Plymouth Community Homes News Issue 3 (1.4mb)

Repairs
For all repairs reporting and repairs
inquiries call the one number:
08082 306500
Issue 3 spring 2010
Did you know…
• Calls to Plymouth Community Homes’ 080 numbers are free from
a BT landline, for other networks please check with your provider.
• Our repairs call centre handles more than 8,000 calls a month.
• Our repairs call centre handles calls to Plymouth Community
Homes only. For enquiries to Plymouth City Council call them
direct on 01752 668000.
• We have a special reporting service for people with hearing
impairments. If you are hearing impaired you can text your repair
request to us on 07766 367330.
For emergency repairs (out of hours) call: 0800 917 9459
100 day
pledge
success
Other useful Plymouth Community Homes’
telephone numbers:
Useful Plymouth
City Council numbers:
To find out when new kitchens, doors, windows or other
programmed improvements will be installed, please call our
Contracts Team on 01752 307062
• Enquiries
(including waste)
01752 668000
• Devonport Housing Office
0800 917 9497
• Head Office
0800 694 3101
• Report fly tipping
01752 304147
• Estover Housing Office
0800 917 9496
• Resident Involvement Team
0800 917 9457
• Housing needs
01752 305496
16
• North Prospect
Housing Office
0800 917 9499
• Whitleigh Housing Office
0800 917 9498
• Leaseholders
01752 312531
• Sheltered Housing Team
0800 917 9452
• Rent payment by
debit /credit card
0800 917 9456
Plymouth
Community Homes
• Housing advice
01752 305950
• Anti-Social
Behaviour Unit
01752 307049
Important news for tenants and leaseholders

Peter Ebsworth
Welcome
Welcome to issue three of
Plymouth Community
Homes News.
In our last issue we gave you our 100 Day
Pledge, our promise about what we’d
achieve in our first 100 days as Plymouth
Community Homes. Now we’re bringing
you news about how we’re getting on with
delivering our promises, and I’m delighted
to tell you that we’re forging ahead (see
pages 6 and 7).
We hope you enjoy this issue, and we look
forward to bringing you more news about
our progress in the coming months.
New team of top
Directors is now
complete
Regular readers will know that over the last
nine months we’ve been recruiting for the
new team of Directors who will lead Plymouth
Community Homes into the future.
In November, we
completed the recruitment
and welcomed Sue Shaw,
Director of Housing and
Neighbourhoods. Sue joins
Plymouth Community
Homes from a strong
background in regulation
and housing management.
The new Directors making
up the Executive
Management Team for
Plymouth Community
Homes are:
Clive Turner
Chief Executive
Nick Jackson Director of Finance
Martin Snell
Gill Martin
Sue Shaw
The Tenant Services Authority
The Tenant Services Authority (TSA) is the new
regulator for all social housing landlords.
Many of you helped us to collect views about the TSA’s proposed new
standards for social housing, and the final version of the standards has just
been published.
You can find out more about the TSA and
about the standards at their website
www.tenantservicesauthority.org
or you can telephone 0845 230 7000.
Director of Property Services
Director of Corporate Services
Sue Shaw
Director of Housing and Neighbourhoods
Residents’ Conference
December
saw our first
Plymouth
Community
Homes’ Annual
Residents’
Conference.
Delegates took part in
a range of workshops
and saw presentations
including repairs,
mediation services and
the North Prospect
regeneration project.
One highlight of
the day was the
presentation of the
awards, which are
pictured here.
Plymouth Community
Homes’ Resident
Involvement
Team worked with
organisations like
Groundworks to
bring information
and freebies to the
conference.
Staff teams from across
Plymouth Community
Homes also came along
to run information
stands for tenants, on
everything from antisocial
behaviour to
repairs.
If you’d like to be
involved in future
events, call us to
register with our
Residents’ Involvement
Network, the Resident
Involvement Team is on
01752 306281.
