FAQs

Yes, it is possible to change your name on your tenancy if you have official documentation to prove the change.

You can complete a form online here.

We have a team of friendly Tenancy Sustainment Advisors who can help you with budgeting, benefits and looking at how you can be better off.

If you would rather look at your budget yourself you can use our online budget calculator. Our budget calculator is free for all tenants to use, once you have completed your information press ‘send to Advisor’ and one of our Tenancy Sustainment Officers will look at your information to see how you could be better off.

Are you struggling to make ends meet? Please contact us straight away if you have money problems. Once we know that there is an issue we can often help by checking that you are receiving all of the correct benefits, working out the best way of paying your rent and putting you in contact with our partners who are able to provide a range of help.

Send us an email:

Housing, Anti-Social Behaviour, Rent & Independent Living – customer.experience@gch.co.uk

Repairs – repairs@gch.co.uk

Homeless Team – homeless@gch.co.uk

Tenancy Sustainment – tenancy.sustainment@gch.co.uk

Leaseholders – customer.experience@gch.co.uk

We’re on the phone:
Customer Experience Team: 01452 424344

Write to us:
Gloucester City Homes, Railway House, Bruton Way, Gloucester GL1 1DG

Visit our office:
Our Customer Hub is open for pre-arranged appointments only.
This is not a manned reception so please do not visit without an appointment as we will not be able to meet you.
Click here to book an appointment to visit the Customer Hub

You can find information on services on the Council’s website or you can call 01452 396396 and ask for the service you need.

In March 2015, Gloucester City Council’s housing was transferred to the ownership of Gloucester City Homes. Gloucester City Council monitors our services to ensure that we deliver the promises set out in the Offer to tenants, made at the time of the transfer.

The role of the City Council

The Council continues to provide strategic housing services in the City, such as:

• Homeseeker Plus
• Helping homeless people
• General housing advice
• City-wide housing strategies and policies
• Housing and Council Tax benefit
• Enforcing standards in the private housing sector

The Council also provides other general services, such as:

• Environmental Health
• Leisure services
• Planning
• Waste collection and recycling

If you want to end your tenancy you will need to let us know by completing a notice of termination.

You must give us at least four weeks’ termination notice in writing ending on a Sunday unless we agree to a notice ending on a different day.

You can submit a notice of termination online.

You will need to return all of the properties keys to our office (or any place we agree) on an agreed date. If you fail to return the keys at the end of your tenancy we may continue to charge use and occupation fees (equivalent to rent) until the keys are returned. If we have to change the locks of the property due to your failure to return the keys, we will charge you the costs of the replacement.

When you leave your home you must remove all furniture, personal possessions and rubbish and leave your home and our fixtures and fittings in good lettable condition and repair (subject to fair wear and tear). If you fail to comply with this condition you will be charged for disposal of rubbish and cleaning of your home.

We do not accept any responsibility for anything you leave at your home at the end of the tenancy.

Read our guide to moving out here.

Anti-Social Behaviour

If you are suffering from anti-social behaviour you can report this to us by calling 01452 424344, or by making a report online

For reports of Criminal Activity (examples include: drug dealing; illicit drug use; violent or threatening behaviour; assault; criminal damage; sexual assault; theft/burglary; cuckooing) then please call the police in the first instance. If you are in immediate need of assistance, or if a crime is in progress, then call 999. To report to the police please call 101 or report online. To report crime anonymously then you can report through CrimeStoppers on 0800 555 111 or report online.

 

What happens when you make a complaint about ASB?:

Once you have made a complaint we will contact you to discuss the details and agree to a plan of action with you. All reports will be received in confidence and we will not disclose the source of the complaint without agreeing to this with you first.

Where agreed, we will make a referral to Victim Support if it is felt that you would benefit from this.

If you report an incident out of our normal office hours, please leave details and we will pick up the enquiry on the next working day.

You can help us by:

• Keeping a record of incidents – helps us to understand the persistence of the reports and the impact that this behaviour is having upon your household/community.
• Keep us informed, and the Police if necessary, of any changes in your circumstances.
• Letting us know what you think about the service we and other partner agencies give you.

We will always look to resolve cases at an early stage. Where we are not able to do this and we are satisfied that the behaviour being reported is a breach of tenancy and is detrimental to members of the local community, we may be required to take formal enforcement actions. If we are required to do this we will discuss this in detail with you and may ask that you provide a witness statement and to attend court as necessary.

Reporting Domestic Abuse

If you are experiencing any form of domestic abuse, please contact us. You can also get independent advice from Gloucestershire Domestic Abuse Support Service – Call: 01452 726570 or visit www.gdass.org.uk 

The 24 hour National Domestic Abuse Freephone Helpline is 0808 2000 247.

If you believe that Domestic Abuse is occurring, or there is an immediate risk of harm, please call 999.

We are committed to tackling all forms of domestic abuse. We define domestic abuse as:

‘Any incident or pattern of incidents of controlling, coercive or threatening behaviour, violence or abuse between those aged 16 or over who are or have been intimate partners or family members regardless of gender or sexuality. This can encompass, but is not limited to, the following types of abuse: Psychological, Physical, Sexual, Financial, Emotional’.

Domestic abuse is a breach of our tenancy conditions. We may take action against anyone causing it.

Reporting Hate Crime

Hate Crimes can include crimes or incidents aggravated by hate of someone’s age, gender, ethnicity, disability, sexual preference, religion or belief.

If you are experiencing anti-social behaviour because of your gender, religion, age, faith, race, disability or because you are gay, lesbian or transgender please report it to us and to the Police.

Hate crime can include:

• Verbal or written abuse, for example spitting, threats, theft, offensive items left on doors, telephone calls.
• Physical assault.
• Incitement, for example stirring up racial hatred by using petitions, leaflets or stickers.
• Damage to property, or arson.

Gloucester City Homes take all hate crime incidents in any form against any member of our community, including staff and contractors, extremely seriously and will deal with all complaints swiftly

We will investigate all complaints of anti-social behaviour, domestic abuse and hate crime thoroughly.

We will do this by:

• Encouraging residents to report anti-social behaviour to us.
• Taking suitable and fair action against people who cause antisocial behaviour, hate crime and domestic abuse, whether it is caused by them, their visitors and/or their family.
• Supporting complainants and/or witnesses of anti-social behaviour. We will also offer support to any vulnerable perpetrator.
• Working with our multi-agency partners to prevent antisocial behaviour, recognising that prevention is better than cure. We will do this by referring residents to mediation and support services where appropriate. We aim to resolve most complaints of anti-social behaviour without taking legal action.
• Monitoring the quality of our service by setting service standards with our customers and completing customer satisfaction surveys when cases are closed.

You can also get independent advice from:

• Gloucester Citizens Advice Bureau Telephone: 01452 527202 or visit www.gloucestercab.org.uk
• Gay-Glos Telephone: Helpline 01452 306800.  Mon-Fri 7.30pm – 9.30pm, or visit www.gayglos.org

If you find you need emergency accommodation:

If you require emergency accommodation, you will need to present to a local authority Homelessness Team. They will make you an appointment with a Housing Options Advisor who will discuss options and provide you with housing advice on securing alternative accommodation.

Please note that you may not qualify for housing via Homeseeker Plus if you have more than 8 weeks of current or former housing debt or if you have been evicted for anti-social behaviour. This applies for either a sole or joint tenancy.

Advice

If you find yourself in this position please contact the Council’s Housing Options Team at 01452 396 396. Alternatively, you can get independent legal advice from:

Gloucester Citizens’ Advice Bureau – 01452 527202 or visit www.gloucestercab.org.uk
Shelter Housing and Homelessness Charity – 0808 800 4444 or visit www.shelter.org.uk
The Gloucester Law Centre – 01452 423492 or visit www.gloucesterlawcentre.co.uk

If you suspect someone is guilty of tenancy fraud, contact us in confidence.

Tenancy fraud can include: Someone moving out and letting their home to someone else, falsely obtaining a housing association or council property or someone not living at the property but living somewhere else

You can report tenancy fraud online here

Gloucester City Homes do not cover your contents as part of your tenancy agreement.

Home contents insurance is designed to help protect your possessions. No matter how careful you are, there’s always a risk that your belongings could be broken, damaged or stolen so home contents insurance can help provide peace of mind should the worst happen.

It’s a good idea to consider what a home contents insurance policy would cover in order to help you make an informed decision on whether you need one. Click here to find more information.

Fire Safety in your home is very important and we want you to be safe from the risk of fire in your home.

If you can smell or see smoke, call 999 immediately.

Chip Pan – Fire Risk & Safety Advice

Chip pan fires cause one fifth of all accidental dwelling fires attended by the fire and rescue service in the UK each year. Nearly 20 people are killed or injured every day in accidental fires that start in their kitchen, the most common of these caused by deep fat frying.

Given the considerable fire risk we no longer support the use of chip pans by customers.

Barbecue – Fire Risk & Safety Advice

Barbecues present a significant fire risk and a risk to personal safety. Balconies on blocks of flats may seem an ideal place to relax during the summer but under no circumstances should they be used for barbecues due to the risk of falling embers, compounded by stronger wind speeds at height.

Top 10 barbecue safety tips:

While barbecues should never be used on balconies on blocks of flats, they can be used safely in outdoor garden areas, provided these rules are followed:

1. Ensure the barbecue is strong, sturdy and in good working order
2. Place it on level ground to avoid it tipping over
3. Keep it well clear of any trees, shrubs, or flammable objects
4. Keep children and animals well away
5. Never pour on petrol or other accelerants
6. For charcoal barbecues, only use the minimum fuel necessary
7. For gas barbecues, ensure the tap is turned off before changing the cylinder
8. Never leave the barbecue unattended
9. Keep a bucket of water or sand close by
10. Ensure the barbecue is cool before attempting to move it

Candles – Fire Risk & Safety Advice

Candles mark special occasions and create a special atmosphere however they also bring fire into your home so need to be treated carefully.

The Do’s and Don’ts

• Always put candles on a heat resistant surface. Be especially careful with night lights and tea lights, which get hot enough to melt plastic. TVs are not fire-resistant objects
• Candles need to be held firmly upright by stable holders so they don’t fall over.
• Position them away from curtains. Don’t put candles near curtains or other fabrics – or furniture. And keep them out of draughts
• Don’t put them under shelves. It’s easy to forget that there’s a lot of heat above a burning candle. If you put it under a shelf or other surface then it can burn the surface. Make sure there’s at least three feet (one metre) between a candle and any surface above it
• Keep clothes and hair away. If there’s any chance you could lean across a candle and forget it’s there, put it somewhere else. You don’t want to set fire to your clothes or your hair
• Keep children and pets away. Candles should be out of reach of children and pets
• Keep candles apart. Leave at least four inches (10cm) between two burning candles
• Take care with votive or scented candles. These kinds of candles turn to liquid to release their fragrance, so put them in a glass or metal holder
• Don’t move them when they’re burning. Extinguish candles before moving them. Also, don’t let anything fall into the hot wax like match sticks
• Don’t leave them burning. Extinguish candles before you leave a room. Never go to sleep with a candle still burning. And never leave a burning candle or oil burner in a child’s bedroom
• Use a snuffer or a spoon to put them out. It’s safer than blowing them, which can send sparks and hot wax flying
• Double check they’re out. Candles that have been put out can go on smouldering and start a fire. Make sure they’re completely out.

Polystyrene tiles

We actively discourage the use of polystyrene tiles in our homes because older types of these tiles can give off poisonous fumes if they catch fire and may spread fire quickly to other parts of the property.

Because we cannot tell whether polystyrene tiles in our homes are the old, potentially dangerous or the new safer variety, we always remove them before re-letting a home. Do not put up polystyrene tiles in your home without contacting us first.

Furniture

Ensure that your furniture has the fire resistant permanent label.

How to prevent common kitchen fires

Do:

• Keep matches and saucepan handles out of children’s reach and do not let saucepan handles stick out from the cooker where they could be easily knocked off
• Take the pans off the heat or turn down the heat under the pans if you have to leave the kitchen whilst cooking
• Keep tea towels and cloths away from the cooker
• Use spark devices rather than matches or lighters to light gas cookers because they do not have a naked flame
• Double check the cooker is off when you have finished cooking
• Keep electrical leads and appliances away from water
• Keep your cooker clean and free from fat and grease
• Use a thermostat controlled electric deep-fat fryer, which cannot overheat rather than hot oil in a saucepan which can easily overheat and catch fire
• Keep toasters clean and away from curtains and kitchen rolls
• Keep oil to below one third of the height of the pan if you do use a saucepan, and make sure food is dry before placing it in the hot oil – it could splash and spit hot oil on you
• Turn off the heat and leave the oil to cool down if it starts to smoke.

Do not:

• Leave children in the kitchen on their own when you are cooking
• Wear loose clothing when cooking as it could easily catch fire
• Put anything metal in the microwave
• Take any risks, if oil in a pan catches fire, turn off the heat if it is safe to do so
• Try to put an oil pan fire out with water as it could just lead to the burning oil exploding over you and the kitchen
• Take a burning saucepan outside as oxygen will feed the fire and make it worse

How to prevent common electrical fires

Do:

• Always check that you use the right fuse to prevent your plug overheating
• Make sure your electrical appliances have the British or European safety mark
• Use one plug per socket rather than using adaptors or extension leads. High powered appliances such as washing machines should always have a single plug and plug socket to themselves
• Keep electrical appliances clean and in good working order to prevent them causing a fire
• Look for signs of dangerous or loose wiring such as scorch marks, hot plugs and sockets, flickering lights, fuses that blow or circuit breakers that trip for no obvious reason
• Replace any old cables and leads
• Unplug appliances that you are not using
• Unplug electric blankets before going to bed if they do not have a thermostatic control for safe all night use
• Try to secure portable heaters up against a wall to stop them falling over
• Keep portable heaters away from curtains and furniture and never use them for drying clothes
• Replace electric blankets immediately if they show wear and tear.

Do not:

• Overload an extension lead or adaptor – check its limit e.g. an extension’s limit may be 13 amp so you would not want to put 4 x 5 amp appliances, as this adds up to 20 amps
• Leave electric blankets folded as this damages the internal wiring, store them flat or rolled up instead
• Buy second hand electric blankets.

Planning a safe escape

Preparing and practising an escape plan will help to ensure that you and your family can escape safely if there is a fire.

Do:

• Make sure everyone in your home knows where the door and window keys are kept
•  Make sure exits are kept clear
• Identify a quick and easy route out of your home
• Think of another route in case the first one is blocked
• Make sure everyone living with you knows what to do in a fire

For a free Home Fire Safety Check: visit www.glosfire.gov.uk or call 01452 888777

What should I do if there is a fire in my home?

How do I reduce fire risk in a block?

What fire detection methods are there in my home?

Keeping communal areas clear and free of obstruction is very important.

It is important that communal areas are kept clear and free from rubbish or hazards at all times.

Communal staircases, landings and corridors provide access for emergency services in the event of a fire and an escape route for the safe evacuation of residents.

Items left in stairwells or corridors could become a hazard particularly in the event of a fire if the area was smoke filled or in darkness.

Customers living in blocks of flats with communal areas have a responsibility to keep the corridors, landing and stairwells clear at all times. These are not areas for storage of personal items, furniture or bags of rubbish awaiting disposal.

The following items should not be stored or placed in communal areas;

• Bikes or motor bikes
• Prams, buggies or pushchairs
• Children’s toys, bikes and scooters
• Recycling boxes, bags or bins
• Furniture, tables, cupboards or chairs
• Door mats or carpet
• Black bin bags and general rubbish
• Mobility scooters or other walking aids

We routinely inspect communal areas and remove items, with the costs recharged to individual residents if known or inlcuded as part of the annual service charge for residents within the block. We encourage residents to help us keep areas clear by reporting items left in communal areas.

To reduce fire risk, customers should ensure that communal doors and fire doors to individual flats are not wedged open and kept closed at all times.

Legislation from July 2007 prohibits smoking in common parts of domestic premises e.g. communal areas in a block. Enclosed communal areas of blocks of flats are now designated smoke-free premises.

Our priority is to ensure that communal areas are hazard free and together with residents within our blocks of flats and housing schemes, we effectively manage, monitor and minimise fire risk.

What should I do if there is a fire in my home?

How do I prevent fire in my home?

What fire detection methods are there in my home?

Anti-Social Behaviour

If you are suffering from anti-social behaviour you can report this to us by calling 01452 424344, or by making a report online

For reports of Criminal Activity (examples include: drug dealing; illicit drug use; violent or threatening behaviour; assault; criminal damage; sexual assault; theft/burglary; cuckooing) then please call the police in the first instance. If you are in immediate need of assistance, or if a crime is in progress, then call 999. To report to the police please call 101 or report online. To report crime anonymously then you can report through CrimeStoppers on 0800 555 111 or report online.

 

What happens when you make a complaint about ASB?:

Once you have made a complaint we will contact you to discuss the details and agree to a plan of action with you. All reports will be received in confidence and we will not disclose the source of the complaint without agreeing to this with you first.

Where agreed, we will make a referral to Victim Support if it is felt that you would benefit from this.

If you report an incident out of our normal office hours, please leave details and we will pick up the enquiry on the next working day.

You can help us by:

• Keeping a record of incidents – helps us to understand the persistence of the reports and the impact that this behaviour is having upon your household/community.
• Keep us informed, and the Police if necessary, of any changes in your circumstances.
• Letting us know what you think about the service we and other partner agencies give you.

