H&F Council continues to make improvements to its repairs service.
The council is working closely with residents and managing contractors to ensure the repairs service is responsive and efficient.
The improvements made so far include 95 per cent of routine repairs being completed on time in September compared to 70 per cent in May 2023. Emergency repairs have seen improvements too with 95 per cent completed on time in September.
The council has successfully addressed all overdue damp and mould repairs, completing over 1,100 jobs since April 2023.
Read more about how we are using tech to tackle damp and mould.
The council's repairs call contact centre reduced call waiting times as it answered 98 per cent of calls right away in September. Calls are being answered quicker and so appointments are being booked faster to fix homes. There has also been a focus on getting repairs right first time.
This is an improvement on the 72 per cent of calls which were answered first time in March 2023. Surveys are sent to residents which helps the team understand where improvements can be made. Ninety-four per cent of residents surveyed felt their calls were dealt with professionally and courteously by the team as we continually ask residents for feedback on our repairs service to make further improvements.
H&F Cabinet Member for Housing and Homelessness, Cllr Frances Umeh, said:
We're committed to delivering an effective repairs service so residents live in safe, warm and well-maintained homes. We're managing contractors to get repairs right the first time, improving how calls are managed and bringing empty homes swiftly back into use.
We are listening to residents, will check to ensure jobs are completed to their satisfaction and will continue to make further improvements.
We're rebuilding the service and investing more than £1m a week into our homes to make H&F the best place to live in a council home in Britain."
Anna McInulty, Vice-Chair of the resident-led Fire, Building Safety and Repairs Working Group, which has played an important role in delivering improvements, said:
"Two years ago the repairs service was not up to standard. By working together with the housing department we have help make significant improvements to the repairs service. Contractors are now delivering good quality repairs in a timely manner."
The council has also brought on a new repairs contractor, Wates, to deliver repairs and maintenance services to homes in the north and central parts of the borough. This is part of our continued work to improve the housing repairs service for residents.
The repair helpline is available 24 hours, seven days a week for emergency repairs. Please call 0800 023 4499 (open Monday to Friday, 8am-6pm for all other repairs).
