Dr Chan Abraham, Vice Chairman Mrs Monica Gregory, Oak Foundation Forum Ms Allison Nunley, Resident Involvement Administrator

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1 Tenant Services Consultative Forum Held in the Ground Floor Conference Room Brook House, Ouse Walk, Huntingdon Thursday 13 June 2013 at pm Minutes Present Mr David Vessey, Tenant Board Member Chairman Mrs Nelly Bird, Resident Mrs Janet Boston, Tenant Board Member Mr Dennis Burling, Leaseholder Mrs Heather Channing, Oak Foundation Forum Mr James Corley, Tenant Board Member Mrs Georgina Corley, Design Review Group Mr Paul Homewood, Tenant Board Member Mrs Janet Gibson, Tenant Board Member Mr Alex Gibson, Oak Foundation Forum Mrs Noorieh Saadat, Leaseholder Mr Nairn Davidson, Business Excellence Manager Mr Nigel Finney, Executive Director (Operations) Miss Kelly Linay, Communications & Customer Relations Manager Apologies Dr Chan Abraham, Vice Chairman Mrs Monica Gregory, Oak Foundation Forum Ms Allison Nunley, Resident Involvement Administrator 13/01 Welcome The Chairman welcomed everyone to the meeting. It was noted that Joanna Wells and Irene Thresh, both of whom are Oak Foundation tenants have stepped down from their roles. The Chairman expressed his sincere thanks to Joanna and Irene for their attendance and efforts over the years. The Chairman requested that any personal matters should be raised through the usual channels outside of the meeting and any issues to be included in Any other business must be raised with the Communications & Customer Relations Manager 48 hours prior to the meeting. 13/02 Apologies Apologies were received from Monica Gregory and Allison Nunley. 13/03 Minutes of meeting held on 7 February 2013 The minutes of the previous meeting were agreed as a true and accurate record. 13/04 Matters Arising No issues

2 13/05 (i) Updates and Progress Reports Tenant, Resident & Community Involvement Update Feedback from Residents Conference 18 May 2013 Stand Up & Be Counted The Communications & Customer Relations Manager referred to the attendance figures. On this occasion, 117 residents attended of which 14% were new attendees. It was noted that approximately 20% of attendees were under 60 years old, which is the most to date in this age category. At the previous meeting Mr Corley enquired about a breakdown of the ages of Luminus tenants. The Communications & Customer Relations Manager provided statistics taken from a report in December 2011 showing the age characteristics of Luminus Homes tenants. Mrs Boston wanted to know if the new points system will encourage more tenants to attend the Residents Conference. The Executive Director (Operations) explained that in theory the new system will encourage residents to attend events like this. at the previous conference 16% of attendees did not find the questions and answers session useful. Therefore, it was agreed remove this section from the Conference and provide additional members of staff so attendees have the opportunity to express their views or concerns during break times. It was noted that there was an increase in purchases made at the Octavia sale following the suggestion of a broader range of products. There have also been some very positive comments made about staff from the local branch of Boots who attended the conference for the first time. tenants were given a questionnaire in which they could express their views on the Stand Up & Be Counted campaign. It was noted that only 22 people returned the questionnaire, however the campaign will carry on in the September 2013 Residents Conference. The group were encouraged to contact the Communications & Customer Relations Manager with ideas for themes for future conferences. Planning the next Residents Conference 21 September 2013 Mr Burling suggested that the Residents Conference is personalised through having addresses and larger print on name badges. The Executive Director (Operations) explained that residents may not want their full address to be on their badge however it was agreed that they would be altered to state both the tenants name and general location e.g. Mr Smith Huntingdon in large print. There was a general consensus that this would be useful. Mr Homewood suggested that the group photo is rotated at each conference so that different tenants and members of staff can be seen in attendance. It was agreed that a rotation would be considered for the next conference. ALL C&CRM AN Feedback from Design Review Group 9 May 2013 three key issues were covered in the last Design Review Group, these were; A wider selection of kitchen units and work tops, review of 2the flexible tenancies letter2 and review of the new Luminus website

