a) Who is responsible for what?

Our responsibilities

We are responsible for maintaining most of the items that we provided with the property when your tenancy started, but only if they need to be repaired or replaced as a result of fair wear and tear.

We will not be responsible for the following.

• Plugs (and their chains) for baths, basins or sinks.
• Fuses to appliances and in the fuse box.
• Light bulbs, fluorescent tubes (and their starter units), except those in shared areas or in the kitchen of a sheltered flat.
• Battery-operated smoke detectors.
• Hat and coat rails or hooks.
• The grids covering channels for surface water and drainage.
• Floor coverings or carpets, unless we provided them.
• Sweeping chimneys, unless an appliance we own uses them.
• Decorating inside your home (see section 2f), except some elderly or disabled tenants.
• Gardens.
• Any item that, at a mutual exchange, the new tenant accepted responsibility for.
• Any improvement or alteration you have made to the property.

Your responsibilities

You are responsible for repairing and replacing all items that are accidentally or deliberately damaged:

• by you, your pets, or anyone living in or visiting your home; or
• through carelessness or neglect.

Vandalism and criminal damage

If someone damages or vandalises your home, and you do not want to be held responsible for the repair or replacement, you must:

• report the matter to the police and get a crime reference number; and
• co-operate with the police during their investigation into the incident.

To contact the police, phone 0845 408 7000.

You are also responsible for maintaining any improvement or alteration you have made to the property (see section 5k Home improvements).

b) Gas safety checks and gas leaks

Faulty gas appliances can kill!

Faulty appliances can give off poisonous carbon monoxide. You cannot see or smell this gas, but it can kill you.

Faulty appliances can also blow up.

For this reason, each year we must check the safety of all the appliances we own and the pipes that come from the gas meter into your home.

If we find any problems, we will arrange for them to be put right.

During the safety check we will also check any gas appliances you own. If we find any are not safe we will tell you, but you are responsible for getting these appliances repaired or replaced.

Each year we have difficulty getting into a large number of properties to carry out these checks. You should know that, under your tenancy agreement, you must let us in to carry out these checks.

Help us to keep you safe

When you receive our letter telling you when we will be calling to check the gas appliances, if the appointment is not suitable, phone our call centre on 01793 445503.

If we call and you’re not in, let us know when we should call again.

We may have to take legal action if you do not let us into your home. We will charge you for our costs of taking this action.

Gas leaks

If you smell gas take the following action immediately.

• Put out any cigarettes or naked flames.
• Open all windows and doors.
• Turn off the gas at the meter.
• Do not flick any electrical switches – they can cause sparks.
• Do not use a phone in the property – it can cause sparks.

Phone British Gas Transco on 0800 111 999.

Transco will make your property safe and tell you what to do.

c) How to report a repair

To report a repair by phone

You should ring our call centre on 01793 445503.

The call centre is open:

• between 8am and 8pm, Monday to Friday; and
• between 9am and 1pm on Saturdays.

Staff at the call centre will ask you some questions to

identify the problem and what we should do.

To report a repair in person

You can call into Swindon Direct at:

Wat Tyler House
Beckhampton Street
Swindon
SN1 2JH.

Monday - Wednesday and Friday 8am - 6pm

Thursday 8am - 8pm

Saturday 9am - 1pm

To report a repair by e-mail

Send your e-mail to: houserepair@swindon.gov.uk

The e-mail must include:

• the address of the property that needs repairing;
• your name;
• your address, if this is not the property that needs to be repaired;
• your phone number;
• the fault that needs repairing; and
• details of when we would be able to get into the property.

We will let you know that we have received your e-mail by the end of the next working day. We will also give you details of any arrangements we have made to carry out the repair.

To report a repair using the internet

Click on the link below:

www.swindon.gov.uk/housing/housing-repairsandmaintenance/reportrepairsviainternetv2/reportrepair.htm

We will let you know that we have received your request by the end of the next working day. We will also give you details of any arrangements we have made to carry out your request.

To report a repair by letter

Send your letter to:

The Director
Housing Repairs
Swindon Commercial Services
Waterside
Darby Close
Cheney Manor Industrial Estate
Swindon
SN2 2PN.

Your letter must include:

• your name;
• the address of the property that needs repairing;
• your address, if this is not the property that needs to be repaired;
• your phone number;
• the fault that needs repairing; and
• details of when we would be able to get into the property.

We will give you written details of the arrangements we have made to carry out the repair.

d) Visiting you

When you report a repair to us, we will agree a suitable appointment for a tradesman or building inspector to visit the property, which will be a morning or afternoon appointment. We will send you a letter to confirm the details of the appointment we have arranged with you.

If you want to change or cancel the appointment, please let us know at least 24 hours beforehand. When you contact us, please give us the job number and any new details for getting into the property.

When a tradesman or building inspector visits the property that needs repairing, a responsible adult must be there.

If you are not in, or the only person at home is under 18, the tradesman or building inspector may not be able to carry out the work and the job will be cancelled. You will then need to report the repair again if you still want it done.

All our employees must carry official identity cards that include their photograph.

All contractors must carry an official identity card.

