Author: Jade McLelland

Shire Housing Association is delighted to report that it has recently retained Investors in People Gold Accreditation and Compliance with Customer Service Excellence.

Gold accreditation in Investors in People means that not only does Shire have the policies in place, but more than that, everyone takes ownership for making them come to life.

It’s no surprise that a highly motivated and happy staff team delivers fantastic customer service to Shire’s tenants. Achievement of Compliance Plus in relation to working with communities mirrors Shire’s Community Award at the Ayrshire Chamber of Commerce Business Awards in October.

Commenting on the awards, Simon Roberts, Chair said, “We are incredibly proud to achieve these two awards.  They are a testament to the hard work of our dedicated team in achieving our Business Vision of Great Homes, Great People, Vibrant Communities”.

Shire Housing Association’s success in these prestigious awards underscores its position as a leading provider of social housing across 15 communities in East Ayrshire.  They operate as a community anchor organisation helping support and sustain communities.

Would you like to help make a difference for the people and communities of East Ayrshire? Are you looking for an opportunity to put your skills to good use? Why not consider becoming a Voluntary Board Member of Shire Housing Association?

We are a Registered Social Landlord and Charity providing services to 961 affordable rented homes across East Ayrshire, with an annual turnover of more than £5.6 million. The Management Board provides strong strategic leadership to our staff team, creating a dynamic and progressive organisation to help us achieve our Business Vision of “Great Homes, Great People, Vibrant Communities.”

We currently have 10 Board Members and are looking to recruit additional Members with a range of skills and personal qualities to further strengthen our strategic leadership. The role presents a fantastic opportunity to support Shire and its staff to ensure we continue to provide high quality housing and the services that our tenants and communities want. The Board meets on the last Wednesday of the month from approximately 6-8pm. Most meetings are conducted online using Microsoft Teams, with approximately two face-to-face meetings each year. Are you interested?

For further details please contact Jim Munro, Chief Executive on 01290 421130, or email info@shirehousing.com or write to us at Shire Housing Association Limited, Netherthird House, Netherthird, Cumnock, KA18 3DB.

 

Do you know where your main stop valve is to turn off the water if you have a burst pipe or think you may have a burst pipe?  If you cant locate your stop valve please call us and we’ll arrange for someone to visit.

Protect Your Home 

• Keep your home as warm as you can.
• Try not to leave taps dripping as this can lead to frozen waste pipes.
• If you notice any un-lagged pipes, let us know and we’ll get them lagged.
• If you are going away over the winter, tell us. We will come and drain your heating and water system free of charge while you’re away.

Frozen Pipes 

• Usually people become aware they have frozen pipes when heating systems don’t come on. Usually this is because a water pipe or an external condenser pipe is frozen.
• Damage to pipes happens when they freeze and start to thaw. If a pipe is frozen isolate it and turn off the stop value.
• Don’t try to thaw pipes using a naked flame or boiling water. It’s more likely to burst when direct heat is applied. A hairdryer can be used to heat up frozen pipes, but take care, the pipe may burst as it thaws and spray water. Thaw the pipe at the end nearest the tap first.
• Don’t switch on water filled heating appliances including boilers and immersion heaters until you’re sure the system has thawed out.
• Protect your possessions – If you think a pipe might burst move everything around it to protect your contents or belongings from water damage and switch off your water at the stop valve

If unsure please call Shire Housing on 01290 421130

 

Our office will close at 4.45pm on Thursday 21 December 2023 and will reopen at 8.45am on Thursday 4 January 2024. 

Our normal out of hours emergency repairs service will be in operation via 01290 421130.  

Rent Payments can be made at any time by:

• • calling 0330 041 6497,
  • via the AllPay website www.allpayments.net,
  • using the Allpay mobile app.

You can also continue to make payments directly into our bank account, or using the Post Office or PayPoint outlets.

The following numbers may also be of use:

For gas escapes: Transco 0800 111 999

For electrical supply faults: Scottish Power 0800 092 9290

For burst water mains: Scottish Water 0800 731 084

Wishing you all a lovely Christmas and Happy New Year.

RENT CONSULTATION 2024/25

Our rent consultation for 2024/25 is now live.  This is an opportunity for tenants to influence both their rent for the year ahead and the services we offer.