We will always look to resolve cases at an early stage. Where we are not able to do this and we are satisfied that the behaviour being reported is a breach of tenancy and is detrimental to members of the local community, we may be required to take formal enforcement actions. If we are required to do this we will discuss this in detail with you and may ask that you provide a witness statement and to attend court as necessary.

Reporting Domestic Abuse

If you are experiencing any form of domestic abuse, please contact us. You can also get independent advice from Gloucestershire Domestic Abuse Support Service – Call: 01452 726570 or visit www.gdass.org.uk 

The 24 hour National Domestic Abuse Freephone Helpline is 0808 2000 247.

If you believe that Domestic Abuse is occurring, or there is an immediate risk of harm, please call 999.

We are committed to tackling all forms of domestic abuse. We define domestic abuse as:

‘Any incident or pattern of incidents of controlling, coercive or threatening behaviour, violence or abuse between those aged 16 or over who are or have been intimate partners or family members regardless of gender or sexuality. This can encompass, but is not limited to, the following types of abuse: Psychological, Physical, Sexual, Financial, Emotional’.

Domestic abuse is a breach of our tenancy conditions. We may take action against anyone causing it.

Reporting Hate Crime

Hate Crimes can include crimes or incidents aggravated by hate of someone’s age, gender, ethnicity, disability, sexual preference, religion or belief.

If you are experiencing anti-social behaviour because of your gender, religion, age, faith, race, disability or because you are gay, lesbian or transgender please report it to us and to the Police.

Hate crime can include:

• Verbal or written abuse, for example spitting, threats, theft, offensive items left on doors, telephone calls.
• Physical assault.
• Incitement, for example stirring up racial hatred by using petitions, leaflets or stickers.
• Damage to property, or arson.

Gloucester City Homes take all hate crime incidents in any form against any member of our community, including staff and contractors, extremely seriously and will deal with all complaints swiftly

We will investigate all complaints of anti-social behaviour, domestic abuse and hate crime thoroughly.

We will do this by:

• Encouraging residents to report anti-social behaviour to us.
• Taking suitable and fair action against people who cause antisocial behaviour, hate crime and domestic abuse, whether it is caused by them, their visitors and/or their family.
• Supporting complainants and/or witnesses of anti-social behaviour. We will also offer support to any vulnerable perpetrator.
• Working with our multi-agency partners to prevent antisocial behaviour, recognising that prevention is better than cure. We will do this by referring residents to mediation and support services where appropriate. We aim to resolve most complaints of anti-social behaviour without taking legal action.
• Monitoring the quality of our service by setting service standards with our customers and completing customer satisfaction surveys when cases are closed.

You can also get independent advice from:

• Gloucester Citizens Advice Bureau Telephone: 01452 527202 or visit www.gloucestercab.org.uk
• Gay-Glos Telephone: Helpline 01452 306800.  Mon-Fri 7.30pm – 9.30pm, or visit www.gayglos.org

We want you to be warm and well in your home, below is our advice for keeping warm and well in cold weather.

Hypothermia

Hypothermia (when your body temperature falls below normal) is more likely to happen to someone who is elderly or very young and can happen if you are in a temperature of below 6°C (43°F) for 2 hours or more.

Avoiding hypothermia

Here are some simple tips to help you avoid hypothermia.

During the day:

• Set your heating thermostat to around 21ºC (70ºF) and heat all the rooms you use in the day
• If you cannot heat all your rooms make sure you keep your living room warm and heat your bedroom before going to bed
• Set the timer on your heating to come on before you get up and switch off when you go to bed in very cold weather.

At night:

• Try to keep a temperature above 18°C (65°F) in your bedroom
• If you use a fire or heater in your bedroom during winter, open the window or door a little at night for ventilation. An electric blanket or a hot water bottle will help you keep warm but never use them together as you could electrocute yourself
• Keep your curtains closed.

In general:

• Use draught excluders around doors and windows but do not block up any air vents
• Have plenty of hot drinks and food
• Wear plenty of thin layers, rather than one thick one
• Put on a coat, hat, scarf, gloves and warm shoes or boots when you go outside
• Wear clothes made of wool, cotton, or fleecy synthetic fibres
• Stay warm in bed with bed socks, thermal underwear and a nightcap or headscarf.

What to look out for:

The signs of hypothermia are:

• Drowsiness
• Slurred speech
• No longer feeling cold even though the room is very cold
• Very cold skin in areas that are normally covered (stomach and under the armpits).

What to do if someone is suffering from hypothermia:

• Take action quickly
• Gradually turn up the heating
• Use some light blankets to warm them up
• Give them a warm drink
• Get medical help.

Visit the Warm and Well website www.warmandwell.co.uk

Electrical Safety in your home is important to us. We want you to be safe and secure in your home.

You can help to keep your family safe by knowing what to check for on electrical items in your home. If something isn’t quite right or you are unsure, remember to contact us and we will be able to advise if repairs are needed.

Simple safety checks

• Familiarise yourself with where the fuse board is and the main switch installed on the board, this ensures you know where it is and how to turn it off if there is an emergency.
• If you have an RCD trip switch in your home, make sure you know how to reset it. We advise that you should test this every 6 months by pressing the button labelled T or Test, the device should switch off the supply and should then be switched on to restore the supply. If the device does not switch off the supply when the button is pressed, please call the GCH repairs team All instructions for the above can be found on the cover of the fuse board.
• In the event of loss of power check appliances before you use them again if it has caused the trip switch to cut out. The appliance causing the problem is generally the last one you turned on. If in doubt, turn on the appliances you have been using one by one until you find out which one has caused the switch to trip.
• If your electricity fails and you have a token meter – always check you have a supply of tokens in the meter.

Plugs and sockets

Look out for:

• Hot plugs or sockets, scorch marks, fuses that often blow, or flickering lights. These are all signs of loose wiring or other electrical problems.
• Badly-wired plugs – any coloured wires sticking out could come loose and debris could also get into the plug, they could also cause an electric shock.
• Overloaded sockets – plugging too many electrical appliances into one socket can lead to overheating and a fire.
• Damaged accessories – If you have a damaged socket, switch or light fittings then call the repairs team, don’t wait for a 5-year inspection as an accident could happen during that period that could have been avoided.

Cables and leads

Check for these problems:

• Fraying and damage – make sure the outer covering of all power leads is in good condition and replace if necessary.
• Bad positioning – make sure leads cannot be tripped over and that they are not near water, cookers or other sources of heat.
• Do not run leads under rugs or carpets – they may wear out without anyone noticing.

Appliances

General rules:

• Do not get them wet. For example, do not put a vase of flowers on top of the TV in case you knock it over.
• Do not leave them on at night – unless they are designed to be left on, like freezers.
• Do not put anything in the microwave that is made of metal, or has a metallic finish or parts.

Servicing

Arrange a yearly service by a qualified appliance service engineer, for appliances that run at high speeds and contain motors, like washing machines.

Plugs, sockets and cables

To use plugs, sockets and cables safely, always:

• Change a plug correctly and make sure you cannot see any coloured wires between the plug and the power lead.
• Make sure the wires are held firmly in place inside the plug.
• Use sockets safely – it is better to use an extension lead than a single multi-plug adaptor.
• Only use 1 adaptor per socket – do not plug 1 adaptor into another and try to keep to 1 plug per socket.
• Only use CE-accredited phone chargers – always try and use the original charger as imitation chargers without the CE accreditations is a fire risk.

If you are fitting or changing a fuse, make sure you use the right fuse for the appliance. Check the manual or look for a sticker on the appliance to find out its wattage and then use the correct fuse for appliances:

Fuses

• Up to 700 watts, use a 3 amp fuse.
• Between 700 and 1,000 watts, use a 5 amp fuse.
• For more than 1,000 watts, use a 13 amp fuse.
• Extension leads and adaptors have a limit on how many amps they can take, so be careful not to overload them, to reduce the risk of a fire.

For more information, please contact us or visit the Electrical Safety Council’s website at electricalsafetycouncil.org.uk

Installing Electrical Additions and Alterations

No electrical work can be carried out on a GCH property until it has been approved by us. If you plan to carry out any electrical installation works, such as installing new sockets, switches and wiring to outbuildings, this must be approved by us first as these works must be carried out and certified by an approved electrical contractor. Failure to do so will result in the removal of the alterations which will be charged back to you. Find more information here about the building regulations and Document P.

Any light fittings or fixtures must be installed by a competent electrician.

Please contact us if you need any information about electrical upgrades in your home, we want you to live happily but more importantly safely.

By law, we must carry out Home Safety Checks at every property each year. The aim of this check is to service any gas fires, boilers and water heaters in your home. We will also test your smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, where fitted. We will also carry out a visual inspections of your flat front door if it leads onto the communal escape route of the building.

You must allow our engineers into your home to do this. If you do not let them in, you are putting the lives of you, your family, and your neighbours at risk.

For this appointment, you must have credit on your meter otherwise we cannot carry out the service and your supply will be capped.

Appointments
When your safety check is due, we will give you at least 1 week’s notice of the appointment. Should you miss the first scheduled appointment, the engineer will leave a card with a new appointment. If you cannot keep the second appointment you must phone and rearrange it. If you do not keep the second appointment, the engineer will leave another card and a warning label across your front door.

Should an appointment be inconvenient for you, please let us know with as much notice as possible.

All appointments are carried out within our working hours of 8am – 5pm.

If you do not keep your appointment
If you do not contact us, we will start legal action to gain access into your home. If we smell gas or have concern for your welfare, we reserve the right to force entry to your home to take emergency action. This is to protect your health and safety and that of your neighbours as faulty gas appliances can cause death by carbon monoxide poisoning or explosion. We won’t put your safety or that of your neighbours at risk in this way.
Thank you for your cooperation. We may charge you for all the costs of taking legal action, coming out to your home, forcing entry and doing repairs. If you keep refusing us entry you may lose your home.

Your own gas appliances
If you have fitted any gas appliances, please have them checked and serviced every year to make sure they are safe. We check this takes place. Always use a Gas Safety Registered gas fitter for any work to gas appliances.

A recharge is when we charge tenants for costs we incur when the work is due to their actions or behaviour. For example, we may have to carry out repairs to the property because the resident has neglected or caused damage to their home.

All work prices are based on the National Housing Federation’s Schedule of Rates and are fixed costs. Please bear in mind that we also charge for our time plus VAT and a 15% admin fee.

Please be aware that if we are called out and the work is no longer required we will still have to charge you for our call-out time.

Smoke and heat alarms

Fire detection is the best way to protect yourself from fire. Smoke and heat alarms give you an early warning of a fire in your home.

We provide smoke detectors in all our homes. Your home should have a smoke alarm fitted on every floor and where a room is used for living puposes ie Lounge as well as a heat alarm in the kitchen (heat alarms operate at higher temperatures to allow for cooking heat). If you have not got these fire detection precautions in place, notify us straight away.

We are converting all of our customer’s smoke and heat alarms from being powered by batteries to hard wired alarms which are powered by your mains electricity. They have a battery as a backup in case your power fails.

Do:

• Dust your smoke/heat alarm regularly
• Check your smoke/heat alarm monthly to make sure it is working by pressing the test button
• Replace the battery if the alarm bleeps for any reason other than smoke or fire in your home
• Contact us if you have any problems with your smoke alarm

Do not:

• Remove a working battery from your smoke/heat alarm
• Paint over or remove the smoke alarm

If you decide to put up extra smoke alarms:

Do:

• Check with us first to ensure your ceiling does not contain asbestos
• Position them on the ceiling in the middle of the room

Do not:

• Put smoke alarms in or near kitchens or bathrooms because everyday steam and smoke can set them off by accident. Your Scheme Officer will also test the fire alarm systems in your scheme’s communal areas weekly

If you live in one of our sheltered or semi-sheltered homes there is an annual programme of testing the smoke detector in your property. If a battery needs replacing GCH will be responsible for arranging this.

Your smoke detector connects to the monitoring centre.  Please answer their call if they contact you, to confirm what has happened. If there is no answer this will be treated as an emergency and the Fire Service will be called.

Fire safety checks in Sheltered Housing:

• Emergency lighting – monthly
• Fire Equipment e.g. extinguishers, blankets and fire hoses – annually
• Risk assessments – every 12 – 18 months
• Fire Alarm/Panel – 6-monthly
• Fire Door Inspection – quarterly (every 3 months)
• All schemes also have a fire alarm test to a different call point within the building every week

Fire safety checks in General blocks:

• Emergency lighting – monthly
• Fire Equipment e.g. extinguishers, blankets and fire hoses – annually
• Risk Assessments – 3 yearly however annually where the risk of a fire is higher
• Fire Alarm/Panel – 6-monthly
• Call Point Checks – Weekly
• Fire Door Inspection – quarterly (every 3 months)

We will take any action needed to ensure these systems are working properly and that the fire detection method complies with the latest standards.

What should I do if there is a fire in my home?

How do I prevent fire in my home?

How do I reduce fire risk in a block?

You are responsible for replacing door locks or keys when keys are lost or broken, or you get locked out.

This includes window and garage keys.

In the event that you lose your keys, you should contact a local, reputable locksmith.

If you find you need emergency accommodation:

If you require emergency accommodation, you will need to present to a local authority Homelessness Team. They will make you an appointment with a Housing Options Advisor who will discuss options and provide you with housing advice on securing alternative accommodation.

Please note that you may not qualify for housing via Homeseeker Plus if you have more than 8 weeks of current or former housing debt or if you have been evicted for anti-social behaviour. This applies for either a sole or joint tenancy.

Advice

If you find yourself in this position please contact the Council’s Housing Options Team at 01452 396 396. Alternatively, you can get independent legal advice from:

Gloucester Citizens’ Advice Bureau – 01452 527202 or visit www.gloucestercab.org.uk
Shelter Housing and Homelessness Charity – 0808 800 4444 or visit www.shelter.org.uk
The Gloucester Law Centre – 01452 423492 or visit www.gloucesterlawcentre.co.uk

If you smell gas, take these steps straight away:

Do:

• Turn off your mains supply
• Open doors and windows
• Once outside, phone the emergency number 0800 111 999

Do Not use:

• matches, naked flames or cigarettes
• electrical switches (do not turn on your lights)
• mobile phones inside the building

Carbon Monoxide Kills – but you cannot see it, taste it or smell it.

Carbon monoxide is poisonous and can be fatal. If an appliance that burns gas, oil, coal or wood isn’t working properly it may give off carbon monoxide. This can also happen if the appliance is in a room with poor ventilation or a blocked chimney or flue.

What should you do?

• Keep your Home Safety Check appointment
• Get any appliances you’ve fitted yourself checked each year by a Gas Safety Registered engineer
• Keep your home well ventilated. Never block flues or paper over air vents
• Have any chimneys regularly swept and kept clear
• If you are buying a carbon monoxide detector, get one that complies with BS 7860 but do not rely entirely on these devices

DANGER SIGNS:

• Flames that normally burn blue are burning orange or yellow instead
• Sooty stains on or just above appliances
• Coal or wood fires that burn slowly or go out

If you have any of these symptoms and you think carbon monoxide may be involved, switch off all of your appliances and call your doctor at once:

• Drowsiness
• Headaches
• Chest pains
• Giddiness
• Sickness, diarrhoea or stomach pains.

If you are concerned about any gas appliance please contact us.

Useful Contacts

For gas appliances:
Gas Safety Advice Line: 0800 300 363 or visit www.hse.gov.uk/gas

For solid fuel, coal and wood appliances:
Solid Fuel Association: 0845 601 4406 or visit www.solidfuel.co.uk

For oil appliances: 
Oil Firing Technical Association for the Petroleum : 0845 65 85 080 or visit www.oftec.org

For Gas Safe Engineers: 
Gas Safety Register: 0800 408 5500 or visit www.gassafetyregister.co.uk

What to do if you find, or are notified that there is asbestos in your home.

What is asbestos?

It is a natural fibre and was used in a wide range of building materials and products up to the 1990’s because it is a good insulator and resistant to fire. Homes built since the mid-1990s are unlikely to contain asbestos because of changes in health and safety laws.

Why is it harmful?

When products containing asbestos get old or damaged, they can release fibres into the air. When people breathe in high levels of these fibres they risk getting serious lung disease.

There may be asbestos in your home. However there is little risk unless the product containing it is damaged. If there is damaged asbestos in your home please contact us for advice.

Where might I find it in my home?

You might find it in these common building materials:

• Sprayed asbestos – generally used as fire breaks in ceiling spaces, fire protection of ducts and structural steelwork
• Lagging around pipes and boilers
• Walls, ceilings and door linings
• Roofing tiles and felt
• Some ceiling tiles
• Some flooring
• Decorative textured coatings generally applied before 1990
• Bath panels
• Boarding and gaskets in electrical mains fuse cupboards and some gas fires
• Asbestos cement products, like flat or corrugated roofing sheets and wall cladding on garages, sheds etc.
• Gutters, rainwater pipes, water tanks and flues

How to tell if a product contains asbestos

Since 1976, British manufacturers put labels on their products to show they contain asbestos. Since 1986 all products with asbestos carry the European label. The supplier or manufacturer may be able to tell you if it contains asbestos.

Remember: products that contain asbestos can look very similar to those that don’t.

If in doubt call us on 01452 424344 about building materials.
Contact Gloucester City Council’s Environmental Health service on 01452 396396 about other goods.

How are we reducing the risk?

We have surveyed a sample of our homes to get a picture of where it is. This helps us to manage it and reduce any risk to you.

If it is damaged we will remove it. If it is not damaged we may leave it alone to do its fire-resistant job. In that case we will make sure that everyone knows the asbestos is there and that nobody damages it.

