Broadland Housing Association

Homes, community & support since 1963

    • tenants

    New portraits celebrate tenants

    • Broadland Housing tenants with portrait painted by Devin Smith

    Broadland tenants have inspired 3 original oil paintings by local artist Devin Smith. Broadland commissioned the portraits for our refurbished meeting rooms at The Elms in Norwich. Devin’s brief was to give an insight into tenants’ lives on our schemes.

    Thomas, Tim, Violet and Linda joined Devin and our Chief Executive Michael Newey for an exclusive (socially distanced) preview of their portraits at a celebration afternoon tea.

    The painting far exceeded my expectations. I would like to thank Devin for such a fantastic piece of art!

    Violet, tenant

    Michael Newey said:

    These are stunning artworks, each with a unique story to tell. We are grateful to Devin for creating these original portraits celebrating the lives of tenants at our schemes.

    Michael Newey, Chief Executive

    To see more of Devin’s work see www.facebook.com/DevinSmithArt

    Switchee smart tech rollout will connect Broadland’s entire housing stock

    By the end of 2021, we will have installed Switchee smart thermostats in nearly 10%* of our our 5,000+ homes.

    The full rollout will make Broadland the first housing provider to have a fully connected housing stock.

    The rollout follows a successful Switchee pilot which started in 2018. The main focus was to alleviate fuel poverty for Broadland tenants. 

    What is Switchee?

    Switchee is a simple and intuitive control for the heating system, allowing tenants to save up to 17% on their energy bill. It also offers remote control of the heating system via an app**.

    Data is then sent from the Switchee device via the mobile phone network up to the cloud. This information is processed, and the insights are shared directly with Broadland’s maintenance and support teams in real time.

    Louise Archer, Executive Asset Director, said

    Switchee has proven great outcomes on an operational level during the pilot. We now aim to bring its benefits to all Broadland tenants and staff by expanding the rollout and integrating its data and features with our internal business system.

    Reducing fuel poverty

    The Broadland trial showed a 92% response rate to messages sent through the smart home tech. Responses to a Switchee survey in November 2020 flagged up an older male tenant, living on his own with physical and mental health disabilities, who was at high risk of fuel poverty.

    Kevin Gee, Tenancy Support Manager, explained:

    As well as helping the tenant access the support he needed, our Tenancy Support team were able to use the data from Switchee to stay in regular contact with him. We encouraged him to review how he heats his home, and change the times when the heating was on. Using the Switchee data, our Repairs team were also able to identify and repair a faulty radiator valve in the property.

    Maintenance and communications benefits

    Trial data enabled Broadland to identify a number of potential mould disrepair cases and send damp prevention advice to 17% of homes with a Switchee. The technology has also helped us strengthen communication with our tenants. For example, our communications team used a Switchee survey to encourage tenants to sign up for Tenants Online and Door to Door magazine. Following the survey, 51% of tenants who had not signed up to receive the magazine did so.

    We are now looking into integrating Switchee’s data with our own Broadland Business Systems (BBS), to bring benefits and savings to tenants and landlord going forward.

    Justin O’Connor, Head of Asset Management, said:

    Switchee helps our Asset team to take a more proactive approach to tackling issues like damp and mould. It also acts a great tool for engaging our tenants and driving efficiency through its boiler testing and appointment scheduling features. And of course, Switchee helps us to reduce our carbon footprint by lowering energy bills, in line with our corporate strategy. 

    Tom Robins, Switchee’s CEO, said

    Broadland has been a great partner and they share our vision that connecting homes with IoT technology can unlock significant value for landlords and residents alike. We are delighted to support Broadland in their ambition to be the first UK housing provider with a fully connected stock and excited to see the positive impact for residents.

    *9% based on 450 devices across 5,000 homes

    ** app not available during trial

    Richard Alexander

    Richard Alexander, board member, Broadland Housing Association

    Richard began his career in the engineering office at Associated British Ports, Lowestoft. He prepared drawings, engineering documents, tenders and contracts for various works within the port estate.

    He joined Norfolk County Council in 1989, where he spent 18 years. He worked as a Highways Development Control Officer and later with the Waste Management Team, looking after the county’s recycling centres.

    Richard retired from his role as Service Manager for Suffolk Coastal and Waveney District Councils in 2017. He had represented both authorities on joint venture and partnership boards for outsourced services, including waste and recycling collections, the management and operation of leisure centres, and asset management of council properties.

    More recently Richard completed a short term with Great Yarmouth Borough Council in the Planning and Growth Team. This looked at vacant commercial and domestic properties within the Borough and how best to encourage the owners to return them to use/occupation.

    I believe that a society should provide some form of social housing and that it fulfils a vitally important sector of the housing provision. The opportunity for people to rent good quality properties coupled with a regulated and fair system of rent increase is essential.

    Free IAP launched for Broadland tenants

    Broadland is delighted to announce the launch an Individual Assistance Programme (IAP) for tenants and their immediate family members.

    The IAP is a free, independent service providing Broadland tenants with 24-hour access to professional and confidential telephone counselling, advice and support. 

    The new service will run initially from 1 October 2020 for 12 months. It is being operated by our partner Health Assured, providers of our Employee Assistance Programme.

    We are really excited about this new service, which complements our existing free Tenancy Support service so well. We believe there is a strong need among our tenants for this kind of confidential, professional support, particularly with the continuing impact of the pandemic.  The IAP offers a fantastic resource to help people cope with the issues in their lives.   

    Kevin Gee, Tenancy Support Manager

    Broadland already offers tenants a comprehensive range of free support services, including help to:

    • manage their tenancy, look after their home and cover their rent 
    • claim the right benefits 
    • budget, save money and get a better energy deal 
    • move house and set up your home 
    • access training and employment 
    • use a computer
    • look after their health and wellbeing 
    Broadland health and wellbeing logo

    Samantha England

    Samantha England works as a management consultant. She has many years in leadership and management and has a passion for learning and development.

    Samantha is Chair of the Ethics Committee and Chair of the IAG (Independent Advisory Group) for Norfolk Constabulary.

    She is involved in many community projects and recently set up a community group which won South Norfolk community group of the year. Other voluntary commitments include being a trustee for a local youth club, school governor and trustee for the Multiple Sclerosis Therapy Centre Norfolk.

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