation into Action’ is a
grant programme to develop radical or new ways of involving tenants in
the management of their homes across England.
The Tenant Participation Team have been awarded a £64,000 Innovation
into Action grant, which will allow us to invest in a special programme of
initiatives over the coming two years as we move forward as Freebridge
Community Housing. Our successful bid outlined the development and
application of the Community Gateway model and will culminate in a ‘best
practice’ Rural Empowerment Strategy.
One new project integrated into our plans for next year is in partnership
with the Lynn News, and is covered in this issue on page 8. However, an
ongoing initiative such as the Tenant Awards (update on page 6 & 7) will
also be maintained and is proving ever more popular.
To be eligible we had to, among other things, be genuinely innovative and
we have much more to tell you in the next issue of Streets Ahead.
Helping us all to ‘Wise-Up’!
We are pleased to be taking
part in the launch of a new
nationwide information service
for housing tenant newsletters
called Wise-Up™. You may
have noticed a ‘wise-up’ in the
last edition of Streets Ahead
from Citizen’s Advice?
Supported by the Office of the
Deputy Prime Minister, WiseUps™ carry useful topical
information and advice from
organisations such as The
Department for Work & Pensions,
Age Concern and many others.
Wise-Ups™ will often offer
direct tenant benefits, as well
as contact details, allowing
direct access to agencies which
prioritise tenant interests.
So, watch out…and Wise-Up
to a whole range of topics!
06 | FREEBRIDGE COMMUNITY HOUSING
Lots of wonderful
people…but who will
be on the shortlist?
Despite the many ‘transfer’ issues to consider in recent
months, it is with great pride that we confirm even
more nominations were received for the 2004 Tenant
Awards than in 2003.
Now attention turns to the shortlisting announcements on January 20th
at the Dukes Head Hotel, King’s Lynn and the presentations themselves on
March 1st, at King’s Lynn Town Hall.
Readers of Streets Ahead are welcome to attend both events, which
includes free entry and refreshments. Please ensure that you have booked
your place by calling 01603 813477.
Almost 100 nominations across five categories will now be considered
by the judging panel, led this year by Phil Morgan (Chief Executive of
the Tenant Participation Advisory Service). Phil is ably supported by Dot
Richardson (winner of the Supporter Award in 2003) and Rita O’Donnell,
your Tenant Participation Officer.
THE CATEGORIES
BEING JUDGED ARE
• Local Leader
A person responsible for
initiatives, projects or
business activities benefiting
the wider community.
• Achiever
A person who has overcome
significant obstacles (e.g.
age, gender, disability), yet
adapted to a radical change
in day to day circumstances.
• Supporter
Someone showing exceptional
commitment to the well-being
of other people (physical,
mental or emotional).
• Gardener
Someone illustrating initiative
skill and dedication through
gardening, setting a great
example to other tenants.
• Young Champion
A young person who has
made a positive difference
to their local community.
FREEBRIDGE COMMUNITY HOUSING | 07
Mr & Mrs ‘B’ only moved into our
street in the summer and their
garden was, in a word, rough!
They have, through hours of
dedication and a lot of money,
transformed their gardens into
paved, featured and very well kept
pieces, which stand out and are
the focal point of our little close.
I think this is a shining example
to the community and shows
how things can be transformed
with a bit of dedication and
effort, and I think they should
be considered for this award.
I would like to nominate Mr ‘C’
for the award of ‘LOCAL LEADER’
And the nominations are...
Before winners can be
chosen, the shortlist
will be announced at
the Dukes Head Hotel,
Tuesday Market Place,
King’s Lynn on Thursday
January 20th at 6.30pm
by Mayor of King’s
Lynn, Paul Brandon.
6.30pm Short address from
Paul Brandon, presentation of
certificates to all nominees,
followed by reading of the shortlist.
6.45pm Photograph of
Paul Brandon with the
short-listed residents
7pm Close - “Look forward to
March 1st at the Town Hall”.
Here are just some of the wonderful
stories that lie behind many of the
nominations received so far…
I would like to nominate ‘A’
for the award of ‘ACHIEVER’
This is an informal and fun
celebration for all who have
booked to attend (01603
813477). If you can join us
please arrive before 6.15pm. The
running order is as follows:
Mrs ‘A’ is disabled with a chronic
lung disease and arthritis. She
manages to run her home with
two kids still and a disabled
husband. However she overcomes
all her problems and family
commitments to tirelessly raise
money for local people in need.