Tenant Sallyann Ball was nominated for recognition by her neighbours, for the years of
work she’s done in her neighbourhood to improve the standard of living for people
around her, and for the partnership work she’s done to improve joint working between
agencies. Sallyann is no stranger to awards - she has been recognised by the highest
authorities at national level for her outstanding voluntary work in the community.
Sue Shaw, Director of Housing and
Neighbourhoods, presenting the staff
award for Resident Involvement to Dave
Bamber. Dave is a Team Leader in the
Contracts Department and was
nominated by tenants for his outstanding
customer service throughout 2009.
Doreen Edwards receiving her Annual
Tenants’ Award from Sue Shaw. Doreen
was nominated by staff for her years of
dedication to resident involvement,
particularly for work done in her local
neighbourhood and during the transfer
consultation.
2 3

Rents and service charges
As many of you know, the
Transfer Offer Document
that we released in 2008
included the promise that
rents would continue to be
set in the same way as with
the Council. We’re sticking
to that.
So, that means that rents are
increased each year by inflation plus
0.5%, plus no more than £2 a week.
Individual rent changes will vary but
on average rents will reduce by
around 0.6% from April.
On average the rents are the second
lowest housing association rents in
the country.
Garage rents and parking site charges
will increase by 1%, which is between
2p and 25p a week.
The Plymouth Community Homes’
Board has agreed that service charges
Bogus Callers
Your local neighbourhood
policing team would like to
remind all residents to be
vigilant when dealing with any
callers to their homes.
Please always ask for identification, and make
a telephone call to the company concerned if
you have any doubts. It’s better to be safe
than sorry.
from April will mainly be kept at the
current level – with the only increases
being the changes approved by the
Council before transfer.
Service charges are made to tenants
where they have access to services
such as caretaking, TV aerials,
communal rooms and grounds
maintenance.
The service charges made by the
Council did not cover the cost of
services. This means that rent paid by
tenants, who do not have these
services, is being used to cover some
of the costs.
The Board has already agreed this is
not a fair approach, and that a full
review of the costs and charges
should be carried out. Any large
changes to charges would be
phased in so that increases are
reasonable.
As explained in the new tenancy
agreement the method of calculating
service charges has now changed
from a fixed to a variable basis.
We have now sent out the rent and
service charge notices for next year
with a leaflet of Frequently Asked
Questions to help explain some of the
changes.
We will be publishing further
information later in the year.
Gas service appointments
Plymouth Community
Homes will continue to
offer free gas servicing to
tenants and we have the
responsibility for keeping
gas installations safe. The
law says we must service
gas installations at least
once a year.
We’ve changed the way we deal with gaining access to properties
to service gas installations. In future if we haven’t been able to get
into your property after a number of attempts, we’ll be seeking
injunctions from the County Court in an attempt to get the gas
service done.
We need to do this because an unserviced appliance is a danger to
neighbours and neighbouring properties.
Not complying with the Court Order could result in imprisonment
and you could be charged over £150 in court costs.
Call us with any enquiries about your gas service appointment on
01752 304693.
SHELTERED HOUSING NEWS
Welcome Joyce!
Joyce Hills is the first sheltered
housing tenant with Plymouth
Community Homes – she signed her
tenancy on Monday 30th November
last year.
Joyce was brought up in Bristol but moved to
Plymouth with her husband, who found work
at the dockyards, in 1946. She has vivid
memories of war time when she brought up a
young child on rations.
Joyce, aged 90, said: “I made really good
friends when I moved to Plymouth; people
were so kind to me. When I visited Bristol, I
always wanted to come back to Plymouth.”
Before moving to Plymouth Community
Homes’ Innes House, Joyce lived by the
railway at Laira and recently found the hill to
her house far too exhausting. She didn’t
always feel safe at home and her son had some
distance to travel when visiting.
Now that she’s in sheltered housing she feels
that all her worries have gone away and also
feels much safer. She was worried that she
would fall at home and no-one would find her.
Joyce added: “I feel like I’m on holiday! Felicity,
the Sheltered Housing Officer, has been so
kind and given me lots of help. Now that I’m
here my son has peace of mind. It’s a new start
for me, a new era at Innes House.”