When we repair or improve your home, we will treat it with the caution it deserves. This ensures that your health and safety and that of our staff are not put at risk.

What should I do if I think there is asbestos in my home?

It is often best to leave it where it is, if in good condition and not easily damaged. Removing it can lead to higher levels of fibre in the air for some time. We will check the condition of the asbestos from time to time to make sure it isn’t damaged or deteriorating.

Do:

• Contact us straight away if you think there is damaged or deteriorating asbestos in your home
• Contact us if you think your warm-air heating system, electrical storage heating system or flameless catalytic gas heater may contain asbestos

Don’t:

• Disturb or damage asbestos that is in good condition.

Contact GCH or the Health and Safety Executive www.hse.gov.uk or call 0300 003 1747

If you have a water emergency in your home such as a burst pipe or  flooding:

• To stop flooding, turn the mains stoptap to the right (clockwise ↵) or press the surestop switch (if there is one).

• If you need to shut off the supply of water to a fitting, such as a toilet or basin, you can use the service valve on the pipe leading to it (if there is one fitted).
• After the water has been isolated, call our repairs team on 01452 424344

If you have no water at all coming into the property, call Severn Trent on 0800 783 4444

If your fittings or appliances are sparking, flickering or giving off shocks, Turn the mains switch at the consumer unit (fuse box) OFF where it is safe to do so and contact us as soon as possible so that we can raise an emergency repair. In the event the consumer unit is sparking or giving off shocks, then do not approach it and/or any electrical components within the property and wait for one of our emergency engineers to attend.

• After the electricity has been isolated, call our repairs team on 01452 424344 to raise an emergency repair.

• If you have a power cut, call the emergency number given in the phone book or on your electricity bill. It might be worth checking if your neighbours have power.

What to do if there is a fire in a sheltered housing property or a flat within a purpose built block with a communal area

Do:

• Stay in your home and close all doors behind you
• Move towards a window, so that you can be seen from the outside
• Get ready to be evacuated e.g. get dressed, collect walking sticks, house keys etc.
• Wait for the Senior Fire Officer to decide when to evacuate the building. They will have a list of all the residents who need help
•  Stay in your home until told that it is safe to leave, or you are told to evacuate
• If you are in a communal area leave by the safest route and report to the assembly point
• Stay at the assembly point until the Senior Fire Officer tells you what to do next.

Do not:

• Use the lift
• Let visitors through the communal door entry system unless they are emergency personnel needing to get into the building
• Leave your home until told that it is safe to do so
• Go out into the corridors to investigate
• Block corridors, keep escape routes clear at all times

If there is a fire in your house, bungalow, maisonette or in a converted block of flats*

*Our converted blocks of flats are 31, 35 & 39 Parliament Street, 71 London Road and 1 Belgrave Road.

Do not tackle the fire yourself!

Do:

• Keep calm and leave immediately, closing all doors behind you
• Crawl out at ground level if smoke is making it difficult for you to breathe – smoke tends to rise and breathing should be easier the closer you are to the ground
• Check doors before opening them, with the back of your hand. If it is warm, do not open it – there may be a fire on the other side
• Raise the alarm by activating a fire alarm point if there is one. Alternatively dial 999, ask for the Fire and Rescue Service and tell them your location
• Go to a place of safety outside and stay there until told what to do by the Senior Fire Officer on the scene.

Do not:

• Waste time investigating what has happened or rescuing valuables.

If you are trapped by the fire or smoke

Try to take refuge in a room with a window or external door that isn’t affected by fire or smoke and make sure you close the door behind you to delay the fire. Place a wet piece of clothing or towel across the bottom of the door to prevent smoke getting in. If there is an exit door or window from the room, use it to escape. If you are on the first floor, throw something out of the window which will help to break your fall, such as a mattress or cushions, and then lower yourself by your arms from the window ledge before dropping.

Do Not Jump!

If there are 2 adults, 1 should go down first to catch children. The other should get into a secure position and then lower the children as far as possible down the outside wall before letting them drop.

If you are above first-floor level, or due to your age or health cannot get out of the window, open the window and draw attention to yourself by shouting and by waving sheets or clothes. Wait until the emergency services arrive to rescue you.

If your clothes catch fire Stop! Drop! And Roll!

Do:

• Lie down and roll around. It makes it harder for it to spread and may put out some of the flames
• Smother the flames with a heavy material, like a coat or blanket, it will help deprive the fire of oxygen which it needs to keep burning

Do not:

• Run around, it will make the flames worse

How do I prevent fire in my home?

How do I reduce fire risk in a block?

What fire detection methods are there in my home?

For a free Home Fire Safety Check: visit www.glosfire.gov.uk or call 01452 888777

We know that your local environment is important to you and your quality of life.

Our grounds maintenance partner looks after the grassed areas in your neighbourhood. They will:

• Cut grassed areas at sheltered housing schemes (including semi-sheltered schemes).
• Cut all other grassed areas maintained by pedestrian rotary machine or cutting on amenity grass areas, on a cut and leave basis, 12 cuts per season
• Strim all grassed areas and borders edged as appropriate, 12 times per season
• Spray weed sprays on hard surfaces, 2 times per season
• Maintain shrub beds and borders, 1-2 occasions per season
• Cut hedges appropriately, 2, 3 or 4 occasions per season dependent on location and type of hedge
• Collect, remove and dispose of fallen leaves as appropriate, 4 occasions per season

We know it is important to keep the communal areas around and leading up to your home clean.

These are the cleaning standards for communal areas.

Communal areas will be cleaned weekly or fortnightly depending on the contractual arrangements in place for each block.

Our cleaning partners will clean:

General communal areas, stairways, and lifts to include sweeping, mopping and dusting.

Every 12 months our cleaning partners will:

• Clean outside communal stairwell windows on the first floor and above and soft furnishings e.g. curtains.
• Shampoo and dry all carpets in the 8 main sheltered schemes.

To help us maintain these standards, please help us by:

• Being careful about how you dispose of household waste.
• Keeping security doors closed.
• Reporting any repairs, damage or graffiti.
• Not dropping litter or dumping rubbish.
• Telling us if you are not satisfied with the standards in your neighbourhood.
• Keeping proper control of your pets.

As well as this, your tenancy conditions say that you must:

• Keep the common areas of your block clean and tidy. This includes staircases, landings, entrance halls, lifts and bin areas.
• Keep the areas clear of anything that might cause a hazard or block people’s access.

With your help, we intend to keep communal areas as clean as possible.

Our Estate Services Team complete practical work to maintain your community and communal areas.

The Estate Services Team follow a 4-week schedule from Monday to Friday that covers Podsmead, Tuffley, Quedgeley, Matson, Robinswood, Barton and Tredworth, Westgate and Kingsholm and other smaller areas around the city. This means that each area is visited at least once per month.

The Estate Services team are responsible for:

• Check communal waste areas and remove excess bags from bins. This is so that they can be collected by the Council’s collections
• Removal of bulky items from communal areas if a health & safety/fire risk. If not a risk, items will be left in place and identified for recharge through Tenancy Services. 
  
  Flytipped items will not be removed for free
  
• Complete a litter pick of the area
• Areas of grounds maintenance not covered by Council contracts will be addressed, cut back and tidied. Some of these areas may necessitate a return visit in order to complete
• Check and maintain local alleyways and paths. Some may need more than one visit and work will continue on the next scheduled visit
• Check and maintain garage sites and compounds
• Record and report any other issues back to the relevant GCH team

Please note that we may recharge you for this service, if we find that you have caused the problem in the first place, such as dumping rubbish illegally.

If you suspect someone is guilty of tenancy fraud, contact us in confidence.

Tenancy fraud can include: Someone moving out and letting their home to someone else, falsely obtaining a housing association or council property or someone not living at the property but living somewhere else

You can report tenancy fraud online here

The Council encourages residents to reduce, reuse and recycle as much household rubbish as possible.

Recycling rubbish conserves resources, saves energy and helps protect the environment by reducing the amount of rubbish in landfill sites.

You can use the green bins, food waste containers, compost bins, garden cuttings collection service etc. provided to recycle your rubbish.

If you live in a block of flats, you can recycle your rubbish using the Council provided communal facilities.  If you misuse the recycling bins and put the wrong things in them, they become contaminated. This could lead to an increase in your service charge.

For more information, contact the Council’s Recycling Team on 01452 396396 or email enviro@gloucester.gov.uk

Fire Safety in your home is very important and we want you to be safe from the risk of fire in your home.

If you can smell or see smoke, call 999 immediately.

Chip Pan – Fire Risk & Safety Advice

Chip pan fires cause one fifth of all accidental dwelling fires attended by the fire and rescue service in the UK each year. Nearly 20 people are killed or injured every day in accidental fires that start in their kitchen, the most common of these caused by deep fat frying.

Given the considerable fire risk we no longer support the use of chip pans by customers.

Barbecue – Fire Risk & Safety Advice

Barbecues present a significant fire risk and a risk to personal safety. Balconies on blocks of flats may seem an ideal place to relax during the summer but under no circumstances should they be used for barbecues due to the risk of falling embers, compounded by stronger wind speeds at height.

Top 10 barbecue safety tips:

While barbecues should never be used on balconies on blocks of flats, they can be used safely in outdoor garden areas, provided these rules are followed:

1. Ensure the barbecue is strong, sturdy and in good working order
2. Place it on level ground to avoid it tipping over
3. Keep it well clear of any trees, shrubs, or flammable objects
4. Keep children and animals well away
5. Never pour on petrol or other accelerants
6. For charcoal barbecues, only use the minimum fuel necessary
7. For gas barbecues, ensure the tap is turned off before changing the cylinder
8. Never leave the barbecue unattended
9. Keep a bucket of water or sand close by
10. Ensure the barbecue is cool before attempting to move it

Candles – Fire Risk & Safety Advice

Candles mark special occasions and create a special atmosphere however they also bring fire into your home so need to be treated carefully.

The Do’s and Don’ts

• Always put candles on a heat resistant surface. Be especially careful with night lights and tea lights, which get hot enough to melt plastic. TVs are not fire-resistant objects
• Candles need to be held firmly upright by stable holders so they don’t fall over.
• Position them away from curtains. Don’t put candles near curtains or other fabrics – or furniture. And keep them out of draughts
• Don’t put them under shelves. It’s easy to forget that there’s a lot of heat above a burning candle. If you put it under a shelf or other surface then it can burn the surface. Make sure there’s at least three feet (one metre) between a candle and any surface above it
• Keep clothes and hair away. If there’s any chance you could lean across a candle and forget it’s there, put it somewhere else. You don’t want to set fire to your clothes or your hair
• Keep children and pets away. Candles should be out of reach of children and pets
• Keep candles apart. Leave at least four inches (10cm) between two burning candles
• Take care with votive or scented candles. These kinds of candles turn to liquid to release their fragrance, so put them in a glass or metal holder
• Don’t move them when they’re burning. Extinguish candles before moving them. Also, don’t let anything fall into the hot wax like match sticks
• Don’t leave them burning. Extinguish candles before you leave a room. Never go to sleep with a candle still burning. And never leave a burning candle or oil burner in a child’s bedroom
• Use a snuffer or a spoon to put them out. It’s safer than blowing them, which can send sparks and hot wax flying
• Double check they’re out. Candles that have been put out can go on smouldering and start a fire. Make sure they’re completely out.

Polystyrene tiles

We actively discourage the use of polystyrene tiles in our homes because older types of these tiles can give off poisonous fumes if they catch fire and may spread fire quickly to other parts of the property.

Because we cannot tell whether polystyrene tiles in our homes are the old, potentially dangerous or the new safer variety, we always remove them before re-letting a home. Do not put up polystyrene tiles in your home without contacting us first.

Furniture

Ensure that your furniture has the fire resistant permanent label.

How to prevent common kitchen fires

Do:

• Keep matches and saucepan handles out of children’s reach and do not let saucepan handles stick out from the cooker where they could be easily knocked off
• Take the pans off the heat or turn down the heat under the pans if you have to leave the kitchen whilst cooking
• Keep tea towels and cloths away from the cooker
• Use spark devices rather than matches or lighters to light gas cookers because they do not have a naked flame
• Double check the cooker is off when you have finished cooking
• Keep electrical leads and appliances away from water
• Keep your cooker clean and free from fat and grease
• Use a thermostat controlled electric deep-fat fryer, which cannot overheat rather than hot oil in a saucepan which can easily overheat and catch fire
• Keep toasters clean and away from curtains and kitchen rolls
• Keep oil to below one third of the height of the pan if you do use a saucepan, and make sure food is dry before placing it in the hot oil – it could splash and spit hot oil on you
• Turn off the heat and leave the oil to cool down if it starts to smoke.

Do not:

• Leave children in the kitchen on their own when you are cooking
• Wear loose clothing when cooking as it could easily catch fire
• Put anything metal in the microwave
• Take any risks, if oil in a pan catches fire, turn off the heat if it is safe to do so
• Try to put an oil pan fire out with water as it could just lead to the burning oil exploding over you and the kitchen
• Take a burning saucepan outside as oxygen will feed the fire and make it worse

How to prevent common electrical fires

Do:

• Always check that you use the right fuse to prevent your plug overheating
• Make sure your electrical appliances have the British or European safety mark
• Use one plug per socket rather than using adaptors or extension leads. High powered appliances such as washing machines should always have a single plug and plug socket to themselves
• Keep electrical appliances clean and in good working order to prevent them causing a fire
• Look for signs of dangerous or loose wiring such as scorch marks, hot plugs and sockets, flickering lights, fuses that blow or circuit breakers that trip for no obvious reason
• Replace any old cables and leads
• Unplug appliances that you are not using
• Unplug electric blankets before going to bed if they do not have a thermostatic control for safe all night use
• Try to secure portable heaters up against a wall to stop them falling over
• Keep portable heaters away from curtains and furniture and never use them for drying clothes
• Replace electric blankets immediately if they show wear and tear.

Do not:

• Overload an extension lead or adaptor – check its limit e.g. an extension’s limit may be 13 amp so you would not want to put 4 x 5 amp appliances, as this adds up to 20 amps
• Leave electric blankets folded as this damages the internal wiring, store them flat or rolled up instead
• Buy second hand electric blankets.

Planning a safe escape

Preparing and practising an escape plan will help to ensure that you and your family can escape safely if there is a fire.

Do:

• Make sure everyone in your home knows where the door and window keys are kept
•  Make sure exits are kept clear
• Identify a quick and easy route out of your home
• Think of another route in case the first one is blocked
• Make sure everyone living with you knows what to do in a fire

For a free Home Fire Safety Check: visit www.glosfire.gov.uk or call 01452 888777

What should I do if there is a fire in my home?

How do I reduce fire risk in a block?

What fire detection methods are there in my home?

Keeping communal areas clear and free of obstruction is very important.

It is important that communal areas are kept clear and free from rubbish or hazards at all times.

Communal staircases, landings and corridors provide access for emergency services in the event of a fire and an escape route for the safe evacuation of residents.

Items left in stairwells or corridors could become a hazard particularly in the event of a fire if the area was smoke filled or in darkness.

Customers living in blocks of flats with communal areas have a responsibility to keep the corridors, landing and stairwells clear at all times. These are not areas for storage of personal items, furniture or bags of rubbish awaiting disposal.

The following items should not be stored or placed in communal areas;

• Bikes or motor bikes
• Prams, buggies or pushchairs
• Children’s toys, bikes and scooters
• Recycling boxes, bags or bins
• Furniture, tables, cupboards or chairs
• Door mats or carpet
• Black bin bags and general rubbish
• Mobility scooters or other walking aids

We routinely inspect communal areas and remove items, with the costs recharged to individual residents if known or inlcuded as part of the annual service charge for residents within the block. We encourage residents to help us keep areas clear by reporting items left in communal areas.

To reduce fire risk, customers should ensure that communal doors and fire doors to individual flats are not wedged open and kept closed at all times.

Legislation from July 2007 prohibits smoking in common parts of domestic premises e.g. communal areas in a block. Enclosed communal areas of blocks of flats are now designated smoke-free premises.

Our priority is to ensure that communal areas are hazard free and together with residents within our blocks of flats and housing schemes, we effectively manage, monitor and minimise fire risk.

What should I do if there is a fire in my home?

How do I prevent fire in my home?

What fire detection methods are there in my home?

Smoke and heat alarms

Fire detection is the best way to protect yourself from fire. Smoke and heat alarms give you an early warning of a fire in your home.

We provide smoke detectors in all our homes. Your home should have a smoke alarm fitted on every floor and where a room is used for living puposes ie Lounge as well as a heat alarm in the kitchen (heat alarms operate at higher temperatures to allow for cooking heat). If you have not got these fire detection precautions in place, notify us straight away.

We are converting all of our customer’s smoke and heat alarms from being powered by batteries to hard wired alarms which are powered by your mains electricity. They have a battery as a backup in case your power fails.

Do:

• Dust your smoke/heat alarm regularly
• Check your smoke/heat alarm monthly to make sure it is working by pressing the test button
• Replace the battery if the alarm bleeps for any reason other than smoke or fire in your home
• Contact us if you have any problems with your smoke alarm

Do not:

• Remove a working battery from your smoke/heat alarm
• Paint over or remove the smoke alarm

If you decide to put up extra smoke alarms:

Do:

• Check with us first to ensure your ceiling does not contain asbestos
• Position them on the ceiling in the middle of the room

Do not:

• Put smoke alarms in or near kitchens or bathrooms because everyday steam and smoke can set them off by accident. Your Scheme Officer will also test the fire alarm systems in your scheme’s communal areas weekly

If you live in one of our sheltered or semi-sheltered homes there is an annual programme of testing the smoke detector in your property. If a battery needs replacing GCH will be responsible for arranging this.