She works amazingly full-time
voluntarily at the community shop
and chairs two committees. I don’t
know how she does it. If anyone
deserves an award, she does.
5.45pm Doors open for residents
and guests – drinks are served.
I would like to nominate Mr & Mrs
‘B’ for the award of ‘GARDENER’
The Dukes Head Hotel
Despite being disabled, Mr ‘C’
is a lead voluntary figure at the
community shop, driving the
van and coordinating much of
the charitable works within the
scheme. He also runs an under 14’s
football club which he started up
himself. He also drives the mini bus
voluntarily part-time, taking needy
people on day trips or airport runs.
He even took a needy family on
holiday. He is a true leader of the
local community in many ways.
I would like to nominate Mr ‘D’
for the award of ‘SUPPORTER’
Mr ‘D’ offers endless silent support
at the Family Aid Centre doing all
the jobs full time, voluntarily that
nobody else wants to do. He makes
tea, fixes bits of donated furniture,
empties rubbish, delivers things and
does the garden here. Nothing is
too much trouble; he is a victim of
depression but never lets it show.
I would like to nominate
Miss ‘E’ for the award of
‘YOUNG CHAMPION’
Miss ‘E’ is 13 years old. Her mother
suffers with cancer and raises
money for charity, and Miss ‘E’
does all she can to help her raise
money and does a lot in the home.
Her motto is that if it helps her
mother in any way she will do it.
She takes the initiative to help
and has done this since she was
little. It is a caring and sharing
attitude which is so out of fashion
in young people these days. She
is not greedy or selfish and is so
very respectful. I think she should
be nominated for an award.
08 | FREEBRIDGE COMMUNITY HOUSING
Wanted…four Freebridge newshounds
We’re delighted to say that the
Lynn News has agreed to a very
special collaboration with your
newsletter Streets Ahead. Please
read the following information,
because you may be able to help
us fill some new key positions.
approximately 10 to 15 hours
each month, which includes two
2 hour editorial meetings.
Many of you have expressed
interest in ‘getting involved’
with the production of Streets
Ahead. So, for the first time we’re
putting together a production
team that includes four central
roles for Freebridge residents.
The four successful candidates
will receive training, the necessary
materials and expenses. However,
in addition the Lynn News has
offered the four successful
applicants the chance to
‘shadow’ key members of
their own production team
and learn the ropes from
journalists, photographers and
their Editor, Malcolm Powell.
Each position will be available
for 12 months (covering up to
6 editions of Streets Ahead).
Those interested will need to find
This is a very generous offer from
the Lynn News, and we thank
Malcolm and his team for their
support and enthusiasm, which
shone through when he said,
“I think this is a great initiative,
and I’m sure all concerned will
benefit from it. We believe the
experience could open the door
to a long-term career for those
with real ambition, and of course
it will also be a lot of fun!”
Malcolm
Powell
Editor
So what are the four roles?
News Journalist
Sports & Recreation journalist
Your role here is to report the news stories that
affect your fellow Freebridge residents. The
articles you write (backed up by photographs)
will be wide in variety and of interest to
everyone…from single parents and teenagers
through to your retired readership.
Here’s a chance to track local sporting & leisure
interest stories, particularly the minority sports,
reporting the stories that involve Freebridge
residents. You’ll be expected to liaise with the
Streets Ahead photographer, and take responsibility
for ‘the sports page’.
Editor
Photographer
In due course you will chair each of the monthly
production meetings, liaising with your team
during each production period. You’ll need to
ensure that the entire area receives coverage
during your year as Editor. Some of the decisions
won’t be easy, but that’s editorial responsibility!
We will supply the camera & other materials
as well as some training. You will need to work
with the Streets Ahead writing team…after all,
a picture is often worth a thousand words.
No experience is necessary for any of the above positions. All applicants must be over 18 years old.
If you would like to be considered, please complete and return the form below using the following FREEPOST address:
Freebridge
Arena Partnership Ltd
Colney Hall
FREEPOST NAT 11516
Norwich
NR4 7BR
All forms must be returned by
February 11th. We’ll be in touch
within 48hrs of your reply.
Name .....................................................
Favoured role...............................................
Address ..........................................................................................................................
Telephone ...............................................
Mobile.........................................................
Why I want to be on the Streets Ahead production team (in not more than 50 words)