athome

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athomeThe magazine exclusively for BarnetHomes’ tenants and leaseholdersEdition 1: May 2004

A better future for Barn e t

Th i n gs are looking upWelcome to the very first edition of ‘AtHome’! This will be a regular magazinef rom Barnet Homes, keeping you up-to-date with how we’re maintaining homesto meet modern standards – andresidents’ expectations.

Over the next six years, you can look forw a rdto seeing some big improvements, such asnew kitchens, bathrooms, heating systemsand double-glazing and much, much more .

I’m proud to have been appointed ChiefExecutive of Barnet Homes and look forw a rdto improving services for you and creating ab e t t e r, brighter future for housing in Barn e t .

Margaret McPeakeChief Executive, Barnet Homes

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New fu nd i n g, new se rvice

B a rnet Homes is set to re c e i v einitial funding of £19 million fro mthe government (subject tos e rvice improvements). Andbetween now and 2010, extrafunding will amount to a possible £88.5 million!

As you may already know, Barnet Homes is anA rms Length Management Organisation. Wew e re set up by Barnet Council to manage andi m p rove Barn e t ’s 15,000 council homes as wellas its estates. The change will not affect yourtenancy or lease in any way. Our mainp rogramme of improvements will be run inparallel with our four major housing re g e n e r a t i o np rojects for the estates at Grahame Park inColindale, West Hendon, Stonegrove/Spur Roadin Edgware and Dollis Va l l e y.

Message from Trevor Renouf, Chair of Barnet Homes

"My Board Members and staff are lookingf o rw a rd to working closely with tenants andleaseholders to improve homes to ‘The DecentHomes Standard’ and raise the levels of serv i c ewe give to our community. ”

Barnet Homes means...

Better services, Better consultation,Better council homes.

Together we ca nmake a diffe re nceWe’re a non-profit making company managedby a board of 15 members. This board consistsof five council nominees, four tenants, onelease holder and five independent experts, all ofwhom are volunteers.

Our plans include giving residents a greater say inw h a t ’s going on. We ’ re keen to work with you.Why not join a partnership panel or special intere s tg roup? Take a look at Residents in partnership onour website at www. b a rn e t h o m e s . o rg or telephone 020 8359 4821.

What we’veach ieved so fa rAs well as preparing for the move to Barn e tHomes, the Council has continued itsm o d e rnisation pro g r a m m e .

During the last year, we provided 900 homeswith new windows and 500 with new kitchens.We’re continuing this successful programmeinto 2004/05 and will be working in thefollowing areas:

Barnet AreaAlexandra Road (windows)Brunswick Park Road (windows)Margaret Court (kitchens, rewiring)Miles Way (kitchens)Pert/Strode (heating)Sheldon Court (windows)The Hollies (roof renewal, windows)

FinchleyArundel Court (windows)Ballantrae House (roof renewal)Grange Estate (kitchens, windows, heating)Longberrys (kitchens, windows)Montrose Crescent (windows)Prospect Ring/Norfolk Close (windows, lifts, heating)Queens Road (kitchens)

Edgware/HendonBedford Road (kitchens)Belle Vue Estate (kitchens, bathrooms)Brookfield Crescent (kitchens)Longford Court (windows, kitchens, lift)Northway Court (windows, roofs)Fosters (windows, kitchens)Woodburn Close (lighting)

Kier London is continuing to work on theWatling Estate following the successfulmodernisation of a number of homes during the last year.

We also plan to decorate the outside of homesin these roads and blocks:

Barnet AreaHaldane Close, Brook Meadow, Laurel View,Capel Road, Gallants Farm Road, Potters Lane,Salisbury Road, Shaftesbury Avenue, MargaretCourt, Roman Road, Mays Lane, Friern WatchAvenue, Grange Avenue, Pembroke Road,Stanley Road.

Finchley AreaBurnbrae Close, Claremont Road, High Road,Clare Point, Norden Point, Whychcote Point.

Hendon & Edgware AreaBrent Park Road, Daniel Place, Layfield Close,Nicoll Place, Park Road, Riverside, St DavidsPlace, Bushfield Crescent, Fairmead Crescent,Glengall Road, Glengall Road, Harcourt Avenue,Kenilworth Road, Meadfield, Milespit Hill,Moorlands Avenue, Dollis Croft, MalcolmCrescent, Parnell Close.

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HousesSome homes will need work to their kitchen,bathroom, heating, wiring and windows.However, most homes only require some of thiswork.We’ll look at each house individually andidentify exactly what’s needed.

Houses needing work - worst first

Location No.of Homes

Barnet N10, N11, N12, N20Muswell Hill 106Southgate, Finchley, Whetstone 162Finchley N12, N2, N3North and East Finchley 217Hendon & Edgware NW7, NW9Mill Hill 154Colindale 163Finchley NW2Clitterhouse 260Hendon & Edgware HA8Edgware 209Grahame Park NW9(Retained dwellings) 204Barnet EN5, EN4Chipping Barnet 366New Barnet 143East Barnet, Underhill 167Hendon & Edgware NW4, HA8Hendon 156Watling Estate 1295

FlatsWe’ve divided our programme for flats into two.