Packs have been posted to all tenants to read at home but you can also access the pack here.

You can give us your views by:

• Posting your paper survey to: Shire Housing Association Limited, FREEPOST RTJA-LEEA-KXRX, Netherthird House, Cumnock, KA18 3DB
• Emailing us: info@shirehousing.com  
• Phoning us: 01290 421130
• Completing the online survey: Rent Consultation 2024/25 (cxfb.co.uk)

All tenants who include their contact details will be entered into a draw to win a £50 shopping voucher.

 

Our office will be closed on Friday 22nd and Monday 25th September for bank holidays. 

Our normal out of hours emergency repairs service will be in operation via 01290 421130.  

Rent Payment can be made at any time by calling 0330 041 6497, via the AllPay website www.allpayments.net or by using the Allpay mobile app. You can also continue to make payments directly into our bank account, or using the Post Office or PayPoint outlets.

The following numbers may also be of use:

For gas escapes: Transco 0800 111 999

For electrical supply faults: Scottish Power 0800 092 9290

For burst water mains: Scottish Water 0800 731 084

 

Shire Housing Association are pleased to introduce our new servicing and maintenance contractor City Technical Services (UK) Ltd.

This contract will commence from Monday 5^th September 2022 at 9am

The out of hours telephone number for this service will be 0800 328 7446

You can also report repairs by calling Shire Housing Association during office opening hours on 01290 421130.

City Technical Services will continue to provide the service you currently receive.

Please join us in welcoming them as part of the Shire team.

How are we doing? Can you help us improve our services?  We have asked independent researchers from Research Resource to contact a significant percentage of our tenants and owners to find out what you think of their homes, neighbourhoods, and the services that Shire provides. The survey is completely anonymous and lasts around 20 minutes.  Your feedback will help us to continue meeting our customer’s needs.  We would like to thank everyone who gets involved during the research between 15th August and 7th October.

The survey follows the guidelines of the Market Research Society Code of Conduct and complies with the terms of the Data Protection Act. Be assured that all information collected will be treated as confidential and will only be used for the purposes of genuine market research. Your name and address will not appear with your responses, and no information about you will be passed to Shire Housing Association unless you give express permission during the survey.

To ensure the confidentiality of your responses we have asked Research Resource to undertake the study on our behalf. If you are worried that the person calling at your door is not genuine, there are a number of things you can do to check before letting them into your home.

1. Ask the interviewer to show you their photographic identity card. It will show the interviewer’s full name, ID number and photograph. If you are still not sure, ask to borrow the card and telephone Shire Housing.
2.  Call Shire Housing Association on 01290 421130 during office hours. Staff will check the names of the interviewers working on the project and will verify that the reference number corresponds to the one on the ID card. 

If you are in any doubt, please do not let the interviewer into your home until you have checked that they are genuine.  If necessary, take their details and ask them to call back later that day to give you time to verify them.  A genuine interviewer will be happy to do so.

The findings of the survey will be published and distributed to tenants.  Shire Housing Association will use the results to help improve the service we offer our tenants and make reports to the Scottish Housing Regulator. If you are selected for consultation, please accept our thanks in advance for your help in this important project.  If you do not wish to take part, please advise the Association and your name will be removed from our Database.

Shire Housing Association are pleased to introduce our new repairs and maintenance contractor Everwarm Group.

This contract will commence from Friday 8th July 2022 at 12.00 noon

The new out of hours telephone number for this service is 0330 0531804

You can also report repairs by calling Shire Housing Association during office opening hours on 01290 421130.

Everwarm Group will continue to provide the services you currently receive

Please join us in welcoming them as part of the Shire team.

Shire Housing Association is celebrating its 25^th year with a series of events for its tenants, stakeholders, and communities.

Formed in 1997 following a stock transfer from Scottish Homes, the Association operates across East Ayrshire, serving 16 different communities.

Actively living its vision of Great Homes, Great People, Vibrant Communities, the Association will celebrate all things 25 and honour long-standing tenants, members of staff and Board Members. There will also be events for children and young people.

Living its values, Shire will recognise caring acts of kindness throughout the year and include all its communities in the celebrations.

The Association commissioned a new logo for its year of celebrations. The logo was created by a local designer, demonstrating Shire’s commitment to community wealth building.

Watch out for news of the events on Shire’s social media.