New team supporting council housing residents

A new team of Neighbourhood Officers are helping to improve our council housing areas.

The new officers are working in our housing teams and carrying out casework with residents in their homes and on our estates.

There will be 8 Neighbourhood Officers in total working across the city’s 4 housing areas, supporting the work of our housing teams to maintain tenancy conditions and ensure our homes and estates are pleasant places to live.

Supporting resident safety

A key focus will be supporting new safety responsibilities introduced in the Building Safety Act 2022 and Fire Safety (Residential Evacuation Plans) 2025 Act.

This includes introducing Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans (PEEPS) for residents in our 47 council-owned high-rise blocks who would have difficulties evacuating a building by themselves in the event of a fire.

The team will be carrying out tenancy visits to residents’ homes, advising on fire safety, checking on any support residents need.

Their work will also include estate inspections to spot any potential neighbourhood or tenancy issues, and make sure prompt action is taken to resolve them.

While out and about, the officers are linking up with resident groups to hear about any neighbourhood concerns.

This increased presence on our estates means issues can be identified early on, and the Neighbourhood Officers are already bringing results. This includes taking action to:

• remove drug litter and dumped rubbish
• clear overgrown communal areas
• resolve repairs and cleaning issues raised by residents or spotted on inspections
• help mediate between neighbours over noise complaints
• support vulnerable residents
• bid for funds for communal areas

Improving services

Councillor Gill Williams, Cabinet Member for Housing, said: “It’s great to have the new Neighbourhood Team in place supporting our work to improve services for residents and meet new regulatory requirements for council homes.

“Residents’ safety is our key priority and this will be a big focus of the team, alongside being out and about in our neighbourhoods.

“Our goal is to be a great landlord, providing safe, high-quality homes our tenants are proud to live in. This new team will be a great new resource to help us achieve that.”