Performance 365
2022
Welcome to our 2021-22 Performance 365. Each year we publish our performance figures, so you can see how well (or poorly) we're performing against the standards laid out in the Scottish Social Housing Charter
Our digital services meant we could continue to provide largely normal services throughout 2021/22. Offline, our office reopened to the public in April 2021, and went back to normal opening hours in July 2021. We’re pleased to say that we have managed to keep our office doors open ever since, despite all that the pandemic threw at us last year. Our rent arrears continued to go down and are now at their lowest level since 2008, whilst over 80% of our tenants now receive monthly Rent Discounts through our unique Key Tenant Scheme. In reletting homes, our performance is amongst the very best in Scotland. Although our performance has been good, we hope we have seen the last of the pandemic now and look forward to brighter times ahead.
You can read more about our performance for the year, or see month-by-month breakdowns on our Performance 365 microsite.
Outcome 01 Equalities
Both medical adapations and medical transfers were impacted by the pandemic. These were carried out where possible, but in many cases, an adaptation or a transfer had to be delayed.
We are: Happy to Translate
Our Offices are: Wheelchair Accessible and have Induction Loop technology
elha.com and My Home are: Browsealoud-enabled and and My Home can be customised for High Contrast
Ethnic breakdown of new tenants
- Percentage of new tenants with a disability 15%
- Medical adaptations completed 26
- Medical transfers 1
"every tenant and other customer has their individual needs recognised, is treated fairly and with respect, and receives fair access to housing and housing services."
Outcome 02 Communication
85% of our tenants now have a My Home account, and 83% are paper-free, and receive a £5 per month rent discount.
"tenants and other customers find it easy to communicate with their landlord and get the information they need about their landlord, how and why it makes decisions and the services it provides."
- Tenants with a My Home account 1137
- Paper Free tenants 1107
- Visits to My Home & elha.com 115,164
- Complaints received 178
- Praise received 676
Outcome 03 Participation
We have a wide range of ways tenants can get involved in our work. You can participate at whatever level is best for you, whether that's answering short surveys, sitting comfortably at home and testing a new My Home service, or meeting up to scrutinise our services, and many points in between. Our Tenant Involvement Group (TIG) is an important part of ELHA who oversee these activites.
The TIG-Panel met via Teams six times over 2021-22 and:
- Oversaw the progress on the 2021-22 TP Action Plan and approved the 2022-23 Action Plan
- Scrutinised the process of leasing properties to ELC and other agencies
- Reviewed the quarterly complaint reports
- Reviewed the frequency of the stair cleaning survey and agreed to make it a TIG-Web survey
- Reviewed a number of satisfaction surveys and consultation results
Also:
- 11 e-Talk newsletters, 7 Newsflashes and 4 printed Talkback newsletters were published
- Staff worked with residents at Hardgate Court to resolve issues with communal areas
- Estate Inspections were carried out, resulting in the Estate Improvement budget covering the cost of painting lines in the car part at Hillview Court in Ormiston
- Staff worked with tenants at North High Street in Musselburgh on car parking issues
- New stair cleaning services were put in place in a stair in Musselbugh, following discussions and a formal consultation with all residents
"tenants and other customers find it easy to participate in and influence their landlord’s decisions at a level they feel comfortable with."
Outcome 04 Quality of Housing
Fortunately, despite the pandemic, all properties with a gas supply were serviced, and we are on target for meeting the requirements for new hard-wired smoke detector installation and other regulations.
The figure for the Percentage of homes which meet the SHQS at 44% is significantly lower than the 97% figure reported in 2021, due to a change in regulation introduced in 2020 by the Scottish Government, which applied from March 2022.
This regulation requires all homes to have had an electrical check carried out within the last five years. These checks involve testing every single socket and light fitting in every room and can take over two hours to complete. We felt that this kind of work was impractical in the pandemic for both our tenants and our staff as we could not have maintained social distancing in doing these.
We have a plan to carry out all of these electrical inspections between now and the end of March 2023.
"tenants’ homes as a minimum, meet the Scottish Housing Quality Standards by April 2015 and continue to meet it thereafter, and when they are allocated, are always clean, tidy and in a good state of repair."
