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Promoting Equality of Housing Services – Happy to Translate
We recently held a joint multi-cultural event with Ochil View Housing Association, at Raploch Community Campus, raising awareness of our Happy to Translate (HTT) pioneering language service.
Guests from Black and Minority Ethnic groups, Stirling & Clackmannan Councils, Central Scotland Police and the Central Scotland Racial Equality Council, heard speakers explain Happy to Translate: a service which ultimately overcomes language barriers, and enables good customer service to be provided to all, whatever their nationality.
Staff have been trained to use the Happy to Translate toolkit and intranet. This enables staff to determine the language spoken by the customer and the services required. Point pages can be downloaded from the intranet, and these enable customers and staff are able to have a conversation and most importantly, understand each other.
Priscilla Maramba, Central Scotland Racial Equality Council said: “It is important to have initiatives like Happy to Translate which help effective communication and promote access to information, and services to all.”
Guests were entertained by Indian and Chinese Dancers. Students from Raploch Community Campus prepared a buffet reflecting the nationalities in attendance.
Rohini Sharma Joshi, Housing Equal Opportunities Manager, HTT, said: “It has been great to work with Forth and Ochil View on this multi-cultural partnership event. Forth and Ochil View are building links and trust with communities, through initiatives like HTT, and are demonstrating they are organisations which value diversity.”
A Very Happy New Year and Welcome Back!
Hope you had a great time over the Christmas Holiday. The Committee and Staff would like to wish you a very Happy New Year and All Very Best in 2010.
Over this cold spell please take reasonable precautions to protect the water supply pipes inside your home from frost damage. You are responsible for ensuring that your home is adequately heated to ensure pipes do not freeze. For more information please refer to your Tenant Handbook, Page 2.6. This page also provides information on what to do if you have a burst pipe.
AGM 21st Celebrations!
Monday 7th September 2009 saw our members and guests gathering at the Raploch Community Campus to celebrate 21 years of success.
The Annual General Meeting looked back over a very successful 12 months during which a healthy operating surplus was achieved and we invested savings in our existing homes.
2008/09 was a year when we achieved site starts on many new homes, completed two new housing developments and invested money in improving our existing homes, with new kitchens and central heating boilers.
However, this year’s AGM was also an opportunity to look back on 21 years since Forth was founded. Those present enjoyed a presentation looking at key points over the past 21 years. Also highlighted were the contributions of an original committee member, staff member, and two tenants who remain with us today, but started out as the original tenants of our first development at Colquhoun Street.
Annual Gas Safety Checks
We have a legal duty to ensure that gas appliances and flues which we provide for tenants' use are maintained in a safe condition at all times.Therefore, we are required to complete a Landlord Annual Service Inspection within each 12 month period. Our Contractor, Stirling Council Housing Services (SCHS) will carry out a programme of service inspections. Please click here for your service inspection date.
Gas Safety Register
If you are looking to have someone to fix or install a gas appliance, then make sure that the contractor is on the new Gas Safe Register. The new register replaced the CORGI standard on 1st April 2009, meaning only Gas Safe engineers can legally install gas appliances, boilers, hobs, ovens or fires in your home. Please click here for more information.
Points of View Card Winner
Congratulations!!! to Catherine Johnston for returning her Points of View Card and winning a £25 voucher during October to December 2009!!!
HomeSwapper News
If you are a Forth tenant you may be able to find someone to exchange houses with using HomeSwapper. We have recently joined HomeSwapper which is a mutual exchange matching web site. Our tenants can now register with HomeSwapper free of charge and get information about tenants in the Stirling area who want to exchange houses, as well as details of people wanting to move here from outside the area.
For more information about HomeSwapper visit their website at www.homeswapper.co.uk or refer to the Thinking of Moving/HomeSwapper section of our website.
Polmaise Partnership
A site start ceremony at Polmaise Farm Cambusbarron recently marked the benefits of Forth’s partnership approach.
By working with Stirling Council and Persimmon Homes we have been able to get £2.6m of additional grant funding from the Scottish Government. This when combined with a £1.4m mortgage will allow us to build an extra 34 homes at Clayhills Drive, Cambusbarron.
Gordon Mason, Forth’s Chairperson, was joined on the day by Councillor MacPherson and Tony Cain of Stirling Council and Colin Connell of Persimmon Homes. Thanks to this contract Persimmon will be able to provide continuity of employment for construction workers.
Forth‘s 500th Home
The completion of Forth Housing Association’s (FHA) five hundredth home for rent was some good news for its new tenants.
Mr & Mrs Jamieson, who recently moved into their Cambusbarron home, described it as :“The first bit of luck the family has had for years”. Prior to moving the family had lived in tied accommodation, related to Mr Jamieson’s employment. Unfortunately, the dampness and general disrepair affected Mr Jamieson’s health. The central heating and comfort of their new home, have already brought health improvements.
Marking the completion of this milestone in FHA’s development, Gordon Mason, Chairperson, highlighted :“We are delighted that we’ve been able to provide over 500 quality homes for rent in and around Stirling and it is very rewarding to see people such as the Jamieson’s benefiting so obviously”. Mr Mason continued by saying: “FHA has begun a period of marked growth. We expect to reach six hundred homes within a year. Moreover, thanks to our collaboration with Stirling Council and the Raploch URC, FHA could double in size within 5 years”.
Leaving the last word to the Jamieson’s, Mrs Jamieson proudly stated: “If I won the lottery tomorrow I wouldn’t move. The whole family feel like they’ve won a watch!”
For more details on rented housing with FHA, telephone 01786 446066 or log on to www.forthha.org.uk.
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