Your smoke detector connects to the monitoring centre.  Please answer their call if they contact you, to confirm what has happened. If there is no answer this will be treated as an emergency and the Fire Service will be called.

Fire safety checks in Sheltered Housing:

• Emergency lighting – monthly
• Fire Equipment e.g. extinguishers, blankets and fire hoses – annually
• Risk assessments – every 12 – 18 months
• Fire Alarm/Panel – 6-monthly
• Fire Door Inspection – quarterly (every 3 months)
• All schemes also have a fire alarm test to a different call point within the building every week

Fire safety checks in General blocks:

• Emergency lighting – monthly
• Fire Equipment e.g. extinguishers, blankets and fire hoses – annually
• Risk Assessments – 3 yearly however annually where the risk of a fire is higher
• Fire Alarm/Panel – 6-monthly
• Call Point Checks – Weekly
• Fire Door Inspection – quarterly (every 3 months)

We will take any action needed to ensure these systems are working properly and that the fire detection method complies with the latest standards.

What should I do if there is a fire in my home?

How do I prevent fire in my home?

How do I reduce fire risk in a block?

What to do if there is a fire in a sheltered housing property or a flat within a purpose built block with a communal area

Do:

• Stay in your home and close all doors behind you
• Move towards a window, so that you can be seen from the outside
• Get ready to be evacuated e.g. get dressed, collect walking sticks, house keys etc.
• Wait for the Senior Fire Officer to decide when to evacuate the building. They will have a list of all the residents who need help
•  Stay in your home until told that it is safe to leave, or you are told to evacuate
• If you are in a communal area leave by the safest route and report to the assembly point
• Stay at the assembly point until the Senior Fire Officer tells you what to do next.

Do not:

• Use the lift
• Let visitors through the communal door entry system unless they are emergency personnel needing to get into the building
• Leave your home until told that it is safe to do so
• Go out into the corridors to investigate
• Block corridors, keep escape routes clear at all times

If there is a fire in your house, bungalow, maisonette or in a converted block of flats*

*Our converted blocks of flats are 31, 35 & 39 Parliament Street, 71 London Road and 1 Belgrave Road.

Do not tackle the fire yourself!

Do:

• Keep calm and leave immediately, closing all doors behind you
• Crawl out at ground level if smoke is making it difficult for you to breathe – smoke tends to rise and breathing should be easier the closer you are to the ground
• Check doors before opening them, with the back of your hand. If it is warm, do not open it – there may be a fire on the other side
• Raise the alarm by activating a fire alarm point if there is one. Alternatively dial 999, ask for the Fire and Rescue Service and tell them your location
• Go to a place of safety outside and stay there until told what to do by the Senior Fire Officer on the scene.

Do not:

• Waste time investigating what has happened or rescuing valuables.

If you are trapped by the fire or smoke

Try to take refuge in a room with a window or external door that isn’t affected by fire or smoke and make sure you close the door behind you to delay the fire. Place a wet piece of clothing or towel across the bottom of the door to prevent smoke getting in. If there is an exit door or window from the room, use it to escape. If you are on the first floor, throw something out of the window which will help to break your fall, such as a mattress or cushions, and then lower yourself by your arms from the window ledge before dropping.

Do Not Jump!

If there are 2 adults, 1 should go down first to catch children. The other should get into a secure position and then lower the children as far as possible down the outside wall before letting them drop.

If you are above first-floor level, or due to your age or health cannot get out of the window, open the window and draw attention to yourself by shouting and by waving sheets or clothes. Wait until the emergency services arrive to rescue you.

If your clothes catch fire Stop! Drop! And Roll!

Do:

• Lie down and roll around. It makes it harder for it to spread and may put out some of the flames
• Smother the flames with a heavy material, like a coat or blanket, it will help deprive the fire of oxygen which it needs to keep burning

Do not:

• Run around, it will make the flames worse

How do I prevent fire in my home?

How do I reduce fire risk in a block?

What fire detection methods are there in my home?

For a free Home Fire Safety Check: visit www.glosfire.gov.uk or call 01452 888777

We want to hear about your experience with us and welcome your suggestions, compliments and complaints. You can make them here. 

Fire Safety in your home is very important and we want you to be safe from the risk of fire in your home.

If you can smell or see smoke, call 999 immediately.

Chip Pan – Fire Risk & Safety Advice

Chip pan fires cause one fifth of all accidental dwelling fires attended by the fire and rescue service in the UK each year. Nearly 20 people are killed or injured every day in accidental fires that start in their kitchen, the most common of these caused by deep fat frying.

Given the considerable fire risk we no longer support the use of chip pans by customers.

Barbecue – Fire Risk & Safety Advice

Barbecues present a significant fire risk and a risk to personal safety. Balconies on blocks of flats may seem an ideal place to relax during the summer but under no circumstances should they be used for barbecues due to the risk of falling embers, compounded by stronger wind speeds at height.

Top 10 barbecue safety tips:

While barbecues should never be used on balconies on blocks of flats, they can be used safely in outdoor garden areas, provided these rules are followed:

1. Ensure the barbecue is strong, sturdy and in good working order
2. Place it on level ground to avoid it tipping over
3. Keep it well clear of any trees, shrubs, or flammable objects
4. Keep children and animals well away
5. Never pour on petrol or other accelerants
6. For charcoal barbecues, only use the minimum fuel necessary
7. For gas barbecues, ensure the tap is turned off before changing the cylinder
8. Never leave the barbecue unattended
9. Keep a bucket of water or sand close by
10. Ensure the barbecue is cool before attempting to move it

Candles – Fire Risk & Safety Advice

Candles mark special occasions and create a special atmosphere however they also bring fire into your home so need to be treated carefully.

The Do’s and Don’ts

• Always put candles on a heat resistant surface. Be especially careful with night lights and tea lights, which get hot enough to melt plastic. TVs are not fire-resistant objects
• Candles need to be held firmly upright by stable holders so they don’t fall over.
• Position them away from curtains. Don’t put candles near curtains or other fabrics – or furniture. And keep them out of draughts
• Don’t put them under shelves. It’s easy to forget that there’s a lot of heat above a burning candle. If you put it under a shelf or other surface then it can burn the surface. Make sure there’s at least three feet (one metre) between a candle and any surface above it
• Keep clothes and hair away. If there’s any chance you could lean across a candle and forget it’s there, put it somewhere else. You don’t want to set fire to your clothes or your hair
• Keep children and pets away. Candles should be out of reach of children and pets
• Keep candles apart. Leave at least four inches (10cm) between two burning candles
• Take care with votive or scented candles. These kinds of candles turn to liquid to release their fragrance, so put them in a glass or metal holder
• Don’t move them when they’re burning. Extinguish candles before moving them. Also, don’t let anything fall into the hot wax like match sticks
• Don’t leave them burning. Extinguish candles before you leave a room. Never go to sleep with a candle still burning. And never leave a burning candle or oil burner in a child’s bedroom
• Use a snuffer or a spoon to put them out. It’s safer than blowing them, which can send sparks and hot wax flying
• Double check they’re out. Candles that have been put out can go on smouldering and start a fire. Make sure they’re completely out.

Polystyrene tiles

We actively discourage the use of polystyrene tiles in our homes because older types of these tiles can give off poisonous fumes if they catch fire and may spread fire quickly to other parts of the property.

Because we cannot tell whether polystyrene tiles in our homes are the old, potentially dangerous or the new safer variety, we always remove them before re-letting a home. Do not put up polystyrene tiles in your home without contacting us first.

Furniture

Ensure that your furniture has the fire resistant permanent label.

How to prevent common kitchen fires

Do:

• Keep matches and saucepan handles out of children’s reach and do not let saucepan handles stick out from the cooker where they could be easily knocked off
• Take the pans off the heat or turn down the heat under the pans if you have to leave the kitchen whilst cooking
• Keep tea towels and cloths away from the cooker
• Use spark devices rather than matches or lighters to light gas cookers because they do not have a naked flame
• Double check the cooker is off when you have finished cooking
• Keep electrical leads and appliances away from water
• Keep your cooker clean and free from fat and grease
• Use a thermostat controlled electric deep-fat fryer, which cannot overheat rather than hot oil in a saucepan which can easily overheat and catch fire
• Keep toasters clean and away from curtains and kitchen rolls
• Keep oil to below one third of the height of the pan if you do use a saucepan, and make sure food is dry before placing it in the hot oil – it could splash and spit hot oil on you
• Turn off the heat and leave the oil to cool down if it starts to smoke.

Do not:

• Leave children in the kitchen on their own when you are cooking
• Wear loose clothing when cooking as it could easily catch fire
• Put anything metal in the microwave
• Take any risks, if oil in a pan catches fire, turn off the heat if it is safe to do so
• Try to put an oil pan fire out with water as it could just lead to the burning oil exploding over you and the kitchen
• Take a burning saucepan outside as oxygen will feed the fire and make it worse

How to prevent common electrical fires

Do:

• Always check that you use the right fuse to prevent your plug overheating
• Make sure your electrical appliances have the British or European safety mark
• Use one plug per socket rather than using adaptors or extension leads. High powered appliances such as washing machines should always have a single plug and plug socket to themselves
• Keep electrical appliances clean and in good working order to prevent them causing a fire
• Look for signs of dangerous or loose wiring such as scorch marks, hot plugs and sockets, flickering lights, fuses that blow or circuit breakers that trip for no obvious reason
• Replace any old cables and leads
• Unplug appliances that you are not using
• Unplug electric blankets before going to bed if they do not have a thermostatic control for safe all night use
• Try to secure portable heaters up against a wall to stop them falling over
• Keep portable heaters away from curtains and furniture and never use them for drying clothes
• Replace electric blankets immediately if they show wear and tear.

Do not:

• Overload an extension lead or adaptor – check its limit e.g. an extension’s limit may be 13 amp so you would not want to put 4 x 5 amp appliances, as this adds up to 20 amps
• Leave electric blankets folded as this damages the internal wiring, store them flat or rolled up instead
• Buy second hand electric blankets.

Planning a safe escape

Preparing and practising an escape plan will help to ensure that you and your family can escape safely if there is a fire.

Do:

• Make sure everyone in your home knows where the door and window keys are kept
•  Make sure exits are kept clear
• Identify a quick and easy route out of your home
• Think of another route in case the first one is blocked
• Make sure everyone living with you knows what to do in a fire

For a free Home Fire Safety Check: visit www.glosfire.gov.uk or call 01452 888777

What should I do if there is a fire in my home?

How do I reduce fire risk in a block?

What fire detection methods are there in my home?

Keeping communal areas clear and free of obstruction is very important.

It is important that communal areas are kept clear and free from rubbish or hazards at all times.

Communal staircases, landings and corridors provide access for emergency services in the event of a fire and an escape route for the safe evacuation of residents.

Items left in stairwells or corridors could become a hazard particularly in the event of a fire if the area was smoke filled or in darkness.

Customers living in blocks of flats with communal areas have a responsibility to keep the corridors, landing and stairwells clear at all times. These are not areas for storage of personal items, furniture or bags of rubbish awaiting disposal.

The following items should not be stored or placed in communal areas;

• Bikes or motor bikes
• Prams, buggies or pushchairs
• Children’s toys, bikes and scooters
• Recycling boxes, bags or bins
• Furniture, tables, cupboards or chairs
• Door mats or carpet
• Black bin bags and general rubbish
• Mobility scooters or other walking aids

We routinely inspect communal areas and remove items, with the costs recharged to individual residents if known or inlcuded as part of the annual service charge for residents within the block. We encourage residents to help us keep areas clear by reporting items left in communal areas.

To reduce fire risk, customers should ensure that communal doors and fire doors to individual flats are not wedged open and kept closed at all times.

Legislation from July 2007 prohibits smoking in common parts of domestic premises e.g. communal areas in a block. Enclosed communal areas of blocks of flats are now designated smoke-free premises.

Our priority is to ensure that communal areas are hazard free and together with residents within our blocks of flats and housing schemes, we effectively manage, monitor and minimise fire risk.

What should I do if there is a fire in my home?

How do I prevent fire in my home?

What fire detection methods are there in my home?

We want you to be warm and well in your home, below is our advice for keeping warm and well in cold weather.

Hypothermia

Hypothermia (when your body temperature falls below normal) is more likely to happen to someone who is elderly or very young and can happen if you are in a temperature of below 6°C (43°F) for 2 hours or more.

Avoiding hypothermia

Here are some simple tips to help you avoid hypothermia.

During the day:

• Set your heating thermostat to around 21ºC (70ºF) and heat all the rooms you use in the day
• If you cannot heat all your rooms make sure you keep your living room warm and heat your bedroom before going to bed
• Set the timer on your heating to come on before you get up and switch off when you go to bed in very cold weather.

At night:

• Try to keep a temperature above 18°C (65°F) in your bedroom
• If you use a fire or heater in your bedroom during winter, open the window or door a little at night for ventilation. An electric blanket or a hot water bottle will help you keep warm but never use them together as you could electrocute yourself
• Keep your curtains closed.

In general:

• Use draught excluders around doors and windows but do not block up any air vents
• Have plenty of hot drinks and food
• Wear plenty of thin layers, rather than one thick one
• Put on a coat, hat, scarf, gloves and warm shoes or boots when you go outside
• Wear clothes made of wool, cotton, or fleecy synthetic fibres
• Stay warm in bed with bed socks, thermal underwear and a nightcap or headscarf.

What to look out for:

The signs of hypothermia are:

• Drowsiness
• Slurred speech
• No longer feeling cold even though the room is very cold
• Very cold skin in areas that are normally covered (stomach and under the armpits).

What to do if someone is suffering from hypothermia:

• Take action quickly
• Gradually turn up the heating
• Use some light blankets to warm them up
• Give them a warm drink
• Get medical help.

Visit the Warm and Well website www.warmandwell.co.uk

Our electrical servicing partner will inspect:

• Emergency communal lighting is serviced every month by our in-house electrical division.

• External communal lighting is serviced every quarter by our in-house electrical division.

• If you see any lights flickering or not working as they should be then please call the repairs team and we will get our electrical team out to attend and repair.

• Communal door entry systems as well as access control systems are serviced every quarter by our in-house electrical division.

• If the communal doors are not locking correctly then please contact the repairs team and they will send a GCH electrician out to repair. (please note communal doors should not be wedged open as this compromises the security of the building).

• Communal electric wiring and supplies are tested and inspected every 5 years as recommended by BS 7671 electrical wiring regulations.

• Communal portable electrical appliances, in our Sheltered Housing Schemes, are serviced every 12 months, e.g. kettles in communal kitchens.

• Communal lifts – if your block has a communal lift than they are inspected each month and a thorough inspection carried out every 6 months.

Electrical Safety in your home is important to us. We want you to be safe and secure in your home.

You can help to keep your family safe by knowing what to check for on electrical items in your home. If something isn’t quite right or you are unsure, remember to contact us and we will be able to advise if repairs are needed.

Simple safety checks

• Familiarise yourself with where the fuse board is and the main switch installed on the board, this ensures you know where it is and how to turn it off if there is an emergency.
• If you have an RCD trip switch in your home, make sure you know how to reset it. We advise that you should test this every 6 months by pressing the button labelled T or Test, the device should switch off the supply and should then be switched on to restore the supply. If the device does not switch off the supply when the button is pressed, please call the GCH repairs team All instructions for the above can be found on the cover of the fuse board.
• In the event of loss of power check appliances before you use them again if it has caused the trip switch to cut out. The appliance causing the problem is generally the last one you turned on. If in doubt, turn on the appliances you have been using one by one until you find out which one has caused the switch to trip.
• If your electricity fails and you have a token meter – always check you have a supply of tokens in the meter.

Plugs and sockets

Look out for:

• Hot plugs or sockets, scorch marks, fuses that often blow, or flickering lights. These are all signs of loose wiring or other electrical problems.
• Badly-wired plugs – any coloured wires sticking out could come loose and debris could also get into the plug, they could also cause an electric shock.
• Overloaded sockets – plugging too many electrical appliances into one socket can lead to overheating and a fire.
• Damaged accessories – If you have a damaged socket, switch or light fittings then call the repairs team, don’t wait for a 5-year inspection as an accident could happen during that period that could have been avoided.

Cables and leads

Check for these problems:

• Fraying and damage – make sure the outer covering of all power leads is in good condition and replace if necessary.
• Bad positioning – make sure leads cannot be tripped over and that they are not near water, cookers or other sources of heat.
• Do not run leads under rugs or carpets – they may wear out without anyone noticing.

Appliances

General rules:

• Do not get them wet. For example, do not put a vase of flowers on top of the TV in case you knock it over.
• Do not leave them on at night – unless they are designed to be left on, like freezers.
• Do not put anything in the microwave that is made of metal, or has a metallic finish or parts.

Servicing

Arrange a yearly service by a qualified appliance service engineer, for appliances that run at high speeds and contain motors, like washing machines.

Plugs, sockets and cables

To use plugs, sockets and cables safely, always:

• Change a plug correctly and make sure you cannot see any coloured wires between the plug and the power lead.
• Make sure the wires are held firmly in place inside the plug.
• Use sockets safely – it is better to use an extension lead than a single multi-plug adaptor.
• Only use 1 adaptor per socket – do not plug 1 adaptor into another and try to keep to 1 plug per socket.
• Only use CE-accredited phone chargers – always try and use the original charger as imitation chargers without the CE accreditations is a fire risk.