Kitchens, bathrooms, heating and wiring - for tenants only

Flats needing internal work - worst first

window replacement -for tenants and leaseholders

Flats needing external work - worst first

Location No. of HomesBarnet N10, N11Muswell Hill East, Friern Barnet 290Finchley NW2Clitterhouse 171Barnet N10Muswell Hill West 100Finchley N12North Finchley 235Hendon & Edgware NW9West Hendon 209Barnet N11, EN5, N12, N20New Southgate 288New Barnet 142Finchley, Whetstone 125Hendon & Edgware HA8Edgware 189Finchley N2East Finchley (East End Road) 318Hendon & Edgware HA8Watling Estate 229Barnet EN5,EN4, N20Chipping Barnet 235New Barnet, East Barnet 210Whetstone 163Hendon & Edgware NW9Mill Hill 209Finchley N3Finchley Central 127Hendon & Edgware HA8Watling Estate 146Finchley NW2, N3, NW11, N2Cricklewood 365Finchley Central, Temple Fortune 194East Finchley (High Road) 321Hendon & Edgware NW4Hendon 450Watling Estate 37

Location No.of HomesBarnet N11, N10,EN5New Southgate 288Muswell Hill West 100Chipping Barnet 235New Barnet 142Finchley N3,NW11Finchley Central, Temple Fortune 194Finchley Central 127Barnet N20Whetstone 163Finchley NW2Cricklewood 365Barnet N12, N20Finchley, Whetstone 125Hendon & Edgware NW9, NW7West Hendon 314Mill Hill 209Finchley N12, N2North Finchley 235East Finchley (East End Road) 318Hendon & Edgware HA8Edgware 189Finchley NW2Clitterhouse 171Hendon & Edgware NW4Hendon 450Barnet EN4, N10, N11New Barnet, East Barnet 210Muswell Hill East, Friern Barnet 290Finchley N2East Finchley (High Road) 321Hendon & Edgware HA8Watling Estate 412

How you’ll benefitand whenOur main programme of work will run from 2005to 2010. Obviously, there’s a huge amount thatneeds to be done. Exactly how quickly we canstart work on your home - and complete it -depends on several things; how much work isactually required when we inspect each home,the level of funding the government allows us tospend, and whether our service achieves a twostar or more inspection rating.

T h e re ’s no way of knowing all this in advance.So, we’ve drawn up a l i k e l y o rder of when thework will take place, rather than the year it will bedone. These charts show areas and postcodeswith homes in the poorest condition according toour information. As pro p e rties approach the topof the list, we’ll inspect each one to identify theextent of the work re q u i re d .

We aim to:

■ tackle the homes in the worst condition first

■ minimise disruption for tenants

■ achieve value for money by working withcontractors on a long term basis

■ make a difference to whole estates andneighbourhoods within postcodes

“Tenants and leaseholders were rightbehind our plans to provide majorimprovements to people’s homes.” Cllr Brian Salinger

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A better Ba rnet for eve ryoneB a rnet Homes is responsible for doing a lot morethan meeting the decent homes standard. We ’ recommitted to keeping homes and estates in goodcondition and suitable for our residents. We willalso be spending our funding by adapting homesfor the physically disabled, improving the conditionof our sheltered housing, and maintaining theregeneration estates. There are also manyp ro p e rties of non traditional construction that needspecialist work. We’ll be making Barnet a brighterand safer place to live by improving the extern a le n v i ronment of our estates.

Your que s tion sa n swe redWill day-to-day repairs still becarried out?Yes. Improving repairs and maintenance serv i c e sis one of the six priorities for Barnet Homes.

Do I need to have modernisation work done?The decent homes standard is meant toimprove all council housing. We’d encourage alltenants to take the opportunity of having thenecessary work done when contractors are intheir area. We realise that sometimes you maynot want the disruption and you may be able towithdraw from contracts involving internalmodernisation. However, if this means it isn’teconomical to carry out work later, such asreplacing high level windows, you must have itdone at the time.

What if I apply to buy my home?If you live in a house and apply for the right tobuy, your home will not be included in anyproposed work. This is because the property isvalued at the date of your application.

If you live in a flat and apply for the right to buy,your home will not be included in any proposedinternal work. However, your flat will be includedfor work to the exterior of your building (such aswindow or roof replacement), or to your estateto improve the environment. You’ll need tocontribute towards the cost of the work on orafter buying your home.

How will this affect me as aleaseholder?Leaseholders will benefit from extern a lm o d e rnisation plans for flats, such as newwindows and work to the estate enviro n m e n t .H o w e v e r, you’ll need to pay towards the cost ofthe work in accordance with your lease. We will consult you using new consultationa rrangements before signing a contract for worka ffecting your home. This is why we’ve separatedp rogrammes for flats, where leaseholders areinvolved, from those for houses. We ’ re alsodiscussing ways of implementing work with theLeasehold Partnership Panel. Please look out forf u rther details.

For more information on any of this, pleasephone Home Ownership Services on 020 8359 4813 or 020 8359 4147.

How will I pay for the work?Most homeowners pay for major work to theirhome with a further advance on theirm o rtgage. There are other ways of financing,such as non-secured loans from banks orbuilding societies (or from the Council in cert a i nc i rcumstances) and equity release schemes.Always consult an Independent FinancialAdvisor or the Citizens’ Advice Bureau beforeentering into financial agreements. If you’re infinancial difficulty and can’t aff o rd the cost ofwork, please contact us.

As a leaseholder, can I opt out of anyof the work?In some circumstances, leaseholders can optout of work to replace doors and windows. Thisinvolves a variation of the lease at the CountyC o u rt and Land Registry, and the costs must bepaid by the leaseholder.

Could I have internal works carriedout to my home under a BarnetHomes contract if I offer to pay?Unfortunately not. A Barnet Homes contract isan agreement between Barnet Homes and thecompany. Of course, you can approach thecontractor directly as you could any builder.

Barnet Homes board meetingto be held on Monday 17th May 20046.30-8.30pm

Hendon Town HallCommittee Room 2The BurroughsLondon NW4

All tenants and leaseholders arewelcome to come along

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