North Hertfordshire Homes Annual Report 2012/13

Annual Reportfor the year ended 31 March 2013

North Hertfordshire Homes is a not-for-profit housing association providing and maintaining quality homes in eight local authority areas across the counties of Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire.

Our housing stock of over 9000 homes includes general needs housing, temporary accommodation for homeless people, retirement living and flexicare housing for older people with care needs.

We acquired North Hertfordshire District Council’s housing stock in 2003 and have built 1100 new affordable homes during our first ten years of operation. Our wholly-owned subsidiary, Rowan Homes, was set up in 2011 to market new-build properties for sale, with all surpluses being used to deliver more affordable housing.

We have neighbourhood offices in Royston, Baldock, Hitchin, Letchworth and St Albans providing local and accessible housing services for our tenants and creating hubs for our partnership and community development work.

North Hertfordshire Homes

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Welcome

Page 4 Corporate division

Page 6 Property division

Page 8 Finance division

Page 10 Operations division

Page 12 Rowan Homes

Page 14 Financial summary

Page 15 How we performed

Page 16 Statistical information

Page 17 Board and Executive Management Team

Contents

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WE WELCOMED OuR FiRST FAMiLiES TO TOMORROW’S GARDEN CiTy AT HARTiNGTON PLACE, LETCHWORTH.

Our vision is to be recognised as a high quality, successful and progressive housing association.

We valueOPENNESS We will be open and transparent in our dealings with each other and with our tenants, customers and partners.

RESPONSiBiLiTy We will do everything we can to improve people’s lives and the world we live in.

RESPECT We will treat each other and everyone who deals with us, with respect and promote diversity and equality in all we do.

iNTEGRiTy We will maintain the highest standards of behaviour with our tenants, customers and partners to build trusting relationships.


WELCOME Like all housing associations we’ve been dealing with the tough conditions out there for our tenants and partners and for ourselves. A lot of our time has been spent planning and preparing for the impact of benefits changes, falling incomes and hardship. There are, of course, challenges but we’ve chosen to use our report this year to focus on the positive things we have been doing to improve things for our residents.

We are particularly pleased to have consolidated and expanded our development programme, generating income by building homes for sale to fund new affordable homes through our subsidiary company, Rowan Homes. A highlight was the official opening by the Duke of Devonshire of the Letchworth based Tomorrow’s Garden City project, with 60 new mixed tenure homes built to the original Garden City principles but using modern environmentally friendly materials and construction methods, making a worthy contribution to celebrating ones of the most important housing movements of all time.

Our drive for greater efficiency and quality continues despite already achieving high levels of satisfaction and performance. New ways of working are being developed taking advantage of new technology and online services, reflecting customers’ expectations in this new digital age.

Our tenant scrutiny arrangements are well established with teams of trained residents carrying out mystery shopping, estate and public office inspections, telephone satisfaction surveys and conducting service audits.

This is all helping to improve how we do things, and developing real skills amongst our involved tenants. For example, Christine Anthony joined our tenant mystery shopping team, moved on to chair our Tenants Forum and last year was appointed to the Board, bringing her skills and experience into the heart of our governance arrangements.

But above all, the skills and commitment of staff will determine how effective our services to customers are. We were delighted, therefore, to record once again an overall staff satisfaction level of 93% – and to have entered the Sunday Times Best Companies list, coming 90th in the top 100 not-for-profit organisations.

External conditions might be difficult, but we continue to be optimistic about the approach we are taking to look after our tenants and our business.

Gordon Johnston kevin thompson Chair Chief executive

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CORPORATE DiviSiONCUSTOMERS EXPECT SERVICES TO BE AVAILABLE WHEN THEY WANT THEM AND HOW THEY WANT THEM. WE HAVE MADE A GOOD START TOWARDS ACHIEVING THIS WITH ONLINE ACCESS TO SERVICES AND INFORMATION, BACKED UP BY NEW PAPERLESS INTERNAL SYSTEMS.

We keep a careful eye on what our tenants and staff tell us and make sure we respond to what we learn. Our corporate teams – Performance and Quality, Human Resources, Communications and Customer Services – provide the driving force for this. it is clear that most people now expect to access services online at times of their choosing. Last year we took our first important steps to make this a reality by re-engineering internal systems and providing new ways to access our services and information.