Through rain, wind and snow
Joyce Hills with her new Tenants Handbook
A massive delivery programme to Plymouth Community Homes’ tenants across
the city means more than 14,000 brand new Tenants Handbooks have been
hand-delivered to tenants. Staff from Housing Offices battled through rain,
wind and even snow to get the new handbooks out quickly. We hope you find
your handbook useful and attractive!
4 5

We have delivered our 100 day pledge
Mrs Smith from Wasdale Gardens chose red for her
front door. She said: “It is brilliant, and I’m over the
moon with the security features, especially the chain
and spyhole.”
Plymouth Community Homes has kept all of its
‘100 day’ promises made to tenants when it
launched last autumn.
And it has exceeded targets on a range of actions
designed to make a lasting difference to tenants’
homes, estates and lives.
Plymouth Community Homes has:
3 Installed over 700 brand new high security front and
back doors (target 100)
3 Installed 205 new high efficiency heating systems
(target 100)
Chief Executive, Clive Turner, said: “Tenants voted
for Plymouth Community Homes to be created on
the basis of these promises made to them. We have
worked hard to make sure their faith is well placed.
We want to let them know how we’ve done so far.
“It’s about more than bricks and mortar. A high
security door is about feeling safe in your home; a
website is about us knowing about your needs and a
uniform is about pride and trust in what we do. That’s
why these promises matter.
Linda Litchfield, Housing and Neighbourhoods
Manager, co-ordinated the development of the new
Tenants Handbook. She said: “We have listened to
what residents and tenants said they wanted and
have put it in the handbook. We already know from
feedback that people are finding it helpful. And if it
means we’re closer to knowing what our customers
need, it’s a big step forward.”
3 Installed 103 new high quality kitchens (target 100)
“This is a great start for us, but we’re not for one
second complacent about the challenge ahead. We
have the opportunity to make a lasting difference to
people’s lives. Our tenants and residents deserve
that and the team here are determined to do all they
can to make it happen.”
Mr Taylor from Harwell Street has had new heating.
He said: “It’s a lovely system. The boiler is good and
so is the hot water. I’m a carpenter by trade and I
couldn’t have asked for it to be better fitted.”
Kim Taylor, Housing and Neighbourhoods Officer,
said: “The Money Tree Fund is making things happen.
Residents are best placed to know what is needed
in their neighbourhoods and this is their chance for
change.”
Len White, Building Works Manager, said: “All our
guys are gifted and have loads of skills to offer. By
introducing multi-skilling, it means we can streamline
our offer to customers.”
3 Installed 113 new bathrooms and showers
(target 100)
3 Launched a brand new website for Plymouth
Community Homes, with online rent payment and
repairs reporting options
3 Launched multi-skilled repairs operating
3 Launched the £2 million a year Money Tree Fund,
see page 12 for details of some of our first projects
3 Provided 100% of uniformed staff with brand new
Plymouth Community Homes’ uniforms
3 Introduced a fleet of Plymouth Community Homes’
repairs vans
3 Held the first planning for real event for North
Prospect residents
Tenant Peter Ebsworth, Plymouth Community
Homes’ Chair of the Board, added: “Our new
organisation is about affordable housing in the city
and a bright new future for tenants.
“Our first 100 days has exceeded expectations. But
we’re about real and lasting change, not just for
today’s tenants but for tomorrow’s generation of
tenants too. We’re in for the long run!”
Mum-of-two Sallyann Ball, from Stonehouse,
attended the joint staff and tenant Continuous
Improvement Group in February. She said: “I see
these groups being about tenants getting their
views over. Staff need to know how their decisions
affect the lives of people like us on the ground.”
Leaseholder Sheila Cooper, from the Barbican, also
attended the group. She added: “My hope for these
groups is that they will keep a finger on the pulse and
cover issues that really matter.”