Always check a caller’s identity card before you let them into your home.

All our staff and contractors will be able to give you the name of a council officer who you can check their identity with, and they will be prepared to wait outside until you have done so.

To check a caller’s identity, phone the main switchboard on 01793 445500 and ask for the officer whose name the caller gave.

Remember – if you’re in doubt, shut them out.

e) Emergency repairs out of working hours

We run an emergency repair service to deal with certain types of repairs outside normal working hours.

The type of repair this service will deal with includes the following.

• Making a property secure.
• Getting into a property after keys have been lost or stolen.
• Repairing dangerous flooring or stairs.
• Restoring a water supply.
• Mending an uncontrollable water leak.
• Fixing a tap that is stuck on.
• Unblocking a toilet.
• Repairing a toilet that is not flushing (if the tenant is disabled).
• Clearing blocked drains (if they are backing up).
• Replacing a missing manhole cover.
• Repairing a severely damaged or dangerous roof.
• Mending electrics that are sparking or smoking, or bare wires.
• Restoring an electricity power supply.
• Cleaning a blocked chimney to an open fire.
• Removing bricks or rubble.

Loss of heating or hot water is not an emergency.

However, if you or a member of your household would suffer greatly from having no heating (because of their age or health), please let us know and we will try to arrange for you to borrow an electric heater.

When we deal with an emergency repair, we will try to carry out a permanent repair, but this may not always be possible. In this case, we will at least make the situation safe. For example, if a window is broken we will board it up. If it is our responsibility, we will return at a later date to put the glass in.

When you report an emergency repair we will ask you some questions to identify the problem and what we should do.

If we deal with a repair that is needed because of damage caused (accidentally or deliberately) by you, your pets, or anyone living in or visiting your home, or through carelessness or neglect, we will charge you for the repair and also for the emergency call-out.

When you report a problem to us and we agree that it is an emergency, we have to make your property safe.

The emergency phone number when our offices are closed is 01793 695851.

f) How we deal with repairs

When you report a repair we decide what priority to give it.

The priorities are as follows:

• Priority 1: emergency repairs, make the property safe
• Priority 2: general repairs
• Priority 3: planned work

Priority 1: Emergency repairs

We must complete these repairs within 24 hours. For example, if an emergency is reported at 10am, it should be completed by 10am on the following day at the latest.

We come out to you as soon as possible, usually within three hours, but please remember that this may not always be possible.

The types of repair that fall into this category are as follows.

• Making a property secure.
• Getting into a property after keys have been lost or stolen.
• Repairing dangerous flooring or stairs.
• Repairing a toilet that does not flush (if it is the only toilet in the property).
• Restoring a water supply.
• Mending a water leak.
• Fixing a tap that is stuck.
• Unblocking a toilet.
• Clearing blocked drains and waste pipes.
• Replacing a missing manhole cover.
• Repairing a severely damaged or dangerous roof.
• Mending electrics that are sparking or smoking, or bare wires.
• Restoring an electricity supply.
• Cleaning a blocked chimney to an open fire.
• Removing bricks or rubble.

Priority 2: General repairs

We must complete these repairs within 10 working days.

The types of repair that fall into this category are as follows:

• Repairing most electrical and council gas appliances.
• Repairing a toilet that does not flush (if there is more than one toilet in the property).
• Repairing window frames and the doors and door frames on the outside of a property.
• Replacing the glass in windows.
• Investigating problems with a roof.

Priority 3: Programmed work

We must complete these repairs within 40 working days.

This category includes repairs to:

• paths;
• fences;
• bathroom fittings (sinks, basins, baths, toilets, shower trays and so on);
• kitchen sinks and units; and
• doors inside the property.

Our follow-up

To help us monitor our repairs service we carry out a range of customer satisfaction surveys.

For one survey, our call centre chooses a number of repair customers at random and asks them for their opinion on the service we provided.

You can also take part in a postal survey by filling in the questionnaire on the letter we sent to you when you first reported the repair and returning it to us. (You do not need to use a stamp).

Another survey could be our Quality Control Inspector visiting. He or she will ask you for your comments on our performance.

We use all the feedback we receive to help us identify problems and improve our service. We publish the results of our surveys every year.

g) If we do not do the repair

If we made an appointment to carry out the repair and then did not keep it, or if we did not make an appointment and the repair was not carried out within the relevant time set out in 5f, please let us know as soon as possible.

When you contact us, give us:

• your name and address;
• the address where the repair was to be carried out;
• how and when we can contact you;
• the job number; and
• details of the repair.

We will investigate the matter and tell you what we intend to do.

Due to a lack of resources, Swindon Borough Council is unable to make discretionary allowances to tenants, where it has not been possible to carry out essential repairs to their home or communal areas around their home within a reasonable or agreed timeframe.

Under the Right to Repair Regulations 1994, you may get compensation for certain repairs, with a value of up to £250, that are not completed at or within agreed times.

Details of the repairs covered by these regulations are included with the card we send you when you report a repair.

If you think you are entitled to compensation, please write to:

The Director
Housing
Wat Tyler House East
Beckhampton Street
Swindon
SN2 2JH.

