Broadland Housing Group

Homes, community & support since 1963

News

Broadland volunteers build new kitchen for charity

Broadland staff have been proudly supporting PACT as their chosen charity this year, raising much needed funds for the animal sanctuary.

PACT needed some practical help to upgrade their kennel kitchen. However, nearly all the money the charity raises is used to care for the rescued animals.

However, Broadland staff came to the rescue! Each year we give every employee one volunteer day to donate to a charity of their choice. Our diverse workforce includes electricians, plumbers, plasterers and carpenters, and some of them decided to donate a day of their labour to PACT.

Broadland contacted kitchen suppliers and we were thrilled to receive such a positive response.  Donations included:

·       a kitchen by Benchmarx

·       vinyl flooring by Faithfull Flooring

·       various materials by Travis Perkins

·       PPG hard-wearing paint

The new kennel kitchen is due to be finished at the end of November.

We are immensely grateful to our suppliers for their support, and proud of our staff for using their volunteer days for such a worthwhile cause!

Broadland Housing proud to maintain GOLD in SHIFT Awards

We are delighted to once again maintain our GOLD status in the Sustainable Homes Index for Tomorrow (SHIFT) Awards. Following our success in 2016, in 2018 we are the highest scoring social landlord. This achievement reflects the work and care we put into the sustainability of our homes and the change we have implemented across the business.

We are particularly pleased to score highly in the ‘adaptation to climate change’ and ‘strategy and leadership’ categories, as these have been a focus for us as a business.  Our high score for tenant engagement activities reflects our passion to put our tenants first.

Michael Newey, Group Chief Executive, commented:

“I am immensely proud that once again we have got Gold in the SHIFT awards. Being the highest scoring landlord for both 2016 and 2018 shows the focus from all areas of the business that we are fully committed to being a sustainable landlord. The staff team have done great work to show we are a ‘green’ business.”

(pictured: Louise Archer, Executive Property Director, centre, on stage at the 2018 award ceremony on 8 November)

Dereham tenants celebrate 10 years

Broadland invited Dereham tenants to a family fun day in October to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Boundary Close, Pavilion Way and Keeper’s Close.

The housing scheme, which includes 65 homes and flats, opened in 2008. Julia, a former tenant board member, was one of the first Broadland tenants to move in. She said:

I love living here. When I first came, my two youngest children were very young. It’s been a safe place for them to grow up – everyone looks out for one another here. People are very friendly.

Stephani Davis, Senior Housing Manager, said:

We’re thrilled to celebrate the scheme’s 10th birthday. There’s a great community spirit here. Over the years a number of tenants have got involved in our panels and groups to help improve Broadland’s housing services. We’re really grateful for their views, which are shaping how we deliver these services to tenants across all of our homes.

The day’s fun included free hot food, face painting, crafts and drawing, recycling tips from the Master Composters, environmental crafts and bird-feeder making. Firefighters from Norfolk Fire & Rescue Service also bought one of their engines and talked to tenants about fire safety.

 

 

 

 

Highly commended – Women in Housing Awards 2018!

Broadland’s Maintenance team was ‘Highly Commended’ at the 2018 Women in Housing Awards in Manchester. Our Better Together project also reached the finals of the awards.

The judges praised Broadland’s 2017-18 achievements in the Maintenance Team of the Year category. The Maintenance team is headed by Louise Archer (Executive Property Director) and managed by Kelly Harris (Head of Repairs Service, Maintenance). Although predominantly male, the team now includes three women operatives: Nikki Farrugia, gas engineer; Claire Walker, electrician; and Kay Gotsell, plumber.

Among the Maintenance team’s achievements this year was to carry out 82 emergency repairs during the ‘Beast from the East’. The heavy snow storms in February 2018 particularly affected Broadland’s remote rural properties, but no tenant was left without a fully working heating system.

Tenant satisfaction with repairs remains consistently high. The average repairs satisfaction rate for 2017-18 quarter 4 was 84%, reaching 86% in February 2018.

Broadland’s Better Together project also reached the finals, in the ‘Improving Women’s Lives’ category. Better Together is Broadland Housing’s award-winning campaign to combat loneliness in Norfolk communities. The team’s entry included several case studies that demonstrated how they are supporting socially isolated women of all ages across the county. Well done to both teams!

 

Celebrating 16 new homes at Bodham, north Norfolk

Broadland celebrated the completion of 16 new homes in the north Norfolk village of Bodham in October.

This is the second phase of the Bodham development- the first phase was completed over 10 years ago.

The new scheme is a mixed tenure Exception Housing Scheme. The 16 high-quality homes include 7  affordable homes to rent and 3 which have been sold on a shared ownership basis, providing an affordable step onto the home ownership ladder.

All the affordable homes are prioritised for households with local connections through residence, family and employment to Bodham or its adjoining parishes of Baconsthorpe, Hempstead, High Kelling, Kelling, Matlaske, West Beckham, Weybourne and Upper Sheringham.

To make delivery of the affordable homes possible, Broadland developed 6 market homes as part of the scheme.  The market sales are an important step for Broadland and its subsidiary, Broadland St Benedicts. The sales proceeds from these homes are cross-subsidising new affordable homes in Bodham. This development is the result of a landmark partnership – the first of its kind in Norfolk – with North Norfolk District Council.

All the homes on the scheme, including the affordable properties, have been carefully designed to reflect the look and feel of the village and create a shared community.  Broadland believes that building a mixed tenure community can reduce the stigma around social housing and help enhance the existing vibrant community in Bodham.

Michael Newey, Group Chief Executive of BHA and Chair of Broadland St Benedicts, said:
“We are very proud to have built these much-needed homes in north Norfolk. We value the partnership we have with North Norfolk District Council. Working together has allowed us to provide a range of high-quality homes of all tenures.  This is the first time that the Group, through Broadland St Benedicts, has sold homes in the open market.  We are doing this both to generate surpluses to make our affordable homes financially viable for us, and to deliver mixed tenure communities.”

A spokesperson for North Norfolk District Council said:
“Providing affordable local homes for local people is a key priority for the Council and we are really pleased to be able to celebrate with Broadland Housing Group the completion of the first mixed tenure Exception Housing Scheme to be completed in north Norfolk.”

Cllr Sue Arnold, Cabinet Portfolio Holder for Housing, said:
“The Bodham scheme reflects an effective partnership between the Council, Broadland Housing Group and Bodham Parish Council, as all three parties recognised the need for affordable housing to meet local housing need in Bodham.  These quality new homes will make a real difference to people’s lives and I am proud of the Council’s role in supporting this fantastic outcome.”

Speaking about the project, James Phillips, General Manager for construction company John Youngs, said:
“We are delighted to have worked in partnership with Broadland Housing to deliver quality local community housing that is not only affordable, but also modern and comfortable, matching the association’s and council’s future vision for mixed tenure housing schemes.”

Accessibility by WAH