3 Produced and distributed a new Plymouth
Community Homes’ Tenants Handbook to more than
14,000 tenants
3 Introduced regular programmed estate inspections –
more than 275 have taken place across the city in the
first 100 days
3 Held the first meeting of the joint staff and tenant
Continuous Improvement Group in February with
56 tenants, residents and staff attending
3 Talked with residents of its 11 sheltered housing
schemes about improvements to their communal
areas
Plymouth Community Homes is set to invest
£168 million on improving our tenants’ homes in
the next five years and will spend £1 billion over
30 years to ensure homes are kept up to standard in
the future.
The Royal Bank of Scotland has provided a £110
million funding package and the Homes and
Communities Agency has invested up to £161 million
in support of this investment.
Beci Pope, Sheltered Housing Manager, has been
carrying out consultation about improvements in the
sheltered schemes. She said: “Something like curtains
or decorations can sound small, but if you are vulnerable
or confined to your home, those things become
incredibly important.”
6 7

Here we introduce you to the
Neighbourhood Policing Team for Whitleigh
The team is based in Crownhill Police Station
and consists of PC Faye Webb, PCSO Ele Gould
and PCSO Kristy Monk and covers approximately
8,000 residents.
The Whitleigh Neighbourhood Policing Team work closely
with residents and local partners (such as Plymouth
Community Homes and the Council etc) to reduce the
types of crime and disorder that worry you most. We
want to make you feel safe, confident and secure in your
neighbourhood.
We arrange frequent meetings with the community and
partners to determine what issues are affecting you and
how we plan to tackle them. Information about these
meetings can be found on posters placed in shops,
schools, doctor’s surgeries, for example, within the
community and also on our neighbourhood website. The
link to the website can be found at the bottom of this
article.
Please do not hesitate to speak to us at anytime, especially
when you see us on the streets of Whitleigh.
TV Licensing has teamed up
with Plymouth Community
Homes to raise awareness in
the city of the need to have a
TV licence.
The campaign highlights the wide
range of languages in which TV
Licensing’s information is available,
as well as ways in which the cost of
the TV licence can be spread.
TV Licensing wants to help
everyone to understand the law. If
you are caught watching TV without
being correctly licensed, you risk
prosecution and a fine of up to
£1,000.
A new cash payment scheme
means you can make small weekly
or fortnightly payments towards the
cost of your licence. You can also
check your balance and change
your details online at
www.tvlicensing.co.uk/
cashplans or by text message.
Transactions are quick and simple,
making it more straightforward to
manage your payments. You can still
choose to pay over the counter or
by phone – an automated service is
available 24 hours a day.
TV Licensing would always prefer
people to buy a licence rather than
risk prosecution and a fine, which is
why we offer a range of ways to pay.
You can also spread the cost using
monthly or quarterly Direct Debit,
which can be set up online, by debit
or credit card over the phone or
online, over the counter at any
PayPoint outlet or by putting a
cheque in the post.
Remember, if you are over 75, or are
living with someone who is over 75,
the licence is free.
If you would like help finding the
payment method that’s best for you,
please visit
www.tvlicensing.co.uk/info or
call us on 0300 790 6112.
There are numerous ways to contact us, by telephone on
08452 777 444, by email
faye.webb@devonandcornwall.pnn.police.uk
eleanor.gould@devonandcornwall.pnn.police.uk
and kristy.monk@devonandcornwall.pnn.police.uk
at Crownhill Police Station (if we are available) and via the
website.
PC Faye Webb and PCSO Kristy Monk
TV Licensing speaks your language to help spread the cost
TV Licensing also tries to help with
leaflets available in 19 different
languages, and with 16 different
language pages on its website,
www.tvlicensing.co.uk, including
French, Polish, Portuguese, Russian,
Spanish, Arabic, Bengali, Hindi,
Cantonese, Greek, Gujurati, Urdu,
Punjabi, Somali, Turkish, and Welsh.
If you would like to speak to TV
Licensing in your own language, we
offer a translation service in over
150 languages. The translation
service is available by calling
0300 790 6044.
Explain to the TV Licensing adviser
that you require an interpreter and
the language you speak. The word
‘interpreter’ is universal and will be
understood by the adviser
immediately. The TV Licensing
adviser will contact the interpreting
service, and set up a three-way
conversation with you, the relevant
interpreter, and the adviser.