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We launched our redesigned, award winning website www.nhh.org.uk with user-friendly navigation and clearer content which has received many compliments from tenants and peer groups. We followed up with a portal, myNHH, that gives tenants secure access to their rent account and other information so they can check it whenever it suits them. They can already report repairs and make payments online.

This is better for tenants and also reduces the volume of calls to us, freeing up staff time to spend on supporting tenants.

But we are very conscious that not everyone has access to digital technology and with the Government’s switchover to “Digital by Default” services in April 2014 we have started to address digital exclusion, developing local ‘champions’ to help give people skills

kevin thompson Chief Executive

and confidence and providing outlets where people can make use of computers. We will be doing much more of this next year.

WE SHOWED OuR CONTiNuED COMMiTMENT TO LOCAL COMMuNTiTiES THROuGH OuR GOLD RiNGS MuSiC PROJECT WHiCH REACHED AND iNSPiRED PEOPLE OF ALL AGES.


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DESPiTE MOST FORWARD PREDiCTiONS SuGGESTiNG THAT DiFFiCuLT TiMES LiE AHEAD FOR THE NATiONAL ECONOMy AND HOuSiNG SECTOR, WE HAvE EvERy REASON TO BE OPTiMiSTiC AND THiS iS REFLECTED iN OuR ACHiEvEMENTS OvER THE yEAR.

Gordon Johnston Chair of North Hertfordshire Homes

PROPERTy DiviSiONWE HAVE BEEN VERY SUCCESSFUL, ACHIEVING HIGH LEVELS OF CUSTOMER SATISFACTION AND MEETING AND EXCEEDING ALL OF OUR OPERATIONAL TARGETS.

We made significant progress with our planned maintenance and improvement works during 2012/13.

Renewable and sustainable heating systems in the form of air-source heat pumps were installed in over 200 properties in the rural areas of north Hertfordshire. These homes are more exposed to cold weather conditions so generally cost more to heat. The pumps provide a constant ambient temperature and are less susceptible to breakdown.

We also replaced over 250 inefficient central heating boilers with new high efficiency ones and installed external wall insulation to over 100 homes that have traditionally suffered from high rates of heat loss. All of these measures mean that tenants should feel the benefit of warmer homes and cheaper fuel bills.

Major refurbishment and improvement works continued at our Retirement Living schemes with three further schemes completed, and we created off-street parking to reduce congestion for residents at Redhill Road in Hitchin.

This has been a busy year for the team that manages home ownership for our leaseholder and shared-ownership tenants. We have seen a dramatic increase in the number of people applying for their Right to Buy since the Government increased the discount cap to £75k and our shared ownership completions have seen very healthy growth with 29 properties at Tomorrow’s Garden City concluded swiftly.

A comprehensive stock condition survey of all our homes was carried out to ensure that we had access to the most accurate and up-to-date information on the condition of our stock and to assess the impact of the huge investment we made to bring them

up to the Decent Homes Standard. The survey confirmed that we spent our money wisely and our stock is generally in very good condition. The survey information is now being used to plan our future investment in the housing stock. This will help us prioritise the homes and communities most in need of investment; ensure we continue to make best use of our assets; and offer current and future tenants homes that meet their aspirations.

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paul murtagh Director


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WE iNTRODuCED PARTiCiPANTS OF OuR THiRD GREEN TEAM PROJECT TO COMPuTER AiDED DESiGN FOR PLANNiNG iMPROvEMENT WORkS.

Substantial improvements have been made to the sustainability of our housing stock this year through renewable energy sources which will help lower fuel poverty.

howard marshall Board Member and Sustainability Champion

FiNANCE DiviSiONTHE FINANCE AND IT TEAMS HAVE FACED SIGNIFICANT CHALLENGES DURING THE YEAR, BUT ACHIEVED SUCCESSFUL DELIVERY OF THE AGREED PRIORITIES, WHICH HAS CREATED A GOOD PLATFORM TO IMPROVE OUR SERVICES IN FUTURE YEARS.

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Alan park Director

The Board and executive management rely on a professional team for accurate information, considered guidance and clear presentation.

A new Chart of Accounts has been introduced which is improving the accuracy and consistency of reporting and the forecasting of financial performance. The increased integrity of our financial information makes us better informed and enhances our decision making.

The efficiency and effectiveness of invoice processing has been improved with the implementation of the iPOS requisition and purchase order workflow system and we have installed better internal controls for how we spend money.