If you are fitting or changing a fuse, make sure you use the right fuse for the appliance. Check the manual or look for a sticker on the appliance to find out its wattage and then use the correct fuse for appliances:

Fuses

• Up to 700 watts, use a 3 amp fuse.
• Between 700 and 1,000 watts, use a 5 amp fuse.
• For more than 1,000 watts, use a 13 amp fuse.
• Extension leads and adaptors have a limit on how many amps they can take, so be careful not to overload them, to reduce the risk of a fire.

For more information, please contact us or visit the Electrical Safety Council’s website at electricalsafetycouncil.org.uk

Installing Electrical Additions and Alterations

No electrical work can be carried out on a GCH property until it has been approved by us. If you plan to carry out any electrical installation works, such as installing new sockets, switches and wiring to outbuildings, this must be approved by us first as these works must be carried out and certified by an approved electrical contractor. Failure to do so will result in the removal of the alterations which will be charged back to you. Find more information here about the building regulations and Document P.

Any light fittings or fixtures must be installed by a competent electrician.

Please contact us if you need any information about electrical upgrades in your home, we want you to live happily but more importantly safely.

When you move into your new home we want to help you get things the way you want them.

Our Standard:

If your home is poorly decorated we will either:

• Offer you a voucher from our decoration voucher scheme towards the cost of buying decorating materials of your choice.
• If you are vulnerable and have no one to help you decorate, then further assistance may be given but will be assessed on an individual basis.
• If the home is so poorly decorated we may undertake some of the preparatory works for you (e.g. Strip old wallpaper).

Where to get your vouchers

We will issue you with vouchers and you can collect your materials or get them delivered from Johnstones Leyland Decorating Centre, Unit 5, Eastern Close Eastern Avenue Trading Estate Eastern Avenue, Gloucester GL4 3SJ. Telephone: 01452 310130.

Need more help than decorating materials?

Sometimes we will undertake some redecorating for you and this depends on how poorly decorated it is and your circumstances. We deal with this on a case by case basis so please let us know if you are unable to carry out decorating yourself.

New Homes

New build homes should not be decorated for the first 12 months. Tenants of new properties will recieve details of this when moving into a property that is less than a year old.

By law, we must carry out Home Safety Checks at every property each year. The aim of this check is to service any gas fires, boilers and water heaters in your home. We will also test your smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, where fitted. We will also carry out a visual inspections of your flat front door if it leads onto the communal escape route of the building.

You must allow our engineers into your home to do this. If you do not let them in, you are putting the lives of you, your family, and your neighbours at risk.

For this appointment, you must have credit on your meter otherwise we cannot carry out the service and your supply will be capped.

Appointments
When your safety check is due, we will give you at least 1 week’s notice of the appointment. Should you miss the first scheduled appointment, the engineer will leave a card with a new appointment. If you cannot keep the second appointment you must phone and rearrange it. If you do not keep the second appointment, the engineer will leave another card and a warning label across your front door.

Should an appointment be inconvenient for you, please let us know with as much notice as possible.

All appointments are carried out within our working hours of 8am – 5pm.

If you do not keep your appointment
If you do not contact us, we will start legal action to gain access into your home. If we smell gas or have concern for your welfare, we reserve the right to force entry to your home to take emergency action. This is to protect your health and safety and that of your neighbours as faulty gas appliances can cause death by carbon monoxide poisoning or explosion. We won’t put your safety or that of your neighbours at risk in this way.
Thank you for your cooperation. We may charge you for all the costs of taking legal action, coming out to your home, forcing entry and doing repairs. If you keep refusing us entry you may lose your home.

Your own gas appliances
If you have fitted any gas appliances, please have them checked and serviced every year to make sure they are safe. We check this takes place. Always use a Gas Safety Registered gas fitter for any work to gas appliances.

Water Safety covers Legionella, hot water and overheating thermostats.

What is Legionnaires’ disease?

Legionnaires’ disease is a type of pneumonia that can kill. It can affect anybody, however, it mainly affects vulnerable people due, for example, to age, illness, a lowered immune system or smoking.

A bacterium called Legionella Pneumophila, and other bacteria that live in rivers, lakes and reservoirs cause the disease. They can also live in purpose-built water systems including hot and cold-water systems, storage tanks, pipe work, taps and showers. In the right conditions, the bacteria may grow. This increases the risk of legionnaires’ disease so it is important to control the risks.

The risks tend to be higher in larger water systems like those in factories, hotels, hospitals, museums and cooling towers. But the bacteria can also live in smaller water-supply systems used in homes and other residential accommodation.
Legionella can survive in low temperatures, but thrive at 20°C (68°F) to 50°C (122°F). Temperatures of 60°C (140°F) and over will kill Legionella.

How to reduce the risk of Legionella in your home

The risk of Legionella is very low, but you can take steps to avoid it. The risk is greater when you move into a new home. It is also higher if you are returning after a long break.

• Keep your cistern covered, insulated, clean and free from debris
• Make sure your pipe work is insulated. If it isn’t, ask us to do it for you
• Run your shower or hot tap continuously for at least 5 minutes when you move in or return after a long break. This flushes out any bacteria.

Please remember that if you are going away for over 2 weeks, let us know. Then we won’t think you have abandoned your home.

What we do to reduce the risk of Legionella

We are responsible for some large water tanks in blocks of flats, which supply more than one home. We arrange regular checks of these water systems for Legionella.

Hot water

Accidents involving overheating hot water cylinders are rare. However if you know the warning signs, you can help to make sure you and your family are safe if your cylinder does overheat.

These are the warning signs to look out for:

• Excessively hot water coming out of the hot taps
• Excessive noise or ‘bubbling’ from the hot water cylinder
• Hot water coming out of certain cold taps (some storage cisterns also feed cold taps in the bathroom)
• Steam/moisture in the roof space

If you think your thermostat may be overheating, please turn it off and contact us on 01452 424344.

If you report a problem with an immersion heater, we will check whether any of the warning signs are present. We will ensure that all immersion heaters we repair or replace have a safety cut out feature.

You can also contact Gloucester City Council’s Environmental Services on 01452 396396.

Smoke and heat alarms

Fire detection is the best way to protect yourself from fire. Smoke and heat alarms give you an early warning of a fire in your home.

We provide smoke detectors in all our homes. Your home should have a smoke alarm fitted on every floor and where a room is used for living puposes ie Lounge as well as a heat alarm in the kitchen (heat alarms operate at higher temperatures to allow for cooking heat). If you have not got these fire detection precautions in place, notify us straight away.

We are converting all of our customer’s smoke and heat alarms from being powered by batteries to hard wired alarms which are powered by your mains electricity. They have a battery as a backup in case your power fails.

Do:

• Dust your smoke/heat alarm regularly
• Check your smoke/heat alarm monthly to make sure it is working by pressing the test button
• Replace the battery if the alarm bleeps for any reason other than smoke or fire in your home
• Contact us if you have any problems with your smoke alarm

Do not:

• Remove a working battery from your smoke/heat alarm
• Paint over or remove the smoke alarm

If you decide to put up extra smoke alarms:

Do:

• Check with us first to ensure your ceiling does not contain asbestos
• Position them on the ceiling in the middle of the room

Do not:

• Put smoke alarms in or near kitchens or bathrooms because everyday steam and smoke can set them off by accident. Your Scheme Officer will also test the fire alarm systems in your scheme’s communal areas weekly

If you live in one of our sheltered or semi-sheltered homes there is an annual programme of testing the smoke detector in your property. If a battery needs replacing GCH will be responsible for arranging this.

Your smoke detector connects to the monitoring centre.  Please answer their call if they contact you, to confirm what has happened. If there is no answer this will be treated as an emergency and the Fire Service will be called.

Fire safety checks in Sheltered Housing:

• Emergency lighting – monthly
• Fire Equipment e.g. extinguishers, blankets and fire hoses – annually
• Risk assessments – every 12 – 18 months
• Fire Alarm/Panel – 6-monthly
• Fire Door Inspection – quarterly (every 3 months)
• All schemes also have a fire alarm test to a different call point within the building every week

Fire safety checks in General blocks:

• Emergency lighting – monthly
• Fire Equipment e.g. extinguishers, blankets and fire hoses – annually
• Risk Assessments – 3 yearly however annually where the risk of a fire is higher
• Fire Alarm/Panel – 6-monthly
• Call Point Checks – Weekly
• Fire Door Inspection – quarterly (every 3 months)

We will take any action needed to ensure these systems are working properly and that the fire detection method complies with the latest standards.

What should I do if there is a fire in my home?

How do I prevent fire in my home?

How do I reduce fire risk in a block?

If you smell gas, take these steps straight away:

Do:

• Turn off your mains supply
• Open doors and windows
• Once outside, phone the emergency number 0800 111 999

Do Not use:

• matches, naked flames or cigarettes
• electrical switches (do not turn on your lights)
• mobile phones inside the building

Carbon Monoxide Kills – but you cannot see it, taste it or smell it.

Carbon monoxide is poisonous and can be fatal. If an appliance that burns gas, oil, coal or wood isn’t working properly it may give off carbon monoxide. This can also happen if the appliance is in a room with poor ventilation or a blocked chimney or flue.

What should you do?

• Keep your Home Safety Check appointment
• Get any appliances you’ve fitted yourself checked each year by a Gas Safety Registered engineer
• Keep your home well ventilated. Never block flues or paper over air vents
• Have any chimneys regularly swept and kept clear
• If you are buying a carbon monoxide detector, get one that complies with BS 7860 but do not rely entirely on these devices

DANGER SIGNS:

• Flames that normally burn blue are burning orange or yellow instead
• Sooty stains on or just above appliances
• Coal or wood fires that burn slowly or go out

If you have any of these symptoms and you think carbon monoxide may be involved, switch off all of your appliances and call your doctor at once:

• Drowsiness
• Headaches
• Chest pains
• Giddiness
• Sickness, diarrhoea or stomach pains.

If you are concerned about any gas appliance please contact us.

Useful Contacts

For gas appliances:
Gas Safety Advice Line: 0800 300 363 or visit www.hse.gov.uk/gas

For solid fuel, coal and wood appliances:
Solid Fuel Association: 0845 601 4406 or visit www.solidfuel.co.uk

For oil appliances: 
Oil Firing Technical Association for the Petroleum : 0845 65 85 080 or visit www.oftec.org

For Gas Safe Engineers: 
Gas Safety Register: 0800 408 5500 or visit www.gassafetyregister.co.uk

What to do if you find, or are notified that there is asbestos in your home.

What is asbestos?

It is a natural fibre and was used in a wide range of building materials and products up to the 1990’s because it is a good insulator and resistant to fire. Homes built since the mid-1990s are unlikely to contain asbestos because of changes in health and safety laws.

Why is it harmful?

When products containing asbestos get old or damaged, they can release fibres into the air. When people breathe in high levels of these fibres they risk getting serious lung disease.

There may be asbestos in your home. However there is little risk unless the product containing it is damaged. If there is damaged asbestos in your home please contact us for advice.

Where might I find it in my home?

You might find it in these common building materials:

• Sprayed asbestos – generally used as fire breaks in ceiling spaces, fire protection of ducts and structural steelwork
• Lagging around pipes and boilers
• Walls, ceilings and door linings
• Roofing tiles and felt
• Some ceiling tiles
• Some flooring
• Decorative textured coatings generally applied before 1990
• Bath panels
• Boarding and gaskets in electrical mains fuse cupboards and some gas fires
• Asbestos cement products, like flat or corrugated roofing sheets and wall cladding on garages, sheds etc.
• Gutters, rainwater pipes, water tanks and flues

How to tell if a product contains asbestos

Since 1976, British manufacturers put labels on their products to show they contain asbestos. Since 1986 all products with asbestos carry the European label. The supplier or manufacturer may be able to tell you if it contains asbestos.

Remember: products that contain asbestos can look very similar to those that don’t.

If in doubt call us on 01452 424344 about building materials.
Contact Gloucester City Council’s Environmental Health service on 01452 396396 about other goods.

How are we reducing the risk?

We have surveyed a sample of our homes to get a picture of where it is. This helps us to manage it and reduce any risk to you.

If it is damaged we will remove it. If it is not damaged we may leave it alone to do its fire-resistant job. In that case we will make sure that everyone knows the asbestos is there and that nobody damages it.

When we repair or improve your home, we will treat it with the caution it deserves. This ensures that your health and safety and that of our staff are not put at risk.

What should I do if I think there is asbestos in my home?

It is often best to leave it where it is, if in good condition and not easily damaged. Removing it can lead to higher levels of fibre in the air for some time. We will check the condition of the asbestos from time to time to make sure it isn’t damaged or deteriorating.

Do:

• Contact us straight away if you think there is damaged or deteriorating asbestos in your home
• Contact us if you think your warm-air heating system, electrical storage heating system or flameless catalytic gas heater may contain asbestos

Don’t:

• Disturb or damage asbestos that is in good condition.

Contact GCH or the Health and Safety Executive www.hse.gov.uk or call 0300 003 1747

What to do if there is a fire in a sheltered housing property or a flat within a purpose built block with a communal area

Do:

• Stay in your home and close all doors behind you
• Move towards a window, so that you can be seen from the outside
• Get ready to be evacuated e.g. get dressed, collect walking sticks, house keys etc.
• Wait for the Senior Fire Officer to decide when to evacuate the building. They will have a list of all the residents who need help
•  Stay in your home until told that it is safe to leave, or you are told to evacuate
• If you are in a communal area leave by the safest route and report to the assembly point
• Stay at the assembly point until the Senior Fire Officer tells you what to do next.

Do not:

• Use the lift
• Let visitors through the communal door entry system unless they are emergency personnel needing to get into the building
• Leave your home until told that it is safe to do so
• Go out into the corridors to investigate
• Block corridors, keep escape routes clear at all times

If there is a fire in your house, bungalow, maisonette or in a converted block of flats*

*Our converted blocks of flats are 31, 35 & 39 Parliament Street, 71 London Road and 1 Belgrave Road.

Do not tackle the fire yourself!

Do:

• Keep calm and leave immediately, closing all doors behind you
• Crawl out at ground level if smoke is making it difficult for you to breathe – smoke tends to rise and breathing should be easier the closer you are to the ground
• Check doors before opening them, with the back of your hand. If it is warm, do not open it – there may be a fire on the other side
• Raise the alarm by activating a fire alarm point if there is one. Alternatively dial 999, ask for the Fire and Rescue Service and tell them your location
• Go to a place of safety outside and stay there until told what to do by the Senior Fire Officer on the scene.

Do not:

• Waste time investigating what has happened or rescuing valuables.

If you are trapped by the fire or smoke

Try to take refuge in a room with a window or external door that isn’t affected by fire or smoke and make sure you close the door behind you to delay the fire. Place a wet piece of clothing or towel across the bottom of the door to prevent smoke getting in. If there is an exit door or window from the room, use it to escape. If you are on the first floor, throw something out of the window which will help to break your fall, such as a mattress or cushions, and then lower yourself by your arms from the window ledge before dropping.

Do Not Jump!

If there are 2 adults, 1 should go down first to catch children. The other should get into a secure position and then lower the children as far as possible down the outside wall before letting them drop.

If you are above first-floor level, or due to your age or health cannot get out of the window, open the window and draw attention to yourself by shouting and by waving sheets or clothes. Wait until the emergency services arrive to rescue you.

If your clothes catch fire Stop! Drop! And Roll!

Do:

• Lie down and roll around. It makes it harder for it to spread and may put out some of the flames
• Smother the flames with a heavy material, like a coat or blanket, it will help deprive the fire of oxygen which it needs to keep burning

Do not:

• Run around, it will make the flames worse

How do I prevent fire in my home?

How do I reduce fire risk in a block?

What fire detection methods are there in my home?

For a free Home Fire Safety Check: visit www.glosfire.gov.uk or call 01452 888777

Your rent service charges are set by a Government formula. Ensuring that the rents for similar homes in similar areas of the country are the same. This is regardless of whether the landlord is a Council or Housing Association.

We will tell you about any changes in your rent or service charges in late February or March each year. This gives you at least 4 weeks’ notice of any change.

For more information contact The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government’s (formerly the Department for Communities and Local Government) on 0303 444 0000 or visit www.communities.gov.uk

When you move into your new home we want to help you get things the way you want them.

Our Standard:

If your home is poorly decorated we will either:

• Offer you a voucher from our decoration voucher scheme towards the cost of buying decorating materials of your choice.
• If you are vulnerable and have no one to help you decorate, then further assistance may be given but will be assessed on an individual basis.
• If the home is so poorly decorated we may undertake some of the preparatory works for you (e.g. Strip old wallpaper).

Where to get your vouchers

We will issue you with vouchers and you can collect your materials or get them delivered from Johnstones Leyland Decorating Centre, Unit 5, Eastern Close Eastern Avenue Trading Estate Eastern Avenue, Gloucester GL4 3SJ. Telephone: 01452 310130.

Need more help than decorating materials?

Sometimes we will undertake some redecorating for you and this depends on how poorly decorated it is and your circumstances. We deal with this on a case by case basis so please let us know if you are unable to carry out decorating yourself.

New Homes

New build homes should not be decorated for the first 12 months. Tenants of new properties will recieve details of this when moving into a property that is less than a year old.

At GCH we strive to provide our Customers with good quality, professional customer service. We will treat you with respect and respond to your enquiries in a timely manner. In return we ask that you are respectful of others, provide us with constructive feedback and engage with us to help us continually improve our services.