The Fed Page
News and Views from Plymouth’s tenants’ federation
LIVING THE DREAMSCHEME
Dreamscheme is something we talk about a lot on this
page, and we make no apologies for that, because we
think it is a scheme that all communities could and
should benefit from. For those who don’t know about it,
Dreamscheme encourages and supports young people
to carry out tasks and projects within their community
for which they receive points that buy rewards. But it’s
not just about the young people. The rest of the
community can get involved too: by suggesting or
organising tasks; working alongside young people on
their tasks; or joining in the trips and other activities.
Tel: 254440
www.plymfed.org.uk
There’s always room
for a few little horrors
on the Stonehouse
Dreamscheme
The main scheme we are currently supporting is in Stonehouse, based around Flora Court. Following
the success of their summer project, residents were keen to carry on organising events and activities.
As reported in the last issue, they organised a multi-cultural Halloween disco, which they followed up
with an equally successful Christmas Party. The young people made Christmas cards and decorations
sang carols and organised the disco. Both events also gave residents the chance to socialise with
families from different cultures, and the whole experience has given residents the sense that
community spirit is thriving once more. Needless to say, everyone is now looking forward to organising
the next event.
We should also mention the support provided by Stonehouse Neighbourhood Management, the Youth
Service and the estate’s two landlords, DCHA and PCH. Good partnership working is essential to the
success of Dreamscheme, as its important to keep red tape to a minimum while ensuring that activities
are organised in a safe and legal manner. So far, we seem to have got the balance about right.
How do we see Dreamscheme’s future? It’s early days yet, but we’re committed to supporting it as part
of our Community Focus approach. It’s a great way to help communities help themselves: they decide
what needs doing; they get to have fun doing it; and their community becomes a better place as a
result.
We have already had a lot of interest from across the city, and there are a few possible new projects
in the pipeline. For Dreamscheme to take off on a large scale, though, it’s going to need plenty of
support and funding, which is why we’ve joined forces with other groups across the region to look at
setting up a South West Dreamscheme Network. We’ll keep you posted on how that develops.
Meanwhile, if you want to talk to us about the possibilities in your area, contact Agnes Cioffi on
254440.
THE BLUE PETER DOG IS NO LONGER WITH US
When our founders gave us the name PETRA, little did they realise how much fun people would
get from associating us with the Blue Peter dog of the same name. Sorry to spoil your fun, but
we’ve decided that from now on we will be called Plymfed, short for Plymouth Federation. It
doesn’t change what we do, but it might help people understand better who we are. We shall see.
Who are we? We are the independent body, run by residents for residents, that provides a voice
8
9

LEASEHOLDER News
Teaming up with Respect
Leaseholders and
service charge
invoices
Here is important information if you are
currently paying a leasehold invoice to
Plymouth City Council.
The ownership of all the City Council’s residential properties passed
to Plymouth Community Homes in November 2009.
On 1 April 2010 any service charge invoices, which were sent to
leaseholders for payment by the City Council but which have not
yet been fully paid will also be transferred to Plymouth Community
Homes.
As a result, it is very important that leaseholders do not make any
service charge payments to Plymouth City Council after 31st March
2010. Payments after this date need to be made to Plymouth
Community Homes. The City Council has informed us that if they
receive any service charge payment after this date that they will
simply return it to the leaseholder who made it.
If you are currently paying an invoice by regular instalments, you
should have received a letter recently from Plymouth Community
Homes’ Leasehold Section giving you details on how to make future
payments. If you have not received a letter about this yet, or if you
received an invoice from Plymouth City Council and have not yet
paid this, please contact the Leasehold Section immediately to
ensure that any payments that you make in the future will be
correctly applied to your invoice.
Any questions?
We are currently working on a new improved
Residential Leasehold Handbook. One of the
items that we would like to include is a list of
Frequently Asked Questions together with their
answers.
If you have a question that you would like to be considered for
inclusion, please contact our Leasehold Section on
01752 312531 or 01752 307896.