We will send you a claim form that you must fill in and return.

We will investigate your claim and give you our decision in writing.

We will only accept claims for compensation on the form we provide.

h) If you are not satisfied with the standard of a repair or our service

If the standard of our repair or service is unacceptable, please let us know as soon as possible.

We will send you a written response within 10 working days.

If your comments are about the standard of our repair, we will arrange for our quality-control inspector to inspect the work and, if necessary, arrange for any faults to be put right.

If your comment is about the standard of service you received from our call centre or from a tradesman or an inspector who called, or if you are not happy with the way we dealt with your reported repair, we will arrange for the service area manager to investigate the matter. He or she will write to you to tell you what action we are taking to put the matter right, or to explain the situation to you.

If you are not satisfied with the response you receive, you can ask the Director of Housing to investigate the matter.

i) Planned maintenance

We will carry out planned maintenance work to make sure the outside of your home is well looked after.  To achieve this, we aim to repair and paint the outside of your home regularly.

This work may include repairs to a roof, chimneys, doors, windows, paths and fences.

Our clerk of works officer will visit your home before the work starts to decide what repairs are needed.  Before we start any work, we will give you the name of the contractor who will be carrying out the work.  We will then carry out inspections during the work and after it has been completed.

If you are not satisfied with the standard of our work, we will make sure the contractor brings it up to standard within six months.

Our service standards

We aim to:

• regularly inspect the outside of your home;
• give you a list of the repairs and improvements we will carry out before the work starts;
• tell you when we will start work and how long it will take;
• complete all work within a reasonable time, unless major work is needed;
• make sure that we complete our work on time and to a standard you are happy with;
• respect you and your home; and
• provide a service that gives you value for money.

j) Adaptations for people with disabilities

If you have a disability, we can help you to make your home more suitable to live in and help you to manage more independently.

The types of adaptation that may be available are:

• grab rails;
• lever taps;
• stairlifts;
• easy-access showers; and
• access ramps.

We may also provide equipment such as bath hoists or shower seats. If you want a minor adaptation, such as a grab rail, you can apply direct to us.

If you need larger adaptations, an occupational therapist must carry out an assessment. They will either recommend the adaptations you need or recommend that you move into more suitable accommodation.

Before the assessment, you may need to provide further information by phone, or on a self-assessment form.

In some cases, a building surveyor will also need to visit your home to make sure that it is possible, both structurally and economically, to make the necessary alterations.

Depending on the cost of the adaptation, and your financial circumstances, you may need to make a financial contribution.

• If you want a minor adaptation, phone 01793 464433.
• If you need major adaptations because of a child with a disability, ask the Child Health Team for an assessment. You can phone the Child Health Team on 01793 614839.
• If you need major adaptations for an adult with disabilities, ask the relevant Joint Community Team for an assessment by contacting the Care Line on 0800 085 6666.

Home improvements

Most council tenants have the right to make improvements to their home if they get our permission first.

If you want permission to make home improvements, apply to:

Housing
Customer Modification Request
Swindon Borough Council
Civic Offices
Euclid Street
Swindon
SN1 2JH.

You need to give details of work you want to do and who is going to do it. If you have any drawings or plans, you need to provide copies.

We usually give permission for home improvements as long as certain conditions are met. If we do not give our permission, we will give you our reasons in writing.

If you want to appeal against our decision not to give permission, or against any conditions we set, write to:

The Director
Housing
Swindon Borough Council
Civic Offices
Euclid Street
Swindon
SN1 2JH.

Before you carry out any improvement, consider the following.

• You may need planning permission for some improvements. You are responsible for getting this and meeting all current building regulations. The permission we give for you to go ahead with a home improvement does not replace the need to get planning permission.
• You will be responsible for maintaining any home improvement you make.
• You will be responsible for any damage caused by the home improvement while the work is being carried out.
• If you make any home improvement without our permission, you will have to return the property to its original design and pay for that work. If you do not remove the home improvement, we will do it and charge you the full cost.

How to save money on your energy bills

It may be easier and cheaper than you think to save money on your fuel bills.

We have given the following few tips on saving energy and money.

• If you are too warm, turn your heating down by one degree. You probably won’t notice this change but it can cut up to 10% off your fuel bills (this could save you £15 to £30 a year).
• Close your curtains at night to stop heat escaping through the windows.
• Don’t leave the fridge door open for too long as cold air will escape and the fridge will use a lot of electricity to reduce the temperature to the correct level.
• Always wait until you have a full load before using your washing machine. Try to use the low-temperature programme, unless your clothes are very dirty.  Don’t put really wet clothes into a tumble dryer – wring them out or spin-dry them first.
• If you use a light for an average of four hours or more a day, fit an energy-saving light bulb. It will use around a quarter of the electricity and will last eight times longer than an ordinary bulb.
• Don’t overfill your kettle for just one drink, heat only the amount of water you really need.
• Letter boxes and keyholes can let in draughts. Fit a nylon brush seal or a spring flap over the letter box and put a cover over the keyhole.
• For advice on grants for insulation and heating improvements, contact the Warm Front Scheme on 0800 952 0600.