Keeping your home in good condition
We aim to provide a friendly and prompt repairs service where work is carried out to a good standard with minimum inconvenience to you. We have a dedicated contractor who will carry out most maintenance work to your home, they will wear uniform and carry ID.
Always ask to see ID when someone calls at your home. On occasions there may be certain work or checks that our main contractor cannot complete and may need to use an alternative specialist contractor.
We aim to inform you of this wherever possible, but if it is an emergency we may not be able to. If you want to check the identity or details of any contractor please contact customer services.
When we first let you your home we will have provided it to you in a condition that we expect you, and us, to maintain.
It is our responsibility under the tenancy agreement to keep:
- The exterior of your home and its basic structure in good repair
- Installations such as central heating, water heating and the supply of gas and electricity in good working order
- Common areas in reasonable repair, reasonable decoration, and fit for use
- The exterior of the property in a good state of decoration
It is your responsibility to:
- Report the need for repairs to your home as soon as possible.
- Take care of your home and to make sure that you, members of your household and visitors do not damage or misuse it.
- Repair or replace anything in your home that you or anyone else has either damaged or not taken proper care of. This includes:
- Windows, doors, locks and keys
- Washbasins, bath, WC pan and seat
- Kitchen units and worktops
- Utility meters and meter boxes
- Repair or replace anything in your home or garden that you fitted or installed, or that was 'gifted' to you, or you took responsibility for when you moved in.
- Ensure the condition of your home does not deteriorate because of carelessness or general neglect, this includes condensation caused by the way you are living in your home, or hoarding.
- Keep the inside of your home in good decorative condition.
- Carry out minor maintenance tasks such as: change lightbulbs or strip lights, replace tap washers, replace shower hoses and curtains.
Under the terms of your tenancy agreement with us, we ask that you do not paint the exterior of your home or any internal fixtures or fittings such as kitchen units and windows. If you have a garden we expect you to keep your garden, hedges, walls and fences maintained, please do not make any structure changes, without first consulting us.
We may charge you for fixing a problem with your home or garden it if it was caused by neglect or misuse by you, your household or your visitors.
Any damage caused by the emergency services, for example, in forcing entry to your home, may be recharged to you depending on the circumstances. We will consider each case individually.
Access to your home may be required immediately in an emergency, for example: if a leak is causing damage or threatening someone’s safety. Should we be unable to gain access in an emergency we may need to force entry into your home.
Tenant repair responsibilities:
You are responsible for the following repairs to your home:
- Decoration in your home.
- Boundary fences between you and your neighbours.
- Ventilating the property so as to avoid excessive condensation.
- Replacing glass (where damage has been caused by the tenant, another member of the household or visitor – if the damage is claimed to be criminal, a crime number must be provided).
- Replacement locks after keys have been lost, stolen or damaged.
- Door locks and door furniture inside your home.
- All internal doors.
- Toilet seats.
- Sink and bath plugs.
- Gas cookers, connections and other appliances you have fitted.
- Electric cookers, connections and other appliances you have fitted, including the pipework to your washing machine, dishwasher and tumble dryer.
- Gas leaks on your own appliances.
- Electrical trips or requiring fuses.
- Fuses to appliances or replacing lamps or bulbs.
- Smoke detector batteries.
- Replacing lost, or damaged wheelie bins.
- Keeping the property free from vermin, including ant and wasp nests, fleas, bugs, mice and rats.
- Television, telephone and IT connections and aerials (unless you live in accommodation that provides these connections as part of a Council communal system).
- Unblock wastes to sinks, wash basins, baths, showers and toilets.
- Keeping grates, grids, drains and gullies clean and clear.
Council housing repair responsibilities:
- Carrying out an annual Gas Safety check and service of every gas, or solid fuel heating system.
- Maintaining the outside of your home - including chimneys, roofs, drains, gutters, outside pipes, outside doors and windows, including their frames, external decoration.
- Repairing some parts inside your home - including plaster work (excluding minor surface cracks), internal plumbing, power and lighting, carpentry such as floors and stairs (but not kitchen / bathroom units or cupboards).
- Repairing the area around your home, the front path or steps leading to your home and any shared areas of the building your home may be part of.
- Maintaining communal door entry systems, communal TV/satellite systems, lifts, stairwells, windows and doors, if you live in a flat.
From time to time the council housing service may want to carry out works to your home that will improve it, such as installing more energy efficient measures. It is our responsibility to ensure that council homes are safe, secure and well maintained now and in the future.
If we contact you about updating your home to make it more energy efficient we will ensure you are consulted fully before this important work commences.