3 It was noted that 100% of attendees agreed with having a wider selection of kitchen units and work tops and as a result, the new range was implemented with immediate effect. There were a few improvements suggested for the flexible tenancies letter, which are now in place. The group also suggested improvements for the new Luminus website, which is a work in progress. The Communications & Customer Relations Manager invited the group to attend the next Design Review Group to discuss the new Luminus website, contacting Luminus by telephone and a review of customer service standards. The date of the next meeting is yet to be confirmed. Our developing approach to Tenant Involvement through Active Citizenship The Communications & Customer Relations Manager updated the TSCF on our new approach to Tenant Involvement that focusses on Active Citizenship. Our Tenant Involvement Framework has been developed over the past 13 years and historically we have represented our Framework as a jigsaw. The jigsaw demonstrated how Tenant Involvement fitted together and fed back in to the TSCF. Following previous conversations with the TSCF regarding active citizenship, we are now looking to the next stage of tenant involvement. The new approach still retains the key elements of our current framework; however the new framework will also promote volunteering, engaging with young people, particularly within schools and through community development. There will be a further update on this at the next meeting. The Executive Director (Operations) confirmed that the Junior Wardens scheme will continue to run and the Chairman expressed his appreciation of the recent Park View Time Capsule event, where local school children were involved in gathering the contents of the capsule. Review of TSCF Terms of Reference & Membership The Communications & Customer Relations Manager highlighted the current vacancies on the TSCF. To broaden the variety of members, it was proposed that younger tenants are targeted. The group were informed of the roles which need to be filled. It was suggested by Mrs Douglas that the meeting times are held outside of office hours to encourage those who work during the day. Executive Director (Operations) asked for a vote of those that would be willing to attend an evening meeting, all in attendance agreed

4 (ii) Service and Performance Update Priorities for maintaining and improving our housing stock The Executive Director (Operations) discussed our new asset management strategy which ensures we are prudently managing our assets, and making the right investment decisions to best serve our customers and the needs of the business over the next thirty years and beyond. As part of the new approach, void properties now undergo an assessment to determine whether we will continue to invest in repairs and maintenance, or sell the property and replace with a new, less expensive to maintain and more energy-efficient home. We are targeting those properties that are difficult to heat and insulate, have excessive long-term maintenance costs, or have other features that don t meet our Premium Brand aspirations. Over time, this new strategy will enable us to upgrade the quality of our housing stock, reduce associated repairs and maintenance costs, and pass on the benefits of reduced running costs to our customers. We anticipate that around 50 void properties will be replaced each year for the next ten years through this carefully managed process. We will be purchasing properties that are either about to be completed, newly released onto the market, or are less than five years old. Whenever possible we will replace on a like-for-like basis in terms of size and location. At the end of the financial year, a total of approximately 165 million would have been spent on maintaining the housing stock so Luminus are keen to save money on future maintenance costs where ever possible. Mr Corley raised concerns about Luminus selling individual flats. The Executive Director (Operations) assured the group that there are no plans to sell flats. The Executive Director (Operations) informed the group that Luminus may be applying for ECO funding from the Government for improving properties which are expensive to renovate and fall into the category of hard to treat. The Government may contribute up to 100% of the renovation costs, which would be a great benefit to Luminus housing stock. The group will be updated on any progress later in C&CRM The Executive Director (Operations) informed the group that the maintenance team are planning to renew 242 boilers this year, an increase from the 99 planned for last year. It was noted that there will also be an investment of 500,000 in decoration and maintenance of the exterior of Luminus homes this year. Review of customers Service Standards the current twelve Service Standards were created, with the assistance of residents, in 2008 with an aim to let tenants know what they can expect from Luminus. The Service Standards were last reviewed in There are plans to review four standards each year for the next three years. The Communications & Customer Relations Manager will contact each member of the TSCF by to get views on which four standards will be reviewed first. Welfare Reform Update The Executive Director (Operations) gave an update on how the Welfare Reform Act has affected Luminus and our tenants since it came into effect from April Luminus prepared for the change by contacting tenants who would - 4 -