Please do not
make any service
charge payments
to Plymouth City
Council after
31st March 2010
as the City
Council will
simply return the
payment to you.
Over the years, the Plymouth Respect
Festival has grown into a huge colourful
celebration of the city’s diverse cultures.
As part of the festival, ‘Housing with Respect’ organised a day at
Horizons sailing school for 30 young residents.
Plymouth Community Homes teamed up to make sure that some
of our young tenants were involved in the day.
Young people from a range of backgrounds came together to look
at equality and diversity through discussion and activities. The
young people made new friends, learned new sailing skills and had
a chance to see the magnificent views around the Sound from
different points on the water, which were quite spectacular!
The pictures show some of the young people using their new skills
to sail up the Tamar estuary.
Resident involvement
network (RIN)
The RIN is a list of tenants and
leaseholders who want more
information about, and like to
comment on, Plymouth Community
Homes’ services and consultations.
They also have invites to events and
meetings.
Currently there are 284 residents on the RIN and up until
recently only 2% had a Black and Minority Ethnic (BME)
background.
To increase the number of BME tenants on the RIN both
the Resident Involvement Team and the Racial Equality
Council held a BME tenant workshop in the summer.
Photograph Copyright: Housing With Respect
All BME tenants were invited and 29 tenants and their
families attended. A summary of the workshops were
then sent to all BME tenants and now 10% of tenants on
the RIN have a BME background.
To follow up on this success, in the spring the Resident
Involvement Team will be working to increase the number
of young tenants on the RIN.
Only 1% of tenants on the RIN are under 25 which is very
low given that 6% of all tenants are under 25.
If you are a tenant under the age of 25 and would like to
know more about the RIN or how else to get involved
please contact the Resident Involvement Team on
01752 306281 or email
deborah.beadle@plymouthcommunityhomes.co.uk
10
11

The Money Tree Fund
The Money Tree Fund is a special pot of
money set up by Plymouth Community
Homes to help support people to
improve their area, making it look
better and feel safer, and bringing
people together.
It’s about improving neighbourhoods, outdoor and
green spaces, as well as generally benefitting the health
and welfare of our tenants.
Residents at New Zealand House, in Stoke, have
already had nine extra parking spaces meaning they
can park nearer to their homes.
At Tamar House, Tavy House and Lynher House,
residents now have new slip resistant flooring or
‘treads’ in the lobbies and stairwells, making their
home environment safer.
Bids for further projects have been coming into the
Fund from across the city. Staff have discussed many of
the requests with residents, looking at which ones
would add most value to communities.
Panels have been set up to consider the bids and
prioritise what work will start over the next 12 months.
Keyham Road car park
Over the past few years, many residents have
complained about the poor state of the car park at the
rear of the flats, in Keyham Road. The problem was
highlighted as a priority by local residents at meetings
but, previously, lack of funds meant work was not
possible.
The Money Tree Fund
The project was put forward to the Money Tree Fund
and approved, and work will begin shortly. This means
the car park will no longer be a liability to cars or, more
importantly, to residents.
Devonport
Clive Turner, Chief Executive
Work started on 21st January on environmental
improvements to the communal courtyard behind the
flats at Albany and Queen Street, in Devonport.
The project involves landscaping and paving the
courtyard area and setting up perimeter fencing.
Security for residents is one of the key elements of the
project. As well as the fencing, there will be new door
entry systems at the back and front, and back porches
will be enclosed.
Dave Brown, Resident Board Member of the
Regeneration Community Partnership Board, said: “We
are really pleased to support this worthwhile project,
which will give many Devonport residents a better
environment and improved security.”
To apply for the fund, you can pick up an
application form at any local housing office or get
one from Plymouth Community Homes’ website
at www.plymouthcommunityhomes.co.uk
Annual gardening
competition
Plymouth Community Homes is
committed to continuing the
popular annual gardening
competition organised by the
Resident Involvement Team.
We’re always looking for new gardening stars –
whether yours is a tiny window box, a green
garden, or a communal area. Pictured is young
gardener Chris Skinner, a 2009 award winner.