When you call us, we will:

• Aim to answer your call within 30 seconds.
• Verify the caller through a security check before giving out any sensitive data/personal information.
• Our staff will confirm you are through to Gloucester City Homes and provide you with their name.
• Provide sufficient time for all your queries to be addressed.
• Offer to call you back if we need to put you on hold.
• Return your voice-mail message as soon as we can and within 1 working day.
• Resolve at least 90% of enquiries with an appropriate point of contact.
• Ask if you were happy with the service provided.
• Provide clear and helpful signposting to other organisations if we can’t help.

When we call you, we will:

• Check in advance whether any additional support or adjustments are required e.g. a language interpreter or BT Type Talk etc.
• Give our name, job title and reason for contacting you.
• Check it is convenient for you to talk and offer to call back if appropriate.
• Use Plain English or a language or format you need.
• If your voicemail answers, we will leave our name and return number.

When we visit your home, we will:

• Agree on an appointment time with you in advance and check if any additional support or adjustments are required e.g. a language interpreter, signer, support worker, family advocate, carer or female officer in attendance.
• Show you our identity card and encourage you to check that it is valid if you are not sure.
• Explain what we have come to do.
• Be polite and professional.
• Leave a calling card with the employee’s name, contact number and reason for a visit if you are not at home.
• Respect your home environment including complying with any cultural or religious considerations during our visit as appropriate.

When you visit our office, we will:

• Provide a fully accessible, welcoming and comfortable waiting area
• Provide friendly, professional and competent staff to deal with your enquiry.
• See you on time for your pre-arranged appointment. Please note, we offer an appointment-only service for our Customer Hub
• Offer to see you in a private area if your enquiry is confidential.
• Display our normal office opening hours outside and information on how to contact us including in an out-of-hours emergency.
• Advertise any forthcoming change to our usual opening hours.

When you write to us, we will:

• Respond to emails, texts and social media messages within 1 working day.
• Always ensure our Outlook Out of Office reply contains alternative contact details for emergencies.
• Respond by post within 5 working days or if we can’t, we will let you know who is dealing with your request and when you can expect a reply.

If you have a complaint, we will:

• Provide a number of ways for you to make contact with us.
• Take your complaint seriously and deal with it impartially and empathetically.
• Involve you in the investigation and inform you of the outcome.
• Respond to your complaint within clearly identified time scales.
• Clearly state if your complaint is upheld or not upheld and why.
• Learn from our mistakes and put things right.
• Monitor trends, and patterns and share lessons learnt to avoid repeat errors.

In return, we ask that customers:

• Are always polite and patient, especially at very busy times.
• Provide and share information relevant to your enquiry.
• Attend appointments on time, to avoid delaying work for other customers.
• Tell us if you cannot make an appointment ASAP.
• Tell us if you have a problem with your home or neighbourhood.
• Provide feedback on services received.

We thank you for your help and cooperation in applying our General Service Standards

Paying Your Rent – Our Service Standards

We want to support you by providing the best possible advice to help you make your rent payments. As part of our Service Standards, we will:

• Give you easy-to-understand information on; arrears, the help we can offer, actions we may take and independent advice agencies.
• Manage rent accounts well and tell you about any arrears quickly.
• Agree realistic repayment plans with you.
• Send you a rent statement regularly showing your payable rent, your account balance, your payments, benefit payments, outstanding arrears and other adjustments.
• Send you a copy of your rent account when you ask, within 1 working day.
• Give you your account balance over the phone, having confirmed your identity.
• Advise you about claiming welfare benefits, tax credits and any other benefits you may be entitled to.
• Give you help and advice on managing your money.
• Refer you to an independent advice agency before taking legal action.
• Respond to urgent enquiries about legal action we are taking, within 1 working day.

We have a team of friendly Tenancy Sustainment Advisors who can help you with budgeting, benefits and looking at how you can be better off.

If you would rather look at your budget yourself you can use our online budget calculator. Our budget calculator is free for all tenants to use, once you have completed your information press ‘send to Advisor’ and one of our Tenancy Sustainment Officers will look at your information to see how you could be better off.

Are you struggling to make ends meet? Please contact us straight away if you have money problems. Once we know that there is an issue we can often help by checking that you are receiving all of the correct benefits, working out the best way of paying your rent and putting you in contact with our partners who are able to provide a range of help.

If you have arrears from a former tenancy, you can make payments towards the debt in the normal way by contacting our Customer Experience team at Customer.Experience@gch.co.uk.

We will work with you to come to an arrangement for how you will pay us back the money that you owe us.

If we cannot agree on how you will pay your debt, we can take further action against you. We use a debt recovery agency to help us find people who have left a home without leaving a forwarding address or making an agreement to clear arrears and legal action can be undertaken.

IMPORTANT – If you have arrears on a former tenancy, it may stop you from beginning another tenancy with not only GCH but also other landlords.

Paying Your Rent – Our Service Standards

We want to support you by providing the best possible advice to help you make your rent payments. As part of our Service Standards, we will:

• Give you easy-to-understand information on; arrears, the help we can offer, actions we may take and independent advice agencies.
• Manage rent accounts well and tell you about any arrears quickly.
• Agree realistic repayment plans with you.
• Send you a rent statement regularly showing your payable rent, your account balance, your payments, benefit payments, outstanding arrears and other adjustments.
• Send you a copy of your rent account when you ask, within 1 working day.
• Give you your account balance over the phone, having confirmed your identity.
• Advise you about claiming welfare benefits, tax credits and any other benefits you may be entitled to.
• Give you help and advice on managing your money.
• Refer you to an independent advice agency before taking legal action.
• Respond to urgent enquiries about legal action we are taking, within 1 working day.

We have a team of friendly Tenancy Sustainment Advisors who can help you to address any financial problems that you may be experiencing.

We can help you with:

• Universal Credit advice and support making a claim or amendments to your claim 
• Completing benefit applications, or liaising with other agencies such as the Department of Work and Pensions and the Local Authority 
• Advice about other benefits that may be available to you 
• Rent account queries and setting up Direct Debits 
• Setting up a household budget 
• Prioritising your payments 
• Signposting you to more specialist financial services if necessary

You can choose to pay your rent and charges weekly, fortnightly or monthly.

Paying your rent should be a priority and it is payable to Gloucester City Homes.

If you are a joint tenant, both tenants are jointly liable for the rent payment. Both of you are still liable, even if one of you leaves the home.

You can make improvements, alterations and additions to your home provided that you have gained our consent in writing and all other necessary approvals

We will not unreasonably withhold our consent. However we may make it conditional that the works are carried out to a certain standard. If you don’t gain our consent or comply with our conditions this is a breach of your tenancy agreement. If we have to undertake work to improve or reinstate the original we may charge you.

You are responsible for repairing and maintaining your improvements, alterations and additions. This is unless we agree in writing that we will be responsible for them. We may require you to remove any improvements, alterations or additions at the end of the tenancy. Also to make good any damage to your home or our fixtures and fittings or to the common parts caused by the improvement, alteration or addition. Or to pay any costs reasonably incurred by us in carrying out such works in default.

We know that more of you need your homes adapted to help you stay independent at home and to support your health and well-being.

We have an in-house Occupational Therapist who can assess tenants’ medical needs and recommend the adaptations needed in homes.

There are two types of adaptation work we can carry out

Minor work (funded by GCH)

May include:

• Grab bars
• Lever taps
• Additional stair rails
• Handrails
• Lowered light switches
• Raised electric sockets
• Specialist smoke alarms

Major work (Possible part-funding by GCH up to £1,000 and topped up with a Disabled Facilities Grant (DFG))

May include:

• Stairlifts
• Over bath showers
• Replacing baths with showers
• Ramps
• Vehicle hard standings
• Widened doors
• Ceiling tracks
• Mobility standard kitchens
• Extra WC/wash facilities and pods
• Adapted homes

There are certain circumstances where an adaptation to your property may not be suitable, for example putting in a level access shower in a 2nd-floor flat or the property construction means that it cannot be adapted. In these cases, we will discuss with you the alternative options.

If you think this type of work could help you please contact us.

Our electrical servicing partner will inspect:

• Emergency communal lighting is serviced every month by our in-house electrical division.

• External communal lighting is serviced every quarter by our in-house electrical division.

• If you see any lights flickering or not working as they should be then please call the repairs team and we will get our electrical team out to attend and repair.

• Communal door entry systems as well as access control systems are serviced every quarter by our in-house electrical division.

• If the communal doors are not locking correctly then please contact the repairs team and they will send a GCH electrician out to repair. (please note communal doors should not be wedged open as this compromises the security of the building).

• Communal electric wiring and supplies are tested and inspected every 5 years as recommended by BS 7671 electrical wiring regulations.

• Communal portable electrical appliances, in our Sheltered Housing Schemes, are serviced every 12 months, e.g. kettles in communal kitchens.

• Communal lifts – if your block has a communal lift than they are inspected each month and a thorough inspection carried out every 6 months.

Planned programme of repairs

We may not carry out all routine repairs as soon as you report them. Where a repair does not cause immediate inconvenience or present a danger to occupants or to the public, we may include them in a planned programme of repairs.

Planning repairs in programmes means that we can carry out similar repairs to a number of properties in a road or neighbourhood at the same time, which is more efficient. An example would be replacing gutters to a number of homes in the same road.

We will tell you if we are putting your repair in a planned programme within 5 working days of you reporting it. Also, we will tell you when we expect the programme to start and end.

We also undertake annual planned maintenance checks to your homes which include the following:

• Communal heating systems
• Communal lighting and electric car park barriers
• Individual and communal smoke alarms and Carbon Monoxide alarms
• Communal door entry systems
• Communal fire alarms
• Lifts

It can also include:

• The regular painting of rendering on the outside of individual homes or blocks of flats and maisonettes
• Painting communal areas inside blocks of flats and maisonettes

Our Service Standards when improving your home are that we will:

• Ensure you have a clear point of contact for all work being completed in your home
• Provide proof of identity before entering your home
• Wear uniforms that display our name
• Drive vehicles that clearly show the home-improvement partner’s name and that they are working in partnership with us
• Do the work to a good standard
• Use good-quality materials
• Where possible, we will offer you a choice of style and colour of kitchens, bathrooms, floors, doors, fires and surrounds etc.
• Do the work while you stay in your home
• Give you extra help if you have special needs
• Ensure you are not left overnight without electricity and essential facilities
• Post-inspect a percentage of work, to ensure that our contractors are delivering a high standard of workmanship and you are happy with our service

Decent Homes Standard

In 2000, the Government brought in rules about the quality of homes tenants rent from councils or housing associations. The standard is:

A decent home will be warm, weatherproof and have reasonably modern facilities.
These are the main things taken into account when deciding if a home meets the Decent Homes Standard. A decent home must:

• Be in reasonable repair
• Meet current legal housing standards
• Have reasonably modern facilities and services

This means at least 4 of the following:

• A kitchen that is no more than 20 years old
• A kitchen with adequate space and layout
• A bathroom that is no more than 30 years old
• A suitably located bathroom and toilet
• Adequate noise insulation
• Adequate space and layout in common areas of flats
• Be efficiently heated and effectively insulated

Gloucester Housing Standard

Working with our tenants we have developed a Gloucester Housing Standard. This provides better facilities than the basic Decent Homes Standard.

The standard includes:

• High-quality PVC double-glazed windows with secure locking handles
• No all-metal window
• Modern fitted kitchen units, also vinyl flooring, tiling and extractor fan
• A full heating system
• A modern fitted bathroom suite with extractor fan, vinyl flooring, tiling and redecoration
• High-quality, secure front and back doors with a choice of fittings
• Loft insulation, cavity-wall insulation and external insulation with rendering as appropriate
• Modern wiring including smoke detectors, plus electricity meters in an outdoor cabinet where possible
• Gardens that have been cleared and left tidy where required
• Good access, where possible, to external doors and staircase/doorway handrails where needed
• Footpaths and boundary fencing to front and rear gardens, with gates as required
• Off-street parking with paved access and a refuse/green bin storage area where possible
• A modern watertight roof

You can make improvements, alterations and additions to your home provided that you have gained our consent in writing and all other necessary approvals

We will not unreasonably withhold our consent. However we may make it conditional that the works are carried out to a certain standard. If you don’t gain our consent or comply with our conditions this is a breach of your tenancy agreement. If we have to undertake work to improve or reinstate the original we may charge you.

You are responsible for repairing and maintaining your improvements, alterations and additions. This is unless we agree in writing that we will be responsible for them. We may require you to remove any improvements, alterations or additions at the end of the tenancy. Also to make good any damage to your home or our fixtures and fittings or to the common parts caused by the improvement, alteration or addition. Or to pay any costs reasonably incurred by us in carrying out such works in default.

Internal Doors

You are expected to pay for internal doors to be replaced. Regardless of whether this was due by accidental damage or criminal damage.

External Doors

If you or anyone in your home causes damage on external doors, we expect you to arrange to get this repaired. Alternatively you can ask us to repair this and the cost will be recharged back to you.

Windows:

You are expected to pay for glass to be replaced in windows even if this was due to accidental damage.

If criminal damage has occurred such as a break- in or vandalism, we will carry out the necessary work to make your home safe. We will not charge you for the work if you can give us a police crime reference number (not an incident number). If you are unable to provide this information you will be recharged.

We know that more of you need your homes adapted to help you stay independent at home and to support your health and well-being.

We have an in-house Occupational Therapist who can assess tenants’ medical needs and recommend the adaptations needed in homes.

There are two types of adaptation work we can carry out

Minor work (funded by GCH)

May include:

• Grab bars
• Lever taps
• Additional stair rails
• Handrails
• Lowered light switches
• Raised electric sockets
• Specialist smoke alarms

Major work (Possible part-funding by GCH up to £1,000 and topped up with a Disabled Facilities Grant (DFG))

May include:

• Stairlifts
• Over bath showers
• Replacing baths with showers
• Ramps
• Vehicle hard standings
• Widened doors
• Ceiling tracks
• Mobility standard kitchens
• Extra WC/wash facilities and pods
• Adapted homes

There are certain circumstances where an adaptation to your property may not be suitable, for example putting in a level access shower in a 2nd-floor flat or the property construction means that it cannot be adapted. In these cases, we will discuss with you the alternative options.

If you think this type of work could help you please contact us.

Condensation can occur in any home and there are 3 main steps to take to prevent it from developing into dampness and mould.

Step 1 – Reduce the amount of moisture you produce.

Step 2 – Improve the ventilation in your home.

Step 3 – Keep your home well heated.

If you are confident that you have followed these three steps and are still facing issues with mould and damp, please contact us so that we can investigate.

Read our Leaflet below

Our electrical servicing partner will inspect:

• Emergency communal lighting is serviced every month by our in-house electrical division.

• External communal lighting is serviced every quarter by our in-house electrical division.

• If you see any lights flickering or not working as they should be then please call the repairs team and we will get our electrical team out to attend and repair.

• Communal door entry systems as well as access control systems are serviced every quarter by our in-house electrical division.

• If the communal doors are not locking correctly then please contact the repairs team and they will send a GCH electrician out to repair. (please note communal doors should not be wedged open as this compromises the security of the building).

• Communal electric wiring and supplies are tested and inspected every 5 years as recommended by BS 7671 electrical wiring regulations.

• Communal portable electrical appliances, in our Sheltered Housing Schemes, are serviced every 12 months, e.g. kettles in communal kitchens.

• Communal lifts – if your block has a communal lift than they are inspected each month and a thorough inspection carried out every 6 months.

When you move into your new home we want to help you get things the way you want them.

Our Standard:

If your home is poorly decorated we will either:

• Offer you a voucher from our decoration voucher scheme towards the cost of buying decorating materials of your choice.
• If you are vulnerable and have no one to help you decorate, then further assistance may be given but will be assessed on an individual basis.
• If the home is so poorly decorated we may undertake some of the preparatory works for you (e.g. Strip old wallpaper).

Where to get your vouchers

We will issue you with vouchers and you can collect your materials or get them delivered from Johnstones Leyland Decorating Centre, Unit 5, Eastern Close Eastern Avenue Trading Estate Eastern Avenue, Gloucester GL4 3SJ. Telephone: 01452 310130.

Need more help than decorating materials?

Sometimes we will undertake some redecorating for you and this depends on how poorly decorated it is and your circumstances. We deal with this on a case by case basis so please let us know if you are unable to carry out decorating yourself.

New Homes

New build homes should not be decorated for the first 12 months. Tenants of new properties will recieve details of this when moving into a property that is less than a year old.

Planned programme of repairs

We may not carry out all routine repairs as soon as you report them. Where a repair does not cause immediate inconvenience or present a danger to occupants or to the public, we may include them in a planned programme of repairs.

Planning repairs in programmes means that we can carry out similar repairs to a number of properties in a road or neighbourhood at the same time, which is more efficient. An example would be replacing gutters to a number of homes in the same road.

We will tell you if we are putting your repair in a planned programme within 5 working days of you reporting it. Also, we will tell you when we expect the programme to start and end.

We also undertake annual planned maintenance checks to your homes which include the following:

• Communal heating systems
• Communal lighting and electric car park barriers
• Individual and communal smoke alarms and Carbon Monoxide alarms
• Communal door entry systems
• Communal fire alarms
• Lifts

It can also include:

• The regular painting of rendering on the outside of individual homes or blocks of flats and maisonettes
• Painting communal areas inside blocks of flats and maisonettes

Our Service Standards when improving your home are that we will:

• Ensure you have a clear point of contact for all work being completed in your home
• Provide proof of identity before entering your home
• Wear uniforms that display our name
• Drive vehicles that clearly show the home-improvement partner’s name and that they are working in partnership with us
• Do the work to a good standard
• Use good-quality materials
• Where possible, we will offer you a choice of style and colour of kitchens, bathrooms, floors, doors, fires and surrounds etc.
• Do the work while you stay in your home
• Give you extra help if you have special needs
• Ensure you are not left overnight without electricity and essential facilities
• Post-inspect a percentage of work, to ensure that our contractors are delivering a high standard of workmanship and you are happy with our service

A recharge is when we charge tenants for costs we incur when the work is due to their actions or behaviour. For example, we may have to carry out repairs to the property because the resident has neglected or caused damage to their home.

