Coronavirus Update - June 2021
Following the Government’s recent announcement regarding the four week pause to taking Step 4 of the roadmap out of lockdown, we thought this is a good time to update everyone regarding our services which have re-opened and those which remain restricted at this time.
Since entering Step 3 out of lockdown on 17th May we have gradually been re-opening some services where it is safe to do so, although our office remains closed to customers. Only in exceptional circumstances will we arrange an office appointment. We will agree with you if your query requires us to meet and cannot be resolved in any other way. All appointments at the HHS office must be agreed and arranged in advance and all visitors must be free from COVID-19 symptoms and follow our COVID-Secure arrangements.
For those of you who were regular visitors to our office previously, please be assured that we have no plans to close our office permanently. While it remains closed for customers to drop-in without an appointment, and may stay this way indefinitely, we are committed to keeping our office at Scotland Road and having a permanent presence in the heart of our local community in Chesterton.
We have all of our employees still working and whilst the majority continue to work remotely, you can contact us as usual from 8.30am to 5.30pm Monday to Thursday and 8.30am to 5pm on a Friday by emailing info@hhs.org.uk or calling us on 01223 315036.
We are currently working through the backlog of routine repairs which were deferred from January 2021 onwards and our contractors will be in touch soon to make an appointment if you are still awaiting a repair. If you are concerned about a repair worsening which has been deferred and you haven’t heard from us or our contractors, then please get in contact again and we will prioritise your request.
As we gradually re-open some services, we want to assure you that we continue to take a cautious approach and fully comply with Government guidance. The health, safety and wellbeing of our customers, employees and contractors remains our top priority and we will keep our services under regular review to make sure that our COVID-Secure arrangements and approach are keeping us all safe.
To summarise, we have reviewed our services and with current restrictions continuing, we will:
- Continue to complete all gas, electrical and other safety works and checks in homes while following our COVID-Secure arrangements.
- Undertake the majority of repairs to homes, with the exception of some routine repairs where either the customer wishes for the repair to be deferred or where it is assessed as being too high risk to do the repair under current restrictions. Examples of where when we would not undertake a routine internal repair is if anyone living in the home is self-isolating or has coronavirus symptoms.
- Continue to undertake external repairs to the outside of homes as usual, including providing a cleaning service to communal areas such as stairwells along with grounds maintenance to shared gardens and car parks.
- Only visit you at your home if it is essential for us to do so. Any appointment deemed as essential will be pre-arranged and follow our COVID-Secure arrangements.
- Continue to let homes to those who are able to move. Viewing a property and completing the required paperwork prior to moving will all be undertaken as remotely as possible and we will be in touch if you are expecting to move soon to make specific arrangements with you.
- Undertake some planned improvements to homes, such as installing new windows and doors, but keep our internal planned programmes, such as fitting new kitchens and bathrooms to emergency-only at this stage. We will work to make appointments for the non-emergency planned internal improvements once Step 4 of the Government’s roadmap out of lockdown is reached.
- Progress requests for adaptions to your home where you have mobility issues, or you would benefit from changes to your home to help you live more independently.
- Continue to regularly visit the Housing for Older People schemes although the communal kitchen areas and lounges will remain closed at this time. Please see notice boards and the latest scheme specific newsletter for more information.
- Continue to support anyone who is finding it difficult to keep up with rent payments or are claiming benefits (perhaps for the first time) as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. If you are concerned about your rent situation, please get in touch so we can agree the best way to find you the help you need and reach an agreement with you for how and when you will pay.
- Keep our offices at Scotland Road and Bridgacre, Cambridge closed to visitors but increase the amount of time employees spend out and about in local neighbourhoods.
We will keep our services under regular review and will continue to work within our COVID-Secure arrangements to keep us all safe. Please see our leaflet which explains what we should expect from each other when providing services in homes. Providing COVID-19 Secure Services Leaflet
We have also updated our We have also updated our COVID-19 Frequently Asked Questions
If you have any concerns or queries regarding the current restrictions and the impact on our services please do not hesitate to contact us on 01223 315036 or email us at info@hhs.org.uk