For details about the competition please call
Hazel or Kaye from the Resident Involvement
Team on 0800 917 9457.
Garden Safety
We see some fantastic
gardens at Plymouth
Community Homes’ properties
across the city, and we love to
encourage your green ideas.
But we also want you to stay
safe while you’re gardening.
So remember some basics – keep
dangerous liquids and chemicals locked
away, use circuit breakers (residual
current devices or RCDs) for all electrical
equipment you use outside and keep
petrol for lawnmowers locked in a safe
place away from your home.
You’ll find lots of safety information on
our website:
www.plymouthcommunityhomes.co.uk
and your new Tenants Handbook contains
a home safety leaflet.
Spring into action by
Stepping into Nature
Winter blues and cabin fever? Why
not shake them off this spring in your
local park or nature reserve.
Stepping Stones to Nature is a new, four
year project funded by the Big Lottery
Access to Nature programme, to
encourage Plymouth people to get healthy
by using the local natural spaces on their
doorstep for walking, cycling, playing,
art and learning.
The first year’s activities have already
started in Forder Valley (Leigham/
Mainstone) and Woodland Wood
(Honicknowle/Whitleigh) nature reserves,
Efford Valley and Ham Woods.
Working with schools, youth and community groups and
local residents, we aim to make it safer and easier to get
into and around the sites. By providing natural play
features such as climbing logs and den making frames,
we’ll also make them more playful and provide areas for
families to relax and picnic.
Over the next few years there will be a range of activities
to get involved in. You can take part in practical
conservation, nature walks, participate in or help to run
activities and events, even set up a ‘friends group’ to
encourage the use of your own local park or open space.
For more information and to find out about events in your
area, visit our website www.plymouth.gov.uk/
steppingstones
To get involved, contact the project team, Zoe Goss or
Jemma Sharman on 01752 307849 or email
steppingstones@plymouth.gov.uk
12
13

Plymouth Community Homes minded
to help through more support
Did you know that Plymouth Community Homes is putting in place extra
support to help its tenants who have mental health problems?
The term mental health covers a wide range of
problems which affects someone’s ability to get on
with their usual day to day life.
Mental health problems can affect anyone, of any
age or background as well as having an effect on the
people around them such as family, friends and
carers.
In fact on average, one in four people will
experience some kind of mental health problem in
the course of a year.
Most people recover well from a mental health
problem. Long-term problems can lead to
considerable difficulty in people’s lives but many
people find ways of managing their problems and
are able to lead active lives.
Plymouth MIND is an independent charity which
offers many different services to people with a
mental health problem.
One example is the Plymouth MIND STEPPING
OUT project, which helps people continue living
independently in their own home.
The project can help find practical solutions to any
number of problems and can also help with raising
self esteem and confidence.
The phone number for MIND STEPPING OUT is
01752 513690
Or you might want to get in touch with MIND Oasis,
a friendly safe place where people with mental
health problems can meet and find support.
The phone number for MIND Oasis is
07752 254004
If you think that you, or someone you know needs
help with mental health problems, please pick up
the phone and use these numbers.
North Prospect regeneration project
The massive regeneration
project for North Prospect
is gathering pace with a
number of recent events
and meetings for residents
and more planned over the
coming months.
If you’d like to find out more about what’s
happening call Plymouth Community
Homes North Prospect Team on
01752 398303.
Contact the local North Prospect
Partnership on 01752 558294.
Visit Plymouth
Community Homes online
You can find out more about Plymouth Community Homes at:
www.plymouthcommunityhomes.co.uk
You can pay your rent online and report repairs on the site,
which also features online comments and
complaints forms, an events
diary, job vacancies and
latest news features.
Visit Plymfed
online
Plymfed supports the development of
individual tenants and residents
associations and provides a
representative voice on behalf of
Plymouth Community Homes’ tenants.
Visit Plymfed’s website to find out what
the organisation does and how you can
get involved. You’ll also find the latest
news about the issues most affecting
tenants and leaseholders.
www.plymfed.org.uk
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