On the iT side, the outdated phone system has been replaced with a digital version which provides our call centre teams with more practical, wireless handsets and ‘follow me’ numbers for staff moving between our various offices. The new phone system also allows us to group the management of calls across the five neighbourhood offices so that offices with a lower footfall are able to answer generic enquiries on behalf of other colleagues.

We have put in place a document imaging system that is reducing the vast amount of paper and the consequential filing and storage of historical records. The new system is increasing the effective utilisation of office space which is benefitting staff and customers as well as reducing our costs.

The team is initiating improvements and is receptive to new ways of working and we can now capitalise on the good preparatory work achieved so far. We plan to improve the robustness of our financial planning capability; increase collaborative working and expand the efficiency and effectiveness of customer services through mobile working.


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The recent enhancement to reporting and heightened Board awareness of key issues is particularly valuable as we approach an era of substantial new challenges.

douglas kell Board Member and Finance Champion

WE RAiSED MONEy FOR CANCER RESEARCH uk, ORCHiD MALE CANCER, MACMiLLAN AND COMiC RELiEF.

A member of our team is now dedicated to proactively engaging with those tenants most likely to need extra support with budgeting for universal Credit, and our new under-occupation Officer is assisting with transfers and chains of mutual exchanges to facilitate downsizing. We’ve increased our funding to the Citizens Advice Bureau, Black Squirrel Credit union and the Welfare and Distress Fund so that they are able to provide advice and financial help to those asking for help.

OPERATiONS DiviSiONWE CONTINUE TO BE PROUD OF OUR STAFF PERFORMANCE AS THEY HAVE AGAIN EXCEEDED OUR TARGETS FOR REPAIRS AND RENT COLLECTION, AND ARE TALKING TO MORE TENANTS AS THE ECONOMIC CHALLENGES UNFOLD.

Our refurbishment of Retirement Living schemes continues, creating contemporary homes for today’s more discerning older people. The high quality of our Flexicare service for older people with care needs was formally recognised when our Andersons House staff won Hertfordshire Care Providers Best Care Team of the year.

Together with our Groundwork Hertfordshire partner, we have created our first social enterprise

out of the GreenTeam programme that provided landscaping qualifications and experience for young people not in employment, education or training.

We have invested £90k in three promising young people who have three years to establish their Shoots & Roots business under the mentorship of Groundwork and NHH staff.

Our large building works programme creates vast volumes of waste, so we are extremely pleased that our concerted effort to reduce, reuse and recycle has had notable success with our average monthly waste disposal costs reducing by 26% in the second half of the year.

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victoria hisgrove Director

Welfare reform is creating an unprecedented burden on housing associations and the action we have taken will support our tenants and reduce the risk of rent loss.

peter Lipman Chair of Resident Services Committee


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WE ENCOuRAGED THE iNDEPENDENCE AND WELLBEiNG OF OuR FLExiCARE TENANTS.

Setting up Rowan Homes in 2011 has meant that we are able to continue building affordable homes at a time when many housing associations have reduced their development programme because of reductions in government grant funding.

We have found that funding affordable housing by building some homes for sale gives us the flexibility and independence to work closely with local authorities to provide homes that meet customers’ needs.

it has proven very popular and they are supporting us in our programme by providing sites for affordable housing free of charge.

During 2012/13 we built 63 homes for rent and 13 for shared ownership using £600,000 earned from selling 12 private homes at Wheatsheaf Meadow in Barkway and Leefield in Welwyn Garden City. We were also able to support Macintyre Housing Association by providing them with 16 of our rented homes in Cooks Way,

ROWAN HOMESOUR FUNDING MODEL IS PAYING FOR AFFORDABLE HOUSING BY SELLING PRIVATE HOMES.

Hitchin for use as supported housing.

We officially opened our new state of the art Retirement Living scheme, Rosewood Court in St Albans, marking the start of a successful year of activity with St Albans City and District Council.

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Rosewood Court was followed by a mixed tenure development of market sale, shared ownership, general needs and 23 temporary accommodation flats in Hill End Lane that further supported the Council’s housing strategy.

nick Wright Managing Director,

Rowan Homes


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Our achievements indicate very clearly that our decision to fund affordable housing through building market sale homes was the right one.

david pickeringChair of Rowan Homes Board

WE CONGRATuLATED THE CHiLDREN OF BARkWAy viLLAGE ON THE DESiGN OF THEiR NEW COMMuNiTy GARDEN.