- New tenants satisfied with the condition of their home 53%
- Number of applicants who refused a property after viewing it 1
- Number of properties with a gas supply 1008
- Percentage of gas supplies serviced 100%
- Number of forced entries for gas serving 106
- Percentage of homes which meet the SHQS 44%
- Percentage of homes which meet the EESSH 99.9%
Outcome 05 Repairs, Maintenance & Improvements
As the year started in lockdown, there has been an impact on routine repairs and maintenance.
"tenants’ homes are well maintained, with repairs and improvements carried out when required, and tenants are given reasonable choices about when work is done."
- Number of emergency repairs completed 245
- Number of non-emergency repairs completed 2,748
- Average time to complete repairs 7.64 days
- Average time to complete emergency repairs 1h 7min
- Repairs completed right first time 91.48%
- New kitchens installed 21
- New bathrooms installed 12
- New heating systems installed 20
- Repainted properties 227
Outcome 06 Estate Management, Antisocial Behaviour, Neighbour Nuisance & Tenancy Disputes
"Tenants and other customers live in well-maintained neighbourhoods where they feel safe."
How satisfied are you with where you live?
| Percentage very or fairly satisfied | |
|---|---|
| Athelstaneford | 63% |
| Bolton | 0% |
| Cockenzie | 83% |
| Dirleton | 50% |
| Dunbar | 68% |
| East Linton | 100% |
| East Saltoun | 25% |
| Garvald | 100% |
| Gifford | 75% |
| Gullane | 100% |
| Haddington | 72% |
| Innerwick | 50% |
| Musselburgh | 79% |
| Ormiston | 82% |
| Pencaitland | 100% |
| Port Seton | 80% |
| Prestonpans | 76% |
| Stenton | 100% |
| Tranent | 66% |
| Wallyford | 84% |
| West Barns | 100% |
| Whitecraig | 72% |
- Number of Neighbour Complaints resolved 165
- Neighbour Complaint cases resolved in target 90%
- Number of ELHA tenants with an ASBO 0
Outcome 07, 08 & 09 Housing Options
The transition from Homehunt to These Homes was very successful, with applicants scoring the service with an average satisfaction rating of 8.3/10.
"people looking for housing get information that helps them make informed choices and decisions about the range of housing options available to them."
- Number of households registered for housing 3069
- Number of new tenancies from relets 72
- Number of new tenancies from new builds 0
- Homeless families housed 36
| 1 Bedroom | 2 Bedrooms | 3 Bedrooms | 4+ Bedrooms | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Houses | 1 | 12 | 6 | 0 |
| Flats | 18 | 24 | 1 | 0 |
| Sheltered / Amenity | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Wheelchair / Medically Adapted | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Outcome 10 Access to Social Housing
The 'other' allocation was via the STRENGTH Project, housing people fleeing domestic abuse.
"people looking for housing find it easy to apply for the widest choice of social housing available and get the information they need on how the landlord allocates homes and their prospects of being housed."
New tenants
Outcome 11 Tenancy Sustainment
Due to staff absence, the number of referrals dropped at the start of the year, but picked up considerably for energy advice ahead of the energy price cap change.
"tenants get the information they need on how to obtain support to remain in their home; and ensure suitable is available, including services provided directly by the landlord and by other organisations."
- Referrals to Money Advice 135
- Gains from Money Advice £198,963
- Percentage of new tenants still tenants 12 months later 96%
- Number of abandoned properties 3
- Number of decorating packs issued 68
Outcome 13 Value for Money
Due to the pandemic, a number of properties remained empty for longer than usual.
"tenants, owners and other customers receive services that provide continually improving value for the rent and service changes they pay."
- Tenants in arrears helped by the Money Advisor 23
- Reduction in rent arrears for Money Advice cases £19,923
- Average time taken to relet empty homes 26 days
- Rent lost on properties relet this year £34,938
- Percentage of rent lost on empty homes 0.50%
Outcome 14 & 15 Rents & Service Charges
An extended notice period for court action is still in place. Fortunately, we have not had to raise many actions during 2021-22.
- Rent arrears £174,104
- Arrears as a percentage of our rental income 2.45%
- Court actions raised for rent arrears 10
- Evictions for rent arrears 1
"a balance is struck between the level of services provided , the cost of the services, and how far current and prospective tenants and other customers can afford them."
"tenants get clear information on how rent and other money is spent, including any details of individual items of expenditure above thresholds agreed between landlords and tenants."