All work prices are based on the National Housing Federation’s Schedule of Rates and are fixed costs. Please bear in mind that we also charge for our time plus VAT and a 15% admin fee.

Please be aware that if we are called out and the work is no longer required we will still have to charge you for our call-out time.

We have four types of repairs: Emergency, Urgent, Routine and Major Works.

Emergency

Your emergency will be attended within 24 hours. We will prioritise calls based on the nature of the emergency and the vulnerability of the customers living in the household.

An emergency is any defect that puts the health, safety or security of customers or anyone else at immediate risk. Emergencies also include defects that can affect the structure of the building. 

Urgent

Urgent repairs will be completed within 5 days. We will always try to see to your repair sooner rather than later.

Urgent repairs are problems that won’t put customers at risk or damage the property, for example a slow-running blocked sink. 

Routine

Non-emergency or routine repairs will be attended within 28 days. We will always try to see to your repair sooner rather than later.

Repairing or replacing a broken kitchen drawer for example, would be carried out under the ‘routine’ category.

Major Works

For major works that will take longer than two working days, we need more time to get all the labour and materials together. These will be completed within 56 days.

Customers will be given a job number, appointment details and the name who will be attending to do the repair such as PropertyCare or an external contractor. We will keep tenants updated on the progress of their repairs including any changes to an agreed appointment.

Customers are offered an appointment “slot”. These are defined as:

• • Morning 8am – 12 noon

• • Afternoon 12 noon – 5pm

• • Avoid school-run 10am – 2pm

We will aim to complete a first time fix wherever possible.

Inspections: If we need to inspect before repair work can be completed, then we will make an appointment with you when you report the repair to us.

You are responsible for replacing door locks or keys when keys are lost or broken, or you get locked out.

This includes window and garage keys.

In the event that you lose your keys, you should contact a local, reputable locksmith.

We will always aim to complete repairs within our specified time limits.

If a repair engineer does not visit your home within the response time or keep to a specific appointment time agreed with you please contact us so we can follow this up.

Under the Right to Repair regulations, you have a right to have certain repairs (which could affect your health and safety) completed within set time limits. If you want to find out more about the Right to Repair, please contact us.

Decent Homes Standard

In 2000, the Government brought in rules about the quality of homes tenants rent from councils or housing associations. The standard is:

A decent home will be warm, weatherproof and have reasonably modern facilities.
These are the main things taken into account when deciding if a home meets the Decent Homes Standard. A decent home must:

• Be in reasonable repair
• Meet current legal housing standards
• Have reasonably modern facilities and services

This means at least 4 of the following:

• A kitchen that is no more than 20 years old
• A kitchen with adequate space and layout
• A bathroom that is no more than 30 years old
• A suitably located bathroom and toilet
• Adequate noise insulation
• Adequate space and layout in common areas of flats
• Be efficiently heated and effectively insulated

Gloucester Housing Standard

Working with our tenants we have developed a Gloucester Housing Standard. This provides better facilities than the basic Decent Homes Standard.

The standard includes:

• High-quality PVC double-glazed windows with secure locking handles
• No all-metal window
• Modern fitted kitchen units, also vinyl flooring, tiling and extractor fan
• A full heating system
• A modern fitted bathroom suite with extractor fan, vinyl flooring, tiling and redecoration
• High-quality, secure front and back doors with a choice of fittings
• Loft insulation, cavity-wall insulation and external insulation with rendering as appropriate
• Modern wiring including smoke detectors, plus electricity meters in an outdoor cabinet where possible
• Gardens that have been cleared and left tidy where required
• Good access, where possible, to external doors and staircase/doorway handrails where needed
• Footpaths and boundary fencing to front and rear gardens, with gates as required
• Off-street parking with paved access and a refuse/green bin storage area where possible
• A modern watertight roof

What to do if you find, or are notified that there is asbestos in your home.

What is asbestos?

It is a natural fibre and was used in a wide range of building materials and products up to the 1990’s because it is a good insulator and resistant to fire. Homes built since the mid-1990s are unlikely to contain asbestos because of changes in health and safety laws.

Why is it harmful?

When products containing asbestos get old or damaged, they can release fibres into the air. When people breathe in high levels of these fibres they risk getting serious lung disease.

There may be asbestos in your home. However there is little risk unless the product containing it is damaged. If there is damaged asbestos in your home please contact us for advice.

Where might I find it in my home?

You might find it in these common building materials:

• Sprayed asbestos – generally used as fire breaks in ceiling spaces, fire protection of ducts and structural steelwork
• Lagging around pipes and boilers
• Walls, ceilings and door linings
• Roofing tiles and felt
• Some ceiling tiles
• Some flooring
• Decorative textured coatings generally applied before 1990
• Bath panels
• Boarding and gaskets in electrical mains fuse cupboards and some gas fires
• Asbestos cement products, like flat or corrugated roofing sheets and wall cladding on garages, sheds etc.
• Gutters, rainwater pipes, water tanks and flues

How to tell if a product contains asbestos

Since 1976, British manufacturers put labels on their products to show they contain asbestos. Since 1986 all products with asbestos carry the European label. The supplier or manufacturer may be able to tell you if it contains asbestos.

Remember: products that contain asbestos can look very similar to those that don’t.

If in doubt call us on 01452 424344 about building materials.
Contact Gloucester City Council’s Environmental Health service on 01452 396396 about other goods.

How are we reducing the risk?

We have surveyed a sample of our homes to get a picture of where it is. This helps us to manage it and reduce any risk to you.

If it is damaged we will remove it. If it is not damaged we may leave it alone to do its fire-resistant job. In that case we will make sure that everyone knows the asbestos is there and that nobody damages it.

When we repair or improve your home, we will treat it with the caution it deserves. This ensures that your health and safety and that of our staff are not put at risk.

What should I do if I think there is asbestos in my home?

It is often best to leave it where it is, if in good condition and not easily damaged. Removing it can lead to higher levels of fibre in the air for some time. We will check the condition of the asbestos from time to time to make sure it isn’t damaged or deteriorating.

Do:

• Contact us straight away if you think there is damaged or deteriorating asbestos in your home
• Contact us if you think your warm-air heating system, electrical storage heating system or flameless catalytic gas heater may contain asbestos

Don’t:

• Disturb or damage asbestos that is in good condition.

Contact GCH or the Health and Safety Executive www.hse.gov.uk or call 0300 003 1747

If your fittings or appliances are sparking, flickering or giving off shocks, Turn the mains switch at the consumer unit (fuse box) OFF where it is safe to do so and contact us as soon as possible so that we can raise an emergency repair. In the event the consumer unit is sparking or giving off shocks, then do not approach it and/or any electrical components within the property and wait for one of our emergency engineers to attend.

• After the electricity has been isolated, call our repairs team on 01452 424344 to raise an emergency repair.

• If you have a power cut, call the emergency number given in the phone book or on your electricity bill. It might be worth checking if your neighbours have power.

We know that more of you need your homes adapted to help you stay independent at home and to support your health and well-being.

We have an in-house Occupational Therapist who can assess tenants’ medical needs and recommend the adaptations needed in homes.

There are two types of adaptation work we can carry out

Minor work (funded by GCH)

May include:

• Grab bars
• Lever taps
• Additional stair rails
• Handrails
• Lowered light switches
• Raised electric sockets
• Specialist smoke alarms

Major work (Possible part-funding by GCH up to £1,000 and topped up with a Disabled Facilities Grant (DFG))

May include:

• Stairlifts
• Over bath showers
• Replacing baths with showers
• Ramps
• Vehicle hard standings
• Widened doors
• Ceiling tracks
• Mobility standard kitchens
• Extra WC/wash facilities and pods
• Adapted homes

There are certain circumstances where an adaptation to your property may not be suitable, for example putting in a level access shower in a 2nd-floor flat or the property construction means that it cannot be adapted. In these cases, we will discuss with you the alternative options.

If you think this type of work could help you please contact us.

Yes, you will need to buy your own TV licence unless are aged over 75.

Tenants over the age of 75 qualify for a free TV licence, if you live in sheltered housing accommodation please contact your Scheme Manager for information.

Existing sheltered housing tenants who are on the Concessionary TV Licence will be invoiced £7.50 by GCH each year.

Laundries

We provide laundry equipment on our main 8 Independent Living Schemes.

There is a charge for use of the machines at £1.40 per washing cycle per load and £1.00 per tumble dryer per load.

Please bear in mind that the Independent Living Team do not keep or supply change for these machines as they are supplied by external contractors.

Motor Scooter Facilities

There are storage facilities for motor scooters at Clapham Court, Badger Vale Court, Broom House, Nightingale House and Halford House.

Please ask a member of the Independent Living Team for permission if you would like to have a motor scooter. Scooter space is allocated on a first come first serve basis. Scooters stored on our schemes must be insured to include public liability cover.

If you are considering moving into one of our Independent Living Schemes with a motor scooter, please discuss this with us before you sign up for the property so we can check availability.

There is zero tolerance for motor scooters to be stored in communal hallways and corridors due to fire safety regulations.

If you currently have a scooter stored within the scooter store please ensure your Independent Living Officer has a copy of the insurance.

Security

All Independent Living Scheme properties are fitted with suited locks.

This will enable the Independent Living Team/emergency services to enter your property if there is an emergency. We will not use the suited lock key unless you have agreed in writing for us to do so, with exception of a gas leak, fire or flood

All of our schemes have CCTV which is only used when a security issue has arisen. Cameras are placed in communal areas and external areas only.

Fire Alarms

All Independent Living Schemes are fitted with an integrated hard-wired fire alarm system. This is linked to all properties via a smoke detector.

What to do if there is a fire in a sheltered housing property or a flat within a purpose built block with a communal area

Do:

• Stay in your home and close all doors behind you
• Move towards a window, so that you can be seen from the outside
• Get ready to be evacuated e.g. get dressed, collect walking sticks, house keys etc.
• Wait for the Senior Fire Officer to decide when to evacuate the building. They will have a list of all the residents who need help
•  Stay in your home until told that it is safe to leave, or you are told to evacuate
• If you are in a communal area leave by the safest route and report to the assembly point
• Stay at the assembly point until the Senior Fire Officer tells you what to do next.

Do not:

• Use the lift
• Let visitors through the communal door entry system unless they are emergency personnel needing to get into the building
• Leave your home until told that it is safe to do so
• Go out into the corridors to investigate
• Block corridors, keep escape routes clear at all times

If there is a fire in your house, bungalow, maisonette or in a converted block of flats*

*Our converted blocks of flats are 31, 35 & 39 Parliament Street, 71 London Road and 1 Belgrave Road.

Do not tackle the fire yourself!

Do:

• Keep calm and leave immediately, closing all doors behind you
• Crawl out at ground level if smoke is making it difficult for you to breathe – smoke tends to rise and breathing should be easier the closer you are to the ground
• Check doors before opening them, with the back of your hand. If it is warm, do not open it – there may be a fire on the other side
• Raise the alarm by activating a fire alarm point if there is one. Alternatively dial 999, ask for the Fire and Rescue Service and tell them your location
• Go to a place of safety outside and stay there until told what to do by the Senior Fire Officer on the scene.

Do not:

• Waste time investigating what has happened or rescuing valuables.

If you are trapped by the fire or smoke

Try to take refuge in a room with a window or external door that isn’t affected by fire or smoke and make sure you close the door behind you to delay the fire. Place a wet piece of clothing or towel across the bottom of the door to prevent smoke getting in. If there is an exit door or window from the room, use it to escape. If you are on the first floor, throw something out of the window which will help to break your fall, such as a mattress or cushions, and then lower yourself by your arms from the window ledge before dropping.

Do Not Jump!

If there are 2 adults, 1 should go down first to catch children. The other should get into a secure position and then lower the children as far as possible down the outside wall before letting them drop.

If you are above first-floor level, or due to your age or health cannot get out of the window, open the window and draw attention to yourself by shouting and by waving sheets or clothes. Wait until the emergency services arrive to rescue you.

If your clothes catch fire Stop! Drop! And Roll!

Do:

• Lie down and roll around. It makes it harder for it to spread and may put out some of the flames
• Smother the flames with a heavy material, like a coat or blanket, it will help deprive the fire of oxygen which it needs to keep burning

Do not:

• Run around, it will make the flames worse

How do I prevent fire in my home?

How do I reduce fire risk in a block?

What fire detection methods are there in my home?

For a free Home Fire Safety Check: visit www.glosfire.gov.uk or call 01452 888777

We have a team of friendly Tenancy Sustainment Advisors who can help you with budgeting, benefits and looking at how you can be better off.

If you would rather look at your budget yourself you can use our online budget calculator. Our budget calculator is free for all tenants to use, once you have completed your information press ‘send to Advisor’ and one of our Tenancy Sustainment Officers will look at your information to see how you could be better off.

Are you struggling to make ends meet? Please contact us straight away if you have money problems. Once we know that there is an issue we can often help by checking that you are receiving all of the correct benefits, working out the best way of paying your rent and putting you in contact with our partners who are able to provide a range of help.

If you find you need emergency accommodation:

If you require emergency accommodation, you will need to present to a local authority Homelessness Team. They will make you an appointment with a Housing Options Advisor who will discuss options and provide you with housing advice on securing alternative accommodation.

Please note that you may not qualify for housing via Homeseeker Plus if you have more than 8 weeks of current or former housing debt or if you have been evicted for anti-social behaviour. This applies for either a sole or joint tenancy.

Advice

If you find yourself in this position please contact the Council’s Housing Options Team at 01452 396 396. Alternatively, you can get independent legal advice from:

Gloucester Citizens’ Advice Bureau – 01452 527202 or visit www.gloucestercab.org.uk
Shelter Housing and Homelessness Charity – 0808 800 4444 or visit www.shelter.org.uk
The Gloucester Law Centre – 01452 423492 or visit www.gloucesterlawcentre.co.uk

We have a team of friendly Tenancy Sustainment Advisors who can help you to address any financial problems that you may be experiencing.

We can help you with:

• Universal Credit advice and support making a claim or amendments to your claim 
• Completing benefit applications, or liaising with other agencies such as the Department of Work and Pensions and the Local Authority 
• Advice about other benefits that may be available to you 
• Rent account queries and setting up Direct Debits 
• Setting up a household budget 
• Prioritising your payments 
• Signposting you to more specialist financial services if necessary

For any tenancy-related issues or questions please contact your Neighbourhood Manager. They will be able to put you in contact with a range of staff and agencies.

We also have in house teams including friendly Tenancy Sustainment Advisors who can help you with budgeting, payment options and benefits advice and also Enhanced Support Coaches who can assist you with a wide range of other support.

You need to ask permission to keep a pet. 

Such permission will not be unreasonably given, but we will take into account the type of pet and where you live.

To request permission to keep a pet please complete a Pet Permission Form or request one from your Neighbourhood Manager.

If permission is granted:
You should only keep animals that are suitable as domestic pets and must look after pets properly. We can revoke permission if you do not look after your pet/s properly and if they are causing a nuisance to neighbours.

Pet(s) we consider reasonable are:

• Domestic cats and dogs.
• Small animals such as rabbits, hamsters, and guinea pigs.
• Small caged animals such as budgies and canaries.
• Fish (not including large aquariums).
• Non-poisonous insects and spiders (if appropriately tanked).
• Non-poisonous snakes and reptiles under two feet in length when fully grown (if appropriately tanked).

Permission will always be granted for assistance dogs, such as guide dogs or hearing dogs.

The number of pets residents can keep in their properties will depend on several factors.

When you send us a Pet Permission Form we will aim to get back to you within 10 working days.

GCH customers in England who own an XL Bully dog need to apply for a ‘Certificate of Exemption’ to legally keep your pet beyond 31 January 2024. 

Keeping an XL Bully dog

If you want to keep your XL Bully dog after the ban, you must apply for a Certificate of Exemption by 31 January 2024. To get a Certificate of Exemption you must:

1. Get third party public liability insurance cover for your dog.

2. Neuter your dog permanently if it is not already neutered. Read Neutering an XL Bully for when you must have your dog neutered. A vet must confirm if your dog is already neutered.

3. Pay the £92.40 fee for each dog you want to keep. The fee is not refundable.

4. Apply for a Certificate of Exemption to keep an XL Bully dog.

You will find more details about how to apply for this certificate on the government website here. You will be committing a criminal offence and breaching your tenancy agreement if you do not hold a Certification of Exemption on 1 February 2024. 

From 31 December 2023 in England it will also be against the law to: 
·        sell an XL Bully dog. 
·        abandon an XL Bully dog or let it stray. 
·        give away an XL Bully dog. 
·        breed from an XL Bully dog. 
·        have an XL Bully in public without a lead and muzzle. 

We are no longer informed of deaths so please ensure you inform us directly.

Yes, it is possible to change your name on your tenancy if you have official documentation to prove the change.

You can complete a form online here.

Tenants must ask our permission before installing CCTV because we must be sure that the system doesn’t break the law or damage any property. We will not withhold permission if the following applies:

• The system covers just your property and nobody else’s.
• CCTV does not cover communal areas.
• The system does not cause damage to neighbouring properties and that any damage is made good.
• Suitable signage is installed.
• Reasons for the CCTV are provided. We may ask tenants to consider other solutions before giving permission. For example, security lighting and neighbourhood watch schemes.
• That GCH are able to view the cameras once fitted, at installation or at a later time if requested.
• That the system complies with relevant UK law.