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Our income of £53,943 was received from the following areas:

£000s

Gen

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need

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Supp

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Shar

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Non

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ial

hous

ing

acti

viti

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Gen

eral

need

s ho

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Supp

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Non

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41,0

66

3,95

1

654

588

6,78

1

903

Our total operating costs of £40,431 were spent in the following areas:

£000s

29,9

03

2,84

3

242

494 6,

776

173

INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT

Total Social Other social Non social £000s housing lettings housing activities housing activities

Income 53,943 46,259 6,781 903

Operating costs -40,431 -33,482 -6,776 -173

Operating surplus 13,512 12,777 5 730

Surplus on sale of houses 291

Net interest and taxation -10,068

net surpus for year 3,735

FiNANCiAL SuMMARy


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PERFORMANCE 2012/13

Emergency Repairs 99.5% (2011/12: 99.6%)

urgent Repairs 98.8% (2011/12: 98.9%)

Routine Repairs 98.5% (2011/12: 97.7%)

Repair appointments 97.9% (2011/12: 98.2%)

Voids

General needs 13.8 days (2011/12: 13.9 days)

Housing for older people 23.6 days (2011/12: 28 days)

Temporary accommodation 32.1 days (2011/12: 20.2 days)

Arrears

All social housing 2.25% (2011/12: 2.11%)

Complaints and Compliments

Complaints 50 (2011/12: 67)

Compliments 249 (2011/12: 208)

Development

Completions and acquisitions 2012/13: 91 (2011/12: 268)

Starts on site 2012/13: 43 (2011/12: 33)

HOW WE PERFORMED

our housinG stoCk

Bedsit 82

One Bedroom (General needs) 1104

Two Bedrooms (General needs) 2084

Three Bedrooms (General needs) 3814

Four Bedrooms (General needs) 179

Five Bedrooms (General needs) 4

Housing for Older People 817

Supported Housing 150

Shared Ownership 185

Leaseholders 545

AverAGe WeekLy rent (GenerAL needs)

Bedsit £69.26

1 Bed £80.39

2 Bed £94.90

3 Bed £102.33

4 Bed £112.42

5 Bed £139.26

ethniC oriGin LettinGs

15% as defined by Housemark/Core

eConomiC stAtus of heAd of househoLd

Working Full Time 27.2%

Working Part Time 14.4%

Government Training / New Deal 0%

Job Seeker 13.9%

Retired 4.4%

Not Seeking Work 24.2%

Full-Time Student 2.5%

Long Term Sick/Disabled 11.1%

Other (adult) 2.2%

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STATiSTiCAL iNFORMATiONFOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2013


NORTH HERTFORDSHIRE HOMES BOARD

Christine Anthony

Stacey Brewer

Tom Brindley

Bill Davidson

Philip Day

Gordon Johnston Chair of North Hertfordshire Homes

David Kearns Chair of Audit and Risk Committee

Douglas Kell Finance Champion

Ralph Kitchener (retired 27 September 2012)

Peter Lipman Vice Chair of North Hertfordshire Homes; Chair of Resident Services Committee; Equality and Diversity Champion

Howard Marshall Sustainability Champion

Heather McKinlay

David Pickering Chair of Rowan Homes Board

Jackie Thomas

Pauline Walker

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NORTH HERTFORDSHiRE HOMES BOARD AND ExECuTivE MANAGEMENT TEAM

CHIEF EXECUTIVE kevin Thompson

DIRECTOR OF FINANCE Nathan Mallows (until 7 December 2012)

DIRECTOR OF PROPERTY Paul Murtagh

DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS victoria Hisgrove

registered office Rowan House Avenue One Letchworth Garden City Hertfordshire SG6 2WW

North Hertfordshire Homes is an industrial and Provident Society with charitable rules.

Registration Number: 30003R

North Hertfordshire Homes is registered with the Tenant Services Authority Registration number: L4370

registered Auditors Grant Thornton uk LLP 202 Silbury Boulevard Central Milton keynes Mk9 1LW

This report is available in large print or other formats upon request to the same address. you can also ask for a translation into another language.

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solicitors Winckworth Sherwood LLP Minerva House 5 Montague Close London SE1 9BB

Bankers Barclays Bank PLC 1 Churchill Place London E14 5HP

further copies of this report can be obtained from: The Communications Team North Hertfordshire Homes Rowan House Avenue One Letchworth Garden City Hertfordshire SG6 2WW

telephone: 01462 704107 e-mail: [email protected]

North Hertfordshire Homes Annual Report 2012/13

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