5 be affected through letters, phone calls, s and home visits. In September 2012 there were 667 under-occupying working age tenants. Through the Room to Move scheme this was reduced to 593 tenants by April It was noted that approximately 100 tenants have since gone into arrears; however this has not had a big impact on Luminus. Luminus are now preparing for the introduction of Universal Credit in October 2013 which will only have an effect on single person households. New website & digital inclusion The TSCF were shown the proposed new Luminus website. The Communications & Customer Relations Manager spoke about the four key areas of the new website. The new website will be live Summer In the future there will be a section for tenants, where they can log in to their account and pay rent. C&CRM ALL The Chairman suggested that a notice is put on the current website to notify visitors that a new website is under construction. The Communications & Customer Relations Manager agreed that this is a good idea and will look into it further. Mrs Douglas suggested keeping the current website for those people who do not want to use the new website. It was noted that this would not be possible, as the old website will be replaced and will therefore be unavailable. Business Excellence & Small Change Big Difference The Business Excellence Manager explained that in November 2012 the Small Change Big Difference working group was created including 30 Luminus employees. The aim of the group is to think of ways to save money. The group has already made lots of suggestions which have saved Luminus hundreds of pounds. The TSCF were encouraged to think of money saving ideas from a tenant, leaseholder and customer s perspective to feedback at the next meeting. ALL Preparation for 2013 Customer Opinion Survey The Business Excellence Manager informed the group that the last Customer Opinion Survey was carried out in The 2013 survey will include questions on Broken Britain and Luminus 2020 Vision: The Road to Renewal. Within the survey, tenants will also be given the opportunity to provide an address so they can receive Luminus News electronically. Review of the Business Plan The Executive Director (Operations) spoke to the group about the importance of having an up to date 30 year Business Plan as it proves to the Regulator and funders that Luminus are on track and are financially stable. The current Business Plan is in the process of being updated ready for it to be reviewed by the Group Board in July The TSCF were given an overview of the Business Plan and in particular the main themes and objectives. There were approved. Review of Key Performance Indicators and targets for The Executive Director (Operations) reported on Luminus Key Performance Indicators. It was noted in that we did not reach our target for both minor repairs and the time taken to let homes, although the targets will remain the same for It was also noted that of the 20,000 repairs completed, 97% of tenants kept to their appointments, 82% of repairs were completed the first time. Although we reached our target for calls abandoned and calls - 5 -

6 answered within 30 seconds, a message will be added so that callers are told where they are in the queue. The attitude of tradesmen was slightly below our target of 99% although this is still better than others in the housing sector. Mr Gibson suggested having a call back facility, rather than having callers waiting on the line. Executive Director (Operations) agreed that this would be looked into. The Chairman wondered how many calls the Service Centre receive each year. Executive Director (Operations) informed the group that they receive on average 80,000 calls each year. He also highlighted that within the first hour on a Monday morning, the Service Centre receive on average 300 calls. Update on improved approach to telephone contact Luminus will be switching to 0845 numbers in the near future. It was noted that Luminus do not make any profit on these and it will cost callers the same amount of money regardless of their location. The new numbers are being introduced to ensure that there is no interruption on the telephone lines in an emergency. It was noted that some mobile phone providers do not allow calls to 0845 numbers. Executive Director (Operations) highlighted that most providers do allow calls to 0845 numbers, however tenants will be able to call the number if it becomes an issue for them. 13/06 Regulation, risk or management issues The Executive Director (Operations) updated the group on the most recent engagement with the Regulator. The representative who attended the November Group Board meeting unfortunately went on sick leave and the person who dealt with this in her absence did not have all relevant information. The group will be updated at the next meeting on the regulatory judgement. 13/07 Local community or other Involvement Issues the last issue of Luminus News was published in May 2013 and the next issue is due out at the end of July. It was noted that the closing date for the Community Inspiration Awards 2013 was 5 June. The Communications & Customer Relations Manager encouraged everyone to attend the awards ceremony on 5 July from 6pm. 13/08 Any other business No issues. 13/09 Date of next meeting The meeting closed at 3:10pm. The next meeting is scheduled for Thursday 17 October 2013 from 12pm at Brook House, Huntingdon