We will not provide consent or may withdraw consent if residents are not meeting these conditions or have not sought prior consent before installing CCTV. If cameras are clearly focused on neighbours’ homes or property then this may be deemed as behaviour capable of causing a nuisance or annoyance and is a breach of the terms of the tenancy agreement. In these instances, we will ask for the CCTV equipment to be removed and if no action is taken we reserve the right to take legal action to remove it and costs will be recharged.

Residents are responsible for the images they record and must comply with legislation, for example:

• They can only keep information for as long as necessary.
• They must be able to justify the use of CCTV under the law.
• Their images must be of good enough quality to identify people.

For more information, residents can go to the Information Commissioners Office website.

You can make improvements, alterations and additions to your home provided that you have gained our consent in writing and all other necessary approvals

We will not unreasonably withhold our consent. However we may make it conditional that the works are carried out to a certain standard. If you don’t gain our consent or comply with our conditions this is a breach of your tenancy agreement. If we have to undertake work to improve or reinstate the original we may charge you.

You are responsible for repairing and maintaining your improvements, alterations and additions. This is unless we agree in writing that we will be responsible for them. We may require you to remove any improvements, alterations or additions at the end of the tenancy. Also to make good any damage to your home or our fixtures and fittings or to the common parts caused by the improvement, alteration or addition. Or to pay any costs reasonably incurred by us in carrying out such works in default.

Yes, you will need to buy your own TV licence unless are aged over 75.

Tenants over the age of 75 qualify for a free TV licence, if you live in sheltered housing accommodation please contact your Scheme Manager for information.

Existing sheltered housing tenants who are on the Concessionary TV Licence will be invoiced £7.50 by GCH each year.

Gloucester City Homes do not cover your contents as part of your tenancy agreement.

Home contents insurance is designed to help protect your possessions. No matter how careful you are, there’s always a risk that your belongings could be broken, damaged or stolen so home contents insurance can help provide peace of mind should the worst happen.

It’s a good idea to consider what a home contents insurance policy would cover in order to help you make an informed decision on whether you need one. Click here to find more information.

Yes, both tenants wishing to swap homes must have the permission of both landlords before they can move. Formal legal paperwork will need to be completed by all parties as part of the process.

What would happen if I moved without permission?

If you move without permission you will have lost security of tenure and could be evicted.

Will my tenancy change?

It might. It is essential that you understand that in swapping your home you are also taking on the tenancy of the person you are swapping with.

Local authority tenants usually have a Secure Tenancy with rights set out in Acts of Parliament. Housing association tenants are normally Assured tenants with similar rights to those set out in our Tenancy Agreement.

In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, tenancies are usually swapped by way of a “deed of assignment.” This means you effectively take over the existing agreement of the person you are swapping with. Different landlords may also have slightly different tenancy conditions.

If you want to swap homes with someone from another landlord you may wish to contact the landlord for a copy of their Tenancy Agreement so that you can compare them.

Will I pay the same rent?

You may have to pay slightly different rents and/or service charges. Please check with the new landlord.

Can my landlord refuse a swap?

There are grounds whereby your swap can be refused, this includes, but is not limited to the following:

• Either tenant has been served a Notice of Seeking Possession or legal proceedings have begun.
• Either home is adapted or designed to help a disabled tenant, and the new tenant doesn’t need this support.
• Either home is too large or too small for either tenant.

If you are in any doubt as to whether the swap can take place, please contact us for further advice. If your swap is refused you can appeal against the decision. We will give you information on independent advisors in Gloucester who can give you help and advice.

Can my landlord make my move conditional on me doing something first?

If you have broken your tenancy conditions we may only agree for you to swap homes, if you comply with them first.

This can include:

• Making sure your rent is fully paid up to date.
• Complying with other tenancy conditions if you have broken any of them.

Can I pay someone or receive money from someone in exchange for swapping?

No. If you give or receive money or goods to get a swap, you may be evicted or in some cases fined.

 Will any repairs or redecoration be done before swapping homes?

No. We do not do repairs just because you are moving or you have moved into a new home. We will do any repairs in line with our normal policy.

Redecoration is the tenant’s responsibility.

Applications for a mutual exchange must be made through our online portal called MyGCH.

If you have any queries regarding a mutual exchange, contact your Housing Officer.

We do not provide furniture, carpets or curtains when letting our homes.

If you receive benefits, we can tell you about organisations which may be able to help you buy them.

We know that more of you need your homes adapted to help you stay independent at home and to support your health and well-being.

We have an in-house Occupational Therapist who can assess tenants’ medical needs and recommend the adaptations needed in homes.

There are two types of adaptation work we can carry out

Minor work (funded by GCH)

May include:

• Grab bars
• Lever taps
• Additional stair rails
• Handrails
• Lowered light switches
• Raised electric sockets
• Specialist smoke alarms

Major work (Possible part-funding by GCH up to £1,000 and topped up with a Disabled Facilities Grant (DFG))

May include:

• Stairlifts
• Over bath showers
• Replacing baths with showers
• Ramps
• Vehicle hard standings
• Widened doors
• Ceiling tracks
• Mobility standard kitchens
• Extra WC/wash facilities and pods
• Adapted homes

There are certain circumstances where an adaptation to your property may not be suitable, for example putting in a level access shower in a 2nd-floor flat or the property construction means that it cannot be adapted. In these cases, we will discuss with you the alternative options.

If you think this type of work could help you please contact us.

If you want to end your tenancy you will need to let us know by completing a notice of termination.

You must give us at least four weeks’ termination notice in writing ending on a Sunday unless we agree to a notice ending on a different day.

You can submit a notice of termination online.

You will need to return all of the properties keys to our office (or any place we agree) on an agreed date. If you fail to return the keys at the end of your tenancy we may continue to charge use and occupation fees (equivalent to rent) until the keys are returned. If we have to change the locks of the property due to your failure to return the keys, we will charge you the costs of the replacement.

When you leave your home you must remove all furniture, personal possessions and rubbish and leave your home and our fixtures and fittings in good lettable condition and repair (subject to fair wear and tear). If you fail to comply with this condition you will be charged for disposal of rubbish and cleaning of your home.

We do not accept any responsibility for anything you leave at your home at the end of the tenancy.

Read our guide to moving out here.

Condensation can occur in any home and there are 3 main steps to take to prevent it from developing into dampness and mould.

Step 1 – Reduce the amount of moisture you produce.

Step 2 – Improve the ventilation in your home.

Step 3 – Keep your home well heated.

If you are confident that you have followed these three steps and are still facing issues with mould and damp, please contact us so that we can investigate.

Read our Leaflet below

We know it is important to keep the communal areas around and leading up to your home clean.

These are the cleaning standards for communal areas.

Communal areas will be cleaned weekly or fortnightly depending on the contractual arrangements in place for each block.

Our cleaning partners will clean:

General communal areas, stairways, and lifts to include sweeping, mopping and dusting.

Every 12 months our cleaning partners will:

• Clean outside communal stairwell windows on the first floor and above and soft furnishings e.g. curtains.
• Shampoo and dry all carpets in the 8 main sheltered schemes.

To help us maintain these standards, please help us by:

• Being careful about how you dispose of household waste.
• Keeping security doors closed.
• Reporting any repairs, damage or graffiti.
• Not dropping litter or dumping rubbish.
• Telling us if you are not satisfied with the standards in your neighbourhood.
• Keeping proper control of your pets.

As well as this, your tenancy conditions say that you must:

• Keep the common areas of your block clean and tidy. This includes staircases, landings, entrance halls, lifts and bin areas.
• Keep the areas clear of anything that might cause a hazard or block people’s access.

With your help, we intend to keep communal areas as clean as possible.

Visit our Dealing with pests page for a useful A-Z of common pests and advice on how to deal with them. Serious outbreaks or infestations will need to be dealt with by Gloucester City Council’s Environmental Health Team. You can call them on 01452 396396 or visit their website.

There are different types of court orders and we may use the below to manage our tenancies:

Suspended possession

This suspends the possession of your home based upon an agreement to pay your rent (for arrears) or change your behaviour (for anti-social behaviour). If you stick to what the court has ordered you to do then nothing else will happen. If you do not keep what the court has ordered, we can go back to the court and seek a possession order. You may then have to leave your home.

Immediate possession

We only ask the court for an immediate possession order where we cannot reach a sustainable agreement to clear your arrears, or your anti-social behaviour has not stopped. This means we can apply for a warrant to evict you from your home and do not need to wait.

Possession after a specified number of days

This is similar to an immediate possession order except that the court decides that we should wait a number of days until we can apply for an eviction warrant. If you still break the court order then we can continue with legal action.

If you have arrears from a former tenancy, you can make payments towards the debt in the normal way by contacting our Customer Experience team at Customer.Experience@gch.co.uk.

We will work with you to come to an arrangement for how you will pay us back the money that you owe us.

If we cannot agree on how you will pay your debt, we can take further action against you. We use a debt recovery agency to help us find people who have left a home without leaving a forwarding address or making an agreement to clear arrears and legal action can be undertaken.

IMPORTANT – If you have arrears on a former tenancy, it may stop you from beginning another tenancy with not only GCH but also other landlords.

A recharge is when we charge tenants for costs we incur when the work is due to their actions or behaviour. For example, we may have to carry out repairs to the property because the resident has neglected or caused damage to their home.

All work prices are based on the National Housing Federation’s Schedule of Rates and are fixed costs. Please bear in mind that we also charge for our time plus VAT and a 15% admin fee.

Please be aware that if we are called out and the work is no longer required we will still have to charge you for our call-out time.

We have 3 main types of tenancy.

A Starter Tenancy – This is a 12-month stater- tenancy for new tenants that become a tenant of GCH. If there are no problems during your starter tenancy, this will convert to an assured tenancy.
During this time, you are not eligible for mutual exchange or allowed to upgrade the property. Further to this, if there are any problems, we may look to end your tenancy with GCH.

An Assured Tenancy – this tenancy is for new tenants who complete their Starter Tenancy.

An Enhanced Assured Tenancy – this tenancy is for ex-Gloucester City Council tenants who became GCH tenants when their home’s ownership was transferred to GCH on 16th March 2015. This tenancy provides additional rights such as the right to buy and additional succession rights.

We have four types of repairs: Emergency, Urgent, Routine and Major Works.

Emergency

Your emergency will be attended within 24 hours. We will prioritise calls based on the nature of the emergency and the vulnerability of the customers living in the household.

An emergency is any defect that puts the health, safety or security of customers or anyone else at immediate risk. Emergencies also include defects that can affect the structure of the building. 

Urgent

Urgent repairs will be completed within 5 days. We will always try to see to your repair sooner rather than later.

Urgent repairs are problems that won’t put customers at risk or damage the property, for example a slow-running blocked sink. 

Routine

Non-emergency or routine repairs will be attended within 28 days. We will always try to see to your repair sooner rather than later.

Repairing or replacing a broken kitchen drawer for example, would be carried out under the ‘routine’ category.

Major Works

For major works that will take longer than two working days, we need more time to get all the labour and materials together. These will be completed within 56 days.

Customers will be given a job number, appointment details and the name who will be attending to do the repair such as PropertyCare or an external contractor. We will keep tenants updated on the progress of their repairs including any changes to an agreed appointment.

Customers are offered an appointment “slot”. These are defined as:

• • Morning 8am – 12 noon

• • Afternoon 12 noon – 5pm

• • Avoid school-run 10am – 2pm

We will aim to complete a first time fix wherever possible.

Inspections: If we need to inspect before repair work can be completed, then we will make an appointment with you when you report the repair to us.

Our Estate Services Team complete practical work to maintain your community and communal areas.

The Estate Services Team follow a 4-week schedule from Monday to Friday that covers Podsmead, Tuffley, Quedgeley, Matson, Robinswood, Barton and Tredworth, Westgate and Kingsholm and other smaller areas around the city. This means that each area is visited at least once per month.

The Estate Services team are responsible for:

• Check communal waste areas and remove excess bags from bins. This is so that they can be collected by the Council’s collections
• Removal of bulky items from communal areas if a health & safety/fire risk. If not a risk, items will be left in place and identified for recharge through Tenancy Services. 
  
  Flytipped items will not be removed for free
  
• Complete a litter pick of the area
• Areas of grounds maintenance not covered by Council contracts will be addressed, cut back and tidied. Some of these areas may necessitate a return visit in order to complete
• Check and maintain local alleyways and paths. Some may need more than one visit and work will continue on the next scheduled visit
• Check and maintain garage sites and compounds
• Record and report any other issues back to the relevant GCH team

Please note that we may recharge you for this service, if we find that you have caused the problem in the first place, such as dumping rubbish illegally.

You are responsible for replacing door locks or keys when keys are lost or broken, or you get locked out.

This includes window and garage keys.

In the event that you lose your keys, you should contact a local, reputable locksmith.

If you want someone to act on your behalf, you’ll need to give them Power of Attorney over your affairs. There are 2 types of lasting power of attorney, one for health & welfare and one for property and financial affairs. You can choose to make one type or both. GCH will only be able to act on the power of attorney if you have one for property and financial affairs

We can speak to this person on behalf of tenants if they wish to discuss payments, care needs or tenancy decisions and all we need is a copy of the form.

If you need to allocate someone to speak to us on your behalf you can also do this without Power of Attorney, however, you will need to submit a Consent to Share Form.

Decent Homes Standard

In 2000, the Government brought in rules about the quality of homes tenants rent from councils or housing associations. The standard is:

A decent home will be warm, weatherproof and have reasonably modern facilities.
These are the main things taken into account when deciding if a home meets the Decent Homes Standard. A decent home must:

• Be in reasonable repair
• Meet current legal housing standards
• Have reasonably modern facilities and services

This means at least 4 of the following:

• A kitchen that is no more than 20 years old
• A kitchen with adequate space and layout
• A bathroom that is no more than 30 years old
• A suitably located bathroom and toilet
• Adequate noise insulation
• Adequate space and layout in common areas of flats
• Be efficiently heated and effectively insulated

Gloucester Housing Standard

Working with our tenants we have developed a Gloucester Housing Standard. This provides better facilities than the basic Decent Homes Standard.

The standard includes:

• High-quality PVC double-glazed windows with secure locking handles
• No all-metal window
• Modern fitted kitchen units, also vinyl flooring, tiling and extractor fan
• A full heating system
• A modern fitted bathroom suite with extractor fan, vinyl flooring, tiling and redecoration
• High-quality, secure front and back doors with a choice of fittings
• Loft insulation, cavity-wall insulation and external insulation with rendering as appropriate
• Modern wiring including smoke detectors, plus electricity meters in an outdoor cabinet where possible
• Gardens that have been cleared and left tidy where required
• Good access, where possible, to external doors and staircase/doorway handrails where needed
• Footpaths and boundary fencing to front and rear gardens, with gates as required
• Off-street parking with paved access and a refuse/green bin storage area where possible
• A modern watertight roof

These government schemes help eligible council and housing association tenants in England to buy their homes with a discount. The longer you have been a tenant the more discount you are entitled to.  

If you were a GCH tenant before 16th March 2015 you may have the Right to Buy and could be eligible to receive a discount of up to £87,200. If you moved into the property after 16th March 2015 you may have The Right to Acquire and could receive a discount of up to £10,000. 

Please bear in mind that some homes cannot be bought and that there are exceptions. 

Am I entitled to the Right to Buy? 

If you have been a tenant of GCH since before the 16th of March 2015, you may have the Preserved Right to Buy. There are some exceptions so please contact us to check your eligibility.  

Please note that the Right to Buy is different on our brand-new properties. This is because we are unable to sell these for less than they cost to build. This rule applies for 15 years after the property is built. Please bear this in mind if you move from one of our existing properties to one of our new homes. 

You can find out more about buying your home from www.gov.uk

What is the Right to Acquire 

If your tenancy with GCH started after 16th March 2015, you will not have any Right to Buy. You may be entitled to the Right to Acquire your property though.

Am I entitled to the Right to Acquire? 

If you have become a tenant after 16th March 2015 and have a least 3 years of tenancy with any Public Sector Landlord, then you may have the Right to Acquire your home. You can contact us to check your eligibility. 

You can find out more about buying your home from www.gov.uk

If you have a water emergency in your home such as a burst pipe or  flooding:

• To stop flooding, turn the mains stoptap to the right (clockwise ↵) or press the surestop switch (if there is one).

• If you need to shut off the supply of water to a fitting, such as a toilet or basin, you can use the service valve on the pipe leading to it (if there is one fitted).
• After the water has been isolated, call our repairs team on 01452 424344

If you have no water at all coming into the property, call Severn Trent on 0800 783 4444

For any tenancy-related issues or questions please contact your Neighbourhood Manager. They will be able to put you in contact with a range of staff and agencies.

We also have in house teams including friendly Tenancy Sustainment Advisors who can help you with budgeting, payment options and benefits advice and also Enhanced Support Coaches who can assist you with a wide range of other support.

Your home has a permitted number of people who can live in it. This number is given in your Tenancy Agreement.

The number of people who should live in a home depends on:

• The number of rooms
• The size of the rooms
• The ages of the people who live there.

If you think you or your family are living in overcrowded conditions, please contact us or alternatively Gloucester City Council on 01452 396396 or heretohelp@gloucester.gov.uk​​ if you are overcrowded and require a move to bigger accommodation.